Enhancing Marketing Strategy for Agri-Shops in Academic Institutions in Thailand
Keywords:
marketing strategy, SWOT analysis, marketing mix factors, agricultural shopsAbstract
This study addresses the marketing needs of agricultural product shops located at academic institutions in Bangkok, Thailand. The aim was to develop an effective marketing strategy that caters to the diverse consumer groups visiting the farm shop. Data were collected through a structured questionnaire from 400 consumers, including students, faculty members, staff, and outsiders. In-depth interviews and focus group discussions were conducted with store stakeholders to analyze the findings. The study revealed distinct consumer preferences for agricultural products among different groups: staff and professors favor safe products in the evening, students prioritize affordable and ready-to-eat options, and outsiders show similarities with staff and professors but prefer online purchases. The marketing mix factors influencing consumer decisions include product taste, suitable prices, and online publicity. The SWOT analysis highlights strengths in the institute's reputation, weaknesses in management and limited product variety, opportunities in the health-conscious market, and threats from COVID-19. The recommended marketing strategy involves expanding the product range, enhancing online presence, improving product quality, and implementing a delivery system during the pandemic.References
Abdallah, R. B., Shamout, M. D., & Alshurideh, M. (2022). Business development strategy model using EFE, IFE and IE analysis in a high-tech company: an empirical study. Academy of Strategic Management Journal, 21(2S): 1-13.
Al Yami, M., Ajmal, M. M., & Balasubramanian, S. (2022). Does size matter? The effects of public sector organizational size’ on knowledge management processes and operational efficiency. VINE Journal of Information and Knowledge Management Systems, 52(5): 670-700. https://doi.org/10.1108/VJIKMS-07-2020-0123
Apipoonyanon, C., Szabo, S., Tsusaka, T. W., Leeson, K., Gunawan, E., & Kuwornu, J. K. (2021). Socio-economic and environmental barriers to increased agricultural production: New evidence from central Thailand. Outlook on Agriculture, 50(2): 178-187. https://doi.org/10.1177/0030727020967361
Belitski, M., Guenther, C., Kritikos, A. S., & Thurik, R. (2022). Economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on entrepreneurship and small businesses. Small Business Economics, 58(2): 593-609. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-021-00544-y
Calvo-Porral, C., & Lévy-Mangin, J.-P. (2017). Store brands’ purchase intention: Examining the role of perceived quality. European Research on Management and Business Economics. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.iedeen.2016.10.001
Cavite, H. J., Kerdsriserm, C., Llones, C., Direksri, N., & Suwanmaneepong, S. (2022). Farmers’ perception of consumer information and adoption intention towards organic rice farming: Evidence from community enterprise in rural Thailand. Outlook on Agriculture, 52(1): 79-88. https://doi.org/10.1177/00307270221135250
Cavite, H. J., Mankeb, P., & Suwanmaneepong, S. (2021). Community enterprise consumers’ intention to purchase organic rice in Thailand: the moderating role of product traceability knowledge. British Food Journal, 124(4): 1124-1148. https://doi.org/10.1108/bfj-02-2021-0148
Cavite, H. J. M., Kerdsriserm, C., & Suwanmaneepong, S. (2021). Strategic guidelines for community enterprise development: a case in rural Thailand. Journal of Enterprising Communities: People and Places in the Global Economy, ahead-of-print(ahead-of-print): 1-20. https://doi.org/10.1108/JEC-05-2021-0062
Choong, Y. O., Seow, A. N., Low, M. P., Ismail, N. H., Choong, C. K., & Seah, C. S. (2023). Delving the impact of adaptability and government support in small-and medium-sized enterprises business resilience: The mediating role of information technology capability. Journal of Contingencies and Crisis Management, 31(4): 928-940. https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-5973.12492
Dash, G., Sharma, C., & Sharma, S. (2023). Sustainable marketing and the role of social media: An experimental study using natural language processing (NLP). Sustainability, 15(6): 5443. Retrieved from https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/6/5443
Dholakia, U. M., Bagozzi, R. P., & Pearo, L. K. (2004). A social influence model of consumer participation in network- and small-group-based virtual communities. International Journal of Research in Marketing, 21(3): 241-263. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijresmar.2003.12.004
Dibb, S., & Simkin, L. (2013). Marketing Essentials (2nd Edition ed. Vol. 1). United Kingdom: Cengage Learning.
Direksri, N., & Suwanmaneepong, S. (2021). Importance of marketing mix factors in community enterprise’s organic rice purchase, Thailand. International Journal of Entrepreneurship, 25: 1-9.
