Originally published as Strategic Direction Volume 21 Number 6, 2005
ISBN: 1 84544 137 0
Guest edited by: Kim Foster, Managing Editor.
In these times of constantly shrinking budgets and increased competition, a market-driven strategy allows a company to truly understand its market and the customers that are the basis for this market.
This effort allows for a more effective integration of all activities that may impact customer value, which in turn affects both return-on-investment and profitability. This Special Issue takes a look at how blue chip organizations have implemented differing, yet effective marketing strategies.
Contents:
The importance of marketing
This article provides an insight into what marketing entails and how a marketer can begin to employ the basic fundamentals in order to become more customer focused.
Selling to China's rich and not so rich: Need to go beyond the luxury market
This article adds to the information about how Western companies are marketing their products in China, and to provide some insight into the changing character of the Chinese customer-base.
Du Pont and the art of not coming unstuck: Lessons learned from a customer-centric approach to business
The problem is a familiar one to many firms – they operate in a mature market, where technological advances and brand loyalty have been overtaken by pricing as the only factors in buying decisions. How do you go about marketing a product that has lost its way like this? This is the state of affairs DuPont found itself in with one of its companies. However the pioneer of Teflon quickly found a way to develop a solution to a sticky problem.
eBay – if you can't beat it, join it: Online giant goes on creating marketplaces
This article studies the strategies of eBay as it moves on from its now “traditional” online market for the masses to extend its expertise into areas such as business to business. The authors also consider online trading in general.
Levi's adaptable standards: Knowing where and when one size fits all
International trading is a fact of life and success depends on deciding whether a business will benefit from global standards or whether to adapt to local markets as and when required. The reality is that both approaches co-exist as the example of Levi's jeans business demonstrates.
Securing customer loyalty: Is advocacy the way forward?
Once upon a time attracting and retaining customers depended largely on an organization's marketing clout. It was often simply a case of shouting loud enough and long enough about a product or service until the customer was left with little option but to accept the claims being made. How things have changed. The Internet has made the world a much smaller place and the balance of power has shifted considerably.
McDonald's are “lovin’ it”: Preserving the brand online
Online branding has become an important part of e-business during the past ten years, as the Internet has become a major method of communicating business presence and selling. Many researchers disagree on the necessity and usefulness of online branding, some claiming it is more important given the information overload in recent years. Other researchers however, believe brand is becoming superfluous, because consumers now have the power to search for the best quality and price at their fingertips.
B&Q's moves to target female customers: Beyond boys’ toys
Success in meeting customer's requirements can be affected by customer perception of front-line staff. Many businesses are now building teams who will reflect the identities of their customer base and local community. Supershed DIY retailers B&Q are the first business to be studied to see how the gender of their front-line staff affects the behavior of their customers. Incredible as it seems, this has never been studied before but the insights gained are a wake-up call for retailers everywhere.
What's in a name?: Branding: what it means to you and your customer
It is quite ironic that the words ‘brand’ and ‘branding’ have become so widely used in the business arena over the past few decades yet so many people fail to agree on what they mean...
International marketing research: The importance of being complex
This article investigates the state of the international marketing literature in terms of its ability to offer managers with fine-grained insights into marketing strategy effectiveness.
About Strategic Direction
Strategic Direction gives you the opportunity to see the development of strategic concepts and practice around the world and to apply them to your own business.
Every issue features experienced appraisal and reviews of the latest thinking on strategy that has been published in the top 400 management journals. In addition, the journal keeps you up to date with news about the best management websites, books and seminars.
Visit the Strategic Direction homepage
