Charles Blankson, Ph.D., Department of Marketing & Logistics Defining great marketing and establishing competitive advantages Some comments for discussion

Charles Blankson, Ph.D., Department of Marketing & Logistics So you are getting your degree, you have some job experience, determined to implement the marketing models and you understand 4 P’s & 7P’s, SWOT, PESTLE, STP etc.  Great marketing is about a lot more than clever promotion/advertising tactics.  Certainly, an intelligent use of messages, media, channels and models is necessary to ensure marketing effectiveness, but it is not sufficient (Smith, 2004).

Charles Blankson, Ph.D., Department of Marketing & Logistics Identifying Strong Strategies  Strong Marketing Strategies  Target real segments.  Make segment-specific value propositions; each target segment is made a distinct and compelling offer.  Understand that SWOT & PESTLE are aligned with strategies. That strategy leverages with distinctive strengths and minimizes relative weaknesses.  Understand and aware of firm’s positioning.  Anticipate trends in your target audience and your industry.  Weak Marketing Strategies  Target channels, product categories or descriptor groups; customers in these categories do not have the same needs.  Weak positioning of offering and or organization.  Don’t really understand the organization’s SWOT and PESTLE environment.  Offerings are undifferentiated and offer the same thing to the same people in the same way as the competition.  Fail to understand the implications of market trends.

Charles Blankson, Ph.D., Department of Marketing & Logistics Your action plan  Assess the complexity and turbulence of your market. Decide which quadrant you are in. Look also at the past and future.  Choose the hybrid marketing strategies that fits your market. Use that decision to guide who does what and how in your strategy-making.  Look for your positioning in the context of your organization’s aim and objectives. Carefully adjust things that might hinder you.  Implement your strategy, making sure you are aware of your position in the market. Use all appropriate approaches. Make use of your organization’s culture.  Following the implementation, build in assessment systems to ensure you are on track.

Charles Blankson, Ph.D., Department of Marketing & Logistics Successful companies  “…successful companies understand the need to tailor the strategy to suit the market…” Brian Smith (2004). Presentation based on Smith, B. (2004), “Made to measure,” The Marketer, Issue 3, June, pp.6-11 (a magazine from the Chartered Institute of Marketing, CIM, UK; see

Charles Blankson, Ph.D., Department of Marketing & Logistics Marketing Strategies for Competitive Advantages  Strategy: “…to source the best quality products for our stores and to provide the highest quality and value for money services with the view of becoming the best retailer in our sector in Texas…” Approach: (a) Market orientation, (b) CRM, (c) marketing mixes of: product, price, promotion, place/distribution, people/participants, process, physical evidence.

Charles Blankson, Ph.D., Department of Marketing & Logistics Types of Competitive Advantages  Superior product, service or brand  Perceived advantage in the industry  Global skills  Low-cost operator (economies of scale and scope)  Superior competencies in application of strategies & tactics  Superior assets/resources  Attitude advantage (structure of organization and decision making style)  Legal advantages  Superior relationships with consumers, suppliers, joint- ventures, government agencies.

Charles Blankson, Ph.D., Department of Marketing & Logistics Examples of routes to superior advantages/benefits  ProductsServices Better end-resultsSpeed Superior designQuality Longer lasting, durableFlexibility More featuresReliability Ease of useAfter-sales service Speed of usePersonalized service ReliabilityResponsiveness

Charles Blankson, Ph.D., Department of Marketing & Logistics Strategies to employ in your communications to position your offerings  Top of the range  Service  Value for money  Reliability  Attractive  Country of origin  The Name of the offering (brand)  Selectivity/Social class

Charles Blankson, Ph.D., Department of Marketing & Logistics A Market/shopping scene in Accra, Ghana

Charles Blankson, Ph.D., Department of Marketing & Logistics Small traders in Kumasi, Ghana