MB0046 – Marketing Management

Q.1 What is Marketing Information System? Explain its characteristics, benefits and
information types.

Ans. A Marketing Information System can be defined as ‘a system in which marketing

information is formally gathered, stored, analysed and distributed to managers in accord with
their informational needs on a regular basis’.

Set of procedures and practices employed in analyzing and assessing marketing information,
gathered continuously from sources inside and outside of a firm. Timely marketing information
provides basis for decisions such as product development or improvement, pricing, packaging,
distribution, media selection, and promotion.

Characteristics of MIS

Philip Kotler defines MIS as “a system that consists of people, equipment and procedures to
gather,

sort, analyze, evaluate and distribute needed, timely and accurate information to marketing
decision

makers.

Its characteristics are as follows:

1. It is a planned system developed to facilitate smooth and continuous flow of information.

2. It provides pertinent information, collected from sources both internal and external to the
company, for use as the basis of marketing decision making.

3. It provides right information at the right time to the right person.

A well designed MIS serves as a company’s nerve centre, continuously monitoring the market

environment both inside and outside the organization. In the process, it collects lot of data and
stores

in the form of a database which is maintained in an organized manner. Marketers classify and

analyze this data from the database as needed.

Benefits of MIS(Marketing Information System)

Various benefits of having a MIS and resultant flow of marketing information are given below:
1. It allows marketing managers to carry out their analysis, planning implementation and control

responsibilities more effectively.

2. It ensures effective tapping of marketing opportunities and enables the company to develop

effective safeguard against emerging marketing threats.

3. It provides marketing intelligence to the firm and helps in early spotting of changing trends.

4. It helps the firm adapt its products and services to the needs and tastes of the customers.

5. By providing quality marketing information to the decision maker, MIS helps in improving the

quality of decision making.

Types of Marketing Information

A Marketing Information System supplies three types of information.

1. Recurrent Information is the data that MIS supplies periodically at a weekly, monthly,
quarterly,

or annual interval. This includes data such as sales, Market Share, sales call reports, inventory
levels, payables, and receivables etc. which are made available regularly. Information on
customer awareness of company’s brands, advertising campaigns and similar data on close
competitors can also be provided.

2. Monitoring Information is the data obtained from regular scanning of certain sources such as
trade journals and other publications. Here relevant data from external environment is captured
to monitor changes and trends related to marketing situation. Data about competitors can also be
part of this category. Some of these data can be purchased at a price from commercial sources
such as Market Research agencies or from Government sources.

3. Problem related or customized information is developed in response to some specific

requirement related to a marketing problem or any particular data requested by a manager.
Primary Data or Secondary Data (or both) are collected through survey Research in response to
specific need. For example, if the company has developed a new product, the marketing manager
may want to find out the opinion of the target customers before launching the product in the
market. Such data is generated by conducting a market research study with adequate sample size,
and the findings obtained are used to help decide whether the product is accepted and can be
launched.

Q.2 a. Examine how a firm’s macro environment operates.

b. Mention the key points in Psychoanalytic model of consumer behaviour.

Ans. The term micro-environment denotes those elements over which the marketing firm has
control or which it can use in order to gain information that will better help it in its marketing
operations. In other words, these are elements that can be manipulated, or used to glean
information, in order to provide fuller satisfaction to the company’s customers. The objective of
marketing philosophy is to make profits through satisfying customers. This is accomplished
through the manipulation of the variables over which a company has control in such a way as to
optimise this objective. The variables are what Neil Borden has termed ‘the marketing mix’
which is a combination of all the ‘ingredients’ in a ‘recipe’ that is designed to prove most
attractive to customers. In this case the ingredients are individual elements that marketing can
manipulate into the most appropriate mix. E Jerome McCarthy further dubbed the variables that
the company can control in order to reach its target market the ‘four Ps’. Each of these is
discussed in detail in later chapters, but a brief discussion now follows upon each of these
elements of the marketing mix together with an explanation of how they fit into the overall
notion of marketing.

A scan of the external macro-environment in which the firm operates can be expressed in terms
of the following factors:

• Political
• Economic
• Social
• Technological

The acronym PEST (or sometimes rearranged as “STEP”) is used to describe a framework for
the analysis of these macroenvironmental factors. A PEST analysis fits into an overall
environmental scan as shown in the following diagram:

Environmental Scan
/ \
External Analysis Internal Analysis
/\
Macroenvironment Microenvironment
|

P.E.S.T.

Political Factors

Political factors include government regulations and legal issues and define both formal and
informal rules under which the firm must operate. Some examples include:

• tax policy
• employment laws
• environmental regulations
• trade restrictions and tariffs
• political stability
Economic Factors

Economic factors affect the purchasing power of potential customers and the firm’s cost of
capital. The following are examples of factors in the macroeconomy:

• economic growth
• interest rates
• exchange rates
• inflation rate

Social Factors

Social factors include the demographic and cultural aspects of the external macro environment.
These factors affect customer needs and the size of potential markets. Some social factors
include:

• health consciousness
• population growth rate
• age distribution
• career attitudes
• emphasis on safety

Technological Factors

Technological factors can lower barriers to entry, reduce minimum efficient production levels,
and influence outsourcing decisions. Some technological factors include:

• R&D activity
• automation
• technology incentives
• rate of technological change

External Opportunities and Threats

The PEST factors combined with external micro environmental factors can be classified as
opportunities and threats in a SWOT analysis.

The Psychoanalytical Model: The psychoanalytical model draws from Freudian Psychology.

According to this model, the individual consumer has a complex set of deep-seated motives
which drive him towards certain buying decisions. The buyer has a private world with all his
hidden fears, suppressed desires and totally subjective longings. His buying action can be
influenced by appealing to these desires and longings. The psychoanalytical theory is attributed
to the work of eminent psychologist Sigmund Freud. Freud introduced personality as a
motivating force in human behavior.
According to this theory, the mental framework of a human being is composed of three elements,
namely,

1. The id or the instinctive, pleasure seeking element. It is the reservoir of the instinctive
impulses that a man is born with and whose processes are entirely subconscious. It includes the
aggressive, destructive and sexual impulses of man.

2. The superego or the internal filter that presents to the individual the behavioral expectations of
society. It develops out of the id, dominates the ego and represents the inhibitions of instinct
which is characteristic of man. It represents the moral and ethical elements, the conscience.

