Marketing

Introduction

In the development of our marketing strategy, the company can utilize customers’ internal factors which influence their purchase decisions. The present report will provide a brief overview of such internal factors, and the way they can be utilized in the context of marketing the vehicles we manufacture.

Perception

The first factor is customers’ perception, which is the process through which people interpret information, in this case about our cars. Perception in the context of our products can be seen through the way customers received information about the car and the way the advertisement materials can target, change, and/or shape such perception. There are several steps in forming the perception of the customer, which are exposure, attention, and interpretation (Solomon). Thus, those aspects can be utilized through the way an advertisement can be delivered and the information that will be delivered will create the perception about our cars and our brand. For sport models, we can emphasize speed and horse power through the ad, in which our models will be perceived that way. Accordingly, our family models will be advertised through such aspects as volume, safety, and cost-friendly, which will form the perception of our target audience about our product.

Motivation

Motivation is the state that drives customers to satisfy their needs (Solomon). If the there is no need for a car experienced by a customer, then he/she lacks the motivation to buy it. Our goal is recognizing the need and activating it through our marketing strategy. The needs for a car are usually characterized as being related to the esteem needs according to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, and thus, our advertisement messages can target such need specifically for sports and luxury cars. For buyers with lower income, the satisfaction of other needs can be seen through ensuring the satisfaction of other needs, while fulfilling the esteem need, for example, the safety aspects of the car, might ensure the satisfaction of the safety needs, just as flexible purchase options and loans will ensure that no lower needs will be impacted.

Learning

Learning can be described as the way customers can change their behaviour as a response to an information or experience (Solomon). Learning can be seen as an important factor that will stimulate the purchase decision for our product. The important issues, however, is to stimulate the learning experience itself, as not all customer will be motivated to read a brochure or spend time in reading about the specifications of a car. The learning experience can be stimulated through an ad that promotes a quiz about the company’s product, which prize can be a discount. The promotion of test drives is another way that reinforces learning guiding consumers toward changing their behaviour, purchasing in this cases.

Personality

Personality is also an important internal factor, which can be viewed as the set of psychological characteristics that differentiate the response top customers to different situations. A survey of our customers will allow forming o portrait of their personalities, and thus, targeting our marketing strategy toward them. Such aspect can be useful when targeting a new niche of customers, for example electricity car drivers. In that regard, innovativeness as personality trait in such target audience can be seen through promoting the technologies used, comparative characteristics of engines, and other relevant information that will appeal to such consumers.

Attitudes

The attitudes of consumers can be seen as a factor relevant to the personality aspect, and which can be defined as the predisposition to behave in a certain way toward particular objects. There three components that form the attitudes, learning about which will enforce the purchase decision. In that regard, a negative attitude toward our car can be hindered by the lack of information, i.e. cognitive, or a dislike of the brand, affective, or behavioural, a habit for buying other brand of cars. Learning about the component of consumers’ attitudes will help forming a positive attitude.

Age group

The age group is also a close factor, interrelated to attitudes and personalities. Belonging to a particular group influences the preference for a particular product, as well as the way the advertisement for a brand should be delivered (Solomon). In that regard, identifying the age groups for the customers of a particular model of our car, will allow targeting such group in a more efficient manner. On the other hand, if a group is not among the target category of a product, the perception of a product can be changed in a way that will suit the preferences of such group more.

Lifestyle

Finally, life style can be defined as the pattern of living that indicates the way people spend their time, money, and energy (Solomon 148). The identification of the life styles of consumers will allow grouping them into categories and differentiate the products and the way they are delivered and promoted in way that support the preferences of the a particular lifestyle.

Works Cited

Solomon, M.R. Marketing: Real People, Real Decisions. 6th ed: Financial Times Prentice Hall, 2009. Print.

Best Buy Case

How has an understanding of consumer behavior helped Best Buy grow from a small specialty audio retailer to the world’s largest electronics retailer?

Best Buy maintains a constant connection to the customers, and it is always keen on understanding their opinions. This is essential in helping the company to understand the preferences of customers in terms of how they would like employees to treat them, the brands they prefer, the shop’s ability within the store, and many other things, which influence their purchasing decisions. Following such an understanding, the company managed to give customers what they need as well as serving them in a manner relevant to their preferences, helping the company to maintain constant growth.