Faysse, N., Phiboon, K., & Purotaganon, M. (2022). Which pathway to address interrelated challenges to farm sustainability in Thailand? Views of local actors. Regional Environmental Change, 22(1): 11. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10113-021-01871-2
Formoso, B. (2021). The agroecological sustainability of petty farmers in Thailand: A challenge for the future. Current Research in Environmental Sustainability, 3: 100078. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crsust.2021.100078
Fuertes, G., Alfaro, M., Vargas, M., Gutierrez, S., Ternero, R., & Sabattin, J. (2020). Conceptual framework for the strategic management: a literature review—descriptive. Journal of Engineering, 2020: 6253013. https://doi.org/10.1155/2020/6253013
Gotteland, D., Shock, J., & Sarin, S. (2020). Strategic orientations, marketing proactivity and firm market performance. Industrial Marketing Management, 91: 610-620. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indmarman.2020.03.012
Guerola-Navarro, V., Gil-Gomez, H., Oltra-Badenes, R., & Soto-Acosta, P. (2022). Customer relationship management and its impact on entrepreneurial marketing: a literature review. International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11365-022-00800-x
Guo, J., Jin, S., Zhao, J., & Li, Y. (2023). E-commerce and supply chain resilience during COVID-19: Evidence from agricultural input e-stores in China. Journal of Agricultural Economics, 74(2): 369-393. https://doi.org/10.1111/1477-9552.12518
Jia, J., Li, J., & Liu, W. (2022). Expectation-based consumer purchase decisions: behavioral modeling and observations. Marketing Letters. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11002-022-09650-7
Johnson, J. L., Lee, R. P.-W., Saini, A., & Grohmann, B. (2003). Market-focused strategic flexibility: Conceptual advances and an integrative model. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 31(1): 74-89. https://doi.org/10.1177/0092070302238603
Kotler, P., & Armstrong, G. (2010). Principles of Marketing, 13th Edition (13th ed. Vol. 1). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall. Retrieved from https://books.google.co.th/books?id=ZW2u5LOmbs4C
Kotler, P., & Keller, K. L. (2015). Marketing Management, Global 15th Edition (15th ed. Vol. 1). United Kingdom: Pearson Education Limited. Retrieved from https://books.google.co.th/books?id=o5YZCgAAQBAJ
Kuncoro, W., & Suriani, W. O. (2018). Achieving sustainable competitive advantage through product innovation and market driving. Asia Pacific Management Review, 23(3): 186-192. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apmrv.2017.07.006
Likert, R. (1932). A technique for measurement of attitudes. Archives of Psychology, 140: 5-55.
Martinez, C. P., Castaneda, M. G., Marte, R. B., & Roxas, B. (2015). Effects of institutions on ecological attitudes and behaviour of consumers in a developing Asian country: the case of the Philippines. International Journal of Consumer Studies, 39(6): 575-585. https://doi.org/10.1111/ijcs.12188
Martiskova, P., & Svec, R. (2020). Digital Era and Consumer Behavior on the Internet, Cham.
Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives. (2016). Policy of the Minister. Retrieved from https://eng.moac.go.th/main.php?filename=main
Paruthi, M., Kaur, H., Islam, J. U., Rasool, A., & Thomas, G. (2022). Engaging consumers via online brand communities to achieve brand love and positive recommendations. Spanish Journal of Marketing - ESIC, ahead-of-print(ahead-of-print). https://doi.org/10.1108/SJME-07-2022-0160
Sajid, S., Rashid, R. M., & Haider, W. (2022). Changing trends of consumers' online buying behavior during Covid-19 pandemic with moderating role of payment mode and gender. Frontiers in Psychology, 13. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.919334
Srinieng, S., & Thapa, G. B. (2018). Consumers’ perception of environmental and health benefits, and consumption of organic vegetables in Bangkok. Agricultural and Food Economics, 6(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40100-018-0100-x
Suebpongsang, P., Ekasingh, B., & Cramb, R. (2020). Commercialisation of Rice Farming in Northeast Thailand. In R. Cramb (Ed.), White Gold: The Commercialisation of Rice Farming in the Lower Mekong Basin (pp. 39-68). Singapore: Springer Singapore.
Teece, D. J. (2018). SWOT Analysis. In M. Augier & D. J. Teece (Eds.), The Palgrave Encyclopedia of Strategic Management (pp. 1689-1690). London: Palgrave Macmillan UK.
Tran, N. T. (2022). Impact of corporate social responsibility on customer loyalty: Evidence from the Vietnamese jewellery industry. Cogent Business & Management, 9(1): 2025675. https://doi.org/10.1080/23311975.2022.2025675
Wang, H. H., Jiang, Y., Jin, S., & Zheng, Q. (2022). New online market connecting Chinese consumers and small farms to improve food safety and environment. Canadian Journal of Agricultural Economics/Revue canadienne d'agroeconomie, 70(4): 305-324. https://doi.org/10.1111/cjag.12319
Weihrich, H. (1982). The TOWS matrix—A tool for situational analysis. Long Range Planning, 15(2): 54-66. https://doi.org/10.1016/0024-6301(82)90120-0
Weihrich, H. (2000). Analyzing the Competitive Advantages and Disadvantages of China with the Tows Matrix — An Alternative to Porter’s Model. In R. Berndt (Ed.), Innovatives Management (pp. 191-205). Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer Berlin Heidelberg.
Wongprawmas, R., & Canavari, M. (2017). Consumers’ willingness-to-pay for food safety labels in an emerging market: The case of fresh produce in Thailand. Food Policy, 69: 25-34. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodpol.2017.03.004
Yang, Q., Hayat, N., Al Mamun, A., Makhbul, Z. K. M., & Zainol, N. R. (2022). Sustainable customer retention through social media marketing activities using hybrid SEM-neural network approach. PLOS ONE, 17(3): e0264899. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0264899
Zaccaria, G. (2023). Using COVID-19 as opportunity: the role of the AIIB’s leadership in its strategic adaptation to the pandemic. The Pacific Review: 1-26. https://doi.org/10.1080/09512748.2023.2178486
Zeithaml, V. A. (1988). Consumer perceptions of price, quality, and value: a means-end model and synthesis of evidence. Journal of Marketing, 52(3): 2-22. https://doi.org/10.1177/002224298805200302
Ziesemer, F., Hüttel, A., & Balderjahn, I. (2021). Young people as drivers or inhibitors of the sustainability movement: The case of anti-consumption. Journal of Consumer Policy, 44(3): 427-453. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10603-021-09489-x
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2024 Jeeranun Khermkhan, Rangsima Pimthong, Suneeporn Suwanmaneepong, Harry Jay Cavite
![Creative Commons License](http://i.creativecommons.org/l/by-nc-nd/4.0/88x31.png)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.