MK 3010 Case Analysis

WEIGHT WATCHERS VS. JENNY CRAIG

While perusing a shopping mall, I’m undoubtedly exposed to many advertisements of thin models, and as many do, I would ponder the thought of needing to lose some weight. This first step in the consumer decision process, need recognition, could be capitalized on by marketers who cleverly place ads around the mall for companies such as Jenny Craig and Weight Watchers featuring their promise to make me lose weight with bikini clad women posing happily.
After discovering this newfound need to lose weight, I would begin searching for more information. As a consumer, I would begin with an internal search: what do I already know about weight loss? This is a critical moment for any marketer to capitalize on. Ideally for marketers, their company, such as Jenny Craig, would automatically be retrieved in someone’s memory without the aid of advertisements or other explicit channels of communication between Jenny Craig and the consumer. If I was unsure of my decision or I have never looked into weight loss before, I would begin an external search for information. I would speak to friends and family, read ratings in Consumer Reports, or even simply web search. Marketers often dominate sources such as websites and ads, thus most likely influencing me with pop-up ads around window frames of websites after I’ve already searched for terms such as “weight loss”.
The next step in the consumer decision process is assessing the value of potential weight loss companies. Factors such as which celebrities endorse which company or which company has the closest location to my home would be criteria for selecting a company. Marketers would most likely take this opportunity to boast about Weight Watcher’s greatest attributes, such as smart phone apps. Once I’ve evaluated possibilities, I will either decide where to buy it, when to buy it, or not to buy it at all. If I have selected Weight Watchers and have chosen not to buy Jenny Craig’s program, then I will decide if I want to go to my nearest location or wait a few weeks to buy. Marketers would run sales on membership prices to effectively reduce my hesitancy to purchase. During the post purchase phase, I am comparing my lower body weight to the body weight I was expecting to have and I am not so happy with the diet plan I received from Weight Watchers. Since I am dissatisfied with my purchase and am showing signs of cognitive dissonance due to my lack of weight loss, a marketer would step in and attempt a resale with an even lower cost or offer me free services to boost my weight loss.
Because weight watchers and Jenny Craig have created their best value in that particular market and for the people, they are two of the best companies in healthy food market. Let’s talk a little about how Weight Watchers have created its value. First of all, they have a cognitive space. Their plan is simple and focused on behavior, food, exercise and support. They not only use propoints for the customers, but for a stronger customer bond, they add social benefits, such as organizing group meetings. Adding structural ties by providing food scales, cookbooks, water bottle, snacks and recipes for self-preparation food are few more ways they bond with the customers. They also create value by creating long term membership for customers which includes free advice, support and 24*7 support to registered dietitian. These were few ways how Weight Watchers have created their value. By creating all these values, Weight Watchers creates more customers for its company which means all these values are great benefit for the company. The costs for Weight Watchers are based on individuals attending weekly sessions for 6 months followed my monthly sessions for a further 18 months. So the cost varied from customer to customer but the benefits are much higher so Weight Watchers definitely gains many new customers. Now onto Jenny Craig, they organize