Best buy eliminated commissioned salespeople and introduced service friendly incentives such as delivery and installation of equipment for its customers. It also focused on selling complete systems, leading to increasing in its profits and captivating a reasonable market share allowing for its expansion to a world electronics retailer. The company understood the needs of its customers and met their needs wants and demands following personal and societal demands.

What were the advantages and disadvantages of using ‘consumer centricity’ to create five segments of Best Buy customers?

The ‘consumer centricity’ strategy used by Best Buy had advantages and disadvantages to the company. The greatest disadvantage suffered by the company in its decision was in the cost of implementation. There was a need for training and physical changes in the stores and all that required financing, which became costly to sustain in the many stores owned by the company. The advantage of the creation of the five segments of the ‘customer-centric’ strategy was that it helped in the creation of a distinct classification of customers into the five categories and further efficient serving and fulfilling of their needs.

How are men and women differ in their consumer behavior when they are shopping in a Best Buy store?

The purchasing behavior of men and women at Best Buy differs in that men felt welcome because of the male outlook of the stores. That is contrary to the feeling the store felt in the male-dominated store because they are always looking for simple means of meeting their needs. Women need understanding and practical experiences that they can use to back up their needs. On the other hand, men are largely experimental and do not want home orientation and personalization of electronics for decision-making (Verhoef and Leeflang 14-17).

What are two or three (a) objective evaluative criteria and (b) subjective evaluative criteria female consumers use when shopping at Best Buy?

The two objective evaluative criteria used by female consumers shopping at Best Buy are the tendency of women touching products and purchasing them because of a personal connection they develop with the product. They ask basic to simple questions regarding the electronics they wish to buy and mostly go for products only when they need them. Women face environmental subjections created by product impressions, styles of the products, and the present features, which they may use in cases of emergency. Many are the occasions when experiences with Best Buy products make them shop at the store in the future. Their perceptions about Best Buy are a great influencer to the decisions they make for shopping at the store.

What challenges does Best Buy face in the future?

The challenges Best Buy must deal with for the future is in the maintenance of its satisfaction of all the five customer categories. Since the purchasing options of women seemed unsatisfied in the initial approaches, it is upon the company to reinforce a women-friendly shopping experience for its female target. This is through maintaining female staff and maintaining a feminine arrangement like it already started. It has the challenge of understanding the changing needs of customers. The company must maintain the new standards and work hard to change towards the new needs of its consumers, especially in meeting the skepticisms and delicacy in the shopping of women.

Nivea Case

Describe the first “P” in the Marketing Mix, People. Who are the consumers and what is the nature of their demand

The consumers of Nivea are young and in need of specialized face care products and that is what they did through the provision of NIVEA VISAGE Young suitable for young girls in need of products suiting their natural skins. This is a market section in no need for medicated products and that makes Nivea be above its competitors in providing a product, which is user friendly and accommodating of the young people in need of beautiful skin. The product is available in the most convenient places having an effort in ensuring that the right people find the product at easy disposal through enhanced methods of modern promotion. Consumers are keen to get products with the greatest values as long as they provide the value and quality they can equate to their money.

Describe what is meant by a business being ‘consumer-led’

Being consumer-led means understanding the needs of consumers and their regions for better exploitation of the regions where they stay. This allows for serving relevant market segments regardless of their locations just as practiced by Nivea. Customers in different market segments have varying needs and for a company to be ‘consumer-led’, it must know the specifications of each market segment and satisfy its customers according to their special needs. That helps a company in the management of all the ‘four Ps’ relevant for effective marketing of a product within the market for profit maximization and achievement of company objectives.

What are the key parts of the marketing mix? Explain how each works with others

The key parts of the marketing mix are product, price, promotion, and place. The product helps in the development of a product suitable for a given target market. The choice of product to put in the market is what gives a competitive advantage for a company as it aims to maximize its profits. However, that is only possible by ensuring that consumers can receive value for their cash through the division of suitable pricing strategies for a product such as cost-based pricing, pricing penetration, and price skimming. These go well through the efficient placement of a product in the right places where consumers can access them easily. A company can devise means of the availability of products to its market and that is through effective promotional strategies. The success of a product lies in its pricing, distribution, advertisement, and proper selling.

