The Need for an Expanded Conceptual Framework

The marketer must manage three sets of relationships--with customers, with suppliers, and with resellers. In both industrial buyer-seller relationships and in manufacturer-reseller relationships, we are talking about interorganizational relationships. In the microeconomic paradigm, the units of analysis are products, prices, firms, and transactions. In the new world of marketing management, we must also look at people, processes, and organizations.

Marketing scholars face two mandates for the 1990s. The first is to develop an expanded view of the marketing function within the firm, one that specifically addresses the role of marketing in firms that go to market through multiple partnerships and that is sensitive to the multiple levels of strategy within the organization. The second is to develop a base of empirical research that broadens our understanding of the forces leading to the development of long-term customer relationships, strategic partnerships with vendors, alliances for the codevelopment of technologies, and the issues involved in creating, managing, and dissolving these partnerships over time. Whereas the historical marketing management model has depended most heavily on economics, statistics, mathematics, psychology, and social psychology, the broadened view of the marketing function calls for work that spans the disciplines of political economy, organizational psychology, legal analysis, political science (government), and cultural anthropology.

In contrast to the microeconomic paradigm and its emphasis on prices, the political economy paradigm is better suited to understanding these firm-to-firm relationships. This is the argument first presented by Johan Arndt in articles published in 1979, 1981, and 1983. The political economy paradigm looks at marketing organizations as social systems--"dynamic, adapting, and internally differentiated. Important dimensions of marketing behavior are authority and control patterns, distributions of power, conflict and conflict management, and external and internal determinants of institutional change" (Arndt 1983, p. 52). Political economy has obvious potential to help us understand the role of marketing in managing relationships with other organizations and in developing support within the firm for activities necessary to respond to the changing marketplace. The political economy model has recently been applied most aggressively in the study of channel conflict (Dwyer, Schurr, and Oh 1987; Frazier 1983), but it offers solid potential for better understanding of all types of relationships and alliances in marketing (Day and Klein 1987). It is cited here as evidence of the availability of alternative conceptualizations of the functions of marketing to move the field beyond its historically narrow focus on transactions and prices based on the traditional microeconomic paradigm. 

Marketing As An Optimization Problem

Scholars on the leading edge of marketing responded with enthusiasm to the call for greater analytical rigor. At the root of most of the new managerial texts and the evolving research literature of marketing science was the basic microeconomic paradigm, with its emphasis on profit maximization (Anderson 1982). The basic units of analysis were transactions in a competitive market and fully integrated firms controlling virtually all of the factors of production (Arndt 1979; Thorelli 1986). Market transactions connected the firm with its customers and with other firms (Johnston and Lawrence 1988).

Analysis for marketing management focused on demand (revenues), costs, and profitability and the use of traditional economic analysis to find the point at which marginal cost equals marginal revenue and profit is maximized. Behavioral science models were used primarily to structure problem definition, helping the market researcher to define the questions that are worth asking and to identify important variables and the relationships among them (Messy and Webster 1964). Statistical analysis was used to manipulate the data to test the strength of the hypothesized relationships or to look for relationships in the data that had not been hypothesized directly.

The application of formal, rigorous analytical techniques to marketing problems required specialists of various kinds. Marketing departments typically included functional specialists in sales, advertising and promotion, distribution, and marketing research, and perhaps managers of customer service, marketing personnel, and pricing. Early organizational pioneers of professional marketing departments included the consumer packaged goods companies with brand management systems, such as Procter & Gamble, Colgate-Palmolive, General Foods, General Mills, and Gillette. In other companies, the marketing professionals were concentrated at the corporate staff level in departments of market research and operations research or management science. Examples of the latter include General Electric, IBM, and RCA. Large, full-service advertising agencies built strong research departments to support their national advertiser account relationships. Other large firms, such as Anheuser-Busch and General Electric, also entered into research partnerships with university-based consulting organizations.

Such specialized and sophisticated professional marketing expertise fit well into the strategy, structure, and culture of large, divisionalized, hierarchical organizations. 

Marketing as a Social & Economic Process

It is sobering to recall that the study of marketing did not always have a managerial focus. The early roots of marketing as an area of academic study can be found, beginning around 1910, in Midwestern American land grant universities, where a strong involvement with the farm sector created a concern for agricultural markets and the processes by which products were brought to market and prices determined. The analysis was centered around commodities and the institutions involved in moving them from farm, forest, sea, mine, and factory to industrial processors, users, and consumers. Within this tradition, three separate schools evolved that focused on the commodities themselves, on the marketing institutions through which products were brought to market, especially brokers, wholesalers, and retailers in their many forms and variations (Breyer 1934; Duddy and Revzan 1953), and finally on the functions performed by these institutions (McGarry 1950; Weld 1917). All of these approaches tended to be descriptive rather than normative, with the functional being the most analytical and leading to the development of a conceptual framework for the marketing discipline (Barters 1962; Rathmell 1965).

