While some industrial advertisers use traditional consumer media when they serve their advertising objectives, their choices generally center on whether to use print media (business magazines, trade publications, and industrial directions), direct marketing (direct mail, telemarketing, catalogs, and data sheets), or some combination thereof. General Business and Trade Publications General business and trade publications are classified as either horizontal or vertical. Horizontal publications deal with specific functions, tasks, or technologies and cut across industry lines. Vertical publications are directed toward a specific industry and may be read by almost anyone from the person on the assembly line to the company president. The choice of one or the other, or both, is dictated by the desire to penetrate a particular industry, reach common influencers across industries, or optimize the goals of reach and frequency. General business publications (e.g., Fortune, Business Week, and The Wall Street Journal) tend to be read by Continue reading
Industrial Marketing Management
Cost-Benefit Analysis in Industrial Pricing
To formulate an appropriate industrial pricing strategy it is very essential to have an analysis of the costs and benefits of the industrial product from the customer’s point of view. The benefits can be grouped into soft and hard benefits. Soft benefits includes those benefits which are very difficult to assess, such as customer training, warranty period, customer services, company reputation etc. Hard benefits are the physical attributes of the products such as production rate of machine, rejection rate of component and price/performance ratio. The costs for an industrial customer mean price plus other expenses that are incurred in purchasing and using the product. For example, the cost of a new oil refinery machine purchased by oil mill includes price, freight, installation, energy usage, repair and maintenance. The cost of production stoppage due to failure of machine may also be included while calculating the machine cost though it is difficult Continue reading
Uses of Industrial Advertising
Rarely is advertising employed by itself in the industrial arena. The complexity of most industrial products, coupled with buyers’ expectations and unique information needs, requires personal contact. It is not possible, however, for sales people to make contact with all the various individuals who may be involved in a purchasing decision. In fact, studies have indicated that on the average for every ten buying influencers, salesperson reaches only three to four. Not only is industrial advertising an effective means of reaching inaccessible or unknown buying influencers, it creates awareness, enhances the effectiveness of the sales call, increases the overall efficiency of the selling effort, and is an important ingredient in creating and maintaining demand at the distributor level. Reaching Buying Influences: It is not uncommon for industrial sales people to be unaware of individuals within a firm who may be in a position to exert influence on a purchasing decision. Continue reading
Pricing Decisions in Industrial Marketing
Price still remains one of the most important elements determining company market share and profitability. Generally, prices were set by buyers and sellers negotiating with each other. Setting one price for all buyers is a relatively modern idea. Price is the only element in the marketing mix that produces revenue. Price is also one of the most flexible elements of the marketing mix. At the same time, pricing and price competition are the number-one problems faced by many marketing executives. Yet many companies do not handle pricing well. The most common mistakes are these: Pricing is too cost oriented; price is not revised often enough to capitalize on market changes; price is set independent of the rest of the marketing mix rather than as an intrinsic element of market-positioning strategy; and price is not varied enough for different product items, market segments, and purchase occasions. Pricing Decisions in Industrial Marketing Continue reading
Definitions of Key Terms in Integrated Marketing Communications
Integrated means that combine or coordinate separate elements so as to provide a harmonious, interrelated whole. In other word, when all marketing communication tool work together, it will be more effective than work as a single component. It will create more competitive advantages, boost sales and profit, while saving cost, time and stress if this concept is incorporated in marketing strategy. So, if the marketing communication tools are combined as a group it will produce more powerful outcome in the process of delivering customer superior value. Marketing The root word for marketing is market. Market is defined as a place for consumer and sellers to carry out transaction that required cash as an exchange medium for obtaining a product or service. Marketing can be defined in two perspectives which include old view or new view of marketing. From the new view of marketing, it is all about the creation of Continue reading
Sales Promotion in Industrial Marketing
Sales promotion is an activity used by the industrial marketer to boost the immediate sales of a product or service. It is used to increase the sales by impressing the customers, rewarding them and also motivating the sales force to get more business. There are different techniques used in a industrial sales promotion activity like a free-sample campaign, offering free gifts, arranging demonstrations or exhibitions, organizing competitions with attractive prizes, temporary price reductions, door-to-door calling, telemarketing, using personal letters, etc. More than any other element of the promotional mix, sales promotion is about “action”. It is about stimulating customers to buy a product. It is not designed to be informative — a role which advertising is much better suited to. Need for Sales Promotion in Industrial Marketing To introduce a new product in the market. To influence the public with the help of new uses of the product. To increase Continue reading