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Marketing Report and Recommendation for Dr. Martens Footwear Company

To compete in the current global market, companies must use the digital market because

of its unprecedented capabilities relative to traditional marketing strategies. Digital marketing

provides businesses with opportunities to engage their audience, such that they must tailor their

marketing and design products consistent with the characteristics and preferences of consumers.

Market analysis is necessary for firms to know how they could maximize digital marketing

within their marketing activity. This report is intended for the Marketing Director of Dr.

Martens, a footwear company based in the United Kingdom. It provides the company’s

background, identifies its current product offering and the target market segments, and explains

how it applies the concepts of the marketing mix. It also includes a reflection of the current

marketing activities concerning the relevant marketing theory.

Background

Dr. Martens Footwear Company started during the World War II when medical doctor, Formatted: Indent: First line: 0.5"

Klaus Martens, and an engineer, Herbert Funk, collaborated to design rehabilitation shoes. A

skiing accident, which Dr. Martens experienced, inspired the idea of making shoes for Munich

women (Dr. Martens par.5). The two designed the shoe to promote rehabilitation and provide

comfort for the target customers. In 1959, a family shoe company called R. Griggs Group Ltd

bought patent rights to the brand after learning about the company from an advertisement in

some print magazine. Griggs made some changes in the design of the shoe and produced the first
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pair of boots in April 1960, and called it “1460’s” after the date it completed the first pair. By the

year-end, the company’s shoe sales attained roughly £250, 0000 (R Griggs Group Limited

History). Initially, the shoe was mainly made for postmen and factory workers. In the 1960s, the

British workers were its main consumer segment until the 1970s when the shoes gained

popularity among young individuals. Particularly, musicians preferred the shoes because of their

resilience for the bands’ aggressive stage activities. The shoe design embodied youthful revolt

and expressed an uneasy fashion statement characteristic of the youth subcultures in Britain then.

By the end of the 1980s, the Grunge music genre emerged and sparked a new interest in the shoe

brand across a broader consumer base. The shoes gained international popularity when young

adults in the United States became interested in the shoe design. Thus, the consumer base for the

shoes increased with the emergence of a new customer segment each decade.

Marketing MixActivities

While there are different marketing approaches an organization could use to sell its products or

services, the choice of a company depends on the advantages the technique affords it. Griggs

Group first preferred word-of-mouth to other marketing tactics. However, the Group created the

AirWair Ltd. branch and increased its product line to target a broader market segment. By the

1990s, Dr. Martens had more than 500 shoe designs in the market (Dr. Martens). Today, Dr.

Martens shoe brand appeals to all ages. The company has since changed its marketing strategy

from word-of-mouth to social, cultural, and experiential approaches that link to its roots in music

and British youth subculture. Because of the current stiff competition in the footwear sector, Dr.

Martens should exploit the capabilities in the social network platforms to sell its brands to

maintain or increase its market share of the industry.

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Although the concept of the marketing mix is the same for all organizations, different

companies exploit each differently to optimize their sales. Dr. Martens footwear focuses on

people's culture to market itself and appeal to consumers. Culture determines the consumer's

purchasing behavior. In this regard, the footwear company has perfected the ability to connect to

people based on cultural trends. The cultural element of successful brands tends to value

communities and their identities to maintain inherent customs. Cultures are often expressed

through music, fashion, art, and history. Successful brands evolve with their consumers; they

examine the trends in their target consumer base to understand their passion to connect more

deeply than when they just sell a product. Because cultures are volatile, social media provides

experiential advertising and influencers that are vital in maintaining brand relevance.

Whereas there are different forms of social media, specific sites have the optimal

potential for businesses to market their brands. Leading companies use Social Networking Sites

(SNS), such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and blogs, to create a dialogue among

their followers to preserve a specific cultural identity connected to their products or services.

Over the recent past, companies have shifted their efforts to advertising through these platforms

besides traditional advertising channels to connect to consumers. Most companies have deployed

experiential marketing, including music concerts or festivals and pop-up shops. Since catching

the interest of consumers can be costly, businesses must place content in strategic positions to

link with the contemporary trend. With this regard, the brand has evolved, but has maintained its

authenticity by keeping pace with the changing consumer behavior through its cultural transition.

Therefore, it has remained relevant past the twentieth century.

