Week 4 Part A: Defining Target Markets

     For this evening's post I decided to give my thoughts on set one, Armstrong Garden centers and Rancho Vista nursery. At first glance you might say "Whats the difference? They're both plant stores." And you may be right if it weren't for the subtle differences that set these two apart from each other. 

    I'll start by breaking down my thoughts on Armstrong Garden Centers. My first impression is that they cater to a wide range of customers. They seem to have something for everyone, from home consultations to landscape design and install all the way to seasonal plants and garden furniture. In my opinion I think their target market is the home gardener. Someone who maybe doesn't know everything there is to know about gardening and might need help from time to time, the novice perhaps. This isn't to say that they don't have something to please even the greenest of thumb though. They seem like the Home Depot of gardening. 

    Right off the bat I can tell that Rancho Vista Nursery is going to be more of a specialty nursery. In fact that's exactly what it is. Their website is very simple and really only offers the basic information about what they offer. It seems like what they do offer, although limited to succulents and cactus, is top notch. Their target market is most likely going to be the avid gardener, or at least someone who knows exactly what they need since they don't offer a wide variety of different species. I would imagine they have a loyal following since they don't seem to need a website with all the bells and whistles. I feel like they probably let their product do the talking which I like. 

    I'm sure that these two garden stores share customers. I would find it hard to believe that they wouldn't. You would go to Armstrong for all your basic gardening supplies and easy to find plants and flowers. Then hit up Rancho Vista Nursery for your specialty succulents and cactus to really tie your space together. I could tell right away from the color scheme and layout of both sites what the differences where gonna be. Armstrong gives off a large company vibe. I get the feeling of a one stop shop kind of place from Armstrong. As for Rancho Vista I instantly get sort of a home made vibe. Like its a quality over quantity kind of spot. This is primarily due to the wood texture  background and warm colors. The fact that they specialize in a couple products versus trying to do it all doesn't hurt either. I'm not much of a gardener myself but I can see myself going to both spots as they seem to offer different experiences. I might actually end up in Armstrong since I do want to try my hand at growing gourmet mushrooms. I didn't see anything specifically about mushrooms but if they really are a one stop shop they should have something to get me started.