Introduction to Marketing Strategies and Information Systems
Marketing Strategies and Information Systems
The Importance of Trademarks
Jeremiah, the Marketing Director of “Walking the Floor” (a leather sandal company), has been advocating for the development of a trademark. Currently, the company sells its products through retailers who use their own branding. Developing a trademark like “Foot in the Ground” would allow the company to:
- Build a brand image and connect with their target audience.
Marketing’s Pervasive Influence
Organizations and individuals are constantly exposed to marketing, whether consciously or not. Competitors, various media (television, magazines, newspapers), and physical advertisements (billboards, flyers) all contribute to this pervasive marketing environment. This highlights the fact that:
- People and organizations are inherently influenced by marketing practices, even unintentionally.
Product Life Cycle
Marketing strategies differ across various mediums (e.g., newspapers vs. internet search programs) partly due to the different stages of a product’s life cycle. Similar to living beings, products go through stages of development. The ‘product life cycle’ can be understood as:
- A model representing the historical sales and profits of a product throughout its various stages.
Adapting Marketing Strategies
While generic marketing strategies exist, they often require adaptation to suit specific products, brands, sectors, or industries. Therefore:
- Marketing professionals must tailor or develop strategies specific to each unique situation.
The Role of Marketing Information Systems
The dynamic and ever-changing social, economic, technological, and cultural landscape significantly impacts marketing organizations and their customer relationships. Internal changes within organizations (e.g., skill fluctuations, restructuring, policy shifts, mergers and acquisitions) further complicate the role of marketing managers. To mitigate risks and optimize performance, a deep understanding of these variables is crucial. This involves:
- Availability of quality information: While necessary, it’s not enough on its own.
- Effective use of information: This includes knowing how to select, interpret, and utilize information to gain valuable insights into customer behavior (preferences, reactions to stimuli, etc.).
This context refers to the importance of:
- Marketing Information Systems (MIS)
It’s important to note that information systems, whether marketing-focused or not, require accurate information and skilled individuals who can make informed decisions based on that information.
Stages of Marketing Research
According to Mattar (2001), the marketing research process consists of four distinct stages. The following does not represent one of these stages:
- Conducting research with consumers of other products to assess potential success with the target audience.
Elements of a System
A system is a collection of interdependent parts working together as a unified whole to achieve a specific function. A system typically consists of three core elements:
- Inputs
- Processor
- Outputs
Control is an incidental element that guides the system’s operation.
The Goal of a Marketing Information System
The primary objective of a Marketing Information System is to:
- Support managers in the decision-making process.
Common Complaints about Marketing Information Systems
Managers often express concerns about Marketing Information Systems, particularly regarding data reliability and accuracy. The following is not a typical complaint:
- The information is presented in a clear and concise manner, its quality is unquestionable, simplifying the management role.
Procedures in Marketing Research
Marketing research involves a systematic and objective approach to gathering information for marketing decisions. This includes defining information needs, designing data collection methods, implementing data collection, analyzing results, and reporting findings and implications. The following is not a standard procedure in effective marketing research:
- Analyzing previous decisions to compare current data with past actions to ensure correlation between research and the subject being researched.
Misconceptions about Marketing Information Systems
Several misconceptions exist regarding Marketing Information Systems (MIS). The following statement is incorrect about MIS:
- Important data often arrives too early.
Secondary Data Sources
The following does not represent a secondary source of data:
- Original research conducted for the first time by a researcher.
Classifying New Products
is a common misconception: “But what kind of product is that?” In this sense there are many ways to classify new products and the first and perhaps most common, and identify them as being ‘continuous product innovation’ or ‘product innovation discontinuous’, so check the alternative that presents the correct explanation for each of the two types.
A)
Products of continuous innovation are the products whose changes occur in existing products can be seen with the evolution of an existing product. Products discontinuous innovation – are completely new products, with no predecessors and the same is not the result of the evolution of an existing product
Read the statement below and answer the question proposed: “There are several possible classifications of new products. For example, according to Churchill (2005, p.262), s products can also be focused on technology innovations (which come from research and development) and innovation-oriented customers (who come from the analysis of needs and desires of consumers). These two forms are important because they represent major market trends, develop new technologies that integrate functions and improve people’s lives and the tendency to develop products based on what customers really need and they say, or cast into the product from needs and even the desires of customers (where possible and feasible.) “About the statement below, tick the correct alternative.
A)
The statement is correct, the fact is that today based innovations in technology and innovations based on customer feedback is strong in industry and marketing