Whereas Dr. Martens shoes were originally consumed for utilitarian reasons by its first

consumer segment, the firm has expanded its marketing activities to target specific sub-culture
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and demographics. For example, Dr. Martens designed its shoes to 'punk' culture, which emerged

during the 1970s. The culture involved youth and young adult’s expressions of creativity and

alternative style and individuality through media, style, and music. Gradually, the subculture

divided into multiple sub-genres characterized by punk, glam, and early goth. As of the 1980s,

different punk bands had started wearing Dr. Markens' shoes, and it slowly became integral to

their styles and expressions.

Despite its first utilitarian approach to the market, the brand has continued to exploit its

cultural relevance to increase its global market. Dr. Martens shoe brands have remained closely

connected to music, which retains its timeless nature in popular cultures across the world. In the

U.S., Dr. Martens increased in popularity in the 1980s with the youth purchasing the brand for its

cult status and British legacy (Mariko). Today, the brand uses celebrities such as Madona and

Miley Cyrus for marketing the shoes globally because of the fame of such music icons. Dr.

Martens shoes has changed from being celebrity style for rebellious music genres to other

genres. Celebrities who wear it influence the market in its favor. Dr. Marten’s advertising has

consistently intended to maintain its cultural influence among the young demographics, as it has

historically been linked to music and group identity.

In 1997, AirWair and Pyro created a campaign in Dallas, which emphasized the brand’s

rebellious youth-culture identity. The agency developed four eccentric images without featuring

the shoes and published them in popular magazines across the U.S., such as Spin and Rolling

Stones, and in-store as posters. The captions on the posters emphasized individuality and

rebellion. According to Todd, who was the creative director of Pyro, the strategy was intended to

blur the line between advertising and brand art (Krajewski). In addition, Dr. Martens distributed

music compilations in Compact Disks (CDs). It went further to create a record label and
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launched a compilation by the name ‘Generation to Generation’,Generation,’ which comprised

of artist from all generations (Baue). Thus, the company tries to reach its market segment

through the music of its popular customers. The audience would like to relate with their music

icons by mimicking their fashion taste, which results in many wearing Dr. Martens shoe brand.

Moreover, Dr. Martens deploys experiential advertising at music concerts. It also

sponsors multiple music events to connect with fans, which is consistent with the brand image.

In 1998, the shoe maker bought tickets for a competition in a festival at Glanstonbury, England,

in which its stockiest participated to market the brand. In other music festivals, Dr. Martens

showcased fresh talent and musicians who were not affiliated with any music label ("Building A

Fashionable Brand Image” 1). Today, the company leverages its music and pop-culture

connection in virtually all aspects of marketing, including SNS.

Although traditional channels of advertising have contributed to the company’s

impressive market share, the brand has exploited the capabilities of social media to appeal to a

broader audience besides its original target segment. Today, cultural gratification constitutes the

main essence of marketing through social media. Thus, the company has effectively expanded its

market segment to include all demographics. A significant decline in sales in 2003 inspired the

footwear company to integrate its cultural influence into all aspects of its marketing to suit all

lifestyles and cultures, rather than just punk and goth music. Therefore, it sought the help of

global designers to modify its “1460’s” boot design into multiple designs to suit the tastes of

different subcultures and demographics, including age and gender. It then used social media and

YouTube to highlight the brands ability to appease different subcultural identities;, thus,

extending its market segment to include older adults and elderlies besides youth and young

adults.
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The marketing department runs an Instagram account through which it constantly

advertises the way consumers can be noticeable in their products. Its Instagram profiles tell the

journey that the firm has made over five decades, from its first designs to the current assortment

suited for people of all ages. The company uploads photos of kids wearing different brands of its

shoes accompanied by captions that passespass the message that its suits all age brackets (Baue).

It uses its adaptability to promote its brand’s ability to flatter anybody. The company combines

traditional marketing strategies and social media marketing to enhance its product lines’

relevance.

Whereas customers are attracted to many aspects of a brand, one that is based on a

component that they can easily resonate with, such as music, politics, or message, is easy to

revitalize, such that it does not become irrelevant. As such, Dr. Martens tailor the shoe designs to

the customers’ specifications, which allow the firm to express its identity and rebellion.

Consequently, the shoe brands have evolved into one that is open to the wearer's interpretation. It

routinely drives popularity, which it endorses through social media campaigns. However,

multiple brands mimic Dr. Martens's marketing strategies, which make them significant

competitors.