Explain why the balance of the marketing mix is as important as any single element

The sole importance of balancing the market mix is that it helps in the production of a differentiated product. This allows for the satisfaction of each of the components of the product mix in a manner suitable for the market segment. It will help in ensuring that the product suits the defined target market and that the pricing is suitable. At the same time, there is a need to make sure that the product reaches the customers in convenient areas for their ease of reach and that is only possible through appropriate marketing and promotional strategies (Kotler 8-10). A company must put the marketing mix in balance for it to achieve the best profit standards as it satisfies its customers.

Analysis of the marketing mix for NIVEA VISAGE Young. What are its strongest points? Explain why you think this is so

The strongest point of NIVEA VISAGE is its focus on the needs of consumers. Its target market is the one that other providers of skincare products ignored because of the provision of product-oriented in problem-solving. While other products focused on providing medicated skincare products, Nivea provides a product that helps its young customers to maintain healthy skin in a natural manner suitable for their delicate skins. I think that that is essential and captivating to that market segment because they need to have their skins well maintained without having to use high alcohol content products that harm their skins. Therefore, NIVEA VISAGE remains an exclusive product that the youths can identify with amidst no worries about side effects that come with products from other companies.

Works Cited

Kotler, Philip. “Marketing: The Underappreciated Workhorse,” Market Leader, Quarter 2(2009): 8-10.

Verhoef, Peter, C and Peter S. H. Leeflang “Understanding the Marketing Department’s Influence within the Firm.” Journal of Marketing 73 (2009):14-17.

Whole Foods Market Inc. has only recently edged its way into the American food market, yet it has already become extraordinarily popular with its target audience. The Grocery Retail Industry, in which Whole Foods operates, is a subdivision of a greater Food Industry. The Grocery Industry has been expanding recently, with its total revenue making $655 billion in 2019 and continuing to grow (IbisWorld, 2019). The timeliness of delivery and the process of handling the products are the main constraints faced by the industry since the two factors mentioned above define the quality of the products (Narayan & Chandra 2015).

Therefore, despite having managed to become the undisputable leader of the Grocery Retail Industry, the company will have to focus on improving and enhancing its distribution processes within its SCM framework to strive in the competitive setting of the Grocery retail market.

The attractiveness of the industry in which Whole Foods presently operates is moderately high. Groceries as a crucial part of the dieting choices for most buyers can be seen as a very popular resource. Moreover, with the rise in the influence of Whole Foods within the industry and the emphasis on healthy lifestyles, the number of people purchasing groceries and especially the healthy options produced by Whole Foods will increase (Conaway et al. 2018). Thus, the attractiveness of the industry is expected to grow as long as health-related and environmental concerns remain in the limelight of the public attention.

Applying Porter’s 5 Forces framework to the Grocery retail Industry and the performance that Whole Foods has been delivering in it, one will notice that the threat of new entrants is quite high. Armed with innovative solutions, new entrants in the Grocery retail Industry pose a challenge to Whole Foods, encouraging the company to reinforce its competitive advantage. Specifically, the introduction of new entrants to the market will imply lower prices per unit of a product, which will reduce the level of Whole Foods’ competitiveness given its current pricing framework.

In light of the rigid pricing policies that Whole Foods has been implementing, the bargaining power of buyers is quite high. With the rise in the number of clients that regularly use Whole Foods, the pressure that they put on the company in terms of cheaper pricing options, discounts, and other ways of revisiting Whole Foods’s current pricing policies increases exponentially (Conaway et al. 2018). Thus, the bargaining power of buyers is quite substantial at Whole Foods, and it is likely to shape the corporate policies and encourage Whole Foods to seek opportunities for a more cost-efficient framework.

However, as the bargaining power of buyers intensifies and the pricing policies of Whole Foods changes, the range of customers to whose needs the firm will cater may change to people from a lower economic background, which, in turn, will mean a change in their bargaining power.

The extent of the bargaining power of suppliers within the Grocery Retail Industry and specifically for Whole Foods is presently quite large, balancing between medium and high. Although the number of the available suppliers is quite high, Whole Foods can switch between them, which means that the range of their influence is restricted (Conaway et al. 2018). Whole Foods uses the services of trusted and renowned companies such as Nature’s Healthy Gourmet Inc., which support environmental policies and introduce innovative solutions to the industry. Thus, Whole Foods currently has quite large competitive advantage compared to its competitors, yet the firm may need to redesign its framework for managing its SC

Reference List

Conaway, RN, Regester, K, Martin, S, Nixon, C & Senior, B 2018, ‘Amazon Whole Foods: when e-commerce met brick-and-mortar and saved the brand of conscientious capitalism’, Journal of Marketing Development and Competitiveness, vol. 12, no. 3, pp. 112-122.