3. The ego or the control device that maintains a balance between the id and the superego. It is
the most superficial portion of the id. It is modified by the influence of the outside world. Its
processes are entirely conscious because it is concerned with the perception of the outside world.

The basic theme of the theory is the belief that a person is unable to satisfy all his needs within
the bounds of society. Consequently, such unsatisfied needs create tension within an individual
which have to be repressed. Such repressed tension is always said to exist in the subconscious
and continues to influence consumer behavior.

4. The Sociological Model: According to the sociological model, the individual buyer is
influenced by society or intimate groups as well as social classes. His buying decisions are not
totally governed by utility; He has a desire to emulate, follow and fit in with his immediate
environment.

5. The Nicosia Model: In recent years, some efforts have been made by marketing scholars to
build buyer behavior models totally from the marketing man’s standpoint. The Nicosia model
and the Howard and Sheth model are two important models in this category. Both of them
belong to the category called the systems model, where the human being is analyzed as a system
with stimuli as the input to the system and behavior as the output of the system. Francesco
Nicosia, an expert in consumer motivation and behavior put forward his model of buyer behavior
in 1966.

The model tries to establish the linkages between a firm and its consumer – how the activities of
the firm influence the consumer and result in his decision to buy. The messages from the firm
first influence the predisposition of the consumer towards the product. Depending on the
situation, he develops a certain attitude towards the product. It may lead to a search for the
product or an evaluation of the product. If these steps have a positive impact on him, it may
result in a decision to buy. This is the sum and substance of the ‘activity explanations’ in the
Nicosia Model. The

Nicosia Model groups these activities into four basic fields. Field one has two subfields the
firm’s attributes and the consumer’s attributes. An advertising message from the firm reaches the
consumer’s attributes. Depending on the way the message is received by the consumer, a certain
attribute may develop, and this becomes the input for Field Two. Field Two is the area of search
and evaluation of the advertised product and other alternatives. If this process results in a
motivation to buy, it becomes the input for Field Three. Field Three consists of the act of
purchase. And Field Four consists of the use of the purchased item.

Q.3 Explain the key roles played and various steps involved in organizational buying.

Ans.

Point 1 – Introduction.

The need for an understanding of the organizational buying process has grown in recent years
due to the many competitive challenges presented in business-to-business markets. Since 1980
there have been a number ofkey changes in this area, including the growth of outsourcing, the
increasing power enjoyed by purchasing departments and the importance given to developing
partnerships with suppliers.

Point 2 – The organizational buying behaviour process.

The organizational buying behaviour process is well documented with many models depicting
the various phases, the members involved, and the decisions made in each phase. The basic five
phase model can be extended to eight; purchase initiation; evaluations criteria formation;
information search; supplier definition for RFQ; evaluation of quotations; negotiations; suppliers
choice; and choice implementation (Matbuy, 1986).

Point 3 – The buying centre. The buying centre consists of those people in the organizational
who are involved directly or indirectly in the buying process, i.e. the user, buyer influencer,
decider and gatekeeper to who the role of ‘initiator’ has also been added. The buyers in the
process are subject to a wide variety and complexity of buying motives and rules of selection.
The Matbuy model encourages marketers to focus their efforts on who is making what decisions
based on which criteria.

Point 4 – Risk and uncertainty –

The driving forces of organizational buying behaviour. This is concerned with the role of risk or
uncertainty on buying behaviour. The level of risk depends upon the characteristics of the buying
situation faced. The supplier can influence the degree of perceived uncertainty by the buyer and
cause certain desired behavioural reactions by the use of information and the implementation of
certain

actions. The risks perceived by the customer can result from a combination of the characteristics
of various factors: the transaction involved, the relationship with the supplier, and his position
vis-a-vis the supply market.

Point 5 – Factors influencing organizational buying behaviour.

Three key factors are shown to influence organizational buying behaviour, these are, types of
buying situations and situational factors, geographical and cultural factors and time factors.
Point 6 – Purchasing Strategy.

The purchasing function is of great importance because its actions will impact directly on the
organization’s profitability. Purchasing strategy aims to evaluate and classify the various items
purchased in order to be able to choose and manage suppliers accordingly. Classification is along
two dimensions: importance of items purchased and characteristics of the supply market. Actions
can be taken to influence the supply market. Based on the type of items purchased and on its
position in the buying matrix, a company will develop different relationships with suppliers
depending upon the number of suppliers, the supplier’s share, characteristics of selected
suppliers, and the nature of customer-supplier relationships. The degree of centralization of
buying activities and the missions and status of the buying function can help support purchasing
strategy. The company will adapt its procedures to the type of items purchased which in turn will
influence relationships with suppliers.

Point 7 – The future.

Two activities which will be crucial to the future development of organizational buying
behaviour will be information technology and production technologies.

Point 8 – Conclusion.

Organizational buying behaviour is a very complex area, however, an understanding of the key
factors are fundamental to marketing strategy and thus an organization’s ability to compete
effectively in the market place.

Q.4 Explain the different marketing philosophies and its approach.

Ans. Marketing is a societal process by which individuals and groups obtain what they need and
want through creating, offering and freely exchanging products and services of value with others.

According to the American Marketing Association, “Marketing is the process of planning and
executing the conception, pricing, promotion and distribution of ideas, goods and services to
create exchanges that satisfy individual and organizational goods”

There are six competing philosophies under which organizations conduct marketing activities
“the production concept, product concept, selling concept, marketing concept, customer concept;
and societal concept.

1) The Production Concept: The production concept is one of the oldest concepts in business.
The production concept holds that consumers will prefer products that are widely available and
inexpensive. Managers of production-oriented businesses concentrate on achieving high
production efficiency, low costs and mass distribution.

They assume that consumers are primarily interested in products availability and low prices. This
philosophy makes sense in developing countries, where consumers are more interested in
obtaining the product than its features. It is also used when a company wants to expand the
market.

2. The product Concept – Product concept holds that consumer will favour these products that
offer the most quality, performance and innovative features. Managers in these organizations
focus on making superior products and improving them over time. They assume that buyers
admire well-made products and can evaluate quality and performance product oriented
companies often trust that their engineers can design exceptional products. They get little or no
customer input, and very often they will not even examine competitor’s products.

