Marketing

define trade

2010-12-23T01:44:00.000-08:00

noun, verb, trad·ed, trad·ing, adjective

–noun

the act or process of buying, selling, or exchanging commodities, at either wholesale or retail, within a country or between countries: domestic trade; foreign trade.

a purchase or sale; business deal or transaction.

an exchange of items, usually without payment of money.

any occupation pursued as a business or livelihood.

some line of skilled manual or mechanical work; craft: the trade of a carpenter; printer's trade.

people engaged in a particular line of business: a lecture of interest only to the trade.

market: an increase in the tourist trade.

a field of business activity: a magazine for the furniture trade.

the customers of a business establishment.

10.

Informal .trade paper

11.

trades.trade wind ( def. 1 ) .

–verb (used with object)

12.

to buy and sell; barter; traffic in.

13.

to exchange: to trade seats.

–verb (used without object)

14.

to carry on trade.

15.

to traffic (usually fol. by in ): a tyrant who trades in human lives.

16.

to make an exchange.

17.

to make one's purchases; shop; buy.

–adjective

18.

of or pertaining to trade or commerce.

19.

used by, serving, or intended for a particular trade: trade journal.

20.

Also, trades. of, composed of, or serving the members of a trade: a trade club.

—Verb phrases

21.

trade down, to exchange a more valuable or desirable item for a less valuable or desirable one.

22.

trade in, to give (a used article) as payment to be credited toward a purchase: We trade in our car every three years.

23.

trade off, to exchange something for or with another.

24.

trade on / upon, to turn to one's advantage, esp. selfishly or unfairly; exploit: to trade on the weaknesses of others.

25.

trade up, to exchange a less valuable or desirable item for a more valuable or desirable one.

World Markets

2010-12-21T16:41:00.001-08:00

World Markets

Asia

Daiwa's Information Bank The Daiwa Securities Group now provides a new Worldwide Web page to summarize first-half financial reports of listed and OTC Japanese companies. This new service is part of Daiwa's Corporate Information Bank (CIB) and will summarize midterm financial reports on the day following their release. It will also provide updated company forecasts of fiscal-year results.
Daiwa Institute of Research
Asia Inc., Online Covers business in Asia with audio, graphics and text and provides daily financial statistics and commentary.
Nomura Project Finance International

North America

Bank of Canada Currency Museum
Canadian Financial Network provides a window on Canadian financial markets.
Great West Life Assurance - Canada
KPMG Canada. This page describes services of one of Canada's leading accounting organizations and lists a variety of business links in Canada.

Europe

International Financial Encyclopeadia
MATIF. MATIF is the French futures & options exchange and offers investors products such as Stock index, interest rate , foreign exchange, and commodities. The web site has historical data and statistics.
ABN-Amro Bank
Directory of Russian Banks
Union Bank of Switzerland Technology Lab
Finnish Finance Network
FMS - FMS is a Frankfurt-based money newsletter reporting each week on Bundesbank, German interest rates, and European Monetary Union.
Internet Securities. Internet Securities is a leading provider of on-line financial, market and economic data for investors in selected emerging markets of Eastern & Central Europe and Russia.
Italian Stock Prices

Australia

Australian Department of Finance
Australian Stock Market and Historical Data Page

Africa

East African Financial Markets Newsletter

# # Stock Market & Financial Markets Overview

2010-12-21T16:40:00.000-08:00

Americas

INDEX	VALUE	CHANGE	% CHANGE	TIME
DOW JONES INDUS. AVG	11,533.20	55.03	0.48%	16:30
S&P 500 INDEX	1,254.60	7.52	0.60%	12/21
NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX	2,667.61	18.05	0.68%	12/21
S&P/TSX COMPOSITE INDEX	13,365.20	171.87	1.30%	12/21
MEXICO IPC INDEX	38,230.90	255.38	0.67%	16:06
BRAZIL BOVESPA INDEX	68,214.90	951.26	1.41%	12/21

Europe, Africa and Middle East

INDEX	VALUE	CHANGE	% CHANGE	TIME
Euro Stoxx 50 Pr	2,876.99	37.77	1.33%	12/21
FTSE 100 INDEX	5,951.80	60.19	1.02%	11:35
CAC 40 INDEX	3,927.49	42.41	1.09%	12/21
DAX INDEX	7,077.99	59.39	0.85%	12/21
IBEX 35 INDEX	10,203.40	207.30	2.07%	12/21
FTSE MIB INDEX	20,736.60	362.94	1.78%	12/21
AEX-Index	356.14	2.99	0.85%	12/21
OMX STOCKHOLM 30 INDEX	1,166.00	11.82	1.02%	12/21
SWISS MARKET INDEX	6,558.17	36.92	0.57%	12/21

Asia-Pacific

INDEX	VALUE	CHANGE	% CHANGE	TIME
NIKKEI 225	10,364.00	-6.51	-0.06%	19:11
HANG SENG INDEX	22,993.90	354.78	1.57%	12/21
S&P/ASX 200 INDEX	4,777.60	5.70	0.12%	19:31

Americas

INDEX	VALUE	CHANGE	OPEN	HIGH	LOW	TIME
DJIA INDEX	11,464.00	-7.00	11,473.00	11,473.00	11,462.00	19:19
S&P 500	1,249.60	-1.10	1,250.30	1,250.20	1,249.20	19:07
NASDAQ 100	2,231.50	-3.75	2,231.25	2,232.50	2,230.50	19:15
S&P/TSX 60	759.00	10.80	749.60	761.20	749.60	12/21
MEX BOLSA	38,610.00	293.00	38,495.00	38,730.00	38,415.00	18:00
BOVESPA	69,301.00	893.00	68,700.00	69,430.00	68,700.00	12/21

Europe

INDEX	VALUE	CHANGE	OPEN	HIGH	LOW	TIME
DJ EURO STOXX 50	2,873.00	35.00	2,856.00	2,881.00	2,850.00	12/21
FTSE 100	5,907.00	50.00	5,861.00	5,920.00	5,857.00	12/21
CAC 40 10 EURO	3,928.50	40.00	3,911.00	3,940.00	3,903.00	12/21
DAX	7,088.50	51.50	7,065.00	7,105.50	7,059.00	12/21
IBEX 35	10,132.00	211.00	10,000.00	10,172.00	9,964.00	12/21
FTSE MIB	20,764.00	362.00	20,500.00	20,795.00	20,500.00	12/21
AMSTERDAM	356.25	2.80	355.80	357.20	355.20	12/21
OMXS30	1,167.00	13.00	1,159.00	1,168.50	1,159.00	12/21
SWISS MARKET	6,483.00	24.00	6,503.00	6,503.00	6,461.00	12/21

Asia-Pacific

INDEX	VALUE	CHANGE	OPEN	HIGH	LOW	TIME
NIKKEI 225	10,350.00	0.00	10,360.00	10,370.00	10,340.00	19:11
HANG SENG	22,960.00	262.00	22,758.00	23,067.00	22,691.00	12/21
SPI 200	4,772.00	6.00	4,767.00	4,787.00	4,762.00	19:23

	VALUE	CHANGE	% CHANGE	TIME
Nymex Crude Future	90.06	0.24	0.27	19:22
Nymex Henry Hub Future	4.08	0.02	0.52	19:12
Gold 100oz Future (USD/t oz.)	1,387.90	-0.90	-0.06	19:21
UBS Bloomberg CMCI	1,581.66	10.99	0.70	12/21

CURRENCY	VALUE	CHANGE	% CHANGE	DATE/TIME
EUR-USD	1.3104	0.0004	0.0267%	19:32
USD-JPY	83.8050	0.0598	0.0713%	19:32
GBP-USD	1.5463	-0.0007	-0.0446%	19:33
USD-CAD	1.0174	0.0003	0.0253%	19:32

Government Bonds

	COUPON	MATURITY	PRICE/YIELD	PRICE/YIELD CHANGE	TIME
US 10-Year	2.625	11/15/2020	94-05½ / 3.32	0-04 / -0.015	19:29
Australia 10-Year	4.500	04/15/2020	92.32 / 5.57	-0.403 / 0.057	19:32
Brazil 10-Year	10.000	01/01/2021	896.56 / 12.51	0.552 / -0.317	12/21
Germany 10-Year	2.500	01/04/2021	95.83 / 2.99	-0.163 / 0.020	12/21
Japan 10-Year	1.200	12/20/2020	100.15 / 1.18	0.062 / -0.007	19:32
UK 10-Year	4.750	03/07/2020	109.71 / 3.51	-0.204 / 0.024	12/21

Key Rates

	CURRENT	1 MO PRIOR	3 MO PRIOR	6 MO PRIOR	1 YR PRIOR
Fed Funds Rate	0.21	0.20	0.23	0.21	0.12
Fed Reserve Target Rate	0.25	0.25	0.25	0.25	0.25
Prime Rate	3.25	3.25	3.25	3.25	3.25
US Unemployment Rate	9.80	9.60	9.60	9.70	10.00
1-Month Libor	0.26	0.25	0.26	0.35	0.23
3-Month Libor	0.30	0.28	0.29	0.54	0.25

