Digital Marketing Analysis and Strategy

Table of Contents
1.0. Introduction.................................................................................................................................1
1.1. Overview......................................................................................................................................1
1.2. Situational Analysis......................................................................................................................2
2.0. External Analysis..........................................................................................................................2
2.1. PEST Analysis...............................................................................................................................2
2.2. PORTER’s Five-Force Analysis......................................................................................................3
3.0. SWOT Analysis.............................................................................................................................7
The PLAN.................................................................................................................................................9
3.1. SMART goals................................................................................................................................9
3.2. Buyer’s Persona.........................................................................................................................10
3.3. Pain Points and Goals................................................................................................................10
4.0. Risk Analysis...............................................................................................................................11
4.1. Conclusion and recommendations.............................................................................................11
4.2. References.................................................................................................................................12

1.0. Introduction
In recent times, digital marketing strategies have advanced a great deal and it has created
opportunities for small, medium, and large scale businesses to advance their businesses. Digital
marketing happens to be a technological application that offers businesses opportunities to
connect with both international and local clients often (Scharl et al, 2005). This has however
transformed the way actual customers and prospective customers communicate through the use
of mobile phones and other devices (Hosseini et al, 2016; Arghya et al, 2020). Through these
devices, businesses are able to advertise their products on the internet which is also called digital
marketing. Digital marketing can only be successfully achieved when there is planning and
strategy development to improve the digital marketing culture of the company (Smutkupt et al,
2010; Arghya et al, 2020). Companies like moonpig.com and Google merchandise store have
focused on developing digital marketing strategies that will create awareness, promote dialogue,
as well as help them win the trust of their clients which is what drives digital marketing in the
first place.
This paper will cover the digital marketing analysis and implementation of a practical digital
plan. It will also include a critical analysis and justification of the various aspects chosen to
effectively develop digital marketing plan for moonpig.com and Google merchandise store.

1.1. Overview
Google merchandise store is a well known American Multinational Technology company that
specializes in various products and services on the internet such as search engine optimization,
adverts, and cloud computing. The company has gained popularity and it has the first spot in the
most valuable global brands with its brand value higher than $245billion. Currently, the firm is
working towards making its customer base stronger and has made announcement of several new
projects they are embarking on like Google Genomics, The Liftware Spoon, and Longevity. The
Google merchandise store is the official Google store that has various merchandises produced by
the company and because of its new products, the company is looking for new and effective
ways to market their websites to create awareness among customers about their merchandises
and appropriately connect with them (Perry et al, 2019). For Google to achieve their goal, they
need to come up with a strategic digital marketing plan.

Also, Moonpig.com is a leading company in the UK personalized greeting cards market where
they sell personalized cards, gifts, and flowers. The site was launched in 2000 by Nick Jenkins
and so far they have been able to dominate the greeting card market with about 6 million users.
In recent times, moonpig.com has expanded its products to other items like mugs and phone
cases. The company has also spread its tentacles to augmented reality and focuses on improving
communications with customers and so far they have invested huge sums in mobile which is
estimated at 60% of transactions (Simpson, 2005). At this point, moonpig.com will also need to
come up with new digital marketing strategies to create awareness for their products.

Both Google merchandise store and moonpig.com are two leading companies in their market and
they have a huge reputation in the UK e-commerce market. Data will be collected from both
websites to critically analyze the digital marketing plans they have. We will be using several
tools like the PESTLE, SWOT Analysis, and PORTER’s Five-Force analysis to analyst the
marketing plans of both companies.

1.2. Situational Analysis

The situational analysis refers to both internal and external analysis. Internal analysis is defined
as the in-depth prowess of a company that allows them to capitalize on their strength and
weaknesses. the biggest strength of a company is the fact that they have the right sources that is
effective for their assets. Moonpig.com and Google merchandise store both have digital channels
that are effective and enables them communicate with their customers. The companies have
members of staff that are tech savvy as well as the right equipment to access some latest and
trending technologies which makes them surpass their competitors (Zhang et al, 2020).
External analysis has to do with the general environment of an organization which places
external pressure on them. The external analysis is the factors that identify the threats and
opportunities of an organization. We will use the PEST analysis, porter’s five and SWOT
analysis to analyze the internal and external factors of moonpig.com and Google merchandise
store.