3. The Selling Concept: The selling concept holds that consumers and businesses, if left alone,
will ordinarily not buy enough of the organization’s products. The organization most, therefore,
undertakes an aggressive selling and promotion effort. This concept assumes that consumers
typically show buying inertia or resistance and must be coaxed into buying. It also assumes that
the company has a whole battery of effective selling and promotion tools to stimulate more
buying. The selling concept is epitomized by the thinking that “The purpose of marketing is to
sell more stuff to more people for more money in order to make more profit

Most firms practice the selling concept when they have over capacity. Their aim is to sell what
they make rather then make what market wants.

4. The Marketing Concept: The marketing concepts hold that the key to achieving its
organizational goals consists of the company being more effective then competitors in creating,
delivering and communicating superior customer value to its chosen target markets.

The marketing concept rests on four pillars: target market, customer needs, integrated marketing
and profitability. There is a contrast between selling and marketing concepts:

“Selling focuses on the needs of the seller; marketing on the needs of the buyer”.

Selling is preoccupied with the seller’s need to convert his product into cash; marketing with the
ideas of satisfying the needs of the customers by means of the product and the whole cluster of
things associated with creating, delivering and finally consuming it.

5. The customer Concept: Under customer concept, companies shape separate offers, services
and messages to individual customers. These companies collect information on each customer’s
past transactions, demographics, psychographics and media and distribution preferences. They
hope to achieve profitable growth through capturing a larger share of each customer’s
expenditures by building high customer loyalty and focusing on customer lifetime value.

The ability of a company to deal with customers are at a time become practical as a result of
advances in factory customization, computers, the internet and database marketing software.

6. The Societal Marketing Concept: The societal marketing concept holds that the
organization’s goal is to determine the needs, wants and interests of target markets and to deliver
the desired satisfactions more effectively and efficiently than competitors in a way that preserves
or enhances the consumer’s and the society’s well being.

The societal marketing concept calls upon marketers to build social and ethical considerations
into their marketing practices. They must balance and juggle the often-conflicting criteria of
company profits, consumer want satisfaction and public interest.

Companies see cause-related marketing as an opportunity to enhance their corporate reputation,

raise brand awareness, increase customer loyalty, build sales and increase press coverage. They
believe that consumers will increasingly look for signs of good corporate citizenship that go
beyond supplying rational and emotional benefits.

Q. 5 What are the various stages involved in decision process when a consumer is buying
new product? Also, explain the adoption process.

Ans. Stages of the Consumer Buying Process

Six Stages to the Consumer Buying Decision Process (For complex decisions). Actual
purchasing is only one stage of the process. Not all decision processes lead to a purchase. All
consumer decisions do not always include all 6 stages, determined by the degree of
complexity…discussed next.

The 6 stages are:

1. Problem Recognition(awareness of need)–difference between the desired state and the

actual condition. Deficit in assortment of products. Hunger–Food. Hunger stimulates
your need to eat.
Can be stimulated by the marketer through product information–did not know you were
deficient? I.E., see a commercial for a new pair of shoes, stimulates your recognition that
you need a new pair of shoes.
2. Information search–
o Internal search, memory.
o External search if you need more information. Friends and relatives (word of
mouth). Marketer dominated sources; comparison shopping; public sources etc.

A successful information search leaves a buyer with possible alternatives, the evoked set.

Hungry, want to go out and eat, evoked set is

1.
o chinese food
o indian food
o burger king
o klondike kates etc
 2. Evaluation of Alternatives–need to establish criteria for evaluation, features the buyer
wants or does not want. Rank/weight alternatives or resume search. May decide that you
want to eat something spicy, indian gets highest rank etc.

If not satisfied with your choice then return to the search phase. Can you think of another
restaurant? Look in the yellow pages etc. Information from different sources may be treated
differently. Marketers try to influence by “framing” alternatives.

1. Purchase decision–Choose buying alternative, includes product, package, store, method

of purchase etc.
2. Purchase–May differ from decision, time lapse between 4 & 5, product availability.
3. Post-Purchase Evaluation–outcome: Satisfaction or Dissatisfaction. Cognitive
Dissonance, have you made the right decision. This can be reduced by warranties, after
sales communication etc.
After eating an indian meal, may think that really you wanted a chinese meal instead.

Adoption Process

Adoption is an individual’s decision to become a regular user of a product. How do potential

customers learn about new products, try them, and adopt or reject them? The consumer adoption
process is later followed by the consumer loyalty process, which is the concern of the established
producer. Years ago, new product marketers used a mass market approach to launch products.
This approach had two main drawbacks: It called for heavy marketing expenditures, and it
involved many wasted exposures. These drawbacks led to a second approach, heavy user target
marketing. This approach makes sense, provided that heavy users are identifiable and are early
adopters. However, even within the heavy user group, many heavy users are loyal to existing
brands. New product marketers now aim at consumers who are early adopters.

The theory of innovation diffusion and consumer adoption helps marketers identify early
adopters.

An innovation is any good, service, or idea that is perceived by someone as new. The idea may
have a long History, but it is an innovation to the person who sees it as new. Innovations take
time to spread through the social system. The Innovation diffusion process is defined as “the
spread of a new idea from its source of invention or creation to its ultimate users or adopters. The
consumer adoption process is the mental process through which an individual passes from first
hearing about an innovation to final adoption.

Adopters of new products have been observed to move through five stages:

1. Awareness : The consumer becomes aware of the innovation but lacks information about it.
2. Interest : The consumer is stimulated to seek information about the innovation.
3. Evaluation: The consumer considers whether to try the innovation
4. Trial: The consumer tries the innovation to improve his or her estimate of its value.
5. Adoption : The consumer decides to make full and regular use of the innovation.
Q. 6 Explain briefly the marketing mix elements for an automobile company giving
sufficient examples.

Ans. Marketing mix is the combination of elements that you will use to market your product.
There are four elements: Product, Place, Price and Promotion. They are called the four Ps of the
marketing mix.

The objectives of this lesson about marketing mix is to give you:

-The tools you need for establishing your detailed marketing plan and forecasting your sales.

1. Challenge 2. Product 3. Place 4. Price 5. Promotion 6. Sales strategy 7. Do it yourself 8.

Coaching

1-CHALLENGE

You have gotten a rough idea about the market situation and the possible positioning of
your product. Of course, it’s far to be sufficient. Now, you must write your detailed planning. It
means that brainstorming is ended and that you have to go to the specifics in examining and
checking all the hypothesis you had made in the preceding chapters. You will use the marketing
mix.