Use of Theory and Application to the Product

Marketing theorists use a scientific methodology to account for consumers' purchasing behaviors

and sentiments. Business organizations apply the information to direct their marketing activities

and decisions especially regarding the best way to communicate the value of their products to

potential customers. Digital marketing poses particular challenge to companies, mainly because

its channels are relatively new and are still evolving. Essentially, companies must the relevant
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theories to digital marketing that consider its similarities to and differences from the traditional

marketing channels.

A recent development in marketing theory centers around the effects of technology on

marketing products. Social networking is a relatively new form of communication, and involves

people discussing a product via the Internet including email and Social Networking Sites, such as

Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube and other electronic channels. A product may

“go viral,” or start to sell more units with no direct advertising, promotions or public relation

(PR) on the part of the company. For this reason, more companies are now participating in SNS

hoping that consumers will then take their offerings viral.

One of the marketing theories that is relevant to the contemporary global market

characteristics is the Game theory. It is a mathematical concept that assesses the way strategic

interactions between marketing agents or consumers produce outcomes based on the agents'

decisions, with the assumptions that each agent may have contrasting priorities. Campaign

outcomes differ based on changes in marketer behaviors. The theory explains how customers

might react to factors such as placement of products in market mall. Based on the theory, a

company could increase its sales by locating its outlets or products in a centrally as opposed to

spreading them throughout a supermarket.

The other theory, network theory analyzes relationships between people, particularly

internet users. Social network analysis allows business to learn the patterns that develop within

various social networks and their effects on the behaviors of the group. Based on this theory, the

success of product or service is impossible to predict based on traditional factors, such as plot or

star power, as "hits" are the effects of the influence consumers have over the decisions of other

consumers. SNS are useful in this regard; because they enable marketing agents listen to the
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views of the consumers, which allows the former to leverage the power of influential users to

disseminate messages throughout their social networks. In this regard, companies should focus

on the most powerful users, those with the most following or friends, as they have greatest most

influence across differentiated networks.

The theory of collective intelligence argues that groups are more productive and smarter

than the sum of individuals. Crowdsourcing, which is an the Internet concept that involves

projects that are broken down into individual tasks that assigned to numerous people for

completion, has collective intelligence at its premise. It allows marketers to mobilize consumers

and integrate them in their campaigns. It can be used in Facebook and other SNS. The CEO of

the crowdsourcing company Zooppa recommends that companies should keep crowdsource

campaigns simple and succinct. It helps to keep the outcomes within the controllable limits.

The generational theory asserts that consumers born of the same generation, 20-year

bracket, have identical behaviors and attitudes due to shard experiences that shape their

viewpoints of the world. This theory informs companies concerning the communication process

and the preferred sites where marketers can reach out to them. For instance, millennials prefer to

access the Internet through wireless connections, such as Smartphones and Tablets although even

baby boomers increasingly prefer mobile devices.

Evaluation of Information Gathered: Recommendation

Despite the magnitude of a brand’s emotional impact, SNS allows companies to engage with the

audience past the first message. Dr. Martens Shoes Company should consider three different

types of media to launch its campaign. Paid media refers to those activities for which a company

must spend some money to showcase its products or services to consumers. They include T.V.

commercials and YouTube videos. Owned media refers to online sites and accounts that an
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organizations hashave created to communicate directly with its fans and consumers. They

include various SNS accounts and blog, as well as company’s official website. Earned media

relates to free publicity generated by fans and customers' conversations in response to the

specific content they like. Dr. Martens must research its target audience to understand it and

develop creative content, which appeals to people’s emotions and psychology.

While many companies have taken to the Internet to market their brands, the majority of

such campaigns fail to achieve the marketing objectives. Successful digital promotions share

specific characteristics, whereas poor campaigns do not take into account the consumer, who has

become empowered and informed due to current technological progress. Therefore, Dr. Martens

brand should acknowledge the power of the consumer. The Internet allows companies to learn

about their consumers, which other communication media, including paid ones, do not provide.

Dr. Martens marketers should undertake market research constantly to understand changing

consumer behaviors, including their technologies, preferences, and culture. Essentially, the

freedom that the web affords has changed significantly the relationship companies have with

their customers. As such, the firm should prioritize the consumer.

Whereas getting consumers to buy a product or service is the greatest challenge all

businesses face, brands can adopt specific strategies to drive sales. With this regard, Dr. Martens

should conduct comprehensive research constantly to keep pace with the trends in their

consumer's behaviors. While doing market research, the company needs to acknowledge that

people tend to lie about their preferences and passion. Nevertheless, the web allows the business

to learn from market reality by studying what people do online, an opportunity that is best

provided by SNS (Dodson 19). By experiencing the market reality, Dr. Martens can target its

product lines better and increase its chances of success.

