360° Marketing Strategy of Ross Dress For Less – Detailed Explanation

Updated on: Aug 23, 2022

In a previous article, we discussed the SWOT Analysis of Ross stores. In this blog, we are going to elaborate on the marketing strategy of Ross Dress For Less, the US’s leading discount retailer. 

The objective is to learn and gain insights into Ross Stores and how it established the first Ross Junior Department Store outlet to become one of the biggest clothing discount department stores in the US.

So, as you can observe, the world is totally online now, and marketing is the rib of every industry. If you are passionate to know more about marketing then do check out our Free Masterclass on Digital Marketing by the CEO and founder of IIDE, Karan Shah.

We will learn the entire marketing strategy of Ross Dress For Less by the end of this blog. Let’s start with the company’s story, target audience, and digital presence before delving further.

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About Ross Dress For Less – Company Overview

Marketing Strategy Of Ross Dress For Less - Ross Dress for Less

The biggest clothing discount departmental stores – Ross Dress for Less is a chain of American off-price department stores headquartered in Dublin, California. It is the country’s third-largest off-price retail shop. In 1950, Morris “Morrie” Ross established the Ross Department Store in San Bruno, California. Morris would work 85 hours a week for his department store, doing all of the purchasing and bookkeeping.

In 1958, Ross sold his store to William Isackson to start a career as a residential and commercial real estate developer. Isackson expanded the company to six locations in San Bruno, Pacifica, Novato, Vacaville, Redwood City, and Castro Valley, with more on the way.

In 1982, a group of investors led by Mervin Morris, the founder of Mervyn’s department store chain, acquired the six Ross Department Stores in San Francisco, changed the format to off-price retail units, and rapidly expanded the chain to 107 stores under Stuart Moldaw and Don Rowlett within three years.

They sell apparel and household items ranging from garments to houseware accessories. Customers at Ross Stores are extremely trustworthy.

On June 1, 2014, Barbara Rentler replaced CEO Michael Balmuth, becoming the 25th female CEO of a Fortune 500 corporation. Ross moved its headquarters from Pleasanton to Dublin, California, in 2014. As of June 2022, the firm owns and runs in roughly 1,600 locations across the United States.

Gift cards of up to $ 250 are available. Buyers can also design their own gift cards. Whereas it contains everything from flowers to cards to toys. On the one hand, it has a really impressive combination that is set by the manufacturer, and on the other hand, if the individual wants to modify it, they can do so as well.

 

Quick Stats on Ross Dress For Less
CEO Barbara Rentler
CMO Michelle Barth
Area Served The United States
Industry Retail
Market Share/ Revenue $18.916B (2022)
Vision Offering customers the best name-brand bargains possible.
Tagline “Yes for Less”

 


Marketing Strategy Of Ross Dress For Less

Let’s dive into the marketing strategy used by Ross Dress For Less, and how it practically applies the strategies formed by them.

Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning

Geographically, it segments the urban individual and families in tier-1 or tier-2 cities, however, with such an online presence of the brand, anybody can place an order from anywhere. Demographically and Psychologically, people of all age groups who want a better life than before and people who wish to have stress-relieving, are targeted with an occurring to the income of the individual.

The primary target audience for Ross dress for less is the customers aged teen to old age individuals and families who want a better life. 

The company’s market position has been well achieved by adhering to the vision of the Promoters and the Senior management team and their experience of over four decades in the home comfort and better life. 


Marketing Campaigns 

Marketers for Ross Dress For Less extensively use TV marketing to promote throughout changing seasons. 

In Ross’s TV commercial, Usher’s “Endless Possibilities”

Marketing Strategy Of Ross Dress For Less - Campaign 1

Models dance to Usher’s “Yeah!” while displaying Ross’s clothing. In front of the retailer and parks, they change into different clothes. Ross believes that its consumers can enjoy limitless discounts, style, and potential.

Ross TV Commercial “Great Minds Shop Alike”

Marketing Strategy Of Ross Dress For Less - Campaign 2

Showcasing different segments of products at Ross’, customers are seen having similar choices as other customers. Ross states 20%- 60% off Department Store Prices every day. 