Some people think that the four Ps are old fashionable and propose a new paradigm: The four
Cs! Product becomes customer needs; Place becomes convenience, price is replaced by cost to
the user, promotion becomes communication. It looks like a joke but the Cs is more customer-
oriented.

2-PRODUCT

A good product makes its marketing by itself because it gives benefits to the customer. We
can expect that you have right now a clear idea about the benefits your product can offer.

Suppose now that the competitors products offer the same benefits, same quality, same price.
You have then to differentiate your product with design, features, packaging, services,
warranties, return and so on. In general, differentiation is mainly related to:

-The design: it can be a decisive advantage but it changes with fads. For example, a fun board
must offer a good and fashionable design adapted to young people.

-The packaging: It must provides a better appearance and a convenient use. In food business,
products often differ only by packaging.

-The safety: It does not concern fun board but it matters very much for products used by kids.

-The “green”: A friendly product to environment gets an advantage among some segments.
In business to business and for expensive items, the best mean of differentiation are
warranties, return policy, maintenance service, time payments and financial and insurance
services linked to the product

3-PLACE-DISTRIBUTION

A crucial decision in any marketing mix is to correctly identify the distribution channels. The
question ” how to reach the customer” must always be in your mind.

-Definition: The place is where you can expect to find your customer and consequently,
where the sale is realized. Knowing this place, you have to look for a distribution channel
in order to reach your customer.

In fact, instead of “place” it would be better to use the word “distribution” but the MBA lingo
uses “place” to memorize the 4 Ps of the marketing mix!

4-PRICE

Price means the pricing strategy you will use. You have already fixed, as an hypothesis a
customer price fitted to your customer profile but you will have now to bargain it with the
wholesalers and retailers. Do not be foolish: They know better the market than you and you
have to listen their advices.

5-PROMOTION

Advertising, public relations and so on are included in promotion and consequently in the 4Ps.
Sometimes, packaging becomes a fifth P. As promotion is closely linked to the sales, I will
mention here the most common features about the sale strategy.

-Definition: The function of promotion is to affect the customer behavior in order to close a
sale.

Of course, it must be consistent with the buying process described in the consumer analysis.

Promotion includes mainly three topics: advertisement, public relations, and sales promotions.

-Advertisement:

It takes many forms: TV, radio, internet, newspapers, yellow pages, and so on. You have to take
notice about three important notions:

Reach is the percentage of the target market which is affected by your advertisement. For
example, if you advertise on radio you must know how many people belonging to your segment
can be affected.
Frequency is the number of time a person is exposed to your message. It is said that a person
must be exposed seven times to the message before to be aware of it. Reach*frequency gives the
gross rating point. You have to evaluate it before any advertisement campaign.

Message: Sometimes, it is called a creative. Anyway, the message must: get attraction, capture
interest, create desire and finally require action that is to say close the sale.

Down-earth-advice:

There are some magical words that you can use in any message:

-Your-You–I-Me-My–Now-Today

-Fast-Easy-Cool-New-Fun-Updated-Free-Exciting-Astonishing

-Success-Love-Money-Comfort-Protection-Freedom-Luck.

-Public relations:

Public relations are more subtle and rely mainly on your own personality. For example, you can
deliver public speeches on subjects such as economics, geo-economics, futurology to several
organizations (civic groups, political groups, fraternal organizations, professional associations)

6-SALES STRATEGY

Sales bring in the money. Salesmen are directly exposed to the pressure of finding prospects,
making deals, beating competition and bringing money.
Q.1 What is product mix? What are the strategies involved in product mix and product
line? (10 marks)
Answer

Product mix

The number of individual products produced or sold by an organization. The mix is defined by
the industry and manufacturing environment, and management strategies that position the
company as a specialty, niche or broad-based supplier of goods and services. Instances where the
product mix varies widely from period to period often requires more investment in facilities and
inventory, and may result in lower levels of customer service.

It is extremely important for any organization to have a well-managed product mix. Most
organizations break down managing the product mix, product line, and actual product into three
different levels.

Strategies involved in product mix and product line

Product-mix decisions are concerned with the combination of product lines offered by the
company. Management of the companies' product mix is the responsibility of top management.

Some basic product-mix decisions include:

1.reviewing the mix of existing product lines;

2.adding new lines to and deleting existing lines from the product mix;
3.determining the relative emphasis on new versus existing product lines in the mix;
4.determining the appropriate emphasis on internal development versus external acquisition in
the product mix;
5.gauging the effects of adding or deleting a product line in relationship to other lines in the
product mix; and
6.forecasting the effects of future external change on the company's product mix.

Product-line decisions are concerned with the combination of individual products offered within
a given line. The product-line manager supervises several product managers who are responsible
for individual products in the line. Decisions about a product line are usually incorporated into a
marketing plan at the divisional level. Such a plan specifies changes in the product lines and
allocations to products in each line.

Generally, product-line managers have the following responsibilities:

1.considering expansion of a given product line;

2.considering candidates for deletion from the product line;
3.evaluating the effects of product additions and deletions on the profitability of other items in
the line; and
4.allocating resources to individual products in the line on the basis of marketing strategies
recommended by product managers.

Decisions at the first level of product management involve the marketing mix for an individual
brand/product. These decisions are the responsibility of a brand manager (sometimes called a
product manager). Decisions regarding the marketing mix for a brand are represented in the
product's marketing plan. The plan for a new brand would specify price level, advertising
expenditures for the coming year, coupons, trade discounts, distribution facilities, and a five-year
statement of projected sales and earnings. The plan for an existing product would focus on any
changes in the marketing strategy. Some of these changes might include the product's target
market, advertising and promotional expenditures, product characteristics, price level, and
recommended distribution strategy

Managing the product mix for a company is very demanding and requires constant attention. Top
management must provide accurate and timely analysis (BCG) of their company's product mix
so the appropriate adjustments can be made to the product line and individual products.

Q.2 What is a distribution channel? Explain the factors to be considered while setting up a
distribution channel. (10 marks)
Answer

Distribution channel

A path through which goods and services flow in one direction (from vendor to the consumer),
and the payments generated by them that flow in the opposite direction (from consumer to the
vendor).

A marketing channel can be as short as being direct from the vendor to the consumer or may
include several interconnected intermediaries such as wholesalers, distributors, agents, retailers.
Each intermediary receives the item at one pricing point and moves it to the next higher pricing
point until it reaches the final buyer. Also called channel of distribution or marketing channel.