These early approaches to the study of marketing are interesting because of the relative absence of a managerial orientation. Marketing was seen as a set of social and economic processes rather than as a set of managerial activities and responsibilities. The institutional and functional emphasis began to change in 1948, when the American Marketing Association (1948, p. 210) defined marketing as:

The performance of business activities directed toward, and incident to, the flow of goods and services from producer to consumer or user.

This definition, modified only very slightly in 1960, represented an important shift of emphasis. Though it grew out of the functional view, it defined marketing functions as business activities rather than as social or economic processes. The managerial approach brought relevance and realism to the study of marketing, with an emphasis on problem solving, planning, implementation, and control in a competitive marketplace.

What is a business plan?

A Business plan is a formal statement of a set of business goals.

• Business Plans are decision -making tools.
• There is no content for a business plan.
• It may also contain background information about the organization or team attempting to each those goals.
• A Business plan represents all aspects of  business planning process ,declaring vision and strategy alongside sub-plans to cover marketing,finance,operations,human resources as well as a legal plan,when required.
• A Business plan is bind summary of those plans.

    Normal structure for a Business Plan

                    01.Cover page and the table of content
                    02.Executive summary
                    03.Business discription
                    04.Business environment analysis 
                    05.Industry background
                    06.Competitor analysis
                    07.Market analysis
                    08.Marketing plan
                    09.Operations plan
                    10.Management summary
                    11.Financial Plan
                    12.Attachments and Milestones

 

ten strategic reasons:Why need a Business Mnagement Team

1.Raising Capital

One of the key reasons why startup entrepreneurs don’t get the venture capital is because they are trying to raise capital alone. A business mentor of mine once said that venture capitalist prefer an average product with an excellent business team than an excellent product with an average business team.

If you should consider this statement; you will come to acknowledge that it’s the truth in its entirety. A business team is vital to the process of raising capital for your business; in fact, it increases your chances of securing the capital. Show me an entrepreneur that raised billions of dollars in capital and I will show you an entrepreneur backed by a strong business management team. Just like said in the investment world; money always follow management.

2.Taking advantage of new or existing opportunities

Having your own business management team will give you the leverage to take advantage of business opportunities effortlessly. A business team will be your eyes, ears and nose in the business world; they will not only help you sniff out opportunities but will also help you create opportunities out of thin air.

                "A business idea is just another idea. But an idea backed by a strong feasibility, a thorough business plan and a smart team is no longer an idea. It's now a solid business opportunity worth pursuing." – Ajaero Tony Martins

3. Strategic business development

Do you want to grow your business from the inside? Do you want to strengthen your bottom line? Then build your own business management team. Strategic business development is not the doing of an individual but a collective effort of a business team. Employee performance programs, staff motivation and operational excellence are part of the duty of a business team.

4. Rapid expansion and growth

Take a close look at companies that grows rapidly and stands strong in times of economic recess and you will find a strong business management team behind such companies. The massive outside expansion of any company is the handiwork of the business team. An entrepreneur visualizes while the business team draws the plan; critique the plan and executes the business plan. For instance, take a look at the rapid acquisition move taken by Oracle Corporation; buying up a total of 57 companies within five years. That’s the power of a good management driven company.

5.Business leverage

How is a company able to operate successfully in different sectors of the economy? How can an entrepreneur successfully run a business conglomerate? The answer is leverage.

                "Successful businessmen share the ability to hire people smarter than they are." – Dillard Munford

The leverage of a business team is the reason successful entrepreneurs became billionaires effortlessly. Leverage is the reason why entrepreneurs such as J. Paul Getty and Carlos Slim Helu are able to run over 200 companies without burning themselves out. The leverage of a business team is a form of intellectual leverage. Just as a man is known by the friends he keeps; so is a business respected by the management team it keeps.

                “People are definitely a company's greatest asset. It doesn't make any difference whether the company's product is cars or cosmetics. A company is only as good as the people it keeps." – Mary Kay Ash

6.Increase confidence of the investors

Just like I stated above; money follows management and who provides the money? The answer is the investors. Nothing inspires or boosts the confidence of an investor than the professionalism of the business management team piloting the affairs of the company he/she invested in.

Have you tried raising capital before? Have you tried sourcing for contracts before? Have you tried sending a business proposal to another company before? Have you ever tried selling a business before? Or better still buying a business? Have you ever taken a company public before?

If you have engaged in any of these acts; you will come to accept the fact that one of the most popular questions investors ask is this:

                Who is on your team?

                Who on your team has taken a company public before?

                Who on your team has experience in business management?

The questions above are real life questions asked by investors because they feel comfortable hearing the fact that the managers of their investments are competent.

7. Increase the entrepreneur’s credibility and competence

Observe the words of successful entrepreneurs and drop out billionaires carefully; and you will see that they attribute much of their success to their team. Have you ever wondered why some drop outs end up successful business owners? The reason is because they built their business on the shoulders of intellectual giants; who happen to be members of their business management team.