Easy Forex

2010-12-21T16:36:00.000-08:00

Incubated with the efforts of a group of forex experts and bankers, Easy Forex came into being with the aim to launch a forex trading platform that any level of end user would love to use because of its simplified functionality. With an assumed market maker position, liquidity providers of Easy Forex are no other than The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and UBS (in Switzerland).
Headquartered in Cyprus, customer support centers and FX trading rooms of Easy Forex are available in several different countries. This broker was the first ever to provide no-download proprietary software platform to its traders. German, Greek, Chinese, English, Arabic, Polish and Hebrew are the languages in which this software can be accessed.
To add on more to the charm of the Easy Forex is their advanced technological approach that allows iPhone users to take advantage of almost all their services over the phone. Although this is not a complete trading platform that allows you to perform trading activity through your phone only, still you can check your Easy Forex account status, or the standing of the forex market via their amazing iPhone application.
Registration process and deposit of funds with Easy Forex is a cake walk. All major credit cards and Paypal are accepted for the deposits. Withdrawal process is also very simple, though you will have to talk to the company executive on phone before your first withdrawal. Provide the executive with an ID as well as your legitimate bank account details (to avoid any money laundering risks) and you are all good to go.
If you have the fundamental knowledge of the forex market terminology, there is no reason why you would face any difficulty in execution of deals with Easy Forex. Easy Forex provides extensive guidance and tutorials on their website for easy dealing in the Forex market via their software.
As soon as the registration is done, an account manager contacts every user to take them swiftly through the initial dealing stages. Account manager can be reached during the local working hours; however dealing room is open 24*7 for any technical assistance. Usually, Easy Forex lays a great emphasis on the customer service, which is evident from the fact that each trader is provided with their own account manager for quick and focused guidance.
Advanced training for better trading and for optimum usage of the system is made available for the prominent members. What kind of account you wish to set up with Easy Forex depends on the amount of money you wish to put at stake. Get started with as less as $12.5 for a mini-account. Platinum, Gold and customized Import-Export account are some other account choices that are available. The selected account type also determines the spread that are offered. 10 pips are diced for a mini-account, 7 pips for the gold accounts, 5 pips for platinum accounts, and 3 pips are provided for the customized accounts.
Apart from spreads, there is no other source by which Easy Forex earns, as no commission is charged for deals made on their system. The only exception is the renewal fee, which is charged to roll over positions from Day Trading over to the next trading day.
Any deal performed via products offered by Easy Forex can be adjusted easily to the market trends. Such adjustments can be made in the “My Position” section where all the deals can be controlled and monitored by the trader. Every trading account activity is recorded in the system as well as informed via an automatic email.
There are several other helpful sections provided by Easy Forex, like you may track your current balance, withdrawals, credit card charges, and all deposits in the “My Account” Section. The results of all closed deals can be seen in the “History” Section. For better and more lucrative decisions, traders are given easy access to Reuter’s world news feature, to know if there are any events that may affect the foreign exchange market. Useful and easy to understand charts, analytical tools and financial calendar are also made available to allow traders make informed forex decisions.
Considering the cordial customer support all through as well as an extensive understanding and guidance of forex offered by Easy Forex, it is pretty simply to trade with this system. All the features and trading tools are extremely user-friendly and very useful. With so many positives to count on, Easy Forex is definitely one of the best picks amongst forex brokers.
The simplicity of the Easy Forex system is reflected in the minimalistic feel of their website. But as you navigate a little, you get all that you want for successful trading, be it tools, support or information. Trading experience with Easy Forex is definitely a simplistic yet lucrative affair.

L'euro repart en baisse, les finances de l'Europe visées par les agences

2010-12-21T16:31:00.000-08:00

L'euro est reparti en baisse mardi face au dollar, effaçant les gains engrangés plus tôt dans la journée après de nouvelles alertes sur la solidité financière de la zone euro lancées par les agences de notation.

Vers 22H00 GMT (23H00 à Paris), l'euro valait 1,3093 dollar contre 1,3126 dollar lundi vers 22H00 GMT, après être monté brièvement au-dessus de 1,32 dollar.

La monnaie européenne reculait face à la devise nippone à 109,69 yens contre 109,95 yens lundi soir.

Le dollar s'est stabilisé face au yen, à 83,76 yens contre 83,78 yens lundi soir.

La devise européenne s'était offert un court répit, soutenue par une remarque du vice-Premier ministre chinois Wang Qishan. Il a indiqué que Pékin aiderait certains pays membres de l'Union européenne (UE) à combattre la crise de leur dette souveraine, mettant en avant "l'intérêt fondamental de la Chine et de l'UE de renforcer leur coopération", selon l'agence Chine nouvelle.

Mais le soutien chinois "peut difficilement nourrir un retournement de tendance", car "la Chine ne peut apparaître comme une option alternative à une solution à long terme de la crise des dettes en Europe", a tempéré Ulrich Leuchtmann, de Commerzbank.

Le redressement de l'euro a été "étouffé dans l'oeuf", selon les analystes de Brown Brothers Harriman, alors que l'agence de notation Moody's a annoncé qu'elle plaçait la note du Portugal sous surveillance, réfléchissant à un possible abaissement d'un cran ou deux en raison de l'impact de son plan d'austérité sur son économie.

Par ailleurs, l'agence, qui a menacé la semaine dernière de dégrader la note de l'Espagne, a abaissé mardi les notes de deux régions espagnoles.

L'agence de notation Fitch Ratings a elle fait part de la possibilité d'abaisser la note de la Grèce, actuellement fixée à "BBB-" pour la dette long terme, ce qui relèguerait ce pays membre de la zone euro parmi les émetteurs considérés comme peu fiables.

"Les notes des dettes publiques de la zone euro sont des cibles mouvantes, avec des budgets et des chiffres de la dette amenés à se détériorer encore en 2011", ont estimé les analystes de Brown Brothers Harriman.

L'euro est en conséquence retombé à son plus bas niveau depuis deux semaines.

"Les acteurs de marché spéculent sur la possibilité pour le Portugal et l'Espagne de partager la mauvaise fortune de l'Irlande", a noté de son côté David Song, analyste de la société Daily FX, selon qui "les échanges devraient se montrer instables dans des volumes peu importants avant les vacances de Noël".

Signe de la prudence des cambistes, l'euro a touché mardi un nouveau plus bas historique face à la devise helvétique, considéré comme une valeur refuge, qui est montée jusqu'à 1,2545 franc suisse pour un euro.

Vers 22H00 GMT, la devise helvétique avançait face à l'euro à 1,2550 franc suisse pour un euro, comme face au billet vert à 0,9581 franc suisse pour un dollar.

La livre britanique se stabilisait face à l'euro à 84,63 pence pour un euro, et reculait face au billet vert à 1,5469 dollar.

La monnaie chinoise a terminé mardi à 6,6590 yuans pour un dollar contre 6,6725 yuans la veille.

----------------------------------

Cours de mardi      Cours de lundi

              22H00 GMT            22H00 GMT

   EUR/USD            1,3093             1,3126
   EUR/JPY            109,69             109,95
   EUR/CHF            1,2550             1,2662
   EUR/GBP            0,8463             0,8461
   USD/JPY             83,90              83,78
   USD/CHF            0,9581             0,9644
   GBP/USD            1,5469             1,5506

The marketing mix

2010-12-21T16:27:00.000-08:00

The marketing mix

In order to achieve your marketing objectives you need to have a strategy that includes different elements - the various parts of the marketing mix. Calling it a mix reminds you to try and get the balance right between the different elements. It is easy to assume that one part of the mix is wrong, when in fact it is another. For example, if take-up of a newly-priced service is poor, it could be that the answer is to change the service, or to deliver it in a way that is more convenient to the user, or to improve the quality of the promotion (rather than to cut the price).
McCarthy identified the four P's of the marketing mix:

Product Defining the characteristics of your product or service to meet the customers' needs.
Price: Deciding on a pricing strategy. Even if you decide not to charge for a service, it is useful to realise that this is still a pricing strategy. Identifying the total cost to the user (which is likely to be higher than the charge you make) is a part of the price element.
Promotion This includes advertising, personal selling (eg attending exhibitions), sales promotions (eg special offers), and atmospherics (creating the right impression through the working environment). Public Relations is included within Promotion by many marketing people (though PR people tend to see it as a separate discipline).
Place or distribution. Looking at location (eg of a library) and where a service is delivered (eg are search results delivered to the user's desktop, office, pigeonhole - or do they have to collect them).

There are two ways to impress bluffers.
You can extend the number of P's - the two which are usually seen as useful additions for services (including information services) are:

People Good information services are not likely to be delivered by people who are unskilled or demotivated;
Process The way in which the user gets hold of the service (eg the way in which a document or a search can be ordered).

The second way to show your marketing knowledge is to dismiss the P's as being as old fashioned as the 1980s For example, there are the C's developed by Robert Lauterborn (1) and put forward by Philip Kotler:

Place becomes Convenience
Price becomes Cost to the user
Promotion becomes Communication
Product becomes Customer needs and wants

These C's reflect a more client-oriented marketing philosophy. They provide useful reminders - for example that you need to bear in mind the convenience of the client when deciding where to offer a service. Some would argue that the marketing mix is too product-oriented, and that modern marketing should not focus on it. However, it does provide a handy framework for marketing analysis. The C's are also not nearly so memorable as the P-words, and marketing texts still tend to use the latter to describe the elements of the mix. If numbers less than 10 don't impress you, you can go for Evert Gummesson's 30Rs of relationship marketing (2), from Relationship one ("the classic dyad: the relationship between supplier and customer") to Relationship 30 ("the owner and financier relationship").

1. Lauterborn, Bob. (1990) "New marketing litany: four Ps passe: C-words take over." Advertising age. 61 (41), 26.
2. Gummesson, Evert. (2002) Total relationship marketing 2nd ed. Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann.
Super-bluffers can dismiss McCarthy and Kotler , and reinvent the P's or C's as (for example) the S's or the D's. If you can think of appropriate words and phrases, all beginning with the same letter, you probably deserve to be a marketing guru. On the other hand, you could take a quantitative approach and try to find 101 words beginning with the letter 'P' that all have some relationship, however tenuous, with marketing.

Developing Your Marketing

2010-12-21T16:21:00.001-08:00

Your marketing mix is a combination of marketing tools that are used to satisfy customers and company objectives. Consumers often call the marketing mix "the offering." Your offer is controlled by the following variables often referred to as the four Ps in marketing:

Product
Price
Place (Distribution)
Promotion

By using variations of these four components you have the ability to reach multiple consumers within your target market.
Creating a successful marketing mix that will increase results often takes experimenting and market research. There are many methods that can be used, both in person and the use of impersonal presentations. The key is to not always depend on "one" mix always explore other avenues. The combining and coordination of these elements will be more effective than depending on one.
You must coordinate all elements so that the prospective consumer is not being sent mixed messages that can cause confusion. Do all of your elements contain the same message? Take for example the following scenario:
We are a company that specializes in marketing services and we cater to physicians, however the products we offer fulfill the needs of lead generation for lawyers. Our price is geared an enterprise budget and our magazine advertisements and promotions are being placed in magazines that have a subscription base of senior citizens.
Do you see a problem with this? While in this scenario it is very obvious, I guarantee that by looking at your marketing mix you may find discrepancies that surprise you. Always make sure that your marketing mix has a message that speaks in unison.
For instance make sure that if you have a practice that caters to a niche market that your product is geared towards the need of that market, your price is within the budget of that market, you are distribution your product or service where it will be seen by that market, and gear your promotion to solve the problems that they are encountering.
If you remember one thing from this article it is that one of the main keys to the success of any marketing program is the ability to work effectively in shaping marketing mixes that meet the nature and needs of your specified target market.