Distribution is also a very important component of Logistics & Supply chain management.
Distribution in supply chain management refers to the distribution of a good from one business
to another. It can be factory to supplier, supplier to retailer, or retailer to end customer. It is
defined as a chain of intermediaries, each passing the product down the chain to the next
organization, before it finally reaches the consumer or end-user. This process is known as the
'distribution chain' or the 'channel.' Each of the elements in these chains will have their own
specific needs, which the producer must take into account, along with those of the all-important
end-user.

Factors to be considered for setting up Distribution channel

The selection of distribution is affected by many of factors, which play significant role while
choosing the channel for distribution. It may include the buying pattern of consumer, type of the
product is perishable, or auto mobile, weight and bulk and it also depends on the company's
resources.

The main affecting factors are following..

Organization objectives - If company objective is to have mass appeal and rapid market
penetration.
type of product - Perishable products should have a short distribution channel, FMCG goods
should have a wide reaching, intensive distribution channel.
nature and extent of market- Distribution to consumer market or industrial markets would be
different channel structures.
existing channel for comparable product- company may chose it's existing channel of
distribution for relative product.
buying habit of customers- Understanding consumer needs and criteria for buying
Channel Availability - Channels may not be available

and other factors like

Customer Characteristics
Product Attributes
Type of Organization
Competition
Marketing Environmental Forces and Characteristics of Intermediaries

Channels
A number of alternate 'channels' of distribution may be available:
Distributor, who sells to retailers,
Retailer (also called dealer or reseller), who sells to end customers
Advertisement typically used for consumption goods

Distribution channels may not be restricted to physical products alice from producer to consumer
in certain sectors, since both direct and indirect channels may be used. Hotels, for example, may
sell their services (typically rooms) directly or through travel agents, tour operators, airlines,
tourist boards, centralized reservation systems, etc. process of transfer the products or services
from Producer to Customer or end user.

There have also been some innovations in the distribution of services. For example, there has
been an increase in franchising and in rental services - the latter offering anything from
televisions through tools. There has also been some evidence of service integration, with services
linking together, particularly in the travel and tourism sectors. For example, links now exist
between airlines, hotels and car rental services. In addition, there has been a significant increase
in retail outlets for the service sector. Outlets such as estate agencies and building society offices
are crowding out traditional grocers from major shopping areas.

Channel decisions
Channel Sales is nothing but a chain for to market a product through different sources.

Channel strategy
Gravity & adventure
Push and Pull strategy
Product (or service)
Cost
Consumer location

Managerial concerns

The channel decision is very important. In theory at least, there is a form of trade-off: the cost of
using intermediaries to achieve wider distribution is supposedly lower. Indeed, most consumer
goods manufacturers could never justify the cost of selling direct to their consumers, except by
mail order. Many suppliers seem to assume that once their product has been sold into the
channel, into the beginning of the distribution chain, their job is finished. Yet that distribution
chain is merely assuming a part of the supplier's responsibility; and, if they have any aspirations
to be market-oriented, their job should really be extended to managing all the processes involved
in that chain, until the product or service arrives with the end-user. This may involve a number of
decisions on the part of the supplier:

Channel membership
Channel motivation
Monitoring and managing channels

Q.3 Discuss the communication development process with examples. (10 marks)
Answer
In ‘development communication’, you see that there are two words-‘development’ and
‘communication’.

Communication is a message understood or sharing of experience. When we refer to

communication, in the context of development, we refer to various types
of communication like interpersonal, group and mass communication.

Development,It is not easy to define this as it depends on the context. Development is about
change. It is about changing for the better.

It could be about social or economic change for improvement or progress. When we refer to
development communication, it is about such communication that can be used for development.
It is about using communication to change or improve something. Here we use different types of
messages to change the socio-economic condition of people. These messages are designed to
transform the behaviour of people or for improving their quality of life. Therefore, development
communication can be defined as the use of communication to promote development. Those who
write or produce programmes on issues related to development are called development
communicators.

Role of a development communicator

The development communicator plays a very significant role in explaining the development
process to the common people in such a way that it finds acceptance.

In order to achieve this objective a development communicator:

has to understand the process of development and communication;
should possess knowledge in professional techniques and should know the audience;
prepare and distribute development messages to millions of people in such a way that they are
received and understood, accepted and applied.

If they accept this challenge they will be able to get the people to identify themselves as part of a
society and a nation. This identity will help in bringing human resources together for the total
welfare of the individual and the community at large.

DEVELOPMENT COMMUNICATION USING VARIOUS MEDIA

The history of development communication in India can be traced to rural radio broadcasts in the
1940s in different languages. Have you ever heard a rural programme on radio? If you come
from a rural area, you probably would have heard. People who present these programmes speak
in a language or dialect that the people in your area speak. The programmes may be about
farming and related subjects. The programme may comprise of interviews with experts, officials
and farmers, folk songs and information about weather, market rates, availability of improved
seeds and implements. There would also be programmes on related fields. During the 1950s, the
government started huge developmental programmes throughout the country.In fact, when
Doordarshan started on 15th September 1959, it was concentrating only on programmes on
agriculture. Many of you might have seen the ‘Krishi Darshan’ programme on Doordarshan.
Later in 1975, when India used satellites for telecasting television programmes in what is known
as SITE (Satellite Instructional Television Experiment), the programmes on education and
development were made available to 2400 villages in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar,
Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa and Rajasthan.

As far as the print media is concerned, after Independence when the Five Year Plans were
initiated by the government for planned development, it was the newspapers which gave great
importance to development themes. They wrote on various government development
programmes and how the people could make use of them.

If the print media have contributed to development communication, the electronic media – radio
and television especially All India Radio and Doordarshan have spread messages on
development as the main part of their broadcasts. However, amongst all the media that are used
for development communication, traditional media are the closest to people who need messages
of development like the farmers and workers. Such forms of media are participatory and
effective.

You may have seen construction workers cooking their meal of dal and rice over open fires in
front of their tents set up temporarily on the roadside. They need to be educated about the values
of balanced nutrition, cleanliness, hygiene and water and sanitation.

In various parts of India, groups of volunteers use street theatre as a medium for development
communication. This is done through humorous skits and plays through which the importance of
literacy, hygiene etc. are enacted. The content for the skits is drawn from the audience’s life. For
example, they are told about “balanced nutrition” . This means supplementing their staple diet of
dal and rice with green leafy vegetables known to cure night blindness, an ailment common
among construction workers. Similarly, female construction workers and their children are
taught how to read and write.

