Class Discussion Notes MKT September 12, 2001

Marketing Information System –Assessing information needs –Gathering information –Analysis –Disseminating to marketing Marketing knowledge –Sum of all digitized information from marketing team (past and present), partners and consultants Includes intellectual capital, work outputs and contact information Marketing Knowledge

Sources of marketing knowledge –Internal records Non-marketing data –Accounting data »Sales »Cash flow data »Marketing expenses »Profit and loss statements –Logistics data »Inventory »Shipping and delivery data Sales force data –Prospects –Sales call info –Field intelligence –Contracts and proposals Marketing Knowledge

–Internal records – contd Customer characteristics and behavior –Current and prospective customer names –Other contact info –Purchase behavior or history –Customer complaints –Promotional redemptions Marketing Knowledge

Sources of marketing knowledge – contd –Secondary data Pros –Ease of retrieval –Cheaper to obtain Cons –Mismatch between data and marketers needs »Data gathered for a different purpose »Quality issues »Out of date Marketing Knowledge

–Secondary data – contd Marketing intelligence –Demographic trends –Competitors –Technological forces –Natural resources –Social and cultural trends –World and local economies –Legal and political environments Marketing Knowledge

–Secondary data – contd Where do we find marketing intelligence? –Publicly generated data »US Patent Office »World Trade Organization »International Monetary Fund »US Dept of Commerce »University libraries and research »Industry or professional organizations Marketing Knowledge

Where do we find marketing intelligence? – contd –Privately generated data »Firms »Individuals »Politicians »Research firms »Media firms »Infomediaries –Online databases »Trailblazer Web sites aka index pages Marketing Knowledge

Competitive intelligence - Analyzing the industry in which the firm operates to understand competitor vulnerabilities –Sources of CI »Press releases »New product introductions »Alliances »Trade show activity »Advertising strategy »Annual reports »Web sites linked to the competitor »Web site logs »Third party industry specific sites »Company profiles from SEC »User conversation Marketing Knowledge

Information quality concerns –Anyone can publish on the Web –No review process –No standards for content, accuracy, appropriateness –Foreign sources »Cultural differences »Data collection methods –Dont be seduced by good design!!! Marketing Knowledge

Information quality concerns – contd –Discover the Web sites author –Try to determine the authors authority on the topic –Check for last update »Check hyperlinks –Determine comprehensiveness of site –Try to validate research data with another source –Check content accuracy –Dont stop at the first good site you find!!! Marketing Knowledge

–Primary data – Information gathered for the first time to solve a particular problem Pros –Current –More relevant to specific problem –Proprietary Cons –Expensive –Time consuming Marketing Knowledge

–Primary data – contd Internet-based research approaches –Online experiments »Attempt to test cause and effect relationships »Exposing test groups to different stimuli –Online focus groups »Qualitative methodology »Gathers in-depth information from small number of participants »Pros Eliminates geographic barriers Reduces groupthink »Cons Smaller groups Nonverbal communication is lost Authenticity problems Technical difficulties Marketing Knowledge

Internet-based research approaches – contd –Online observation »Monitors behavior Chat rooms Usenet Specialized search engines Provide space on Web site for discussion Subscribe to lists on related topics »Cons Small number of subjects cannot establish relevance for a larger group Marketing Knowledge

Internet-based research approaches – contd –Online in-depth interviews »Semi-structured conversation with a few subjects »Facilitator uses increasingly directed questions to narrow focus »Cons Lose the personal interaction –Online survey research »Sending questionnaires to individuals via , Web posting or electronic bulletin board – surveys »Purchasing target lists »Using firms own database of addresses »Pros Inexpensive follow up Preferable in countries without unlimited access »Cons Dependent on level of interest Sloppy responses Marketing Knowledge

Internet-based research approaches – contd –Web surveys »Posting questions on Web page »Respondents use automated response mechanisms »Often combined with other methods directing traffic to the site Marketing Knowledge

Internet-based research approaches – contd –Online survey research advantages »Fast and inexpensive »Diverse group worldwide OR targeted niche »Reduces errors »Honest responses (anonymity) »Access can be open or restricted »Easy tabulation of data Marketing Knowledge

Internet-based research approaches – contd –Online survey research disadvantages »Sample selection/generalizability »Self-selection bias »Authenticity »Dishonest responses »Duplicate responses »Steep learning curve to create surveys Marketing Knowledge

Internet-based research approaches – contd –Online panels »People who have agreed to participate in market research »Pros Extensive data already available Increased response rates Better targeting »Cons More expensive than other online research Generalizability problems Marketing Knowledge

Internet-based research approaches – contd –Ethics of online research »Spam »Harvesting addresses without permission »Selling under the guise of research »Privacy issues Marketing Knowledge

Other technology enabled approaches –Client-side data collection »Cookie – A small data file placed on the users hard drive »Clickstream – PC meters used to track usage and surfing patterns –Server-side data collection »Web site log software – Records user data on web server »Real time profiling –Real-space data collection »Smart card and credit card readers »Bar code scanners Inventory management Promotions Marketing Knowledge

Marketing databases –Product databases – Hold data about inventory levels –Customer databases – Hold data about customer behavior –Transaction processing databases – Move data from other databases into a data warehouse Data warehouses –Repository for all of a firms historical data »Smaller sections are called data marts Marketing Knowledge

Data analysis and distribution – Data mining »Extraction of hidden information by statistical analysis »Search for patterns –Customer profiling »Understanding behavior and characteristics of target groups –RFM analysis »Recency »Frequency »Monetary value –Report generation »Automatic targeted reports from data warehouse on a regular basis Marketing Knowledge