IbisWorld 2019, Supermarkets & Grocery Stores Industry in the US – market research report. Web.

Narayan, G & Chandra, R 2015, ‘Factors affecting the purchase of food and grocery products from modern retail stores: an empirical study’, IUP Journal of Management Research, vol. 14, no. 2, pp. 7-23.

Premium pricing strategy

This falls under the product line pricing strategies. When a firm has products that are closely related, it tends to price them to match consumer demand in order to maximize profits. In a situation where substitute products have joint economies of scale, a firm may face heterogeneous demand which creates the perfect atmosphere for the introduction of premium pricing (Mills 90). Premium pricing therefore is the situation where a firm has a unique product or service which gives the firm substantive competitive advantage that enables it to charge a high price.

The marketing strategy behind premium pricing is to attract high end status conscious customers. By attaching the premium price the company attaches a luxury image to the product. Marketers play with consumers through introduction of the notion that exorbitant price indicates high quality. High end marketers believe they are worth the price and that the product exhibits flawless performance. The best example of premium pricing is Rolex, the watch, manufacturer.

Penetration pricing

Penetration pricing strategy is part of the competitive pricing strategies that operate primarily on a firm’s competitive market position. Penetration pricing on its part aim aims at taking advantage of scale economies by pricing goods or services below competitors hence cutting off part of their market share (Mills 110). This strategy involves the artificial setting low prices for the sole purpose of gaining market share.

More often than not, when the firm achieves its targeted market share, it raises the price. Marketers make use of penetration strategy in cases where the market is highly sensitive, where the firm can easily drive down the costs through incorporation of efficient methods of production and where the low price adopted easily discourages completion from competitors. One of the firms that has used and continues penetration pricing strategy is McAfee.

Price bundling

Like premium pricing, price bundling belongs to the product line pricing group of strategies. In cases where demand is heterogeneous, and the products are perishable or non substitutable, firms employ bundle pricing to move the products. Price bundling therefore is the situation where a firm put together several products or services in a single package mainly to get rid of perishable or old stock (Mills 115). Sometimes, marketers realize that the products they have in stores cannot move by themselves. They therefore bundle them with necessary products forcing the consumers to buy all of them. Microsoft currently uses this tactic in moving its software products by bundling them together.

Analysis

Rolex uses premium pricing to target high end customers for example golfers. They normally sponsor golf events because of the apparent affluent nature of golfers and the fans of the game. The price attached to the watches is perennially high because of believe that by its consumers that the watch represents class. According to Tellis, premium pricing applies in the pricing of durable goods with different versions that service different segments of consumers (156). Often the heterogeneity in demand and the joint economies of scale is what models like Rolex use in its marketing approach.

McAfee on the other hand was launched and given free of charge to companies. After the companies has installed it and found out the advantages, the antivirus maker then contacted the companies and sought a small fee for the services. The fee was way below what the market rates were at the time. Most companies preferred it to other existing softwares. According to Tellis, price sensitive consumers help price insensitive consumers because the later can easily buy the product at a lower price that they were initially willing to buy (152). In this case, the corporations who were willing to buy other antivirus packages at a higher price found it better to buy McAfee at a lower price than they were initially willing to buy.

Microsoft has program line that includes basic products such as OneNote and other not so basic like Outlook with Business Contact Manager. The former costs less than the latter. Microsoft bundles the softwares together and sells them at smaller price technically forcing consumers to buy programs they would not have bought separately. According to Tellis, sellers and marketers seek to maximize on the purchase occasion because the perishability of durable goods for instance is long (154). For instance software upgrading a company may be done once or twice in five years and even longer in the case of domestic consumers. Therefore every time the purchase is done, sellers employ all tactics to maximize the sale.

Impact

The success of the pricing strategies discussed above is widely varied. In most cases however, they help firms achieve their objectives. Considering the rigidity and somewhat unpredictable consumer behaviors in free market economies, the pricing strategies are necessary for business that would like to make returns on their investment. Additionally, the strategies come in hand for startup business who would like to curve a niche in markets dominated by big players.

Offers for the above price strategies

Works Cited

Mills, Gordon. Retail pricing strategies and market power. Melbourne: Melbourne University Press, 2002. Print.