2.0. External Analysis

This refers to the general environment that mounts external pressure on the operations of a
company. However, these factors will best be described using the PEST analysis

2.1. PEST Analysis

Google merchandise stores
Political Factor  Google merchandise store is
an online outlet which
provides merchandises to
several parts of the world
 However, according to data
analyzed, it is clear that
Google merchandise stores
operate worldwide
Economical Factor  Economical factor requires
the organization to look into
those economic factors that
will have an impact on the
company
Socio-economical  The socioeconomic factor
Factor has to do with displaying
things online. Google
merchandise continues to
Moonpig.com
 moonpig.com is an online
site that provides people
with gifts, personalized
cards and flowers and so
far they have occupied
about 90% of the UK
market (Sampaio et al,
2017).
 moonpig.com concentrates
in the UK market and
moonpig.com laid off about
4000 workers which has
increased the rate of
unemployment in the UK
 According to the website
traffic details of both
Moonpig.com and Google
merchandise stores, it is
obvious that most visitors
in their websites are
looking for products with
low and affordable price to
buy
 The current economic
factor of moonpig.com
doesn’t look too good
because the UK’s
economic growth have just
come out from recession
 The social trend of
moonpig.com is to
personalize cards online.
Moonpig.com launched a
 spend more money on digital
marketing and to ensure their
products reach the right
audience worldwide which
isn’t too good for the
business
Technological  Google merchandise stores
Factors are also taking advantage of
the latest technologies to
expand their business and
reach out to more
prospective clients
mobile app but yet its level
of marketing has been low.
 The use of the internet is
transforming the greeting
card market gradually
which has caused the price
of greeting cards to
increase greatly

2.2. PORTER’s Five-Force Analysis

The five force structure is what provides an overview of the forces that operates in a specific
environment. The Five-Force presents issues that may end up affecting the performance of
individual sectors. The porter’s Five forces helps in understanding the strength of the current
competitive position and influences of the external environment of both Google’s merchandise
store and Moonpig.com (Downey and Technical information service, 2007). According to
Bristoll and Newon (2013), the Google merchandise has just one portfolio of products and
services, therefore, one analysis will be created.

Porter’s Five Forces Google Merchandise Stores Moonpig.com

Threat to new entry  The threat to new entry is a
factor that is been
categorized as a force that
influences the company.
This force can moderately
influence businesses
 The new entry an always
come in form of new
investments in the market or
new ventures by other giant
companies like Microsoft
introducing a business in the
tech market.
 According to the porter’s
Five Forces model, three
external factors contribute
to the entrants of new
companies and them
competing. These factors
include the cost of the
business, the higher cost of
developing the business and
the ability to comply to the
laws governing such
business.
 The tech business is very
lucrative and even though
the cost of starting the
business is high, start-ups
still invest in it and they
become a threat to Google
at the long run.
Threats to Alternative  For the Google merchandise
store, the threats of
alternative are moderate. In
recent times, the internet has
become a source of primary
information and queries
have formed the backbone
of this advancement among
other services that makes up
the enterprise.
 Google has a commanding
presence in the market and
due to its online presence; it
 For the card industry, it
has become very
competitive and various
traditional stores have
entered into the sales
channel and what is
trending among
consumers is trading
online.
 Moonpig.com still faces
threats of new entrants
even though these new
entrants have to face high
cost in marketing,
manufacturing, postages,
brand recognition, as well
as creativity.
 In recent times,
Moonpig.com has lost a
lot of money and with the
emergence of electronic
cards, and the emergence
of new entrants like Mark
& Spencer and WH
Smith, Moonpig.com
continue to be threatened.
 For moonpig.com, the
current consumer trend of
the market poses a
serious threats to gift
certificates, personalized
cards, candies, as well as
flowers.
 As moonpig have gotten
an app and have their
personalized cards and
gifts there, technology
also keeps improving.
 Moonpig is trying to kill
 has been placed on a long
term success.
 Analyzing Google
merchandise store, it is
realized that they are
moderately threatened by
substitutes such as various
social media platforms and
advertising channel.
 With these moderate threats
of substitution, Google
needs to consider switching
between merchandise stores
and substitution firm’s cost.
Bargaining position of  The bargaining power of
customers Google merchandise store
customers is weak and this
is applied to both computer
software industries and the
internet.
 This happens because there
are a lot of competitors to
what the Google
merchandise store offers.
Although, most of the
products and services
offered by the company is
free, there is still a need for
advertisement to record high
percentage or moderate
percentage for incomes and
revenues.
 For instance, if people in the
market decide to forfeit the
products offered by Google,
they will lose out on
advertising clients which
will cause them to hit rock
bottom. However, firms like
Microsoft have come up
with the idea of creating
operating systems which
gives buyers the power to
purchase Apple, iOS, or
Microsoft based phones.
the traditional shopping
card method, however,
about 1.38 billion cards
are still imported yearly
and consumers continue
to prefer buying cards in
stores.
 The alternative of buying
from stores is a threat to
moonpig.com.
 However, for
moonpig.com, the
customers of the moonpig
card have a high
bargaining position
because there is a very
little switching cost for
consumers.
 In recent times,
consumers can purchase
greeting cards online,
from retailers, and also
wholesalers that are in
the UK. This has given
consumers vast option of
purchasing their greeting
cards.
  According to Ye et al
(2019), buyers have the
bargaining power to decide
which price they are
comfortable with.
Bargaining power of  At Google merchandise
suppliers store, it is evident that if the
company works hard
enough to remain at the top
or dominate the market,
then its supplier bargaining
power will remain at the
same level.
 This is based on the ad
system idea that the
company uses for the sole
purpose of generating
revenue, which simply
means that both the
advertiser and the receiver
depends on the store.
Competitor’s  When it comes to the rivalry
in the e-commerce industry,
it is very high. However,
Google merchandise stores
have its branded products
thereby making their targets
to be technology.
 Although the merchandise
store have its competitors, it
still commands a larger
percentage of the internet
services that are available.
 One of the commonly used
product is the search engine,
it surpasses other products
even the MSN. So far,
Google have given its
competitors a large gap that
 For moonpig.com,
according to Harry
Wallop, the moonpig
card puts a lot of pressure
on their suppliers. The
cost of producing the
cards is about 30 pence
for moonpig which was
sold for £3.
 The moonpig suppliers
have a higher bargaining
power and they tend to
have control over prices.
However, the owner of
Moonpig has a weak
bargaining power when
renting the deal which
has been one major
reason why there is an
annual decline of $80
million.
 The Moonpig card has
been in a very fierce and
intense competition in the
card industry. With the
inception of their
financial crisis, Moonpig
has been able to occupy
about 25% of the market
in the past. The
competition is stiff and
Moonpig is also trying to
ensure that they survive
in the market and their
online presence is helping
them achieve their goal.
 they are still struggling to
meet up despite the fact that
they try to update their
services constantly.

