A brand is defined as a name, term, sign symbol (or a combination of these) that identifies the maker or seller of the product. In order for a brand to succeed in the ever increasing market, brand building activities such as promotion and advertisement must be conducted in order to gain awareness to establish and promote the company. Financially, Brand Equity is described as the total value of a brand which is a separable asset – when it is sold or included in a balance sheet. Kotler (2013) defines Brand Equity as the “differential effect that knowing the brand name has on customer response to the product or its marketing.” Aaker (1991) defines Brand Equity as, “a set of brand assets and liabilities linked to a brand, its name and symbol, that add to or subtract from the value provided by a product or service to a firm and/or that Continue reading
Marketing Principles
Monitoring of Economic and Social Environments in Marketing
In this day and age, economic and social environments are developing at a rapid pace, also it plays a crucial role in deciding consumption. The economic and social environments belong to the marketing environment. According to Kotler, marketing environment can be defined as consisting of the actors and forces outside marketing that affect markers’ ability to develop and maintain successful relationships with its target customers. The marketing environment offers both opportunities and threats. Some assert that the monitoring of the economic and social environments greatly contributes to anticipating customer requirements. However, others consider that it is not the significant element for anticipating although it sometimes proves successful. This article will attempt to demonstrate that the monitoring of the economic and social environments greatly contributes to anticipating customer requirements, although it also brings some problems, and companies should constantly watch and adapt to the marketing environment in order to seek opportunities Continue reading
Bettman Information Processing Model of Consumer Choice
Bettman (1979) in his model describes the consumer as possessing a limited capacity for processing information. He implicate that the consumers rarely analyze the complex alternatives in decision making and apply very simple strategy. In Bettman Information Processing Model, the consumer is portrayed as possessing a limited capacity for processing information. When faced with a choice, the consumer rarely undertakes very complex analyses of available alternatives. Instead, the consumer typically employs simple decision strategies or heuristics. These simplifying decision rules assist the consumer in arriving at a choice by providing a means for sidestepping the overly overburden task of assessing all the information available about all the alternatives. In Bettman Information Processing Model, there are seven major stages. Processing Capacity: In this step he assumes that the consumer has limited capacity for processing information, consumers are not interested in complex computations and extensive information processing. To deal with this problem, Continue reading
3Ps of Marketing Communication
An organisations marketing communication strategy are represented by 3Ps: Push, Pull and Profile. Push strategy: This strategy promotes products to retailers or wholesalers in order to force the product line down the distribution line. Pull strategy: This strategy is the opposite to push strategy where communication reaches to consumer or end user first with an aim to attract the retailer wholesaler channel to purchase the product line. Profile Strategy: In order to satisfy an organisations promotional goals profile strategy is used. This strategy mostly aims towards satisfying stakeholder needs. 1. Push Strategy Main focus of push strategy is to use minimal or no advertising to get the product to the buyers. This strategy acquires customers by personal sale. One of the places can be trade-shows where products are shown to interested business. In trade shows distributors get to know about product line up of a company with their business expertise Continue reading
Hierarchy of Effects Model in Consumer Behavior
Another widely used model in marketing that attempts to explain consumer decision making process is called the Hierarchy of Effects Model. Originally conceived to explain how advertising affects consumer’s purchase decisions, the Hierarchy of Effects Model focuses on consumer learning that takes place as he/she processes information from the external world. Although different researchers developed slightly different models, the basic idea is the same: people experience a sequence of psychological stages before purchasing a product. The origins of the Hierarchy of effects can be traced all the way back to 1898 and the hierarchy’s creator, a salesman named Elias St Elmo Lewis. Lewis believed that rather than simply closing a sale, an effective salesperson actually guided a buyer through a series of stages. He claimed that a proper salesman must ensure Attention, maintain Interest, create Desire and finally spur the customer to Action (purchase). In 1910, the Hierarchy of Effects Continue reading
Factors to Consider When Setting Prices
In the narrowest sense, price is the amount of money charged for a product or service. More broadly, price is the sum of all the values that consumers exchange for the benefits of having or using the product or service. Price is the only element in the marketing mix that produces revenue; all other elements represent costs. Price is also one of the most flexible elements of the marketing mix. Unlike product features and channel commitments, price can be changed quickly. At the same time, pricing and price competition is the number one problem facing many marketing executive. Yet, many companies do not handle pricing well. Factors to Consider When Setting Prices A company’s pricing decisions are affected by both internal and external environmental factors. Internal Factors Affecting Pricing Decisions: Internal factors affecting pricing include the company’s marketing objectives, marketing strategy, costs and organizational considerations. 1. Marketing Objectives: Before setting Continue reading