Tellis, Gerald. Beyond the many faces of price: An integration of pricing strategies. Journal of Marketing, 50, 146-160.

Central Theme

The book Positioning: The battle for your mind by Ries and Trout touches upon the great role positioning plays in the modern business world. The authors admit the fact that for the last several decades the model of 4 Ps has been given great attention. Product, Price, Place, and Promotion became the central concepts for the functioning of any company or organization. However, they insist on the idea that there is one more aspect that should also be considered central as it might precondition the success of any venture. This is positioning. Ries and Trout are sure that the exploration of this aspect might contribute to the improved outcomes and guarantee success.

For this reason, the book is devoted to the investigation of the basic elements of this phenomenon, its place in the modern business environment, and the role it might play in case it is used appropriately. The book provides different examples that show the great importance of positioning and demonstrate how this aspect could be applied in diverse real-life conditions. Additionally, Ries and Trout delve into the major concerns that could make positioning better and contribute to the improved outcomes. For this reason, the books central theme could be defined as the significance of positioning and the impact it might have on different aspects of our life in case it is explored appropriately.

Critical Analysis

Besides, evaluating the given book, several important aspects should be mentioned. First of all, the book is written clearly and logically, and it contributes to a better understanding of the main ideas the authors provide to their readers. Clear and concise language also improves the books image and results in its great popularity among people. Furthermore, the book also provides another perspective on the evolution of any company, organization, or project. Ries and Trout offer a new idea which is different from traditional ones. They introduce another P in the Four Ps model which is Positioning and revolve around its basic aspects.

The books great value lies in its significant contribution to the understanding of how society functions and according to which patterns people engage in different relations. Therefore, cogitating about Positioning: The battle for your mind we should also admit its emphasis on the acquisition of a significant competitive advantage that could help a person to become respected and attain success. In this regard, different aspects of social intercourse are touched upon in the given book. Finally, stating that positioning is a revolutionary idea, the authors are sure that it adds certain consistency to their assumptions. It could affect the product and contribute whether to its overwhelming success or a great failure. For this reason, this aspect should be minded.

Strengths

The book also has several strengths that condition its great popularity and unique significance. First, as stated above, it is written in a clear and understandable language. It means that both specialists and common people will be able to understand the basic conceptions presented by this source. Additionally, the narrative logic contributes to the better comprehending of the material that is provided by the authors. There is a certain order in which the chapters are presented. This manner of the material presented is a great strength of this source as it also assures that readers will understand the authors basic assumptions better. Besides, there is another books unique aspect that could be considered its strength. Positioning: The battle for your mind manages to cover almost all important spheres of social intercourse in terms of positioning.

It provides information on how to become successful in career, business, and other aspects. For instance, the book offers a certain example related to the functioning of a specific company. Positioning is described as a thing that could help any business venture to become prosperous and successful. For this reason, there are numerous advantages that the book possesses and which make it a good source for those who want to improve their understanding of the peculiarities of different processes needed to become successful and prosperous. Besides, considering these aspects, the book could be defined as a good source for me in my studying. It provides another perspective on the functioning of the business world, society, and contributes to the improved comprehending of the basic rules by which people interact. The data presented by Ries and Trout is important to me and should be explored when analyzing the whole course and determining my strategy of personal and professional growth and development.

Weakness

Unfortunately, several drawbacks could be discovered when analyzing the given book. First, it lacks some deep and concise explanation of the increased significance of positioning in the modern world. The authors state that this phenomenon is extremely vital today and provide numerous examples that show how the adherence to its basic principles might contribute to the improved outcomes. However, Ries and Trout do not highlight the grounds for the rise of positioning and do not explain what facts contributed to the necessity of the traditional models reconsideration that was used to attain success and organize the functioning of a certain company or promote a specific product. It could be taken as the books main drawback as it deprives a reader of the deep comprehension of the positioning roots and causes that contributed to its increased topicality. Besides, knowledge of the peculiarities of any phenomenons evolution is crucial as it allows a person to make a forecast related to the perspectives awaiting this very aspect. However, it is the only significant drawback of the given book.