However, problems in communicating a message in an effective way has been a matter of

concern to development workers.
How can people be taught new skills at a low cost?
What would be a good way to deal with sensitive topics such as health issues?
How can complicated new research, like that in agriculture for example, be simplified so that
ordinary people can benefit?
One option has been the use of comics. But, in order to achieve the desired results, these comics
should be created locally.
But what are ‘comics’ ? You must have all at some point of time read a comic.
Comics involve story telling using visuals which must follow local ideas and culture in order to
be understood correctly by people. The important thing about comics is that they are made by
people on their own issues in their own language. So, readers find them closer to their day-to-day
lives.
Programmes are organized in the remote areas of Jharkhand, Rajasthan, Tamilnadu, and the
North East to provide training to rural communicators to enable them to use comics in
development communication.

Information on sensitive health issues such as HIV/AIDS has been communicated throught the
medium of comics in several states. However, you must understand that development
communication using various media is possible only with the active involvement of the
following:

(i) Development agencies like departments of agriculture.

(ii) Voluntary organizations
(iii) Concerned citizens
(iv) Non governmental organizations (NGOs)

Examples

One of the first examples of development communication was Farm Radio Forums in Canada.
From 1941 to 1965 farmers met in groups each week to listen to special radio programs. There
were also printed materials and prepared questions to encourage group discussion. At first this
was a response to the Great Depression and the need for increased food production in World War
II. But the Forums also dealt with social and economic issues. This model of adult education or
distance education was later adopted in India and Ghana.

In 1999 the U.S. Government and D.C. Comics planned to distribute 600,000 comic books to
children affected by the Kosovo War. The comic books are in Albanian and feature Superman
and Wonder Woman. The aim is to teach children what to do when they find an unexploded land
mine left over from Kosovo's civil war. The comic books instruct children not to touch the anti-
personnel mines and not to move, but instead to call an adult for help. In spite of the 1997
Ottawa Treaty which attempts to ban land mines they continue to kill or injure 20,000 civilians
each year around the world.

Since 2002, Journalists for Human Rights, a Canadian based NGO, has operated long term
projects in Ghana, Sierra Leone, Liberia, and the DR Congo. jhr works directly with journalists,
providing monthly workshops, student sessions, on the job training, and additional programs on a
country by country basis.

Q.4. Select any mobile handset and mobile company and then evaluate its positioning
strengths or weakness in terms of attributes, benefits, values, brand name and brand
equity. (10 marks)
Answer

Abstract

In the late 1990s, Nokia overtook then leader Motorola to emerge as a behemoth in the global
mobile phone industry. Nokia's dominance continued into the first few years of the 2000s, but it
suddenly came under threat in 2003-2004, when smaller Asian vendors started making their
presence felt with better products at lower prices.

The company's problems also had internal causes and analysts said one of the reasons could be
that it had become too complacent with its success and lost its agility in reading and responding
to market signals.

This case study discusses the various problems Nokia faced in 2003-2004, including the
company's tardiness in introducing the clamshell phones that had become very popular and its
resistance to manufacturing operator specific handsets. It also discusses the efforts Nokia made
to recover its market once it realized that its performance was slipping. The case concludes with
an analysis of the challenges the company faced in the future and the various options ahead of it.

Issues:

To understand the difficulties faced by an erstwhile giant in the global mobile phone industry in
2003-2004.
To appreciate the importance of innovation in a dynamic and volatile industry.
To analyze the effect of changing market conditions on companies.
To appreciate the importance of keeping abreast with changing market conditions and adapting
to them speedily.
To examine future challenges that the company faced and the various options available to it

We want to be the company that brings this industry to the next phase. And if we have a little bit
of a bump in the road in 2004, that's immaterial."

- Jorma Ollila, CEO of Nokia, in mid 2004.1

"Nokia didn't have the coolness factor. They didn't really do flip phones; they were a little late
with cameras, and they didn't push them. Coolness in the consumer space is a big deal, and they
were stodgy."

Jack Gold, vice president of Meta Group, a

Connecticut-based technology consulting firm, in 2005.2

Positive Signs
The announcement of Nokia Corporation's (Nokia) quarterly results in April 2005 was a much
awaited event as far as the global mobile phone industry was concerned. The company, which
had emerged as an industry leader in the late 1990s, had run into rough weather in 2003-2004,
with sales and earnings falling below expected levels. So much so that when the company
announced poor results in the first quarter of 2004, several analysts declared that it was the
beginning of the end of Nokia's dominance in the industry.

However, Nokia was not ready to throw in the towel quite so easily. The company put up a tough
fight over the second half of 2004 to recapture its lost position in the market.

It introduced several new models, modified designs, and aggressively promoted products with a
view to increasing its market share, which had fallen to a low of around 28 percent in early 2004
from an average of 35 percent over the previous three years.

Nokia's efforts started paying off by late 2004. The company announced satisfactory results for
the fourth quarter of 2004 and market share for the year 2004 also stabilized at 32 percent by the
end of the year. Jorma Ollila (Ollila), Nokia's CEO, while acknowledging that 2004 had been a
challenging year, declared that the company was poised to recover in 2005. Ollila's prediction
came true when the company announced better than expected results for the first quarter of 2005,
ending March 31.

In the first quarter of 2005, Nokia's sales increased 17 percent over the corresponding quarter of
the previous year to $9.65 billion.

Net profit rose 18 percent to $1.1 billion. Global handset sales rose 11 percent, prompting Nokia
to increase its estimate of the size of the global handset market in 2005 by 100 million to 740
million.Commenting on Nokia's improved performance, Jussi Hyoty (Hyoty), an analyst at
securities firm FIM Securities, said, "Nokia's result was definitely better than expected, and it
shows that it's a growth company again."3

However, despite these positive signs, several analysts wondered whether Nokia would ever be
able to dominate the industry as it did in the late 1990s and the first two years of the new
century, especially in light of the aggressive competition posed by several new Asian companies
as well as more established players like Motorola and Sony Ericsson.

Background
Despite the relatively recent emergence of the mobile phone industry globally, Nokia's company
history goes back to the 1800s.

The company was first set up on the banks of the river Nokia (after which it was named) in
southwestern Finland in 1865 by Fredrik Idestam, who was a mining engineer. The original
Nokia was a forest industry enterprise that primarily manufactured paper.