The Marketing Mix

2010-12-21T16:20:00.000-08:00

The Marketing Mix
(The 4 P's of Marketing)

The major marketing management decisions can be classified in one of the following four categories:

Product

Price

Place (distribution)

Promotion

These variables are known as the marketing mix or the 4 P's of marketing. They are the variables that marketing managers can control in order to best satisfy customers in the target market. The marketing mix is portrayed in the following diagram:

The Marketing Mix

Product

Place

Target
Market

Price

Promotion

The firm attempts to generate a positive response in the target market by blending these four marketing mix variables in an optimal manner.

Product

The product is the physical product or service offered to the consumer. In the case of physical products, it also refers to any services or conveniences that are part of the offering.
Product decisions include aspects such as function, appearance, packaging, service, warranty, etc.

Price

Pricing decisions should take into account profit margins and the probable pricing response of competitors. Pricing includes not only the list price, but also discounts, financing, and other options such as leasing.

Place

Place (or placement) decisions are those associated with channels of distribution that serve as the means for getting the product to the target customers. The distribution system performs transactional, logistical, and facilitating functions.
Distribution decisions include market coverage, channel member selection, logistics, and levels of service.

Promotion

Promotion decisions are those related to communicating and selling to potential consumers. Since these costs can be large in proportion to the product price, a break-even analysis should be performed when making promotion decisions. It is useful to know the value of a customer in order to determine whether additional customers are worth the cost of acquiring them.
Promotion decisions involve advertising, public relations, media types, etc.

A Summary Table of the Marketing Mix

The following table summarizes the marketing mix decisions, including a list of some of the aspects of each of the 4Ps.

Summary of Marketing Mix Decisions

Product	Price	Place	Promotion
Functionality Appearance Quality Packaging Brand Warranty Service/Support	List price Discounts Allowances Financing Leasing options	Channel members Channel motivation Market coverage Locations Logistics Service levels	Advertising Personal selling Public relations Message Media Budget

The Marketing Mix

2010-12-21T16:19:00.000-08:00

The Marketing Mix
(The 4 P's of Marketing)

Marketing decisions generally fall into the following four controllable categories:

Product
Price
Place (distribution)
Promotion

The term "marketing mix" became popularized after Neil H. Borden published his 1964 article, The Concept of the Marketing Mix. Borden began using the term in his teaching in the late 1940's after James Culliton had described the marketing manager as a "mixer of ingredients". The ingredients in Borden's marketing mix included product planning, pricing, branding, distribution channels, personal selling, advertising, promotions, packaging, display, servicing, physical handling, and fact finding and analysis. E. Jerome McCarthy later grouped these ingredients into the four categories that today are known as the 4 P's of marketing, depicted below:

The Marketing Mix

These four P's are the parameters that the marketing manager can control, subject to the internal and external constraints of the marketing environment. The goal is to make decisions that center the four P's on the customers in the target market in order to create perceived value and generate a positive response.

Product Decisions

The term "product" refers to tangible, physical products as well as services. Here are some examples of the product decisions to be made:

Brand name
Functionality
Styling
Quality
Safety
Packaging
Repairs and Support
Warranty
Accessories and services

Price Decisions

Some examples of pricing decisions to be made include:

Pricing strategy (skim, penetration, etc.)
Suggested retail price
Volume discounts and wholesale pricing
Cash and early payment discounts
Seasonal pricing
Bundling
Price flexibility
Price discrimination

Distribution (Place) Decisions

Distribution is about getting the products to the customer. Some examples of distribution decisions include:

Distribution channels
Market coverage (inclusive, selective, or exclusive distribution)
Specific channel members
Inventory management
Warehousing
Distribution centers
Order processing
Transportation
Reverse logistics

Promotion Decisions

In the context of the marketing mix, promotion represents the various aspects of marketing communication, that is, the communication of information about the product with the goal of generating a positive customer response. Marketing communication decisions include:

Promotional strategy (push, pull, etc.)
Advertising
Personal selling & sales force
Sales promotions
Public relations & publicity
Marketing communications budget

Limitations of the Marketing Mix Framework

The marketing mix framework was particularly useful in the early days of the marketing concept when physical products represented a larger portion of the economy. Today, with marketing more integrated into organizations and with a wider variety of products and markets, some authors have attempted to extend its usefulness by proposing a fifth P, such as packaging, people, process, etc. Today however, the marketing mix most commonly remains based on the 4 P's. Despite its limitations and perhaps because of its simplicity, the use of this framework remains strong and many marketing textbooks have been organized around it.

Physical evidence as part of the marketing mix

2010-12-21T16:17:00.000-08:00

Physical evidence as part of the marketing mix

Physical evidence is the material part of a service. Strictly speaking there are no physical attributes to a service, so a consumer tends to rely on material cues.

There are many examples of physical evidence, including some of the following:

Packaging.
Internet/web pages.
Paperwork (such as invoices, tickets and despatch notes).
Brochures.
Furnishings.
Signage (such as those on aircraft and vehicles).
Uniforms.
Business cards.
The building itself (such as prestigious offices or scenic headquarters).
Mailboxes and many others . . . . . .

A sporting event is packed full of physical evidence. Your tickets have your team's logos printed on them, and players are wearing uniforms. The stadium itself could be impressive and have an electrifying atmosphere. You travelled there and parked quickly nearby, and your seats are comfortable and close to restrooms and store. All you need now is for your team to win!
Some organisations depend heavily upon physical evidence as a means of marketing communications, for example tourism attractions and resorts (e.g. Disney World), parcel and mail services (e.g. UPS trucks), and large banks and insurance companies (e.g. Lloyds of London).