Main Takeaways

Altogether, the book could be considered an important source that improves our understanding of the role positioning plays in the modern world and helps us to reconsider some approaches to social intercourse. Ries and Trout manage to provide another perspective on the functioning of the business world. For this reason, after reading this book, a person obtains new ideas related to his/her further development and becoming a successful individual. Besides, the necessity of the exploration of this aspect in modern society could be considered the main takeaway of the book. We should perfectly realize the fact that good positioning contributes to the acquisition of significant competitive advantage and guarantees that a person will be able to attain success. Additionally, we should also accept the idea that the main concepts peculiar to positioning could be applied not only to the sphere of business. However, all aspects of people’s relations and social intercourse could be improved. For this reason, it is crucial to understand its basic aspects and be ready to use it in real-life conditions.

Today, Apple is a leader in the IT industry, and its strengths include knowledge, HR, relationships, selling, and history. The dramatic change made by Apple in the mid-and late 1990s has helped the company to become of the most profitable IT companies in the world and compete with IBM. It is possible to say that effective management and innovative approaches to business were at the heart of organization development and improved performance. Its leader, Steve Jobs, made changes not in a vacuum but within the context of the organizational setting.

Dramatic Change

The need for dramatic change was caused by strong competition and the development of the new operating system by Microsoft (Windows 95) and a new processor, Pentium; during the mid of 1990s, apple lost its market share, especially in the clone market. In 1998, Apple introduced a new Macintosh compatible with SCSI and ADD. The need for change was caused by innovations in production technologies and computerized systems of manufacturing. IBM and Intel need innovative assembly lines in order to increase volumes of sales and storage capacity (Kahney, 78). The threat for both companies was that investment in new technologies required additional finance that Apple did not have (Monks, 2006).

The next year (in 1999), Apple developed and introduced Mac OS X Server 1.0 and iBook. This innovative solution allows Apple to gain market share and appeal to potential consumers with a value proposition. This system had a new GUI and powerful Unix underpinnings proposing great opportunities for users. These changes can be described as “creative innovations” which implemented new technologies and models in order to meet changing economic conditions (Hertzfeld, 39). This process was closely connected with the integrity perception, which was built into their way of doing things, a ‘passion for integrity’ which applies to employees, customers, suppliers, and other audiences such as the community.

Response

The main task of Apple was to introduce its products to market and attract potential consumers. In the late 1990s, the company developed a new advertising campaign based on the slogan “Think Different.” When a company succeeds in creating more value for customers than its competitors, that company is said to enjoy a competitive advantage in an industry. For Apple, competitive advantage was measured by fast response and flexible workforce able to compete on the market (Hertzfeld, 52). The main advantage of the Apple advertising campaign was the ability to respond to rapid change and changing global environment. The slogan “Think Different” was used in several media in order to attract the attention of customers. Apple used a famous television commercial, ‘Crazy Ones’, print advertisements, and television advertisements. The advantage of this campaign was its focused nature. It means that Apple selected areas in which the organization excelled and meet high standards. Following Kahney (2004): “Thanks to declining advertising market in the late 1990s, MacWeek transformed into the cross-platform eMediaWeekly, an attempt to reflect changes in the computing space‘ (85). Focused’ nature helped Apple to create a competitive advantage and remained one of the most profitable companies at the end of the 1990s.

How did Apple Communicate its Relevance?

Apple followed a differentiation strategy which helped it to distinguish its products from IBM. Many of the advertisements were focused on the brand image of the company rather than its products. While other companies tried to attract attention to their products, Apple advertised its brand and unique brand image. Values, like objectives, were typically multiple and conflicting, their ranking constantly altering with changes in circumstance (Hertzfeld, 102). Differentiation strategy was based on the unique image of Apple and its values. Its symbol was a sign that conjured up something additional to its reference, namely what it signified for potential consumers. Using specific slogans, which embodied a complexity of information for those to whom they were significant, Apple promoted specific culture and persuaded customers to buy Apple computers. Thus, “customer loyalty was the only thing that saved Apple during the late 1990s” (Kahney, 247). However, a process giving special significance to the ‘uniqueness of each product led to a particular concern about identity reflecting the individual and group desire to be “different” (Lesikar et al. 34).

Target Groups

The slogan and advertising images were aimed to attract young people and those who opposed traditional norms and lifestyles. Apple communicated to a wide target audience who wanted to be and remain different, keeping a unique personal identity and the self. Apple appealed to diverse customer groups who valued the power of aesthetic attraction (Hertzfeld 105). In this case, Apple persuaded consumers to make purchases valued not just for their functional utility but also for their symbolic utility. Brand images distinguished the various makers of computers in the eyes of the consumer. Apple products, as possessions, helped consumers project a certain social identity.

