Product Offerings

2 DICK'S SPORTING GOODS AND REI OFFER EQUIPMENT FOR SPORTS.  If anyone thinks of going camping the first thing, they think about is a tent, so I compared the two organizations based on the tenets that they sell.  3 THERE ARE SOME SIMILARITIES AS WELL AS DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE TWO COMPANIES.  2 BOTH COMPANIES PROVIDED A LOT OF INFORMATION ABOUT THE AVAILABLE TENTS.  THEY BOTH HAD SEVERAL CATEGORIES THAT A CONSUMER COULD BREAKDOWN WHAT THEY WERE LOOKING FOR.  THE CATEGORIES WERE THE SLEEPING CAPACITY, THE WEIGHT, THE RATINGS, PRICE, DOORS IN THE TENT AND SEASON, (JAIN, ET AL., 2017).  BEING ABLE ALSO TO SEE THE RATING IN WHICH PREVIOUS CONSUMERS RATED THE TENT WAS AN IMPORTANT FEATURE AS WELL. 

EVEN THOUGH BOTH COMPANIES HAD REVIEWS AVAILABLE, REI CUSTOMERS SEEMED TO GO MORE IN-DEPTH ABOUT THE PRODUCT, AND THEIR WEBSITE ALSO PROVIDED THE PROS AND CONS OF THE PRODUCT.  BY HAVING ALL OF THESE CATEGORIES AVAILABLE IT WOULD MAKE THE ONLINE SHOPPING EXPERIENCE EASY FOR SOMEONE WHO WILL BE HIKING NOT ONLY IN THEIR BACKYARD BUT ALSO FOR SOMEONE WHO WOULD BE HIKING WITH A LOT OF OTHER EQUIPMENT IN THE GREAT OUTDOORS.  ANOTHER SIMILARITY THAT THE TWO COMPANIES HAD IS THAT THEY BOTH CARRY SIMILAR BRANDS.  ALTHOUGH ON THE REI WEBSITE, THERE ARE VIDEOS THAT SHOW THE USE OF SOME OF THE PRODUCTS VERSUS ON DICK’S WEBPAGE JUST HAD PICTURES OF THE TENTS SHOWN. 

The marketing strategy that the two companies offer is the ability to shop or buy products online. They also have a physical store. They both want to be appealing to their clients by giving them the option to either shop online or come to the store. Both companies use more than one channel for distribution.  2 THIS SHOWS THAT BOTH STORES HAVE MORE THAN ONE DISTRIBUTION CHANNEL THAT THEY ARE USING.  DICK’S SPORTING GOODS PRESENTS THE ABILITY TO PURCHASE GIFT CARDS AND CUSTOMER SERVICE ON THEIR WEBSITE.  REI OFFERS THE SAME THING, BUT THEY ALSO HAVE A WISHLIST AREA AND ADVISE THE CONSUMER THAT IF THEY ARE A PART OF THE MEMBERSHIP WHAT THE ANNUAL MEMBER REFUND WOULD BE IF THEY PURCHASED A PARTICULAR PRODUCT, (KOTLER, ET AL., 2015).  THIS IS ENTICING A PERSON TO BUY THE ITEM BECAUSE THEY ARE ALSO REMINDED OF THE 100% SATISFACTION GUARANTEE.  I THINK IT IS ALSO PART OF THEIR PROMOTION STRATEGY AS WELL.  The REI site contains a link to all the social media platform so that one can post his or her products. 

2 THE PRICING STRATEGY AT REI IS SIMILAR TO DICK’S SPORTING GOODS BUT STILL CHEAPER AT REI BASED ON THE PRODUCTS THAT ARE BEING COMPARED IN THIS ANALYSIS.  FOR EXAMPLE, THE PRICE FOR A EUREKA COPPER CANYON 6 TENT IS $249.99 AT BOTH STORES, BUT THE REI DIFFERENCE IS THAT THEY HAVE THE 100% SATISFACTION GUARANTEE.  THIS MEANS IF A CLIENT IS NOT SATISFIED WITH THE PRODUCT, HE OR SHE CAN RETURN AND GET A REPLACEMENT OR A REFUND, (COOPER, 2015).  THE ITEMS CAN ONLY BE RETURNED WITHIN 12 MONTHS OF PURCHASE.  THE PRICING AND PROMOTION STRATEGY BOTH WORK TOGETHER BECAUSE BOTH COMPANIES OFFER FREE SHIPPING IF THE PRODUCTS BEING PURCHASED ARE OVER A CERTAIN DOLLAR AMOUNT.  THIS WILL TARGET CUSTOMERS WHO ARE COST-CONSCIOUS OF WHAT THEY ARE SPENDING, (GUILTINAN, ET AL., 2016). 

Conclusion

In conclusion, after analysing the two stores, I found out that REI is different due to its store branding. One can purchase the same product with the same quality at Dick’s Sporting Goods, but REI has better customer service. They value their customers. REI offers 10% annual member refund and advice to its customers. They also demonstrate their products using videos. 

Reference

Cooper, R. G. (2015). How new product strategies impact on performance. Journal of Product Innovation Management, 1(1), 5-18. 

Guiltinan, J. P., Paul, G. W., & Madden, T. J. (2016). Marketing management: strategies and programs (pp. 40-2). New York: McGraw-Hill. 

Kotler, P., Armstrong, G., Harker, M., & Brennan, R. (2015). Marketing: an introduction (Vol. 1). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall. 

Jain, S. C., Haley, G. T., Voola, R., & Wickham, M. (2017). Marketing planning & strategy. South-Western College Pub.