Mission, Vision, Objectives, Strategies of Avon Company

Case Study on Avon Products Inc
Name
Institution
Avon Products Inc is an American international company and it is commonly known as Avon. Avon is a company that specializes in the production and direct selling of beauty and personal care products. David H. MConnell founded it in the year 1886 and it is headquartered in New York City. The company’s CEO is Sherilyn S. McCoy and she was appointed to the position in the year 2012. It is considered the fifth biggest beauty company in the globe and the second biggest direct selling business in the globe. It sells commodities in over hundred countries and Brazil is its largest market. The company uses door-to-door sales individuals and brochures to promote its commodities. An example of a company it has acquired includes Silpada, which is a company that deals with the direct selling of silver jewelries. The company founded a foundation known as Avon foundation for the purposes of philanthropic causes and therefore through the foundation the company engages in charitable activities. For example, it has been donating towards breast cancer research and care and it also donates money to those countries it feels need financial support. Some of the renowned brands of Avon Company include Avon color, Skin- So- Soft and Avon care. The company competes with companies such as Mary Kay Inc and Revlon Inc.
Mission, Vision, Objectives, and Strategies of Avon Company.
A mission of a company describes the reasons for the existence of the particular company and elaborates what functions the company plays in the society. The mission statement of Avon Company states that the company will build a beauty portfolio that is unique and related brands so that it can exceed its rivals in the level of excellence, value, and innovation and moreover so that it can build on its image so that it can become the best company that every woman turns to. A vision of a company describes what the company wants to become in the future. Well-developed visions of a company express the company’s aspirations in a clear manner. The vision statement of Avon Company state that the company aspires to be an organization that bests comprehends the commodity, service, and self-fulfillment needs of women.
The objectives of the Avon Company include strengthening the direct sales core, to enter new markets, to increase the range of its products , to increase its revenue margins, to cut on costs by 400 million dollars and finally to enhance the organization effectiveness. Avon Company has adopted a number of strategies that are appropriate for the achievement of some of the goals it has laid out. It has mainly majored in adopting marketing strategies, which include the internet marketing strategy where the company promotes its products through writing informative articles about its products on its website and therefore this promotes the increase of its sales because people become aware of the products the company offers. The company offers shipping services as a marketing strategy where they deliver the products a customer has purchased online to places where the customers will find convenient to pick them. Customer base is enhanced and therefore the sales of the company increase because customers feel it is convenient to trade with the company. The company moreover has adopted bundle-selling strategy where different products are packaged together into one bundled solution. The strategy enhances the sales of the company since customers have different needs and therefore find it convenient to buy the different products packaged together into one bundled solution because most of their needs will be met. The customers also opt to buy the product bundle because they know that the price they will pay for the bundle will be less as compared to buying the different products separately.
The company has also adopted growth strategies such as market development growth strategy where the company sells its products in new markets so that it can increase its sales and therefore promote growth in its company. The company has moreover implemented a product expansion growth strategy where the company is broadening its product line so that it can increase its revenue through the sale of many products. Additionally, the company has adopted the market penetration growth strategy where it markets its products in the market it has been using so that it can gain a high market share and therefore its growth can be enhanced.
Opportunities and Threats of Avon
Opportunities are those factors that are found in the external environment that surrounds an organization and promote the success of a company. Threats on the other hand are those factors found in the external environment that surround an organization, and in most cases lead the failure of an organization. Examples of opportunities of Avon Company include the capability to change their intended actions so that it can form a better organizational standard. The company also has the opportunity to rebrand certain items so that it can keep its clients content. Additionally, the company has the opportunity to venture into new markets, as there is always a market for the new products it can create. The threats facing the company include stiff competition from similar companies. During recession or the period of reduced economic activity, the company is faced with a threat because clients are not concerned with buying the company’s commodities. When the rivals of Avon have competitive advertising and distribution networks Avon Company faces a threat.
Competitive Profile Matrix
Competitive profile matrix is a strategic tool that compares a company with its competitors and discloses their relative strengths and weaknesses. The CPM tool aids a company to identify the areas they are strong in and those areas that need improvement. The tool consists of attributes such as the critical success factors, rating, weight, and the weighted scores. The critical success factors are those factors that have identified after a thorough analysis of the external and internal environment surrounding a company has been done. Rating attribute describes the response of the company towards the critical success factors. Rating is assigned to each critical success factor and the response is poor if 1.0 has been used to represent it. Moreover, the response is average if 2.0 has been used to represent it, above average if it is represented by 3.0 and high if 4.0 represents it. The weight attribute signifies the relative significance of factor to being fruitful in the company’s industry. Weighted score attribute is the outcome accomplished after multiplying weight with the rating of each critical success factor. The following is an example of a competitive profile matrix of Avon Company.