3.0. SWOT Analysis

The strength of an organization’s SWOT analysis lies in how simple it is (Collectif, 2018). And
this can be beneficial for both Moonpig and Google merchandise store because the opportunities
presented from digital technologies might be quite a challenge to manage (Heinze, A et al, 2016).
Below is the SWOT analysis for both moonpig and Google merchandise.
Strength
Google Merchandise Store Moonpig.com
 Google merchandise store has a vast  Moonpig.com offers a wide variety of
market share coverage products when it comes to the area of
 They have their branded products gift cards such as gift wraps,
which give them a upper hand in the customized gift cards, flowers, etc.
industry  Their website has a customer friendly
 Their search engine is the most used interface and lots of services.
search engine  Since its inception, the company has
become a leading online gift card store
that sends customized greeting cards
and flowers and gifts to loved ones.

Weaknesses
Google Merchandise Stores
 There is an issue with privacy
 The tech industry is highly competitive
and at the point where Google tend to
relax a bit, competitors don’t relax at
all, they keep pushing.
Moonpig.com
 The products offered by Moonpig are
seasonal products, which means during
its season, it has high sales and during
its off season, it has low sales
 The company faces financial distress
that cannot be resisted because of the
nature of its operations
 The whole sale of its non-essential
products can go down at anytime due to
the crisis in the country.

Opportunities
Google Merchandise Stores
 They have an opportunity in cloud
computing
 They have the opportunity to continue
spreading their tentacles and bringing
Moonpig.com
 In various countries, the western culture
keep increasing which is an opportunity
for the company to expand its services
and also go for the innovations in both
 new businesses into the market because
they have made a name for themselves
already.
current and existing products
 Due to globalization, the company has
the opportunity to not just globalize its
operations, but to also expand to other
geographical areas.

Threats
Google Merchandise Stores
 Other big competitors like Microsoft
are a big threat to them.
Moonpig.com
 Electronic messages and wishes have
gone viral, thereby reducing the value
of traditional ways to wish friends and
loved ones well through gift cards and
gifts.
 Eco-friendly environment is spreading
and the use of papers is reducing
greatly.