An entrepreneur can never know it all and that’s why he/she relies on the calculative initiative of the business team. Show me an entrepreneur backed by a weak business team and I will show you an incompetent entrepreneur. So if being recognized as an entrepreneur of credibility and competence sounds good enough to be added to your resume; then build your own in-house business management team.

8.Strategic innovative thinking

Innovative companies are usually companies driven by a strong management team. Observe companies such as Microsoft, Apple, Oracle and Sony; and you will come to realize that these companies have being built, driven and sustained competitively on innovation. Now who are the engineers of innovation? It’s the business team; the brains behind the company. Tactical approach to issues, detailed competitive analysis and strategic thinking are benefits derived from having your own business team; so would you rather not have one?

9.Critical problem solving

How does a company survives a recession? How does a company survive in a fierce market? The answer still lies in the team. In the previous article I wrote, I highlighted the characteristics of successful business management teams and one of such characteristics is critical problem solving.

Entrepreneurs are known as critical problem solvers but I also want to add that problem solving is a product of collective strategies and ideas put together by a group of individuals; and such individuals in this case is your business team. Critical problem solving is the reason why teams go on brainstorming sessions. Now tell me, how do you create a brainstorming session when you don’t have a business team? I leave that for you to answer.

10. Increases the value of the business

Value appreciation is the last but not the least reason why you need a business management team. One of the most important assets of a business is the management team on ground because with a good business management team; every other asset can be synergized into yielding positive results for the company.

The reason why I call a business team your most important asset is because other assets are easy to create or control once the right business team is in place. So instead of focusing of improving your lifestyle; acquiring investments individually or running your business solely, I will advice you first build a business management team and the rest will fall in place.

As a final note, I want you as an entrepreneur to shift your primary aim from acquiring luxuries to building a business team because investment on a team is probably the best investment an organization can make.

Stages Of Marketing Plan

According to "Entrepreneur" magazine, marketing plans are a series of activities that help you develop your marketing objectives and formulate plans for achieving those objectives. Each of those activities, or "stages," is important to helping you develop a promotional strategy for your company's product or service. The four main stages of a marketing plan include outlining the situation analysis, describing your company goals, identifying your target market and deciding on your marketing tactics.

1. Situation Analysis

   • The situation analysis is the first stage of a marketing plan, and it helps your readers understand the market environment. In this stage, describe the market and economic conditions in your industry; any applicable laws, politics and regulations; and supply and demand trends for your product or service. One useful way to help you outline the situation analysis in this stage of your marketing plan is to use a SWOT analysis. To do this, first describe the strengths of your product or service, such as "lowest price." Next, describe the weaknesses, such as "perceived low quality." Then, describe the opportunities, such as "two new stores opening." Finally, describe the threats, such as "three new competitors entering the market."
     

   Objectives

   • The next stage of your marketing plan is outlining your marketing goals and objectives. Traditionally, your top marketing and management teams will be responsible for setting these objectives, and they are the result of research and your company's overall business goals. When writing your objectives, make sure they are SMART, which stands for "specific," "measurable," "attainable," "realistic" and "timely."
     

   Target Market

   • Identifying your target market is the next stage of your marketing plan. This refers to the groups of customers who account for the majority of your business. In the marketing plan, you want to describe everything you know about your target market, including demographic characteristics like gender, age, income bracket and ethnicity as well as psychographic characteristics like behavioral preferences and technology use. A market research company can help you better understand your target market, or you can conduct research yourself by doing web searches and observing your customers in person.
     

   Marketing Tactics

   • The last stage of your marketing plan is deciding which tactics you are going to use to promote your products and services, and then describing each of those tactics. An important consideration when deciding on your tactics is your target market. For example, if you know your target market members are generally early adopters of technology, you can use more technology-based marketing tactics like paid search, email marketing and social media marketing. Conversely, if your target market is an older population that tends to rely more on print-based media, you can use tactics like direct mail and television and radio ads. Identify each marketing tactic you plan to use, and a timeline for when you plan to use it.
     

Importance Of Marketing Strategy

The importance of marketing plans outweighs any other decision that can be taken in the realm of marketing strategies. Yes, marketing plan is essential to grab the market segment before any other player captures the market. What are the target groups? Which segment of the market presents higher revenue generating opportunities? These are some of the questions that marketing teams ponder over, in the pursuit of achieving a good plan. This is where the importance of marketing research comes into picture. The market research team analyzes and understands the requirements of the consumers. Conducts polls and researches and comes up with data and statistics that help to logically target a market. Another factor that governs the marketing plans is the marketing mix elements. Marketing mix elements are the sets of factors that help firms to achieve their targets of reaching the products to the consumers and also achieve organizational objectives. The importance of marketing mix is, that it takes into account the four P's of marketing, that are Product, Price, Promotion and Place of distribution.