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 Such a statement can be supported by the review of the cases of the two different SME that face various challenges in the course of their operational activity and are forced to respond to those in order to remain relevant and profitable.

Planet Frugi

The highly specific nature of the products offered by Frugi (namely the environmentally friendly clothes and accessories for little children and their parents) has a defining impact on the company’s segmentation, targeting, and positioning strategy (Nwankwo Gbadamosi, 2011). In the first case, the organization has to determine the most meaningful groups of customers (Smith, 1995). For Frugi, these include the families that have children between the age of two and six, relatives of the former, future mothers, and individuals that are concerned about environmental degradation. Next, the enterprise must select the primary target audience to concentrate its efforts on this matter (Smith, 1995). In the case of Frugi, it is possible to speak of the families with little children as the main target segment. Finally, it is necessary to appeal to the chosen market (Smith, 1995). Frugi achieves this goal by informing the consumers of the special qualities of its goods (100% green, organic, and ethical), thus involving them in the designing of the new clothes and accessories that would be specifically tailored to their needs.

The reviewed company primarily relies on the Internet resources, especially Facebook and Twitter, to advertise and promote its goods (Nwankwo Gbadamosi, 2011). Such focus on the innovative types of media offers numerous advantages in comparison to traditional ones, especially considering that this approach to advertising has been known for many years and, therefore, resulted in the emergence of numerous marketing tools and methods that can be used by the company (Strumsky, Lobo, Tainter, 2010). Specifically, it provides the conditions for a wide coverage of the target audience, hence making it possible to attract potential customers regardless of their location (Nwankwo Gbadamosi, 2011). Next, social media contributes to the effectiveness of the company’s targeting strategy, thus allowing to define the most relevant target audience with a high degree of accuracy and concentrate the efforts on it. Moreover, such type of advertising is relatively inexpensive often being cheaper than print advertisements while having coverage comparable to one of TV ads. Such aspect is especially important for Frugi, a small organization with limited financial resources that has a low profitability (Nwankwo Gbadamosi, 2011). Finally, social media makes it possible to receive feedback from the target audience and, therefore, quickly respond to the needs and comments of potential customers (Davila, Epstein, Shelton, 2006). Given that Frugi relies on the opinion of its clients when it comes to product design (the so-called Frugi Crusaders), it is possible to argue that this benefit is in line with its marketing strategy (Nwankwo Gbadamosi, 2011). Thus, the innovative approach to advertising is quite suitable for the reviewed company.

The owners of Frugi, Lucy and Kurt, built several types of networks and online relationships to ensure the success of their company, including the ones that involve its customers and workers, with the former being the most developed one. All of those are based on the use of social media, especially Twitter, and blogs where the top managers of Frugi update their target audience on the different aspects of the company’s operational activity (Nwankwo Gbadamosi, 2011). The benefits of those for the organization are significant, as they increase the people’s awareness of Frugi brand, thus attracting both new clients and applicants (Nwankwo Gbadamosi, 2011). Additionally, the effective management of online networks and relationships results in the acknowledgment of the owners’ efforts (the Entrepreneur of the Year Award obtained by Lucy in 2008 is a vivid example of such scenario), hence presenting their company in a positive light (Nwankwo Gbadamosi, 2011). Finally, the updates on Frugi’s activity are regular and comprehensive, which improves its credibility in the eyes of various stakeholders (customers, potential partners, and job seekers among others) and providing the new opportunities for its growth and development (Insch Steensma, 2006). Therefore, one can assume that in the future, the financial results of the company would be even better.

Aliza Restaurant

The review of the case of Aliza restaurant has demonstrated the presence of numerous strategic and operational issues that can interfere with the new manager’s plan of implementing service excellence, and therefore, they must be taken into account. In the first case, it is possible to point out that the workers do not have clear goals, meaning that no long-term plans are developed by the top management (Nwankwo Gbadamosi, 2011). Additionally, the work environment is unfavorable, with the employees being closely monitored by the owners of the restaurant and having no impact on the course of the company. Such issue contributes to the high turnover rate, which does not have a positive effect on the quality of services the facility provides (Nwankwo Gbadamosi, 2011). On the other hand, the operational problems include the inconsistent level of customer service, with some of the clients having to wait for their order for a long time. Another issue is related to the insufficient training of the staff, which also has an impact on the quality of the products and services (Nwankwo Gbadamosi, 2011). All these problems produce the outcomes that are radically different from the ones associated with service excellence, hence meaning that they have to be addressed in order for the new manager’s plan to be successful.

By taking into account the small size of Aliza restaurant (the ability to serve 20 clients at a time), one can assume that the positive impact from the implementation of service excellence would be relatively insignificant. The primary reason for that is a need for addressing numerous issues that were described earlier, meaning that almost all aspects of the company’s work have to be reviewed and reformed. Such a significant undertaking can be quite taxing for a small business, thus disrupting its internal processes and resulting in financial losses (Evans, 2015). Additionally, it is mentioned in the case that the restaurant is already quite popular and well-known among the customers, with the main problem of the occasional low level of service (Nwankwo Gbadamosi, 2011). In other words, the possibility of expansion of consumer base can be relatively low. Nevertheless, the focus on excellence would improve the company’s position on the market and prevent it from losing more customers, hence meaning that as long as it does not interfere with its business processes, such course of actions can be perceived as feasible.

Conclusion

All in all, the review of the two cases of different business entities that seek to remain profitable has demonstrated that this goal can be achieved by a wide array of methods, including the improvement of the quality of the provided services and creation of a positive image. However, the outcomes of those largely depend on numerous factors, such as the level of training of the personnel and the availability of innovations among other things. As a result, it is possible to confirm the earlier statement regarding the absence of the uniform approach to the solution of problems experienced by SME, including the ones that are encountered in the field of marketing.