Avon


Mary Kay Inc


Revlon


Key Critical
Factors

Weights

Rating

Weighted score

Rating

Weighted Score

Rating

Weighted score

Quality of employees

0.12

4

0.48

3

0.36

2

0.24

Customer service

0.11

4

0.44

2

0.22

2

0.22

Brand reputation

0.10

3

0.30

3

0.30

2

0.22

Quality of management

0.12

3

0.36

2

0.24

3

0.36

Quality of manufacturing operations

0.09

2

0.18

3

0.27

3

0.27

Quality of products

0.08

3

0.24

3

0.24

3

0.24

Variety of distribution channels

0.09

3

0.27

2

0.18

3

0.27

Market share

0.09

3

0.27

4

0.36

4

0.36

Product range

0.11

4

0.44

2

0.22

2

0.22

Competitiveness

0.09

3

0.27

4

0.36

3

0.27

Total

1.00


3.25


2.75


2.67

External Factor Evaluation Matrix of Avon Company
The EFE matrix method is a tool commonly utilized for the examination of current business conditions. It is a great tool to be utilized in the identification of the opportunities and threats that are facing a company. The tool exclusively deals with the external factors surrounding an organization. When the EFE matrix is being constructed, the external factors are outlined and divided into two groups that is the opportunities group and the threats group. Weights should be assigned to each factor. A rating should then be assigned to each factor and the rating should range between 1 and 4. Weighted score should then be computed by carrying out a multiplication of each factor weight with its rating. Eventually, the total weighted score should be computed by summing up all the weighted scores. The following is an example if an EFE matrix of Avon Company.
External factors

Weight

Rating

Weighted score

Opportunities




Emerging markets

0.13

3

0.39

Rebranding to trigger client demand

0.11

4

0.44

Technological developments

0.10

4

0.40

Increase of product range

0.12

2

0.24

Restructuring to promote effectiveness

0.12

3

0.36

Threats




Competitive environment

0.14

4

0.56.

Reliance on third party suppliers

0.09

2

0.18

Economic downturn

0.10

1

0.10

Total

1.00


2.67

Strengths and Weaknesses of Avon Company
Strengths of a company represent those factors that are within an organization that promote its success. Weaknesses on the other hand represent those factors within an organization that contribute to its failure. The strengths of Avon Company include its business model that make it possible for the company to rise above its rivals and improve its status in the market. Avon Company is the leading company in its industry and therefore making it a strength for the company because that factor entices customers where many opt to trade with it and therefore it is able to make high sales, which in return promotes its growth. Constant revenue growth is also a strength of Avon Company. Committed workforce is moreover a strength of Avon Company. A great leadership team at the company is moreover a strength of the company because its promote its success. The weaknesses of Avon Company include a low market share when compared to the market share of other brands. Lack of a physical location is moreover a weakness of the company. Finally, the company has poor brand loyalty, which translates to one of its weaknesses.
Internal Factor Evaluation Matrix
The IFE matrix is a tool utilized for examining the strengths and weaknesses of a company. The tool helps a company establish those factors that make it successful and those factors that contribute to its failure. When the construction of IFE matrix is taking place the internal factors should be identified and categorized into groups of strengths and weaknesses. A weight that is between 0.00 to 1.0 is appointed to each identified factor and the weight appointed represents the relative significance of each factor. Rating should also be assigned to each factor. Finally, the computation of the weighed score should be carried out by multiplying each factor weight by its rating. The following is an example of an IFE matrix of Avon Company
Key internal factors

Weight

Rating

Weighted score

Strengths




Committed workforce

0.12

3

0.36

World’s leading company in the beauty industry

0.14

4

0.56

Quality products

0.13

3

0.39

Great promotional strategies

0.12

3

0.36

Quality manufacturing operations

0.09

2

0.18

Constant revenue growth

0.06

2

0.12

Weaknesses




Revenue decline in North America

0.11

2

0.22

Low market share

0.07

3

0.21

High advertising costs

0.06

3

0.18

Decreased loyalty of customers

0.09

2

0.18

Total

1.00