Why College Campuses Are Prime Ground for MarketersPosted by Paul Christ September 16, 2011
Labels: Promotional Methods, Targeting Markets
On Campus, It’s One Big Commercial (New York Times) It is probably not a huge surprise for many college students to learn that campuses are hotbeds for marketers. Aside from books and basic school supplies, each year college students spend billions of dollars on fashion, food, furnishings, and much more. For marketers, one of the key attractions of colleges is the access these venues offer to a large number of customers within a geographically concentrated area. The potential of this market has caught the attention of a surprisingly large number of companies who see tremendous opportunity. What "Best Value" Means to CustomersPosted by Paul Christ September 02, 2011 New Retail Strategies: Offering a Better Fit for Today's Careful Consumers (Knowledge @ Wharton)
Successful Retailing Demands CreativityPosted by Paul Christ August 18, 2011 A Season (or 13) for Shopping (Wall Street Journal)
Retailing has struggled in the last few years due to a slow economy, heavy competition, and value-conscious shoppers. These factors have hit the retail industry hard resulting in many closing up shop. As noted in a previous post, the list of recently failed retailers is extensive and includes such well-known brands as Borders, Blockbuster, Circuit City, KB Toys and many more. What is Really Behind the "Customer-Involvement" Movement?Posted by Paul Christ August 04, 2011
Over the last 20 years marketers have embraced this notion of a customer-centered business and have done so by investing heavily in specialized technologies, including customer relationship management (CRM) systems, advanced call centers and customer self-service equipment. In addition, to let the world know they are creating a business environment that empowers its customers, companies have aggressively praise their efforts through corporate press releases, website postings, white papers, social media comments, statements in annual reports and direct communication with customers. By introducing new technologies and letting customers (and the world) know about it, companies see the potential of building a satisfied and highly loyal customer base. Yet, when the big picture is examined customers may discover that while a firm is patting itself on the back for its customer service gains they may, in fact, be whittling away at services that long-time customers have come to expect. Retailers Reconsider Empowering Customers With Self-ServicePosted by Paul Christ July 15, 2011 Major Grocer Getting Rid of Self-Checkout Lanes (MSNBC)
Customer empowerment can be seen across all consumer and business markets, and in many forms. But the most prominent form of empowerment is the move to offering self-service purchasing where previously the option was not available. Some examples include the growth of such customer purchase options as home improvement retail stores, at home movie purchases, and online vacation booking. For businesses, empowerment is evident with in-house publication design, online advertising and management of product shipment. Using Softening Agents to Prepare the Customer for a Big PurchasePosted by Paul Christ July 08, 2011
Faced with this situation, members of the selling organization are taught to closely research the prospective buyer and seek out key influencers whose feedback and support may prove crucial. Unfortunately, in too many instances the key influencers are not the predominant users of the purchased product and, consequently, they fail to appreciate problems that may occur as the organization transitions to the new purchase. This is particularly the case in large-scale purchases where influencers, such as key executives, are sold on the good things the product has to offer for the entire organization but leave it up to organizational users to endure any pain associated with achieving the benefits promised when the purchase decision was made. |
Samples of Marketing TutorialsCustomer Service Trends: Customer Self-Service Marketers have seen the customer service process evolve from an area that received only marginal attention into a primary functional area. In response to customers’ demands for responsive and reliable service, companies are investing heavily in innovative methods and processes to strengthen their service level.For instance, one major trend… Latest Marketing Stories
Blog Topics
|
Many marketers assume that during slow economic times customers will adjust their buying habits and seek out less expensive products. The assumption is based on the notion that during down times customers are forced to reevaluate their needs. This leads them to focus on just the basic or core benefits of products and forego products offering enhanced options. For instance, vacationers may change where they stay when traveling by booking economy hotels, where the core benefits are available (e.g., simple room furniture, self-serve breakfast, small fitness area), instead of more luxurious hotels, where many more benefits are offered (e.g., high-end furniture, full-service restaurant, expanded fitness area). For customers lower priced products offering fewer bells-and-whistles are now more appealing since, in the customers’ mind, they offer more value compared to higher priced product.
Marketers are by nature creative people. They have to be in order to keep up with changing customer preferences and highly competitive markets. And some of the most creative marketers can be found in the retail industry.
As a follow-up to 
Giving customers what they want is the mantra of nearly all marketers, and for the last 50-plus years has been arguably the most fundamental concept in marketing. Marketers have been schooled to believe that success rests on giving customers what they “think” they want. Many marketers have translated this to mean customers want to be empowered in deciding what products and services are best for them. That is, they believe most customers want to know they are in control when dealing with the marketer.
For organizations selling products or services intended for use by a large number of users within a single purchasing environment, such as a large corporation, completing the sale can be a confounding experience. The sales cycle on these types of purchases can take months or even years to complete since input on the purchase may come from many areas of the company that normally would not be involved in purchase decisions that carry less impact.
RSS Feed |
More |