In 1898, Carl Henrik Lampen, a shopkeeper, and J.E. Segerberg, an engineer, set up the Finnish
Rubber Works Ltd. (FRW) to manufacture rubber and associated chemicals. In 1912, Konstantin
Wikstrom, an engineer, set up the Finnish Cable Works (FCW) to manufacture electrical cables
for lighting purposes. These three companies had business dealings with each other through the
early 1900s and eventually merged in 1967 to form the Nokia Corporation. The new company
had four major businesses - forestry, rubber, cable and electronics.

By 1980, Nokia was a large business conglomerate with several businesses ranging from tires to
televisions and computers to telecommunications.
Excerpts
The Rise to the Top
Nokia drew on its experience of setting up Nordic cellular networks (which were more advanced
than those used by Japan, the rest of Europe, and the US at that time) to successfully adopt the
GSM standard. The company was listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 1994. Over the
1990s, Nokia became one of the most successful mobile phone manufacturers in the world and
began to enter non-Scandinavian markets as well.

Nokia was also one of the first mobile manufacturers to realize the importance of the design
element in mobile phones and its phones were more aesthetically designed than those of
competitors. In 1998, Nokia overtook Motorola to become the largest mobile manufacturer in the
world...

Designed for Innovation

Nokia was the first mobile phone manufacturer to realize in the late 1990s that phones no longer
played only a functional role; they were also becoming fashion symbols.

Until Nokia began emphasizing the design aspect, mobile phones were bulky, bricklike devices
with an external antenna and a standard keypad. Manufacturers emphasized functionality over
aesthetic appeal.
Nokia broke new ground in 1999, when it launched its 8200 handset on the catwalk at a Paris
fashion week...

The Decline
In mid-2004, The Economist wrote, "When a firm dominates its market, especially one that is
driven by constant technological advances, it risks becoming so fixated with trying to ward off
what it reckons to be its most powerful challenger that it leaves itself vulnerable to attack from
other directions."Analysts said this statement accurately characterized what happened with
Nokia.

In the early 2000s, Microsoft Corp (Microsoft) announced its decision to enter the mobile phones
market. The announcement set alarm bells ringing in Nokia as Microsoft had the reputation of
being an aggressive competitor...

Efforts at Recovery
Soon after announcing disappointing results in the first quarter of 2004, Nokia realized that it
was in trouble and began to take steps to correct matters. The company not only cut prices on
certain handsets to increase market share, but also fine-tuned its portfolio to adjust products to
meet market needs. It killed some outmoded models and brought forward the launch of several
others, including a number of clamshell phones.

In June 2004, Nokia launched five new models of phones, out of which three were clamshells.
Nokia's new models were the 6260 model, a clamshell whose cover not only flipped open but
also swiveled, the 6630, which Nokia claimed was the world's smallest camera phone, designed
for 3G networks, another clamshell, the 6170, and two low end models, the 2650 and 2600.
Several other models were also marketed aggressively.

For instance, the low end 1100 model for emerging markets and the 6230 mid range model
became very popular in 2004. (The 6230 was so popular in some markets that at times, Nokia
was not able to meet the demand)...

A Challenging FutureDespite Nokia's laudable efforts in the direction of recapturing its lost
market position, the opinions of analysts on its turnaround were mixed.

While the company's detractors believed that Nokia had lost its competitive advantage in the
mobile phone market, its supporters said the company's inherent strengths and stable financial
position would help it sail through the difficulties it had faced in 2003-2004 to recover in the
future. However, most of them agreed that the mobile phone industry was undergoing a vast
change.

In the early 2000s, mobile phones were expected to perform a variety of functions in addition to
looking stylish and being easy to operate. Nokia's competitors had understood this and were in
the process of launching several models that were style statements in themselves...

Exhibits
Exhibit I: The Phone Feature of N-Gage
Q. 5 What is retailing? Explain the functions and different types of retailing with its key
features. (10 marks)
Answer

Retailing
Retail consists of the sale of goods or merchandise from a fixed location, such as a department
store, boutique or kiosk, or by mail, in small or individual lots for direct consumption by the
purchaser.[1] Retailing may include subordinated services, such as delivery. Purchasers may be
individuals or businesses. In commerce, a "retailer" buys goods or products in large quantities
from manufacturers or importers, either directly or through a wholesaler, and then sells smaller
quantities to the end-user. Retail establishments are often called shops or stores. Retailers are at
the end of the supply chain. Manufacturing marketers see the process of retailing as a necessary
part of their overall distribution strategy. The term "retailer" is also applied where a service
provider services the needs of a large number of individuals, such as a public utility, like electric
power.

Types of retailers by marketing strategy:

Department stores - very large stores offering a huge assortment of "soft" and "hard goods; often
bear a resemblance to a collection of specialty stores. A retailer of such store carries variety of
categories and has broad assortment at average price. They offer considerable customer service.
Discount stores - tend to offer a wide array of products and services, but they compete mainly on
price offers extensive assortment of merchandise at affordable and cut-rate prices. Normally
retailers sell less fashion-oriented brands.
Supermarkets - sell mostly food products;
Warehouse stores - warehouses that offer low-cost, often high-quantity goods piled on pallets or
steel shelves; warehouse clubs charge a membership fee;
Variety stores or "dollar stores" - these offer extremely low-cost goods, with limited selection;
Demographic - retailers that aim at one particular segment (e.g., high-end retailers focusing on
wealthy individuals).
Mom-And-Pop (or Kirana Stores as they call them in India): is a retail outlet that is owned and
operated by individuals. The range of products are very selective and few in numbers. These
stores are seen in local community often are family-run businesses. The square feet area of the
store depends on the store holder.
Specialty stores: A typical speciality store gives attention to a particular category and provides
high level of service to the customers. A pet store that specializes in selling dog food would be
regarded as a specialty store. However, branded stores also come under this format. For example
if a customer visits a Reebok or Gap store then they find just Reebok and Gap products in the
respective stores.
General store - a rural store that supplies the main needs for the local community;
Convenience stores: is essentially found in residential areas. They provide limited amount of
merchandise at more than average prices with a speedy checkout. This store is ideal for
emergency and immediate purchases.
Hypermarkets: provides variety and huge volumes of exclusive merchandise at low margins. The
operating cost is comparatively less than other retail formats. A classic example is the Metro™
in Bangalore.
Supermarkets: is a self service store consisting mainly of grocery and limited products on non
food items. They may adopt a Hi-Lo or an EDLP strategy for pricing. The supermarkets can be
anywhere between 20,000-40,000 square feet. Example: SPAR™ supermarket.
Malls: has a range of retail shops at a single outlet. They endow with products, food and
entertainment under a roof. Example: Sigma mall and Garuda mall in Bangalore, Express
Avenue in Chennai.
Category killers or Category Specialist: By supplying wide assortment in a single category for
lower prices a retailer can "kill" that category for other retailers. For few categories, such as
electronics, the products are displayed at the centre of the store and sales person will be available
to address customer queries and give suggestions when required. Other retail format stores are
forced to reduce the prices if a category specialist retail store is present in the vicinity. For
example: Pai Electronics™ store in Bangalore, Tata Croma.
E-tailers: The customer can shop and order through internet and the merchandise are dropped at
the customer's doorstep. Here the retailers use drop shipping technique. They accept the payment
for the product but the customer receives the product directly from the manufacturer or a
wholesaler. This format is ideal for customers who do not want to travel to retail stores and are
interested in home shopping. However it is important for the customer to be wary about defective
products and non secure credit card transaction. Example: Amazon and Ebay.
Vending Machines: This is an automated piece of equipment wherein customers can drop in the
money in machine and acquire the products. For example: Soft drinks vending at Bangalore
Airport.