social media

2010-12-21T01:28:00.001-08:00

Marketing Plan

2010-12-21T01:27:00.000-08:00

MARKETING: INTRODUCTION

2010-12-21T01:16:00.000-08:00

A Closer Look at Business Education
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
JANUARY 2007
: MARKETING
INTRODUCTION:
In recent years, attention to social and environmental issues in product marketing has become a
mainstream practice and offers opportunities for firms to differentiate themselves in the market. Popular
examples abound: organic produce, hybrid cars, and fair trade coffee, to name just a few. While business
coursework is quickly following practice in the field, our data show that a critical examination of the
social impact of marketing is limited in some instances to issues of legality and ethics. When ethical
concerns are raised, they are commonly discussed in the context of avoiding harmful marketing practices,
especially prohibitive product pricing and deceptive advertising. On the other hand, international
marketing classes do a good job of discussing socio-cultural considerations in the analysis of new target
markets.
It is noteworthy that a handful of MBA programs offer courses specifically addressing “social
marketing”; that is, using concepts from commercial marketing, such as the traditional “four P’s”
marketing mix (i.e., Product, Place, Promotion, and Pricing), to bring about social change. Also,
academic research has highlighted the use of, and further potential for, social marketing for environmental
causes.1 A few of these forward-looking strategic marketing courses are highlighted in the “notable
coursework” section below.
THE BOTTOM LINE:
■ According to Dr. Bruce Hutton, several years ago topics related to the environment and
social issues were considered “add-ons” and were included at the end of marketing texts.
Now, these issues are better integrated throughout such texts.
■ There are many social impact management topics in marketing that are worthy of
inclusion into coursework. Examples include the impacts of product development,
design, and pricing decisions on both consumers and business sustainability, as well as
the impacts of “niche marketing” on both target markets and sustainable competitive
corporate strategy.
A FACULTY POINT OF VIEW:
Dr. Bruce Hutton is a Professor of Marketing at the Daniels College of Business at the
University of Denver. He has also served as Dean and Chairman of the Marketing Department in
his twenty years at Denver. Additionally, Dr. Hutton is a co-founder of the Colorado Ethics in
Business Awards, a unique grassroots effort to recognize individuals, companies, and nonprofit
organizations for ethics and socially responsible actions.
On cutting-edge issues in marketing: “Every aspect of the traditional marketing mix is being affected by
the opportunities provided by the expansion of marketing thought to include social and environmental
issues in the development of marketing strategy. New ways of greening the supply chain, pressuring
suppliers to be environmentally sensitive and have ethical practices with regard to labor and human rights
provide ways of differentiating brands. Engaging in partnerships with civil society organizations as well
as government is providing access to new markets and resources. Perspectives, such as those presented in
1 For example, see Edward Maibach’s “Social Marketing for the Environment: Using Information Campaigns to
Promote Environmental Awareness and Behavior Change”, Health Promotion International, Vol. 9, No. 3, 209-224.
Oxford University Press, 1993. Additionally, Oxford University presented, “Social Marketing for the Environment:
Using Water Wisely”, a conference in November 2006. See http://www.conted.ox.ac.uk/cpd/env/courses/social.asp
for the announcement.
A Closer Look at Business Education
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Prahalad’s book, The Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid, are opening up heretofore ignored markets
and are leading to new innovations in meeting the needs of the poor.”
On student interest in environmental, social, and ethical issues in marketing: “Students respond very
positively to such topics when they are presented in the context of the overall marketing process, so they
can see the linkage between these practices and the creation of firm value, customer satisfaction, brand
reputation, innovation, competitive advantage, etc.—and the fulfillment of the marketing concept. It is
also true that, increasingly, students come to the business school seeking training in such issues and
wanting to go to work for socially responsible companies and make a difference, as well as a living, in
their careers.”
NOTABLE COURSEWORK:
The following course descriptions are drawn exclusively from Beyond Grey Pinstripes, a
research survey conducted biennially by the Aspen Institute.
■ ESADE Business School
Managing Marketing from Global HQ (Core Course)
Instructor: Josep Franch
“The course on ‘Managing Marketing from Global HQ’ presents cultural and environmental impact
as an element to be taken into account in the strategy of internationalization. The course is principally
concerned with the application of a genuinely global perspective from headquarters: it insists on the
need for taking the cultural values of each region into consideration in order to design marketing that
respects these values; furthermore, it examines issues concerned with the social reputation of the
company as a result of its contribution to the development of an emerging country, its social investing
and its environmental policy. Moreover, marketing strategy is also planned with reference to socioeconomic
criteria, seeking to favor depressed areas through the implementation of lasting
entrepreneurial projects.”
■ Asian Institute of Management
Marketing Management (Core Course)
Instructors: E.M.P. Santos and A.V. Concepcion
“Marketing Management is a core subject in the two-year Master in Business Administration (MBA)
program. It is given on the first year of the MBM program to introduce students to the concepts and
theories of Marketing Management with focus on ASEAN business systems. It aims to help the
students learn a comprehensive and systematic approach to strategic marketing process and to learn to
think critically (ask intelligent questions) and strategically. Also, it aims to develop an appreciation
and understanding of marketing's roles and social responsibilities in a global society.”
■ Boston University, School of Management (2003 data)
Marketing Social Change (Elective Course)
Instructor: C.B. Battacharya
“Corporations have recently shown tremendous interest in corporate social initiatives by supporting
social causes and non-profit organizations. Many companies now have social responsibility managers.
Phrases such as "cause branding," "strategic volunteerism," and "enviro-preneurial marketing" have
infiltrated the mainstream business vocabulary as companies look for ways to integrate social
perspectives into their marketing strategy. This course trains students to be leaders who will catalyze
this management revolution.”
■ The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Kenan-Flagler Business School
Legal and Social Environment of Marketing (Elective Course)
Instructor: Paul Bloom (now at Duke’s Fuqua School of Business)
A Closer Look at Business Education
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“Students become familiar with various topics, including the design of more effective campaigns for
socially- or environmentally-beneficial behaviors (for instance, a “stop smoking” or “don’t litter”
advertising campaign). Students also learn about corporate societal marketing initiatives that earn
profits and promote social welfare, antitrust issues, and public policies that protect consumers from
making poor marketplace choices and encourage vigorous competition for customers. Students
acquire skills and an improved ability to market socially and to assess government and corporate
social initiatives.”
■ Stanford University, Graduate School of Business
Global and International Marketing (Elective Course)
Instructor: Wasim Azhar
“This course addresses the opportunities and challenges associated with the development and
implementation of marketing strategy in international markets. It aims to develop frameworks and
knowledge that will enable future managers to better formulate and effectively implement marketing
plans in different regions of the world. Topics covered include global brand management; analysis of
various international market structures; market entry strategies in developed and emerging markets
including country selection and marketing program design based on consumer, country and
competitive analysis; international marketing mix strategies including the globally standardized
versus locally adapted marketing program debate; and international pricing, advertising and
promotion strategies.”
■ Georgetown University, Robert E. McDonough School of Business
Social Marketing (Elective Course)
Instructor: Alan Andreasen
“This course gives students a set of frameworks and tools valuable in bringing about socially
desirable behavioral outcomes beyond the economic marketplace. We consider the need for structural
change as well as changes in behavior by those carrying out undesirable practices. We discuss
challenges of raising issues on the public, media and political agendas, developing strategies to
influence legislators, business leaders, community leaders and the media to bring about social change.
Many of the examples discussed in class are in public health, violence prevention and economic
development.”
For additional courses on related subjects, search 1,672 descriptions at Beyond Grey Pinstripes.
NOTABLE TEACHING MATERIALS:
Materials referenced are meant to represent the diversity of related teaching resources available
at Caseplace.org. Most are available as free downloads to registered faculty members.
■ Case Study: Procter & Gamble and Population Services International (PSI): Social Marketing for
Safe Water
Source: INSEAD, 2006
PuR, the water purification product sold in small sachets, had suffered a string of failed market tests,
but the public health benefits of the product had been demonstrated repeatedly in bottom of the
pyramid (BOP) markets where finding clean drinking water can be a daily calamity. As part of its
global CSR (corporate social responsibility) expansion initiative, Procter & Gamble (P&G) move the
product from the commercial to the corporate sustainable development (CSD) unit, which took the
pressure off PuR brand managers to meet market sales projections. This move created new pressures,
however, for those managing CSR initiatives - to take the product global on a philanthropy budget.
Partnering with Population Services International (PSI), the global NGO (non-governmental
A Closer Look at Business Education
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- 4 -
organisation) with offices in over 65 countries, and expertise in social marketing, P&G would play a
supporting role. Building a sustainable social market for water treatment, in places like Haiti and
Uganda, presented challenges, but also presented unexpected benefits, measured in terms of P&G's
stakeholder engagement.
■ Suggested Reading: Marketing that Matters by C. Conley and E. Friedenwald-Fishman (Berrett-
Koehler Publishers, 2006)
Many business leaders view marketing as the crass, ugly side of business. This new book proves that
"marketing" isn't a dirty word — it's the key to advancing both business ideals and the bottom line.
Written by two down-to-earth, experienced entrepreneurs, Marketing That Matters is an in-thetrenches
guide to building a marketing plan that embodies personal values instead of exploiting them.
This compact volume provides overworked entrepreneurs, who want to match their mission with their
values but who lack the time or training to develop a strategy, with the steps needed to incorporate
effective marketing into their business plan.
■ Concept Paper: “What Research in Marketing Can Teach Managers About Improving Corporate
Social Performance” by Dr. Paul Bloom, Fuqua School of Business at Duke University
This paper presents an overview of the research undertaken by marketing scholars concerned with the
social impact of marketing practices. The author outlines the field and discusses: the recent research
focus to help managers to improve their company's performance; the study of harmful marketing
practices; the legislative and judicial treatment of certain marketing practices; the study of macromarketing
issues; the identification of practices which hinder and promote corporate social
performance and key questions which animate this research.
ONGOING QUESTIONS:
■ What type of academic collaboration is necessary for useful metrics to be developed that
effectively measure the impact of social and environmental marketing?
■ Are the expectations of corporate recruiters of marketing professionals changing at a
similar pace to changes in corporate practice itself?
■ What will the 2007 Beyond Grey Pinstripes survey results reveal about curricular shifts
over the past two years in marketing courses?
RESOURCES:
BeyondGreyPinstripes.org – World’s biggest MBA database, including detailed records on 1,672 courses,
1,730 extracurriculars, and 216 research articles at 128 schools on six continents.
CasePlace.org – A free and practical on-line resource for up-to-date case studies, syllabi, and innovative
teaching materials on business and sustainability. Created for the educators who will shape our next
generation of business leaders!
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
A Closer Look is a monthly series of briefing papers on topical issues in MBA education, based on the research and programs of the
Aspen Institute. The Aspen Institute Business and Society Program works with senior corporate executives and MBA educators to
prepare business leaders who will effectively manage the financial, social, and environmental impacts of the private sector.
􀃆 Contact Justin.Goldbach@aspeninstitute.org to order reprints or to offer feedback.

THE POWER OF BLOGS FOR BUSINESS

2010-12-21T01:10:00.000-08:00

Now that you are familiar with how blogs have added a new dimension to corporate communications and how engaging in the conversation is absolutely essential for your business's success in the blogosphere, you are ready to begin looking at the powerful possibilities blogging offers your business. You've likely been asking yourself such questions as "How can blogging benefit my company?" and "What would my successful blog look like?" since you started reading this book.
This chapter covers the practicalities of business blogging and what it means for you, including how it can impact your bottom line and how it will bring in customers and affect mindshare. It also examines several companies from a variety of industries that are succeeding at blogging; these early bloggers have paved the way for later blogging luminaries-like you.

HOW BLOGS CAN HELP YOUR BUSINESS
Let's get back to business basics-not because I think you don't know your own business, but because I honestly believe that blogging can help each core fragment of what makes up a successful and viable company. The core needs for any business are as follows: o Decent ideas o A great product o Visibility o A well-trained team of people who work hard to make the company succeed
You also need good marketing, great customer relations, an awesome sales force, decent customer support, and a host of other factors. But if you have ideas, a product worth selling, a solid team behind it, and potential customers, the rest will follow naturally.

CREATING GREAT IDEAS
Every company has a lot of great ideas waiting to come to the surface. The problem with bringing those ideas to the surface is threefold: giving ideas space to develop, helping ideas get improved, and implementing the best ideas.
Often it takes only one person to come up with a great idea, but it may take 100 or more people to support and implement that idea. If the idea loses support, the company will need another great idea to keep going.
Great ideas can increase a business's costs and people power, but they can also increase a business's revenue and marketing power. This is why large companies who live or die by their great ideas employ researchers who spend their time seeking epiphanies.
The challenge for companies who invest in ideas is often that the best ideas don't get to the top, don't get reviewed, or don't even get considered. This idea barrier could be killing your company. A truly open and internally viewable idea blog, or even individual employee blogs that allow people to float new ideas for peer review, should allow the best ideas to rise to the surface for selection and review. We'll look at the concept of idea blogs more in Chapter 6, as they are an exciting way to empower your employees and generate thought.

CREATING GREAT PRODUCTS
The next challenge is deciding which great ideas get turned into products. After all, what good is thinking up the greatest idea in the world if your business can't actually sell it?
Smart companies hire people who are able to turn a great idea into a great product. These people, often called product specialists or product managers, know customers, know the market, and know how to deliver new products on time and on budget.
However, to do their jobs well, product specialists need to talk directly to customers. This is where focus groups, customer demo days, and other customer-listening techniques come into play. Some companies even employ staff evangelists to work one-on-one with individual customers to maintain a good relationship.
We all know cases in which even the most well-intentioned products underperformed. Relying on a small sample of customers to reflect what the entire world desires is risky at best, and foolhardy at worst. If you can't ask everyone in the world what they want, you're unlikely to be able to deliver what everyone truly desires. With blogging, you can ask-if not the entire world, then at least your entire blog readership, who are probably connected to and/or reading other blogs all over the Net. Once you have insight into what a large community of readers wants, you can begin delivering it.