The PLAN

3.1. SMART goals

According to the analysis above for both Google merchandise stores and Moonpig, it is obvious
that there are competitive issues emerging which need to be tackled. There is a need to stay
ahead of the competition. To achieve your goal, you need to put the SMART goals in place to
achieve your targets.

SMART goals Google Merchandise Stores Moonpig.com

Be Specific The company wants their The objective should be
retail products across the specific. The objective states
world and makes them readily that the company wants to
and easily available with just a increase its level of efficiency
click. by introducing effective
business operations
Measurable The objective stated by The objective stated by the
Google merchandise is company is measurable
measurable because it is because the organization
clearly stated that they want clearly wants to increase its
their retail products to go level of efficiency from 40 to
around the globe. 60.
Attainable The goal is attainable because The goal the company hopes
it is clear that they want a long to achieve is attainable
 term success and as such because there is a realistic
spreading their products will timeline attached to it.
take time.
Relevant The objective of Google The objective of the company
merchandise is relevant is relevant because there is a
because Google hopes to need for the company to
continue dominating the world improve its level of efficiency.
That way they could also
increase their mode of
transportation to ensure swift
delivery.
Time Time scale is very important The objective set by the
however, since Google company can be achieved
merchandise wants to spread within one year
its retail outlets around the
world, they will need a lot of
time to implement it.

3.2. Buyer’s Persona

Buyer’s persona focuses on the trends, branding, and profitability to maximize the market share.
It has to do with customers’ information necessary for the growth of the business. However, the
strategic trend of

Age 15 – 40

Location London

Language English and other languages applicable to

Google translate
Job title Blue and white collar

Average income At least $100000 per year

Buying behavior Online shoppers

Interest and activities Technology, internet, and other online

 activities
Life stages Youth-adulthood

3.3. Pain Points and Goals

Customer Pain point Customer Goals
 Maintaining a stable
website which cannot
be affected by
overload of traffic
 It is quite difficult
convincing the baby
boomers to shop online
 Having all products in
one website is difficult
and offering
subscriptions for the
products as well
Solution
 The online presence  Google traffic monitor
should be able to should permit the
accommodate as many control of traffic
customers as possible  There should be
to avoid traffic various sites and
 Many online shoppers options for customers
should be engaged to ensure user interface
 Comprehensive that is friendly.
descriptions and  Offering Google
additional awareness sheets, books, and
materials should be other applications for
offered reading.

4.0. Risk Analysis

Like every other business environment, competition is bound to happen. Digital marketing plan
and strategy needs to acknowledge the strength and weaknesses of competitors which will either
influence or determine their operations (Johnson, 2014). For Google to colonize the new London
market, it needs to have the ability to advocate for the Google retail store. A competitive gain
will be created through free service and according to Biron (2017), it will be adequate for the full
colonization of the new markets.

Moonpig.com is focused in the UK markets and they are also trying to ensure that their online
products are sold. They are going with the online trend but greeting cards and gifts seems to be
losing value. Competitors are bound to be everywhere; they are inevitable and bound to happen.
However, Google merchandise stores and Moonpig should position themselves to target their
retail market, concentrate on their goals and use the SMART goals to utilize their plans.

4.1. Conclusion and recommendations

After careful consideration of the Google merchandise store and Moonpig.com digital marketing
analysis and proposal, below are the appropriate recommendations:

 The Google Merchandise store should focus on reassessing its recent digital marketing
strategy for the purpose of identification of various gaps and opportunities that should be
 used to their advantage. This means they should review their social media presence,
performance of their competitors, the content for competition and integral aspects. While
Moonpig should also carry out a thorough research on its competitors, their marketing
strategies, target market, and other aspects.
 Moonpig should also carry out a quantitative analysis of its competitors through semi-
structured interviews, survey, collation of both primary and secondary data, to enable
them strategize better.
 Google merchandise store should also focus on digital strategic plan to identify the areas
they can update.

Digital marketing plan and strategy for Google merchandise store

Strategic Channels Contents Strategic KPIs Buyer’s
business keyword persona
objectives for terms
35 years

Organizing The Google Retail Google and Online traffic Middle age
retail online products retail Youths
products presence through the Adults
around the use of online And tech
globe and platforms savvy
make them individuals
available and
useful at the
click of the
button within
the next 6
months using
the
organizational
resources and
the branding
reputation of
the parent
company.

Organic keyword traffic of Moonpig.com

Using these keywords, Moonpig is able to drive traffic to its website.

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