Some stores take a no frills approach, while others are "mid-range" or "high end", depending on
what income level they target.

Other types of retail store include:

Automated Retail stores are self service, robotic kiosks located in airports, malls and grocery
stores. The stores accept credit cards and are usually open 24/7. Examples include ZoomShops
and Redbox.
Big-box stores encompass larger department, discount, general merchandise, and warehouse
stores.
Convenience store - a small store often with extended hours, stocking everyday or roadside
items;
General store - a store which sells most goods needed, typically in a rural area;

Retailers can opt for a format as each provides different retail mix to its customers based on their
customer demographics, lifestyle and purchase behaviour. A good format will lend a hand to
display products well and entice the target customers to spawn sales.

Functions of Retailing

Retailers play a significant role as a conduit between manufacturers, wholesalers, suppliers and
consumers. In this context, they perform various functions like sorting, breaking bulk, holding
stock, as a channel of communication, storage, advertising and certain additional services.

Sorting

Manufacturers usually make one or a variety of products and would like to sell their entire
inventory to a few buyers to redu7ce costs. Final consumers, in contrast, prefer a large variety of
goods and services to choose from and usually buy them in small quantities. Retailers are able to
balance the demands of both sides, by collection an assortment of goods from different sources,
buying them in sufficiently large quantities and selling them to consumers in small units.

The above process is referred to as the sorting process. Through this process, retailers undertake
activities and perform functions that add to the value of the products and services sold to the
consumer. Supermarkets in the US offer, on and average, 15,000 different items from 500
companies. Customers are able to choose from a wide range of designs, sizes and brands from
just one location. If each manufacturer had a separate store for its own products, customers
would have to visit several stores to complete their shopping. While all retailers offer an
assortment, they specialize in types of assortment offered and the market to which the offering is
made. Westside provides clothing and accessories, while a chain like Nilgiris specializes in food
and bakery items. Shoppers’ Stop targets the elite urban class, while Pantaloons is targeted at the
middle class.

Breaking Bulk

Breaking bulk is another function performed by retailing. The word retailing is derived from the
French word retailer, meaning ‘to cut a piece off’. To reduce transportation costs, manufacturers
and wholesalers typically ship large cartons of the product, which are then tailored by the
retailers into smaller quantities to meet individual consumption needs.

Holding Stock

Retailers also offer the service of holding stock for the manufacturers. Retailers maintain an
inventory that allows for instant availability of the product to the consumers. It helps to keep
prices stable and enables the manufacturer to regulate production. Consumers can keep a small
stock of products at home as they know that this can be replenished by the retailer and can save
on inventory carrying costs.

Additional Services

Retailers ease the change in ownership of merchandise by providing services that make it
convenient to buy and use products. Providing product guarantees, after-sales service and dealing
with consumer complaints are some of the services that add value to the actual product at the
retailers’ end. Retailers also offer credit and hire-purchase facilities to the customers to enable
them to buy a product now and pay for it later. Retailers fill orders, promptly process, deliver and
install products. Salespeople are also employed by retailers to answer queries and provide
additional information about the displayed products. The display itself allows the consumer to
see and test products before actual purchase. Retail essentially completes transactions with
customers.

Channel of Communication

Retailers also act as the channel of communication and information between the wholesalers or
suppliers and the consumers. From advertisements, salespeople and display, shoppers learn about
the characteristics and features of a product or services offered. Manufacturers, in their turn,
learn of sales forecasts, delivery delays, and customer complaints. The manufacturer can then
modify defective or unsatisfactory merchandise and services.

Transport and Advertising Functions

Small manufacturers can use retailers to provide assistance with transport, storage, advertising
and pre-payment of merchandise. This also works the other way round in case the number of
retailers is small. The number of functions performed by a particular retailer has a direct relation
to the percentage and volume of sales needed to cover both their costs and profits.

Q. 6 a. What is CRM? What are its objectives? (2 marks)

b. Write a short note on Brand development. (8 marks)
Answer CRM stands for Customer Relationship Management. It is a process or methodology
used to learn more about customers’ needs and behaviors in order to develop stronger
relationships with them. There are many technological components to CRM, but thinking about
CRM in primarily technological terms is a mistake. The more useful way to think about CRM is
as a process that will help bring together lots of pieces of information about customers, sales,
marketing effectiveness, responsiveness and market trends.

CRM helps businesses use technology and human resources to gain insight into the behavior of
customers and the value of those customers.

Objectives of CRM

CRM, the technology, along with human resources of the company, enables the company to
analyze the behavior of customers and their value. The main areas of focus are as the name
suggests: customer , relationship , and the management of relationship and the main objectives
to implement CRM in the business strategy are:

• To simplify marketing and sales process

• To make call centers more efficient
• To provide better customer service
• To discover new customers and increase customer revenue
• To cross sell products more effectively
The CRM processes should fully support the basic steps of customer life cycle . The basic steps
are:

• Attracting present and new customers

• Acquiring new customers
• Serving the customers
• Finally, retaining the customers

Brand development

A plan to improve the performance of a particular product or service. For example, as part of
brand development a firm may initiate a new advertising campaign that includes free samples.