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Whereas websites can provide a positive platform for marketing a brand, Dr. Martens

should make its page easily shareable to the website visitors, which helps build a digital footprint

by getting people talking about the brand on social media. More importantly, by providing easily

shareable links, the brand’s marketer brings people back into the company’s website. Links from

influential blogs and SNS command significant authority and are widely sought after by

consumers. Besides creating original, quality, entertaining content to help it acquire the

mentioned links, Dr. Martens can increase its chances of getting them by making itself popular,

especially by befriending the influencers. By networking in discussion forums and relevant sites,

blogs, and social media, Dr. Martens can build rapport with likeminded people in the global

footwear market, which will help it make its link request stand out from those of its rivals.

Another strategic step that the company can consider is guest blogging. It involves

creating content for publication on another person’s blog, which includes inbound links back to

the company’s site. In this regard, Dr. Martens should only include links when they are

appropriate and can improve user experience (Dodson 59). Guest blogging constitutes a great

way of creating a public perception that it is a thought leader, which helps to boost its rank and

increase its website traffic.

The other aspect of internet marketing that Dr. Martens should focus on is content

marketing. This involves creating and sharing valuable, informative, and entertaining content to

attract customers onto its site to drive sales and conversions. It mainly involves showing

customers that the company is competent and passionate about its business as opposed to trying

to sell to them. Because of the popularity of articles, case studies, white papers, infographics, and

videos, Dr. Martens’ marketers should start thinking about how they can inform, educate, and

solve problems for its consumers. Having an article recognized and shared will help build
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credibility within the footwear market, which will increase its ranking and domain authority. Dr.

Martens should aim to be an expert in its niche market so that consumers will immediately think

of its site and link to it when that topic arises. Moreover, the footwear firm should optimize its

content fully using keywords, meta tags, and headings, among others.

The fourth element of off-page optimization involves getting people to share

the company’s content across their networks. The web is filled with social-sharing buttons,

which users encounter while surfing, which allows them to share the content easily from their

social media accounts. Whenever possible, Dr. Martens should support every piece of content

social media users create with social sharing buttons, as they support free advertising for the

company’s site, increase its digital footprint, and generate brand awareness at the hands of the

brand’s consumers. Therefore, the company should conveniently place Twitter, Facebook, and

LinkedIn share buttons throughout its site to allow customers to share its content quickly and

easily across their networks. Algorithms are placing increasingly more emphasis on popularity as

a ranking factor, to help them distinguish between quality content and poor content. As such,

search engines are now considering social endorsements. As with inbound links, the more shares

the brand gets, the better. The ideal scenario is to have many individual sites linking to Dr.

Martens rather than having few websites generating many links.

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Works Cited

Baue, William. “Dr. Martens Airwair USA LLC: Beliefs campaign,” Encyclopedia of Major

Marketing Campaigns, WARC, 2007.

“Building A Fashionable Brand Image: A Dr. Martens Case Study,” England: Business Case

Studies. https://businesscasestudies.co.uk/dr-martens/building-a-fashionablebrand-

image/fashion-marketing.htmlhttps://businesscasestudies.co.uk/dr-martens/building-a-

fashionablebrand-image/fashion-marketing.html.

Dodson, Ian. The Art of Digital Marketing: The Definitive Guide to Creating Strategic, Targeted,

and Measurable Online Campaigns. n.d. https://www.nima.today/wp-

content/uploads/2018/11/The-Art-Of-Digital-Marketing-Ian-

Dodson.pdfhttps://www.nima.today/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/The-Art-Of-Digital-

Marketing-Ian-Dodson.pdf

Fujinaka, Mariko. "Dr. Martens Airwair USA, LLC: Red Campaign,” Encyclopedia of Major

Marketing Campaigns. WARC. 2000.

Krajewski, Steve. “Unseen 'Doc Martens' Reappear in U.S. Ads,” Adweek, October 6, 1997.

http://www.adweek.com/brand-marketing/unseen-doc-martens-reappear-us-ads-

24910/http://www.adweek.com/brand-marketing/unseen-doc-martens-reappear-us-ads-

24910/.

“R. Griggs Group Limited History.” International Directory of Company Histories,

Vol. 23. St. James Press, 1998.

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