INCREASING VISIBILITY
Marketing is all about visibility-making the right people aware of the right product at the right time. Allen Weiss, founder of MarketingProfs.com, says that marketing is about customers, and he's right. The hard reality, though, is that often marketing isn't about individual customers. Often, it's about creating a global message to which individual customers will respond.
New methods of effective marketing include creating "viral" campaigns, customer-centric events, and otherwise helping customers spread the word through incentive programs and contests. Visibility is also sought through media reports, event sponsorship, and interactive Web sites.
However, these visibility campaigns lack effectiveness on the one-to-one level. Companies assume that millions of people will be contacted, but only a small percentage of these people will respond. This method of marketing has its upside, but it doesn't do anything to create relationships with customers, create positive experiences, or create customer evangelists.

HAVING A GREAT TEAM
One of the best ways to build a great business is to create a great team. Great teams will think up great ideas, build visibility, and spot defects in products, which they will then correct. A great team can fix just about any problem, given the right resources, and is happy to take on just about any challenge.
Unfortunately, great teams can be difficult to create and keep motivated. Anyone who's built successful teams knows that more often than not some particular "X Factor" will make or break the team: often the ability to find common ground and common interests can be a make-or-break issue.
A team comprising colleagues with common interests, backgrounds, or passions will be able to rely on those commonalities, even in the most adverse circumstances. The challenge is to find employees who fit together; few employee profiles include information that will help you find the common ground.
To solve this dilemma, many large corporations are turning to self-forming and self-sustaining teams. These people have found that they have things in common and they work well together. Companies post internal team opportunities that "ultra teams" can choose to tackle or ignore. Sometimes projects will be assigned based on need, but, generally, having a team own a topic is a more effective tactic.
The challenge for companies looking to enable these dynamic teams is in figuring out how to enable employees to connect based on passion. Passion is an important part of any successful team-without passion, a team will not only find itself quickly in a rut, but it will likely find its members unable to gel, have fun, or help the company in a meaningful way. You'll learn how to create dynamic internal teams in Chapter 6.

CHAPTER 2 - GETTING INTO THE BLOGGING MINDSET
For decades, businesses tried to determine what their customers' wanted using focus groups that offered feedback about how well customers liked certain products. As the business world got more complex and markets became more competitive, the kind of information that could be gleaned from focus groups became inadequate for most businesses. They didn't provide enough information, nor was the information valuable after a product was already release.
Realizing the limitations of focus groups and similar marketing practices, companies decided that they needed to know more about who were their customers, how they interacted with the company, and how the company could reach out to customers in a meaningful way. This idea of getting a "360-degree view" of customers was a nice concept, but it was never really achievable within the limited spectrum of marketing and communication tools that were available.
Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software was designed to try to pull together information from various systems to provide an idea of not only whether a customer had interacted with your business, but what kind of interaction occurred, who was involved in the interaction, and what it meant to the company. Unfortunately, most companies could get only limited answers to these questions: whether a customer had bought a company product or ever called in with a question or comment, and whether his or her current contact information was valid.
CRM software didn't contextualize any of the information it collected. It simply created a repository of information. It didn't create any data on what the customer actually thought, nor did it allow a way for customers to provide direct feedback. To supplement this CRM data, businesses began to hire customer relationship specialists and product evangelists-individuals whose sole job was to make customers aware of the company products on a one-to-one basis-to interact with customers directly.
For most businesses, this created some sense of value, but the practice simply couldn't be applied to a large number of customers. Because each individual customer relationship staffer had only so much time, the staffer typically spent most of his or her time nurturing the relationships that had the greatest return-the big spenders-and the majority of other customers were left out in the cold.

KNOW HOW TO TREAT YOUR CUSTOMERS
Every successful company uses some type of measuring stick when comparing itself to other similar companies. But businesses looking to succeed in the current interactive, customer- and conversation-driven marketplace must consider factors other than the financials. Companies need to value the knowledge made available to them through employee and customer input. One way to do this is by never confusing customers with the popular marketing term: consumer.
A customer should never be called a consumer. A consumer is someone you use for profit; a customer is an asset. Customers are your best product managers, your best evangelists, and perhaps the only people in the world who will tell you the truth about your company. Listen to them. The easiest way to help customers become more involved in a positive, passionate, way about your business is to talk to them and treat them as equal partners.
JetBlue CEO David Neeleman realized early on that without talking to his customers he would never be able to build a customer-centric airline. As a result of his unique approach to customer interaction, Neeleman has been featured in a variety of business magazines. When he flies, he flies just like everybody else, in coach. He even drives himself to the airport. Once there, he waits in line-just like you and me. He is, for all intents and purposes, just another customer-at least until the plane gets into the air.
Then he walks up and down the aisles, talking to customers, hearing what they have to say.
At the end of the day, every company lives and dies by how well it serves, supports, and interacts with its customers. Every customer experience is put on the global scale of "success" or "failure." Neeleman is doing everything he can, not only to reduce the number of negative experiences with JetBlue, but to create a positive environment where he leads by example-showing that employees need to care about customers.

CUSTOMERS ARE ASSETS
Too often, businesses look at their customers as they would rows in a spreadsheet. Businesses spend time figuring out how to get more money out of them, analyzing how often they come back and how much they spend on each trip, and figuring out how much a customer will spend on a particular item. But customers can and should be much more than just an income stream.
Customers' experiences can range from completely unhappy to glowingly positive. Both types of customer can greatly influence your company's reputation. Generally speaking, customers fall into one of five categories:
o Saboteurs These customers have had so many negative experiences (or perhaps only a handful of incredibly negative experiences) that they will go to whatever ends necessary to do whatever harm they can to your business.
o Occasional sufferers These customers don't enjoy your product or service, but they buy from you when they have to, and only because they have to. Some people who eat at fast food restaurants fall under this banner-although they will never evangelize or even talk positively about what they're buying, they'll buy it when absolutely necessary.
o Reluctant consumers These customers have had negative experiences with your company-often many negative experiences-to the point at which they simply expect a negative experience or a poor product every time. Occasionally, they'll be pleasantly surprised and will leave contented, but generally they simply accept that they have to buy from you and they move on. In many ways, these customers are living a balance of positive, negative, and blas� experiences.
o Regular customers These customers enjoy your product or service. They may admit it's not the best in the world, but they buy it because it has value, it is the cheapest, or they haven't found anything better. They've had enough positive experiences that the negative ones seem paltry in comparison.
o Evangelists These types of folks have had so many positive experiences with your company and/or product that whenever a subject even mildly related to your company, products, or services comes up in conversation, they just have to tell everyone about it. Many different companies enjoy this type of customer-for example, Apple Computer evangelists can be so passionate that they'll say Apple is a religion. These customer evangelists are the types of passionate people that will transform your business, and the currency they deal in is positive experiences.

Each of these personalities is created over time through a pattern of individual experiences with your company. Successful companies strive to create positive experiences for customers through positive environments, well-trained staff, great value, and quality products; whatever your customers are looking for, that you are able to provide, is a potential positive experience.

Do you provide a storefront? Investing in a positive shopping space is vital. Do you provide food or hospitality services? Smiling, courteous, and energetic staff are a must. Do you provide analysis or consulting services? Knowledgeable consultants, value-added services, excellent communication, and constant follow-up will create positive experiences for your customers.

Most customers don't look for reasons to be unhappy; in fact, most are looking for positive experiences, and often it takes only one of those in a given industry to transform the way customers look at every single service provider in that industry. The influence wielded by businesses who create positive experiences is disproportionate to their size: Apple Computers isn't the largest or most popular computer manufacturer (not by a long shot), yet it is one of the most-watched tech companies on the planet. BMW and Mercedes don't sell the most cars in America, but the consumer desire to own one is palatable. Starbucks may make great coffee, but people aren't necessarily buying just the coffee-they're buying an overall positive experience.

But creating positive experiences isn't really about being a luxury supplier like Apple, BMW, and Starbucks are in their industries. You can create positive experiences no matter what business you're in by having friendly and knowledgeable staff members, offering exclusive discounts, and generally building your business by contributing to their experiences.

Positive experiences create emotional responses, and nothing is worse than a customer who feels no emotion toward your business: no emotion means no loyalty, so customers really have no reason to stay.

Opera's Blogging Policy
A key part of any business's blogging strategy needs to be answering the "what happens when employees start to blog?" question.
Opera, a small web browser company, has decided that the best way to control what their employees blog about is to simply trust them to do the right thing and be smart. Their blogging policy is open and fair, with key points such as:

1. Share your thoughts
2. Be active
3. We're not your mama
4. Don't give away the farm
5. Check your sources
6. Our friends are your friends

This refreshing blogging policy is great at laying down the lines (don't share secrets) but also empowers employees to be individuals, to take risks and to represent the company.
Too many companies these days are doing the exact opposite: mistrusting employees, firing them when they mis-step in any way and even forbidding them from blogging.
Smart businesses that actually want to value their employees can learn from companies like Opera.

Blog Marketing Reviewed by Bloomberg
Bloomberg.com issues an generally positive review of Blog Marketing.
Blog Marketing is apparently good at laying out the nuts and bolts of what blogs are, why to blog and what strategies to use. It also moralizes a bit much, has too many typos and doesn't mention enough products specifically.
Thanks to Joan Oleck for the honest review. It's always hard to see a year of your life pulled open for the world to see, and the issues sounded honestly, but I can honestly say I'm glad she did. Obviusly I'll be working harder on subsequent books to deal with these issues in my writing style.

Here's a quick excerpt of the review:
Blogs also have spawned many tools that make blogging more efficient, Wright tells us. Software in the Really Simple Syndication format sends to e-mail inboxes "feeds'' that alert bloggers when other bloggers have mentioned them.
Technorati provides a blog search engine. Typepad or Movable Pad software make starting a blog feasible for everyone from your nerdy cousin to General Motors Corp. Vice Chairman Bob Lutz, whose Fastlane blog went live last January.
Because the average executive might not penetrate the "blogosphere'' as easily as Lutz, Wright's biggest strength is assembling in one place the nuts and bolts of what blogging can do for businesses and what decisions owners need to make about software (blogware) and linking.
You must have blogrolls, or lists of links, because you aren't really a cool blogger, Wright tells us, unless you link to other blogs in your subject area. NewsGator, a plug-in for Microsoft Outlook, makes new feeds arrive the way e-mail does. PubSub offers a tracking system for feeds.
Wright makes all of these programs fairly clear, though the book would have benefited from some hints about which software packages are essential.

