This paper presents a comprehensive communication plan for a children's clothing manufacturer facing competitive pressure from lower-cost foreign producers. The plan outlines communication objectives, a full situational analysis including company strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, and a four-phase communication strategy targeting employees, management, consumers, media, and industry analysts. It also addresses spokesperson credibility, desired audience responses, and measurable success criteria. The document concludes with a SWOT summary and an audience-centered analysis designed to support a smooth transition from children's clothing to an upscale young-adult fashion line.
The company faces serious competitive challenges from foreign market manufacturers that operate with significantly lower overhead. Formerly the number one manufacturer of children's clothing, the company has recently lost that ranking. Effective communications will be of utmost importance to facilitate a successful company transition. To achieve effective communications, the following objectives have been identified:
The company's strengths are numerous, and in order to succeed, those strengths will have to be leveraged fully. They include a strong management team and management style, factory employees who are willing to work hard and are loyal to the company — many of them second- and third-generation workers — a mutually respectful relationship with the unions that govern the employees, and a slow and steady approach to marketing that has succeeded since the Industrial Revolution era.
The company has also opened and maintained relationships with wholesalers and retailers that helped it achieve its number one manufacturing position. This is an especially important strength, since cultivating these relationships will be crucial to acceptance of the new product and company name. Because these relationships have served the company so well over the decades, using them is critical — and of equal importance is the solicitation and establishment of relationships with new and additional retailers and wholesalers. Other strengths include already established plants that can easily be converted for production of the new clothing line, as well as distribution channels that have been in use for many years and make delivering the new product a fairly straightforward process. The personnel, production facilities, distribution chain, and established relationships can all be considered advantageous assets for the company.
In comparison to the company's strengths, the weaknesses are equally glaring. The company has for years been run as a military-style factory, which could lead to resentment from workers. Disengaged employees can cause production losses and disruptions. Key employees will need to have their concerns addressed and should be kept motivated. Especially important will be the employees on the "front line" — those responsible for soliciting, establishing, and maintaining old and new relationships with retailers and wholesalers.
Although employee morale has not apparently been a major problem, care will need to be taken to facilitate an orderly transition from a conservative, New England-type atmosphere to a more trendy and upscale outlook, while still maintaining the diligence and hard-working environment the company has fostered for generations.
Another major weakness is the incremental cost-of-living raises negotiated by the union. These wage increases are pricing the company out of the marketplace, allowing foreign firms with much lower pay scales to offer products at substantially lower prices. Either the price of the company's product must be competitive, or the product itself must be demonstrably superior — and a blend of the two would probably be preferable, though that combination could create production challenges.
In such an event, the union would have to be approached and a team concept negotiated and implemented that could possibly allow for higher wages tied to the product's profit margin. This scenario is very risky and difficult to sustain. Another approach might be a wage freeze until the product has been rolled out, in order to determine whether it will provide a long-term viable situation.
This radical makeover is fraught with risk and could lead to significantly lower sales and profitability. A positive outlook in all communications should be strictly maintained, and all management and employees should buy into the plan before the product launches.
Since the company was founded on the basic principle of producing a good product for a fair price, there are many opportunities in this scenario that could lead to extended profitability. The opportunity exists for the company to regain its number one rating in the world as a clothing manufacturer. Another opportunity is the chance to secure the company's future — which directly affects its employees — and to become a more diverse company. Establishing the company as a provider of upscale, trendy clothing could lead to substantially higher profits and ensure the company remains viable for years to come.
By becoming more diverse, the company can offer different product lines to complement current offerings as well as a trendy line aimed at the 18-to-21-year-old market being proposed. An advantage of offering trendy, upscale clothing is that what is "in" today could be "out" tomorrow, opening additional sales opportunities for the next "in" product, rather than relying solely on purchases to replace worn or faded items. To take advantage of this dynamic, market observers will need to keep the company informed, and the company will need to respond quickly and efficiently to capitalize on emerging trends.
Some experts predict that revenue from the type of market the company is considering will exceed $10 billion in annual sales within the next five years. The opportunity for the company is to capture at least 10% of those sales in a short amount of time, which would generate revenue nearly double what the company currently produces. At some point in the near future, the opportunity may also exist for the company to fully transition away from the children's and baby clothing lines and concentrate wholly on dominating the proposed trendy line.
The threats to the company are numerous. The company is not the only clothing manufacturer considering such a move, and other companies are already in the process of transitioning. Many competitors have well-established clothing lines that already cater to the exact demographics the company will be targeting.
While the target market is an attractive one, it is also a particularly demanding one. Consumers aged 18 to 21 are notoriously selective about what they wear. According to some reports, this age group is second only to young teenage girls in terms of how fashion-conscious their clothing choices must be. This factor, combined with considerations of price and product quality, creates a challenging operating environment for the company.
This difficult operating environment will need to be monitored and adapted to on a consistent and regular basis. If the company fails to generate sufficient demand for the product, the entire financial health of the organization could be affected.
Another threat involves the accessibility and cost of raw materials. Supply chain management will be critical: buyers will need to keep a close watch on the marketplace to purchase cotton and silk at wholesale prices that allow for the greatest profitability while maintaining the product quality for which the company has earned a strong reputation. Ensuring that base materials are purchased at a price that supports high profit margins is essential, and it is equally important that such materials be delivered in a timely manner and in condition conducive to producing a high-quality product.
With such a large undertaking, a coherent and organized message must be presented to all those who will be affected. Communicating that message to various audiences will require a coherent mission and integrated strategic goals. The audiences to be addressed include employees, management, the media, and the buying public — especially consumers aged 18 to 21.
Regarding employees, each individual will have different concerns depending on where, when, and with whom they work, as well as their job title and functions. Therefore, a message will have to be drafted for each department based on those variables. Since employees from every department will be affected by this significant change in company direction, each department will receive a customized communication that clearly lays out the goals and objectives of the company, the steps the company will take in relation to their particular departments, and the overall steps being taken by the company as a whole.
The Board of Directors, shareholders, the CEO, the Senior Management Team, Human Resources, and the Sales department will each need customized messages as well. Engaging management at all levels will be essential to the success of the plan. To achieve that success will require communication among all parties, individuals, and departments. Management must remember that not all employees view things in exactly the same way, and it is crucial that a positive tone be maintained in all correspondence — whether written or verbal — especially regarding the company's new goals, objectives, and direction.
Management will play a crucial role in the success or failure of this new direction and will be advised to maintain consistent, positive messages while providing context that helps others understand not only what the company is attempting, but the rationale behind it as well.
External communications are equally important, particularly when communicating with those in the financial industry — financial and industry analysts. This audience must be handled carefully. Keeping analysts engaged does not mean that the company spokesperson misleads them in any way; rather, it is the manner in which the message is presented that can be just as important as the message itself. Company representatives must adhere to the company line and remain positive in all conversations with these analysts.
Another key audience is the consuming public — both long-time customers and newcomers to the company's products. The newcomer may be the more important of the two for growth purposes, although the company must not neglect those consumers who have been loyal for many years. These consumers will ultimately determine whether the company succeeds in its endeavors or becomes yet another cautionary tale of a company that could not sustain its relevance.
"CEO credibility and expected outcomes of the plan"
"Phased rollout strategy targeting market, employees, and consumers"
"Revenue and earnings benchmarks for evaluating plan results"
"Condensed SWOT table and audience credibility summary"
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