Give feedback on these two posts.

Post 1

I learned about the amount of thought Trader Joe's puts into their location recently (I think it was in another management class actually). They operate solely within the US, but have locations in almost every state, and they tend to place their stores in densely populated areas. Of course, finding locations with a lot of potential customers is something most businesses try to do, but Trader Joe's has a specific philosophy when it comes to where they place their stores. They select smaller lots on purpose, in part because their stores have a smaller footprint than other supermarkets, but also because they want to encourage customers to use alternate methods of transport to shop with them. They intentionally put in less parking than they need in an effort to promote their brand as an environmentally conscious, wellness-oriented neighborhood market. Their thinking is that if people know it will be hard to park, they will be more likely to walk or bike to the store, but that is not the only benefit. A full parking lot is a great marketing tool--there's a reason nightclubs try maintain visible lines outside their doors. So by choosing smaller lots in heavily populated areas, Trader Joe's promotes its image as a small neighborhood grocer, encourages sustainable practices that are aligned with its mission, benefits from high visibility, and appeals to their customers' desire to shop somewhere hip and popular. While their decisions about where to place their stores is far from the only reason for Trader Joe's success, it is a great example of how incorporating a marketing plan into all aspects of a business can help create a competitive advantage.

Post 2

The business that I have chosen to talk about is Scheels. The location of Scheels contributes to the success of the store, by being in locations that are more outdoorsy and where people like to go hunting, fishing, biking, or like to play sports. The locations are mainly Midwest from Texas, all the way north to Montana, North Dakota and all the way west to Nevada with two locations in Colorado. The business is supported by being attractive to people who like to spend their time outside and physical fitness. Again, playing sports, all the hunting, fishing and hiking gear plus the attire for all of those activities, allows for the business to be successful. The competitive advantage in being these locations is if you like to fish and hunt and go camping, it is a one stop shop to get everything that you may need for your trip. One of the strengths of this company is the enormous size of the building. The Scheels building is massive and can be seen from a pretty good distance away. The large parking lots allow for a ton of people to be in the store at once as well.