Crisis Blogging
I received an email from Paul Chaney this morning:
On November 1st, just at the beginning of the holiday sales season (a time crucial to jewelers) her store caught fire and was literally gutted. You can only imagine how devastated she and her husband Stephen must have felt. A store she has owned for years, her livelyhood, now burned to the ground.
But, Patti and Stephen are courageous people. They have made the best of a bad situation and are reopened in a temporary location - a room in an adjacent building owned by a tire shop. In fact, before Patti moved it was a storage room for tires! The tire shop owner graciously moved the tires to another location and made it available for Patti and Steve. They have worked long and hard over the past few weeks to make it presentable and are now open.
Here's the kicker - Patti is blogging the entire story! In fact, the very day following the fire she talked about it on her blog and is keeping her readers up-to-date chronicling the rebuilding process via her blog, DiamondDivaOnline. To me, this represents not only one key way blogs can be used effectively as a communications medium, but also represents the highest ideals to which we bloggers aspire, that of transparency, honesty and authenticity.
This is a great example of an established blog not only talking directly to its readers, but also of chronicling an important moment in their business. Some of the posts are heart warming and others are more like heart-rending.
Either way, this is a little company full of hope, energy and life. Keep it up guys!

John Mudd Says�

Author's Note: This is the first real review of Blog Marketing that I've seen from someone who wasn't involved with the project. Thanks John! Wrapping It Up
Wright says that marketers can use blogs to enhance search engine marketing, provide direct communications to customers and potential customers, build brands, differentiate yourself from your competitors, build relationships with customers and potential customers, market yourself to various niches, create successful media and public relations campaigns and to position you as the expert. I already do all of these things with my blog, and I have been doing it successfully for years.
Project managers and administrators can use blogs for a multitude of communication methods, including internal marketing, as well as for project management. I have yet to use a blog for these purposes, but I do hope to use one for project management in the not too far-off future.
[�] How Was the Book?
Overall it was a great book with insightful information, although somewhat of a long read, however, if you are new to blog marketing, you should definitely add it to your reading list. If you already use blogs in your marketing or project management campaigns, you may find some useful tips, but you may also find them around the blogosphere, as well, although not all of Wright's tips can be found in the blogosphere. Either way, Blog Marketing is a fantastic book, and definitely worthy of your readership and a place on your shelf. Buy it for that special someone in your life, or just for yourself.
About John Mudd
John Mudd is the author of Blogging For Profit: Turning your point of view into a marketing tool, published in REALTOR Magazine and Broker Agent News. He writes for and publishes the Tampa Bay's Inside Real Estate Journal blog and the Tampa Bay's Luxury Real Estate Journal blog.

Why Blog?
Seth Godin is a talented man. If nothing else, he is able to take important ideas and boil them down to their most important components - and then he is able to communicate his message in an incredibly clear and easy-to-read manner.
One of his recent offerings is an eBook which answers the question "Why Blog?".
It's a nice little primer for those who want to hand something simple to people who don't necessarily understand the fundamentals of blogging.

Thomas Nelson Blogging Policy
Thomas Nelson is one of the larger publishers in the world, so it was refreshing when they became one of the first companies to publicly post their blogging policy. In fact, the feedback they received on their first policy was so great that they updated it to the following one:
Thomas Nelson Blogging Guidelines
At Thomas Nelson, we want to encourage you to blog about our company, our products, and your work. Our goal is

To raise the visibility of our company,
To make a contribution to our industry, and
To give the public a look at what goes on within a real live publishing company.

Therefore, we have established a "blog aggregator page" that is linked to the ThomasNelson.com Web site. "House Work," the name of this page, contains links to employee blogs, along with the first few sentences from the most recent entry. The page is automatically updated whenever a blogger creates a new post. This way readers can quickly scan new entries, click on those that interest them, and then read the entry on the blogger's site. This makes it convenient for people who are interested in reading employee blogs. It also helps publicize individual blogs and generates traffic for everyone.
In order to give some direction to employees who wish to blog, we have established a "Blog Oversight Committee" or "BOC." This is a group of fellow-employee bloggers who are committed to promoting blogging within our company and making sure that the Company's interests are served.
If you would like to have us link to your blog, you must submit it to the BOC. Before doing so, you should design your blog and write at least one entry. Once you have done this, send an e-mail to Gave Wicks with a link to your blog. The BOC will then review your blog and notify you whether or not it meets the criteria.
In order to participate in this program, you must abide by the following guidelines. (Please keep in mind that review by the BOC and participation in this program does not absolve you of responsibility for everything you post.)
1. Start with a blogging service. We do not host employee blogs. We think it adds more credibility if the Company does not officially sponsor them. Therefore, please use one of the many third-party blog hosting sites on the Internet. Some of these are free, such as Blogger.com, LiveJournal.com, Blog-City.com, Xanga.com, and MSN Spaces. Others charge a nominal fee. Examples include TypePad.com, SquareSpace.com, BlogIdentity.com, and Bubbler.com. If you use one of the latter, any expense is your responsibility.
2. Write as yourself. In other words, please use your real name. We don't want people writing anonymously or under a pseudonym. Your name should be prominently displayed on your blog's title or subtitle. This will add credibility with your readers and promote accountability within our company.
3. Own your content. Employee blog sites are not Company communications. Therefore, your blog entries legally belong to you. They represent your thoughts and opinions. We think it is important that you remind your readers of this fact by including the following disclaimer on your site: "The posts on this blog are provided 'as is' with no warranties and confer no rights. The opinions expressed on this site are my own and do not necessarily represent those of my employer." You assume full responsibility and liability for all actions arising from your posts. We also encourage you to put a copyright notice on your site in your name (e.g., "� 2005, John Smith").
4. Write relevant. Write often. Whether you know it or not, you are an expert. You have a unique perspective on our company based on your talents, skills, and current responsibilities. People what to hear about that perspective. Also, in order to develop a consistent readership, you should try to write on a regular basis. For some, this will be daily; for others, it may be weekly. The important thing is consistent posting. New content is what keeps readers coming back. You may also write on company time, provided it doesn't become excessive and doesn't interfere with your job assignments and responsibilities.
5. Advertise-if you wish. While there is no requirement to run ads on your blog, you are free to do this if you wish. Some of the free blog services run ads as a way to offset their costs. If you use such a service, you won't have a choice. On the other hand, if you pay for your service, you can avoid advertising altogether or participate in a service like Google's AdSense or Amazon's Associate Program. These types of programs will pay you based on "page views," "click-throughs," or purchases made on participating Web sites. You might want to ask the BOC or fellow bloggers for suggestions. The only thing we ask is that, to the extent you have control, you run ads or recommend products that are congruent with our core values as a Company.
6. Be nice. Avoid attacking other individuals or companies. This includes fellow employees, authors, customers, vendors, competitors, or shareholders. You are welcome to disagree with the Company's leaders, provided your tone is respectful. If in doubt, we suggest that you "sleep on it" and then submit your entry to the BOC before posting it on your blog.
7. Keep secrets. Do not disclose sensitive, proprietary, confidential, or financial informa-tion about the Company, other than what is publicly available in our SEC filings and corporate press releases. This includes revenues, profits, forecasts, and other financial information related to specific authors, brands, products, product lines, customers, operating units, etc. Again, if in doubt, check with the BOC before posting this type of information.
8. Respect copyrights. For your protection, do not post any material that is copyrighted unless (a) you are the copyright owner, (b) you have written permission of the copyright owner to post the copyrighted material on your blog, or (c) you are sure that the use of any copyrighted material is permitted by the legal doctrine of "fair use." (Please note: this is your responsibility. The Company cannot provide you with legal advice regarding this.)
9. Obey the law. This goes without saying, but by way of reminder, do not post any material that is obscene, defamatory, profane, libelous, threatening, harassing, abusive, hateful, embarrassing to another person or entity, or violates the privacy rights of another. Also, do not post material that contains viruses, Trojan horses, worms, or any other computer code that is intended to damage, interfere with, or surreptitiously intercept or expropriate any system, data, or information.
10. Remember the Handbook. As a condition of your employment, you agreed to abide by the rules of the Thomas Nelson Company Handbook. This also applies to your blogging activities. We suggest you take time to review the section entitled, "Employee Responsibilities" (pp. 36-39). If you do not abide by the above guidelines, we reserve the right to stop linking to your blog.
Thomas Nelson's policy is outstanding not only because it highlights the expectations in a clear and approachable manner, but also because it tells employees how to succeed in their blogging - a rare thing amongst any company.

Groove Networks Blogging Policy
Groove Networks' blogging policy is a great example of a company believing in its employees. While Groove has since been acquired by Microsoft (which is also a firm believer in its employees), the blogging policy is still worth outlining.
Personal Website and Weblog Guidelines
Some employees who maintain personal websites or weblogs, or who are considering beginning one, have asked about the company's perspective regarding them. In general, the company views personal websites and weblogs positively, and it respects the right of employees to use them as a medium of self-expression.
If you choose to identify yourself as a company employee or to discuss matters related to the company's technology or business on your website or weblog, please bear in mind that, although you and we view your website or weblog as a personal project and a medium of personal expression, some readers may nonetheless view you as a de facto spokesperson for the company. In light of this possibility, we ask that you observe the following guidelines:
� Please make it clear to your readers that the views you express are yours alone and that they do not necessarily reflect the views of the company. To help reduce the potential for confusion, we would appreciate it if you put the following notice - or something similar - in a reasonably prominent place on your site (e.g., at the bottom of your "about me" page):
The views expressed on this website/weblog are mine alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of my employer.
If you do put a notice on your site, you needn't put it on every page, but please use reasonable efforts to draw attention to it - if at all possible, from the home page of your site.
� Take care not to disclose any information that is confidential or proprietary to the company or to any third party that has disclosed information to us. Consult the company's confidentiality policy for guidance about what constitutes confidential information.
� Please remember that your employment documents give the company certain rights with respect to concepts and developments you produce that are related to the company's business. Please consult your manager if you have questions about the appropriateness of publishing such concepts or developments related to the company's business on your site.
� Since your site is a public space, we hope you will be as respectful to the company, our employees, our customers, our partners and affiliates, and others (including our competitors) as the company itself endeavors to be.
� You may provide a link from your site to the company's website, if you wish. The web design group has created a graphic for links to the company's site, which you may use for this purpose during the term of your employment (subject to discontinuation in the company's discretion). Contact a member of the web design group for details. Please do not use other company trademarks on your site or reproduce company material without first obtaining permission.
Finally, please be aware that the company may request that you temporarily confine your website or weblog commentary to topics unrelated to the company (or, in rare cases, that you temporarily suspend your website or weblog activity altogether) if it believes this is necessary or advisable to ensure compliance with securities regulations or other laws.
If you have any questions about these guidelines or any matter related to your site that these guidelines do not address, please direct them to the company's Vice President of Communications or its General Counsel, as appropriate.

