So is its true that individualism is dead and that consumer behavior is dominated by the influence of groups? There is no doubt consumer behavior is heavily influenced by groups. Individuals are always striving to conform to group behavior and to please others and this influences the purchase choices that they make. The influence of groups also helps to establish trends in lifestyle, fashion, and the assimilation of new products, into the lives of consumers. The notion of ‘virtual communities’ has been around ever since the inception of the internet. Whereas people used to meet and form communities geographically, the internet allows groups of like-minded people to meet virtually through communities based on, for example, online chat rooms and forums. Here individuals, who share common interests, can make contact with each other without any geographic restrictions. The interaction between members of such groups tends to be more uninhibited that it Continue reading
Marketing Management
Marketing management combines the fields of marketing and management. Marketing consists of discovering consumer needs and wants, creating the goods and services that meet those needs and wants; and pricing, promoting, and delivering those goods and services. Doing so requires attention to six major areas – markets, products, prices, places, promotion, and people. Management is getting things done through other people. Managers engage in five key activities – planning, organizing, staffing, directing, and controlling. Marketing management implies the integration of these concepts.
Corporate Branding Case Study: ‘Power of Dreams’ Campaign by Honda
In 2002 Honda Motor Company was the number-three Japanese automobile manufacturer in the world, behind Toyota and Nissan. While Honda’s automobile sales in Japan and the United States were considered strong, sales in the United Kingdom and mainland Europe were thought to be weak, even though automobile production in the United Kingdom had been ongoing for a decade. Further, Honda vehicle sales had been declining in these regions since 1998. In response to these problems Honda hired ad agency Wieden+Kennedy London office to create an advertising campaign that would directly address the issues. ‘‘The Power of Dreams,’’ released in 2002, was an omnipresent campaign in the United Kingdom and beyond, using television, direct mail, radio, posters, press, interactive television, cinema, magazines, motor shows, press launches, dealerships, postcards, beermats (coasters), and even traffic cones. It built upon Honda’s company slogan, ‘‘Yume No Chikara,’’ which was first endorsed in the 1940s by Continue reading
Introduction to Marketing Research
Marketing research is the intelligence service of a business enterprise. American Marketing Association defined marketing research as “the gathering, recording and analyzing of all data about problems relating to the transfer and sale of goods and services from producer to consumer.” Objectives of Marketing Research To know the demographics and psychographics of customers:- Marketing research tries to reveal the number of persons who buy, why they buy, when they buy, the frequency of their buying, and the sources of their buying. It also includes the social status and the regional location of the customers. To find out the impact of promotional efforts. To know customer response to a new product. To prove ‘what went wrong’. Nature of Marketing Research Marketing research is systematic and objective collection of data, its analysis and evaluation, and decision making in respect of specific aspects of a marketing problem. Marketing Research and Market Research:- Continue reading
Service Process Planning
The following are the strategic decision and design elements must be considered in the service process planning. Basic technological decision Conversion/ Market decision Specific equipment decision Process flow decision Blue Prints Flowchart Front and Back office Layouts Bench marks People decision 1. Basic Technological Decision In some, technology exists but not only in customerised form. So the question arises :whether the technology available can be developed to provide the raw material, process and equipment to deliver the service? For example , at one time it was possible to design printed electronic circuits on small chips, but the technology and specific equipment required to produce the chips are beyond the state of act. In the same way telephone was invented in 1876, but the technology came into use after 15 years from the invention of telephone dial. 2. Conversion/ Market Decision The decision on conversion process is complex as it depends Continue reading
Are Market Research and Marketing Research the Same?
Market research is about understanding the broader marketplace in which we intend to compete. Marketing research, on the other hand, is about understanding what ‘package’ of marketing elements (i.e. the product, price, promotion and distribution factors) the country will need to put together in order to meet customer needs and to succeed in the marketplace. Market research is the more encompassing/broader concept of understanding the market environment in which you will be competing, while marketing research is the more specific/focused view of consumer needs and behavior. In its role as the foundation of marketing, marketing research is arguably marketing’s most important task. Today marketers not only view research as a key ingredient in making marketing decisions they also consider information to be a critical factor in gaining advantage over competitors. Because organizations recognize the power information has in helping create and maintain products that offer value, there is Continue reading
The Gap Model of Service Quality
The Gap Model of Service Quality has been developed by Parasuraman and his colleagues which helps to identify the gaps between the perceived service qualities that customers receive and what they expect. Read More: Service Quality The Gap Model of Service Quality identifies five gaps: Consumer expectation — management perception gap. Management perception — service quality expectation gap. Service quality specifications — service delivery gap. Service delivery — external communications to consumer’s gap. Expected service — perceived service gap. Gap — 5 is the service quality shortfall as seen by the customers, and gaps 1-4 are shortfalls within the service organization. Thus gaps 1-4 contribute to gap — 5. These gaps are given in the following figure: The first gap is the difference between consumer expectations and management perceptions of consumer expectations. Research shows that financial service organizations often treat issues of privacy as relatively unimportant, whilst consumers consider them Continue reading