4.01B Marketing Information Management

A system that analyzes and assesses marketing information, gathered continuously from sources inside and outside an organization. Timely marketing information provides basis for decisions such as product development or improvement, pricing, packaging, distribution, media selection, and promotion.systemanalyzesmarketing informationsourcesorganizationprovidesdecisionsproduct developmentimprovementpackagingdistributionmediaselectionpromotion Can be as simple as a notebook or as complex as having a computer database

These systems streamline the process of providing information  enhancing and promoting the brand value of the company. 1.Helps owners of the company plan marketing activities. 2.Helps owners organize and coordinate their marketing activities. 3.Enables owners to decide on the strategy and control the dissemination of the strategic direction.

In order to be successful, a business MUST know its market! Some information is just trash…you spend a lot of time gathering information that does not amount to anything. Your goal is to find out what catches customer’s attention Marketers sometimes lack enough of the “right” info

Market research is an orderly, efficient way to learn about people  those who DO and those who MIGHT buy from you. Ask questions like… Who are my customers/potential customers? What kind of people are they? Where do they live? Can/Will they buy? Are my promotional programs working? What do customers think of my business?

You can’t ignore companies that produce similar products  these people ultimately have the capability to compete with you! Ask questions about… Financial capabilities Indications of current strategy What are they doing now? Positioning How they see themselves/how do others view them Strengths/weaknesses Business outlook Where are the companies heading? Think about “what will I do with the information and analysis?”

It is IMPOSSIBLE to sell people what they don’t want Both big and small businesses need to complete market research to figure out what their customers want. Market research focuses and organizes marketing information & helps you Reduce risk Spot problems Identify sales opportunities Get basic facts about your market

We know that no marketing activity is carried out in isolation (remember we’ve learned about the seven functions and how they operate together, not as a single function) Therefore, MIS does not need to be an infrequent event but rather a continuous process gathering data from a variety of sources.

Answer questions like… Who Consumes our product? Decides to purchase? What Products compete with ours? Benefits does the consumer seek? Where Is the decision made to buy? Do buyers seek product info? When Do consumers buy? Why Do consumers buy our product? How Do customers use our product? Much do customers buy?

1.Missed opportunities 2.Lack of awareness 3.Makes data collection difficult 4.Plans/decisions may not be properly reviewed 5.Studies may not be stored in an easy to use format 6.Time lags may result 7.Actions may be reactionary rather than anticipatory

This network can satisfy the total information needs of a marketing department This network may or may not be computerized (depends on the firm’s resources & complexity of its needs) Three components: Continuous monitoring Research is done to obtain info on particular marketing issues Data warehousing  retention of all types of relevant company records

Organized data collection Broad perspective Storage of important data Avoidance of crises Coordinated marketing plans Speed in obtaining sufficient information to make decisions Data amassed and kept over several time periods Ability to do a cost-benefit analysis

High initial time Labor costs Complexity of setting up an information system

1.Internal Company Information 1.Sales, orders, customer profiles, stocks, customer service reports, etc. 2.Marketing Intelligence 1.Suppliers, customers, distributors (catchall term to include all the everyday information about developments in the market) 3.Market Research 1.Businesses undertake specific studies to support their marketing strategies  cannot always wait for info to present itself

Internal vs. External Primary vs. Secondary