The Challenge of Employee Blogs
Employee blogs (internal and external) are one of the most rewarding ways to use blogs. Whether it's allowing employees to make valuable connections in the industry or letting them find similar people in the company or creating ways to brainstorm more effectively, employee blogs are just downright great for businesses of all sizes. That said, sometimes things go awry. Over the next few days, I'll be posting a number of blogging policies from companies that are trying to head off potential issues before they happen both by empowering their employees to blog and by clearly spelling out the company's expectations.

Business Acumen and Strategy for Managers

2010-12-20T17:32:00.000-08:00

Business Acumen and Strategy for Managers

Create and implement a winning business strategy plan

Many successful, critical thinking decision making executives have difficulty bridging the gap between functional expertise and general management skills. All too often, the specialized skills that made them invaluable in their former role become far less useful in a general management role, while the need for general business skills and decision making tools increases.

This skill is often referred to as “business acumen,” which is described as an intuitive understanding of how companies make money and a realization that a compelling vision can be effectively translated into an actionable strategy. We have all met people who have this ability, and we understand that this skill will carry these people much further than specialized expertise alone. This course will “jump start” your business acumen, help you develop compelling business strategies and a communications plan.

Learn how to:

Gain a realistic picture of your company’s position, market, and potential
Examine the external environment and understand how external changes affect your company’s ability to succeed
Analyze where your business stands in relation to your key competitors and what the future will look like
Understand how to measure the performance of your business, using standards that are highly correlated with value creation
Integrate your competitive analysis and financial metrics to improve your business decision making
Create an actionable business strategy, create stakeholder buy-in and a complete strategy implementation map
Improve your business skills by learning the right financial terminology

The University of Wisconsin–Madison, as a member of the University Continuing Education Association (UCEA), authorizes this course for 2.1 Continuing Education Units (CEUs) or 21 hours.

Marketing Plan

2010-12-20T17:24:00.001-08:00

Marketing Plan The information for this article was derived from many sources, including Michael Porter's book Competitive Advantage and the works of Philip Kotler. Concepts addressed include 'generic' strategies and strategies for pricing, distribution, promotion, advertising and market segmentation. Factors such as market penetration, market share, profit margins, budgets, financial analysis, capital investment, government actions, demographic changes, emerging technology and cultural trends are also addressed.

There are two major components to your marketing strategy:

how your enterprise will address the competitive marketplace
how you will implement and support your day to day operations.

In today's very competitive marketplace a strategy that insures a consistent approach to offering your product or service in a way that will outsell the competition is critical. However, in concert with defining the marketing strategy you must also have a well defined methodology for the day to day process of implementing it. It is of little value to have a strategy if you lack either the resources or the expertise to implement it.

In the process of creating a marketing strategy you must consider many factors. Of those many factors, some are more important than others. Because each strategy must address some unique considerations, it is not reasonable to identify 'every' important factor at a generic level. However, many are common to all marketing strategies. Some of the more critical are described below.

You begin the creation of your strategy by deciding what the overall objective of your enterprise should be. In general this falls into one of four categories:

If the market is very attractive and your enterprise is one of the strongest in the industry you will want to invest your best resources in support of your offering.
If the market is very attractive but your enterprise is one of the weaker ones in the industry you must concentrate on strengthening the enterprise, using your offering as a stepping stone toward this objective.
If the market is not especially attractive, but your enterprise is one of the strongest in the industry then an effective marketing and sales effort for your offering will be good for generating near term profits.
If the market is not especially attractive and your enterprise is one of the weaker ones in the industry you should promote this offering only if it supports a more profitable part of your business (for instance, if this segment completes a product line range) or if it absorbs some of the overhead costs of a more profitable segment. Otherwise, you should determine the most cost effective way to divest your enterprise of this offering.

Having selected the direction most beneficial for the overall interests of the enterprise, the next step is to choose a strategy for the offering that will be most effective in the market. This means choosing one of the following 'generic' strategies (first described by Michael Porter in his work, Competitive Advantage).

A COST LEADERSHIP STRATEGY is based on the concept that you can produce and market a good quality product or service at a lower cost than your competitors. These low costs should translate to profit margins that are higher than the industry average. Some of the conditions that should exist to support a cost leadership strategy include an on-going availability of operating capital, good process engineering skills, close management of labor, products designed for ease of manufacturing and low cost distribution.
A DIFFERENTIATION STRATEGY is one of creating a product or service that is perceived as being unique "throughout the industry". The emphasis can be on brand image, proprietary technology, special features, superior service, a strong distributor network or other aspects that might be specific to your industry. This uniqueness should also translate to profit margins that are higher than the industry average. In addition, some of the conditions that should exist to support a differentiation strategy include strong marketing abilities, effective product engineering, creative personnel, the ability to perform basic research and a good reputation.
A FOCUS STRATEGY may be the most sophisticated of the generic strategies, in that it is a more 'intense' form of either the cost leadership or differentiation strategy. It is designed to address a "focused" segment of the marketplace, product form or cost management process and is usually employed when it isn't appropriate to attempt an 'across the board' application of cost leadership or differentiation. It is based on the concept of serving a particular target in such an exceptional manner, that others cannot compete. Usually this means addressing a substantially smaller market segment than others in the industry, but because of minimal competition, profit margins can be very high.

Pricing Having defined the overall offering objective and selecting the generic strategy you must then decide on a variety of closely related operational strategies. One of these is how you will price the offering. A pricing strategy is mostly influenced by your requirement for net income and your objectives for long term market control. There are three basic strategies you can consider.

A SKIMMING STRATEGY
If your offering has enough differentiation to justify a high price and you desire quick cash and have minimal desires for significant market penetration and control, then you set your prices very high.
A MARKET PENETRATION STRATEGY
If near term income is not so critical and rapid market penetration for eventual market control is desired, then you set your prices very low.
A COMPARABLE PRICING STRATEGY
If you are not the market leader in your industry then the leaders will most likely have created a 'price expectation' in the minds of the marketplace. In this case you can price your offering comparably to those of your competitors.

Promotion To sell an offering you must effectively promote and advertise it. There are two basic promotion strategies, PUSH and PULL.

The PUSH STRATEGY maximizes the use of all available channels of distribution to "push" the offering into the marketplace. This usually requires generous discounts to achieve the objective of giving the channels incentive to promote the offering, thus minimizing your need for advertising.
The PULL STRATEGY requires direct interface with the end user of the offering. Use of channels of distribution is minimized during the first stages of promotion and a major commitment to advertising is required. The objective is to "pull" the prospects into the various channel outlets creating a demand the channels cannot ignore.

There are many strategies for advertising an offering. Some of these include:

Product Comparison advertising
In a market where your offering is one of several providing similar capabilities, if your offering stacks up well when comparing features then a product comparison ad can be beneficial.
Product Benefits advertising
When you want to promote your offering without comparison to competitors, the product benefits ad is the correct approach. This is especially beneficial when you have introduced a new approach to solving a user need and comparison to the old approaches is inappropriate.
Product Family advertising
If your offering is part of a group or family of offerings that can be of benefit to the customer as a set, then the product family ad can be of benefit.
Corporate advertising
When you have a variety of offerings and your audience is fairly broad, it is often beneficial to promote your enterprise identity rather than a specific offering.

Distribution You must also select the distribution method(s) you will use to get the offering into the hands of the customer. These include:

On-premise Sales involves the sale of your offering using a field sales organization that visits the prospect's facilities to make the sale.
Direct Sales involves the sale of your offering using a direct, in-house sales organization that does all selling through the Internet, telephone or mail order contact.
Wholesale Sales involves the sale of your offering using intermediaries or "middle-men" to distribute your product or service to the retailers.
Self-service Retail Sales involves the sale of your offering using self service retail methods of distribution.
Full-service Retail Sales involves the sale of your offering through a full service retail distribution channel.

Of course, making a decision about pricing, promotion and distribution is heavily influenced by some key factors in the industry and marketplace. These factors should be analyzed initially to create the strategy and then regularly monitored for changes. If any of them change substantially the strategy should be reevaluated.

The Environment Environmental factors positively or negatively impact the industry and the market growth potential of your product/service. Factors to consider include:

Government actions - Government actions (current or under consideration) can support or detract from your strategy. Consider subsidies, safety, efficacy and operational regulations, licensing requirements, materials access restrictions and price controls.
Demographic changes - Anticipated demographic changes may support or negatively impact the growth potential of your industry and market. This includes factors such as education, age, income and geographic location.
Emerging technology - Technological changes that are occurring may or may not favor the actions of your enterprise.
Cultural trends - Cultural changes such as fashion trends and life style trends may or may not support your offering's penetration of the market

The Prospect It is essential to understand the market segment(s) as defined by the prospect characteristics you have selected as the target for your offering. Factors to consider include:

The potential for market penetration involves whether you are selling to past customers or a new prospect, how aware the prospects are of what you are offering, competition, growth rate of the industry and demographics.
The prospect's willingness to pay higher price because your offering provides a better solution to their problem.
The amount of time it will take the prospect to make a purchase decision is affected by the prospects confidence in your offering, the number and quality of competitive offerings, the number of people involved in the decision, the urgency of the need for your offering and the risk involved in making the purchase decision.
The prospect's willingness to pay for product value is determined by their knowledge of competitive pricing, their ability to pay and their need for characteristics such as quality, durability, reliability, ease of use, uniformity and dependability.
Likelihood of adoption by the prospect is based on the criticality of the prospect's need, their attitude about change, the significance of the benefits, barriers that exist to incorporating the offering into daily usage and the credibility of the offering.