Success

Innovations and promotion campaign developed by Apple was very effective because it helped the company to gain its market share and attract a wide target audience. Symbols and signs of Apple products originated in the physiological and social needs of life and were characterized by a feeling of incompleteness on the part of the individual, which led to attempts to supply that which was missing. Unique brand image focused attention of consumers on qualities and uniqueness of the propositions, company history, and success. Differentiation strategy and unique approach to promotion led to success and customers’ loyalty.

Works Cited

1. Hertzfeld, A. Revolution in the Valley. O’Reilly Media. 2004.
2. Kahney, A. The Cult of Mac. No Starch Press; 1st Edition edition, 2004.
3. Lesikar, R.V., Flatley, M.E., Rentz, K. Basic Business Communications. McGraw Hill Higher Education. 2006.
4. Monks, N. What Apple Did Right in the Nineties. 2006.

Introduction

Entrepreneurial marketing continues to intrigue researchers, scholars, and students, with new topics within the subject continuing to be uncovered through different approaches. The Journal of Business Research accepted for publication the article “Effective Entrepreneurial Marketing on Facebook – A Longitudinal Study” by Fink, Koller, Gartner, Floh, and Harms (2018). While Facebook has become an established social-media outlet and has already attracted numerous studies, there has only been choice research using specific methods, which makes the article by Fink et al. (2018) intriguing.

The authors present the use of two-wave longitudinal methods to test “long-term effects of social-media-based entrepreneurial marketing on purchase intentions” as pioneer research, questioning the influence of celebrity endorsement over a four-year course (Fink et al., 2018, p. 2). Measuring and comparing this article against more established and tested findings in different fields of entrepreneurial marketing thus poses an assured interest.

The Significance of the Article

Before attempting to analyse an article, it is necessary to identify what kind of change it is trying to bring about within the scholarly community and the field with which it is concerned. Facebook has garnered attention both positive and negative for its marketing tactics, with often low-quality products occupying the platform’s advertisement spaces (Chaston, 2016). Despite this, the article by Fink et al. (2018) has opted to deal with this significantly critiqued issue in an attempt to look beyond the public’s reaction and deal directly with the mechanism’s effectiveness. Therefore, the significance of this article is rooted not only within the influence on the scope of the entrepreneurial market but also concerning student’s understanding of the topic chosen.

Implications for the Entrepreneurial Marketing Interface

Any study becomes a reflection of its topic, highlighting the developmental trends and possibly predicting the future turn of events within a field. Effectively, entrepreneurial marketing (EM) “attempts to underline the company’s major strengths while emphasizing the company’s value to the customer,” becoming not a single-use tactic but a more broad strategy (Ismail & Zainol, 2018, p. 651; Qureshi, Aziz, & Mian, 2017).

It has already been proven that entrepreneurial orientation (EO) becomes contingent on a company’s market orientation (MO) and vice versa, resulting in effective coaction of resources in the event of orientation coincidence (Lee, 2016; Whalen & Akaka, 2015). Therefore, the unity of EO and MO within a company should allow a product to achieve an increased degree of success, especially for its first performance (Ahmadi & O’Cass, 2015). Taking into account the effects and consequences of using social media platforms within the scope of such a strategy becomes fundamental to predicting the results of a chosen marketing entrepreneurship approach.

Social media has become an essential circumstance of life, for some even replacing paper-based journals, newspapers, news outlets, and even television. Facebook is a platform that has created a vast network of friends-of-friends, with information travelling rapidly and recommendations being based on association with people, pages, and likes (Lodish, Morgan, Archambeau, & Babin, 2016). Proving that celebrities can increase the desire of people to buy a good, but only those who are fame-conscious and product-knowledgeable becomes an essential step in success prediction (Fink et al., 2018). Therefore, furthering any possible knowledge on the topic of product public reception through effectively increasing the list of possible success-failure factors becomes an essential step in EM.

Personal Affinity

The novelty of the research is its clear advantage, especially as it implements tested methods to research new topics and subtopics, effectively developing EM. The fact that “entrepreneurial marketing via social media in particular, [is a] quite young phenomena compared to traditional marketing initiatives” makes its establishment through research an important formational strategy (Fink et al., 2018, p. 7).