Ross TV Commercial ‘Best Bargains Ever’

Marketing Strategy Of Ross Dress For Less - Campaign 3

Showcasing a variety of gift options from Ross, people enjoy getting new gifts from their loved ones. Ross indicated their customers don’t have to spend a lot, to give a lot to their loved ones.


Social Media Marketing

Ross Dress For Less has a decent amount of Social Media presence around major social media sites.

Facebook  2M Followers
Instagram 481K Followers
LinkedIn 200K Followers
Twitter 3.5K Followers


As seen in the above table, Ross Dress for Less is mostly followed on Facebook, having a strong customer base on Facebook it promotes a variety of products through social media marketing on Facebook. They also put up promotional posts on Instagram but have almost no existence on Youtube and Twitter. Although social media has become one of the most powerful advertising platforms, Ross continues to market in a conventional manner.


SEO Strategies 

Marketing Strategy Of Ross Dress For Less - SEO

Ross Dress For Less has a very strong base and a foolproof SEO strategy along with its efforts to work hard enough to keep the brand soaring in the Google organic SERP results. Having 273K Organic Keywords on the website and monthly organic traffic of 4.3M shows that Ross Dress For Less has a mighty Digital Marketing Team.


Influencer Marketing

You can watch most of the recent ads on a variety of TV channels. In some cases, they build relationships with fashion and lifestyle bloggers who can have a big influence on their products. Influencers promote the products so that Ross Dress For Less gains popularity and the sales will increase via their fan’s following.


Ecommerce Strategies

To mention Ecommerce strategies Ross Dress For Less has its website but they don’t sell any products online. To purchase a product one has to visit the retail stores. Ross Dress For Less is missing out on Ecommerce Presence on the web and they need to work on this while also keeping up with the retail market.


Mobile App

Ross Dress For Less does not have any mobile app. This is something Ross Dress For Less should work upon along with the e-commerce strategies and keeping up on the retail market.


Content Marketing Strategies

The majority of Ross Dress For Less’ current advertising appears to be on television these days. Most of the latest advertisements are available on several networks. In other circumstances, they develop ties with fashion and lifestyle bloggers who may have a significant impact on their products. Ross Inc. marketers heavily employ TV marketing to advertise throughout the shifting seasons. Ross does not have a strong social media presence, but it has been in so many advertisements that its presence is felt.

 

This ends the elaborative marketing strategy of Ross Dress For Less. Let us conclude our learning below from the marketing strategy of Ross Dress For Less.

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Conclusion – What’s Unique in Ross Dress For Less Marketing?

Ross Dress For Less is a famous retail seller with an amazing national presence doing tremendously well and people are loving it. With just TV commercials and a good presence on social media sites, Ross Dress For Less is pretty much doing decent in the game. To improve its marketing plan it should be necessary to develop a greater presence on the e-commerce side of the business.

Digital marketing is crucial since it links a company with its clients when they are online and is effective across all sectors. It links businesses with ideal consumers through SEO and PPC on Google, social media marketing, and email marketing. If you would like to learn more and develop skills, check out IIDE’s 4-Month Digital Marketing Course to learn more.

Alternatively, you can enrol in one of our free online masterclasses led by IIDE’s CEO, Karan Shah, to gain insight into the field of digital marketing. 

We hope this blog on the marketing strategy of Ross Dress For Less has given you a good insight into the company’s marketing strategies.

If you like such in-depth analysis of companies just like the marketing strategy of Ross Dress For Less check out our IIDE Knowledge portal for more fascinating case studies.

Thank you for taking the time to read the marketing strategy of Ross Dress For Less, and do share your thoughts on this case study marketing strategy of Ross Dress For Less in the comments section below.

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Author's Note:

My name is Aditya Shastri and I have written this case study with the help of my students from IIDE's online digital marketing courses in India.

Practical assignments, case studies & simulations helped the students from this course present this analysis.

Building on this practical approach, we are now introducing a new dimension for our online digital marketing course learners - the Campus Immersion Experience.

If you found this case study helpful, please feel free to leave a comment below.

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Aditya Shastri

Lead Trainer & Head of Learning & Development at IIDE

Leads the Learning & Development segment at IIDE. He is a Content Marketing Expert and has trained 6000+ students and working professionals on various topics of Digital Marketing. He has been a guest speaker at prominent colleges in India including IIMs......[Read full bio]

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