The Product/Service You should be thoroughly familiar with the factors that establish products/services as strong contenders in the marketplace. Factors to consider include:

Whether some or all of the technology for the offering is proprietary to the enterprise.
The benefits the prospect will derive from use of the offering.
The extent to which the offering is differentiated from the competition.
The extent to which common introduction problems can be avoided such as lack of adherence to industry standards, unavailability of materials, poor quality control, regulatory problems and the inability to explain the benefits of the offering to the prospect.
The potential for product obsolescence as affected by the enterprise's commitment to product development, the product's proximity to physical limits, the ongoing potential for product improvements, the ability of the enterprise to react to technological change and the likelihood of substitute solutions to the prospect's needs.
Impact on customer's business as measured by costs of trying out your offering, how quickly the customer can realize a return from their investment in your offering, how disruptive the introduction of your offering is to the customer's operations and the costs to switch to your offering.
The complexity of your offering as measured by the existence of standard interfaces, difficulty of installation, number of options, requirement for support devices, training and technical support and the requirement for complementary product interface.

The Competition It is essential to know who the competition is and to understand their strengths and weaknesses. Factors to consider include:

Each of your competitor's experience, staying power, market position, strength, predictability and freedom to abandon the market must be evaluated.

Your Enterprise An honest appraisal of the strength of your enterprise is a critical factor in the development of your strategy. Factors to consider include:

Enterprise capacity to be leader in low-cost production considering cost control infrastructure, cost of materials, economies of scale, management skills, availability of personnel and compatibility of manufacturing resources with offering requirements.
The enterprise's ability to construct entry barriers to competition such as the creation of high switching costs, gaining substantial benefit from economies of scale, exclusive access to or clogging of distribution channels and the ability to clearly differentiate your offering from the competition.
The enterprise's ability to sustain its market position is determined by the potential for competitive imitation, resistance to inflation, ability to maintain high prices, the potential for product obsolescence and the 'learning curve' faced by the prospect.
The prominence of the enterprise.
The competence of the management team.
The adequacy of the enterprise's infrastructure in terms of organization, recruiting capabilities, employee benefit programs, customer support facilities and logistical capabilities.
The freedom of the enterprise to make critical business decisions without undue influence from distributors, suppliers, unions, creditors, investors and other outside influences.
Freedom from having to deal with legal problems.

Development A review of the strength and viability of the product/service development program will heavily influence the direction of your strategy. Factors to consider include:

The strength of the development manager including experience with personnel management, current and new technologies, complex projects and the equipment and tools used by the development personnel.
Personnel who understand the relevant technologies and are able to perform the tasks necessary to meet the development objectives.
Adequacy and appropriateness of the development tools and equipment.
The necessary funding to achieve the development objectives.
Design specifications that are manageable.

Production You should review your enterprise's production organization with respect to their ability to cost effectively produce products/services. The following factors are considered:

The strength of production manager including experience with personnel management, current and new technologies, complex projects and the equipment and tools used by the manufacturing personnel.
Economies of scale allowing the sharing of operations, sharing of production and the potential for vertical integration.
Technology and production experience
The necessary production personnel skill level and/or the enterprise's ability to hire or train qualified personnel.
The ability of the enterprise to limit suppliers bargaining power.
The ability of the enterprise to control the quality of raw materials and production.
Adequate access to raw materials and sub-assembly production.

Marketing/Sales The marketing and sales organization is analyzed for its strengths and current activities. Factors to consider include:

Experience of Marketing/Sales manager including contacts in the industry (prospects, distribution channels, media), familiarity with advertising and promotion, personal selling capabilities, general management skills and a history of profit and loss responsibilities.
The ability to generate good publicity as measured by past successes, contacts in the press, quality of promotional literature and market education capabilities.
Sales promotion techniques such as trade allowances, special pricing and contests.
The effectiveness of your distribution channels as measured by history of relations, the extent of channel utilization, financial stability, reputation, access to prospects and familiarity with your offering.
Advertising capabilities including media relationships, advertising budget, past experience, how easily the offering can be advertised and commitment to advertising.
Sales capabilities including availability of personnel, quality of personnel, location of sales outlets, ability to generate sales leads, relationship with distributors, ability to demonstrate the benefits of the offering and necessary sales support capabilities.
The appropriateness of the pricing of your offering as it relates to competition, price sensitivity of the prospect, prospect's familiarity with the offering and the current market life cycle stage.

Customer Services The strength of the customer service function has a strong influence on long term market success. Factors to consider include:

Experience of the Customer Service manager in the areas of similar offerings and customers, quality control, technical support, product documentation, sales and marketing.
The availability of technical support to service your offering after it is purchased.
One or more factors that causes your customer support to stand out as unique in the eyes of the customer.
Accessibility of service outlets for the customer.
The reputation of the enterprise for customer service.

Conclusion After defining your strategy you must use the information you have gathered to determine whether this strategy will achieve the objective of making your enterprise competitive in the marketplace. Two of the most important assessments are described below.
Cost To Enter Market This is an analysis of the factors that will influence your costs to achieve significant market penetration. Factors to consider include:

Your marketing strength.
Access to low cost materials and effective production.
The experience of your enterprise.
The complexity of introduction problems such as lack of adherence to industry standards, unavailability of materials, poor quality control, regulatory problems and the inability to explain the benefits of the offering to the prospect.
The effectiveness of the enterprise infrastructure in terms of organization, recruiting capabilities, employee benefit programs, customer support facilities and logistical capabilities.
Distribution effectiveness as measured by history of relations, the extent of channel utilization, financial stability, reputation, access to prospects and familiarity with your offering.
Technological efforts likely to be successful as measured by the strength of the development organization.
The availability of adequate operating capital.

Profit Potential This is an analysis of the factors that could influence the potential for generating and maintaining profits over an extended period. Factors to consider include:

Potential for competitive retaliation is based on the competitors resources, commitment to the industry, cash position and predictability as well as the status of the market.
The enterprise's ability to construct entry barriers to competition such as the creation of high switching costs, gaining substantial benefit from economies of scale, exclusive access to or clogging of distribution channels and the ability to clearly differentiate your offering from the competition.
The intensity of competitive rivalry as measured by the size and number of competitors, limitations on exiting the market, differentiation between offerings and the rapidity of market growth.
The ability of the enterprise to limit suppliers bargaining power.
The enterprise's ability to sustain its market position is determined by the potential for competitive imitation, resistance to inflation, ability to maintain high prices, the potential for product obsolescence and the 'learning curve' faced by the prospect.
The availability of substitute solutions to the prospect's need.
The prospect's bargaining power as measured by the ease of switching to an alternative, the cost to look at alternatives, the cost of the offering, the differentiation between your offering and the competition and the degree of the prospect's need.
Market potential for new products considering market growth, prospect's need for your offering, the benefits of the offering, the number of barriers to immediate use, the credibility of the offering and the impact on the customer's daily operations.
The freedom of the enterprise to make critical business decisions without undue influence from distributors, suppliers, unions, investors and other outside influences.

2010-12-20T17:13:00.000-08:00

How to Write a Marketing Plan

The Marketing Plan is a highly detailed, heavily researched and, hopefully, well written report that many inside and possibly outside the organization will evaluate. It is an essential document for both large corporate marketing departments and for startup companies. Essentially the Marketing Plan:

forces the marketing personnel to look internally in order to fully understand the results of past marketing decisions.
forces the marketing personnel to look externally in order to fully understand the market in which they operate.
sets future goals and provides direction for future marketing efforts that everyone within the organization should understand and support.
is a key component in obtaining funding to pursue new initiatives.

The Marketing Plan is generally undertaken for one of the following reasons:

Needed as part of the yearly planning process within the marketing functional area.
Needed for a specialized strategy to introduce something new, such as new product planning, entering new markets, or trying a new strategy to fix an existing problem.
Is a component within an overall business plan, such as a new business proposal to the financial community.

There are many ways to develop and format a marketing plan. The approach taken here is to present a 6-Part plan that includes:

Purpose and Mission
Situational Analysis
Marketing Strategy and Objectives
Tactical Programs
Budgets, Performance Analysis and Implementation
Additional Consideration

This plan is aimed at individual products and product lines, however, it can be adapted fairly easily for use in planning one or more strategic business units (SBU). The page length suggested for each section represents a single-spaced typed format for a plan focused on a single product. Obviously for multi-product plans lengths will be somewhat longer.
It is assumed that anyone developing a Marketing Plan possesses a working understanding of marketing principles. If you do not, it is suggested you spend considerable time learning about basic marketing through the previous sections of the Principles of Marketing Tutorials.
Note, throughout the plan the word "product" is used. However, the information presented in the Marketing Plan tutorials applies to both products and services.

Marketing

define trade

World Markets

World Markets

Asia

North America

Europe

Australia

Africa

# # Stock Market & Financial Markets Overview

Stocks

Americas

Europe, Africa and Middle East

Asia-Pacific

Stock Futures

Americas

Europe

Asia-Pacific

Commodities

Currencies

Rates & Bonds

Government Bonds

Key Rates

Easy Forex

L'euro repart en baisse, les finances de l'Europe visées par les agences

The marketing mix

The marketing mix

Developing Your Marketing

The Marketing Mix

Product

Price

Place

Promotion

A Summary Table of the Marketing Mix

The Marketing Mix

The Marketing Mix (The 4 P's of Marketing)

The Marketing Mix

Product Decisions

Price Decisions

Distribution (Place) Decisions

Promotion Decisions

Limitations of the Marketing Mix Framework

Physical evidence as part of the marketing mix

Physical evidence as part of the marketing mix

social media

Marketing Plan

MARKETING: INTRODUCTION

THE POWER OF BLOGS FOR BUSINESS

Business Acumen and Strategy for Managers

Business Acumen and Strategy for Managers

Create and implement a winning business strategy plan

Learn how to:

Marketing Plan

How to Write a Marketing Plan

The Marketing Mix
(The 4 P's of Marketing)