Marketing Strategy - Midterm Exam
Long Definition of Marketing
"Marketing is a process of research, planning and implementation whereby the
buyers' needs and wants are satisfied and fear, uncertainty, resentment relieved, by
the seller's product's benefits for a mutually agreeable price."
Medium Definition of Marketing
"Marketing is the process of identifying, planning, communicating and delivering the
highest value solution, as perceived by the target customer(s), while at the same
time achieving a satisfactory profit."
Short Definition of Marketing
"Marketing is understanding and satisfying customers and making money".
AMA's Definition of Marketing
"Marketing is an organizational function and a set of processes for creating,
communicating, and delivering value to customers and for managing customer
relationships in ways that benefit the organization and its stakeholders."
Marketing
A long and involved exchange process that requires buyer and seller satisfaction,
and integrated cooperation with all functions in the company.
Consumer Marketing (B2C)
___________ an exchange between selling businesses and buying consumers.
Business or industrial Marketing (B2B)
___________ an exchange between selling businesses and buying businesses.
Reasons to Study B2B
The industrial marketplace is bigger than the consumer marketplace (some
references say 4 times larger).
Reasons to Study B2B
In Canada especially, the export strengths are primarily industrial products.
B2B Domain Characterization
A limited number of buyers (e.g., only thousands or tens of thousands of Cisco
business customers, not hundreds of millions).
→ Decreased emphasis on advertising and/or mass media
→ More emphasis on personal selling, long-term relationships, and trust
B2B Domain Characterization
More complex buying centers (users, deciders, internal/external consultants, buyers)
→ Complex organizational buying criteria
→ Long buying process, more formal
→ More rational process, less variety seeking
→ Need for sophisticated customer investigation by seller
→ Need for sophisticated team approach for both investigation and selling,
especially including product designers
B2B Domain Characterization
,Increasingly more trained and sophisticated buyers
→ Need for improved training for members of selling team, including designers
B2B Domain Characterization
More buyer requirement for customization and service
→ Usually product and service customization to some degree
→ Usually price negotiation to some degree
→ Reinforces need for sophisticated team approach for both investigation and
selling
B2B Domain Characterization
The buyer's perspective of higher risk ($$, consequences)
→ Need for flawless reputation, word-of-mouth
→ Need for 24-hour service
→ Reinforces need for sophisticated team approach for investigation, selling and
service
B2B Domain Characterization
A trend for buyers to reduce their number of suppliers (this is what is really driving
convergence in voice/video/data)
→ Need for wider product offering, possibly with partners
→ Need for higher quality standards
High-Tech Domain Characterization
• Global leap-frogging in technology-based products (e.g., smart phones)
• Uncertain emergence of global technology standards
• Shorter product, technology and brand life cycles
• Desperate need for new products, product migration plans
• Products increasingly complex in substance and function
• Relatively high expenditure on product R&D
• Increasing difficulty of manufacturing
• High Early Majority buyer Fear, Uncertainty and/or Resentment
• High Early Majority buyer need for real value-added
• High Early Majority buyer need for backward, horizontal and forward product
compatibility
• Shortage of skilled marketers and sales and service reps
Cars
What is an example of a Product Life Cycle
Internal Combustion Engines
What is an example of a Technology Life Cycles
Bugatti
What is an example of a Brand Life Cycles
Marketing Strategy
,It is simply a plan, i.e., a well-researched and logically-sequenced set of decisions,
that will help the selling firm to achieve its market performance objectives.
Elements of a CMO-Level Marketing Strategy
Decisions:
• Industry Vision
• Corporate Vision/Mission/Goals
• Core Value Proposition / Positioning / Brand & Branding
• Product / Market / Technology / Ally Portfolio
• Corporate Pricing Policy
• Corporate Promotion Policy
• Corporate Customer Loyalty Policy
• Corporate Digital Footprint
Elements of a CMO-Level Marketing Strategy
Wrap-up:
• Overall Financial Forecast
• Main Risk Scenarios and Contingency Plans
Elements of a Product-level Marketing Strategy
"Tier 1" Decisions (Strategy)
• Product Vision/Mission/Goals
• Target market segment(s)
• Compelling Value Proposition/Positioning/Brand & Branding
Elements of a Product-level Marketing Strategy
"Tier 2" Decisions (Strategic Management - 4 Ps)
Product Decisions
o Product line and brand line
o Features, Functions
o Embedded Technologies
o Design
o Customer Service
o International Issues
Pathway (Route to market) Decisions ("Place")
o Direct versus Indirect
o Distributor / Retailer Network
o International Issues
Price Decisions
o General Price Level
o List Prices and Margins
o Discounts from List
o Bidding Strategies for Large Projects
o International Issues
, Promotion Decisions
o Ideal Promotional Mix
o Sales Force Size and Structure
o Advertising / Social Media
o Public Relations
o Tradeshows
o International Issues
Elements of a Product-level Marketing Strategy
"Tier 2" Decisions (Strategic Management - 4 Ps)
Wrap-up:
• Budgets, Schedules, Responsibilities
• Overall Financial Forecast
• Main risk scenarios and contingency plans
The Process for Developing a Marketing Strategy
(Step 1)
External Intelligence:
• Product Life Cycle(s), and drivers (including Social, Legal, Economic, Political,
Technological factors (SLEPT))
• Industry Value Network and Key Success Factors (KSFs)
• Buyer segmentation, behaviour, ideal points, and more KSFs
• Competitors, strategies and outcomes
• Potential partners
The Process for Developing a Marketing Strategy
(Step 2)
SWEPPT
• Strengths and Weaknesses (from benchmarking versus industry best practices and
Key Performance Indicators);
• Eurekas (good events or discoveries), Problems (bad events or outcomes);
• Promising Trends; and Threatening Trends
The Process for Developing a Marketing Strategy
(Step 3)
Internal Intelligence:
• Prior strategies, outcomes
• Resources, including brand strength, $$, personnel, technologies
• Executive values and preferences, vision and mission, Key Performance Indicators
(KPIs)
The Process for Developing a Marketing Strategy