The advancement of EM as its own subject with its particular theory and methodology, rather than a crude symbiosis of entrepreneurship and marketing strategies, has remained an essential topic throughout its development (Miles, Gilmore, Harrigan, Lewis, & Sethna, 2014). Therefore, showing an interest in such a subject attracts the attention of other researchers and contributes to the active detachment of EM as a separate discipline.

Assessment against Research

The chosen article endures a comparison against the conclusions of pre-dating studies on the topic of digital media, EM, and small and medium-sized enterprises (SME). Effectively, the results of the study by Fink et al. (2018) align with findings in a different sphere, which state that “digital marketing offers tourism SMEs increased opportunities to innovate on an unprecedented scale” (Jones, Alford, & Wolfenden, 2015, p. 12).

The extent to which SMEs may participate in specific markets and entrepreneurial tactics is directly dependent on their size, which makes extensive research on the topic crucial to their development (Cacciolatti & Lee, 2015). Halal food, as an example of an SME good, has shown a positive reaction within the market concerning EM investment (Fard & Amiri, 2016). Therefore, the possibility of the articles positive appraisal and assured effectivity becomes possible through tying together the different findings of multiple studies on this topic.

Despite the benefit of the chosen article on EM as a branch of knowledge, it has its drawbacks and specifics. While the study aligns with the thesis that EM is the expression of “creativity… networking and flexibility,” it does not deal with the problems that networking may pose on the structure (Nouri, Imanipour, Talebi, & Zali, 2017, p. 2; Fink et al., 2018). The negative influence a celebrity, or behaviour that may prove detrimental to their status, may have are not explored and therefore not accounted for, rendering the study a stepping-stone in social media examination.

Conclusion

Implementing the findings of the chosen article in an SME environment becomes problematic because small companies rarely have the chance to attract widely recognized celebrities. However, on a regional level, using famous local people and without aspirations to large-scale product advancement, it is possible to use the results of the chosen article effectively. While this approach will require a sufficient Facebook following base within a localized region, it may prove a success factor for SMEs.

References

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Cacciolatti, L., & Lee, S. (2015). Entrepreneurial marketing for SMEs. London, England: Palgrave Macmillan.

Chaston, I. (2016). Entrepreneurial marketing: Sustaining growth in all organisations (2nd ed.). London, England: Palgrave Macmillan.

Fard, M. H., & Amiri, N. S. (2016). The effect of entrepreneurial marketing on halal food SMEs performance. Journal of Islamic Marketing, 9(3), 598-620. Web.

Fink, M., Koller, M., Gartner, J., Floh, A., & Harms, R. (2018). Effective entrepreneurial marketing on Facebook – A longitudinal study. Journal of Business Research, 1-9. Web.

Ismail, M., & Zainol, F. (2018). A review on the evolution and definition of entrepreneurial marketing. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 8(5), 649–663. Web.

Jones, R., Alford, P., & Wolfenden, S. (2015). Entrepreneurial marketing in the digital age: A study of the SME tourism industry. In Global Research Symposium on Marketing and Entrepreneurship (pp. 1-14). Chicago, IL. Web.

Lee, Y. (2016). Alignment effect of entrepreneurial orientation and marketing orientation on firm performance. International Journal of Customer Relationship Marketing and Management, 7(4), 58-69. Web.

Lodish, L., Morgan, H., Archambeau, S., & Babin, J. (2016). Marketing that works: How entrepreneurial marketing can add sustainable value to any sized company. Old Tappan, NJ: Pearson Education.

Miles, M., Gilmore, A., Harrigan, P., Lewis, G., & Sethna, Z. (2014). Exploring entrepreneurial marketing. Journal of Strategic Marketing, 23(2), 94-111. Web.

Nouri, P., Imanipour, N., Talebi, K., & Zali, M. (2017). Heuristics and biases in entrepreneurial marketing: Some new insights. International Journal of Entrepreneurship, 21(3), 1-9. Web.

Qureshi, M., Aziz, N., & Mian, S. (2017). How marketing capabilities shape entrepreneurial firm’s performance? Evidence from new technology based firms in Turkey. Journal of Global Entrepreneurship Research, 7(15), 1-15. Web.

Whalen, P., & Akaka, M. (2015). A dynamic market conceptualization for entrepreneurial marketing: The co-creation of opportunities. Journal of Strategic Marketing, 24(1), 61-75. Web.