JK INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY & MANAGEMENT

MARKETING MANAGEMENT (PROF. VASUDEVAN TMC)

ASSIGNMENT ANSWERS

1. State the components of marketing environment.

The marketing environment can be divided into the micro-

environment and the macro-environment. The competitive forces identified
by Michael Porter in his seminal works "Competitive Strategy” and
"Competitive Advantage" offer an instructive framework to study the
components of the micro-environment and the factors that determine the
competitive structure of the industry.

Porter five micro-environment forces include:

1) Intensity of the industry competition

2) Bargaining power of suppliers

3) Bargaining power of buyers

4) Threat of new entrants

5) Threat of substitute products.

Macro-environmental factors include PEST=Political, Economical, Societal,

Technological, as well as legal and regulatory.
 Both micro- and macro-environmental factors can change slowly or
suddenly (disruptively) and have significant consequences for companies.
The ability of companies to change fast or lead change (Kotter) is nowadays
a significant competitive advantage.

2. What are the different techniques of product positioning?

Although there are different definitions of Positioning,

probably the most common is: "A product's position is how potential buyers
see the product", and is expressed relative to the position of competitors.

There are three types of positioning concepts:

1. Functional positions:

Solve problems

Provide benefits to customers

Get favorable perception by investors (stock profile) and lenders

2. Symbolic positions:
 Self-image enhancement

Ego identification

Belongingness and social meaningfulness

Affective fulfillment

3. Experiential positions:

Provide sensory stimulation

Provide cognitive stimulation

3. What are the various forms of demographic segmentation?

The forms of demographic segmentation are listed below:

• age

• gender Male and Female

• family size

• family life cycle

• education Primary, High School, Secondary, College, Universities.

• income

• occupation

• socioeconomic status
 • religion

• nationality/race (ethnic marketing)

• language

4. Distinguish between advertising and sales promotion.

Advertising and promotion are two marketing tools and they are
both used in the modern marketing. At first sight it is very hard to see the exact
difference between advertising and promotion. Both advertising and promotion
use the same techniques and the gained results are basically the same.

However, there are a few things that highlight the difference between
advertising and promotion. These differences are the following:

• amount of time spent (advertising need more time for results, while
promotions have instant effects)

• impact on overall sales (advertising can produce greater profits,

promotion lower profits)

• overall costs

• general purpose

• while sales promotion generates short-term results, advertising is more

suitable for achieving returns in the long run.

• while advertising incorporates an emotional approach to touch the viewer

and prompt him / her to engage in a buying behavior, sales promotion
 activities focus more closely on a rational appeal nevertheless in some
cases it does take the aegis of an impulse (emotional) appeal.

• while advertising, with its emotional appeal, offers intangible benefits,

sales promotion activities provide the incentive of tangible benefits,
pertaining to their rational appeal. Lastly while advertising has a
moderate contribution in generating short-term results, sales promotion
has a much greater share of contribution in generating short-term results.

5. What are the different levels of a product?

Customers will choose a product based on their perceived value of it.

Satisfaction is the degree to which the actual use of a product matches the
perceived value at the time of the purchase. A customer is satisfied only if the
actual value is the same or exceeds the perceived value. Kotler defined five
levels to a product:

1. Core Benefit:

The fundamental need or want that consumers satisfy by consuming

the product or service.

2. Generic Product

A version of the product containing only those attributes or

characteristics absolutely necessary for it to function.
3. Expected Product

The set of attributes or characteristics that buyers normally expect and

agree to when they purchase a product.

4. Augmented Product

Inclusion of additional features, benefits, attributes or related services

that serve to differentiate the product from its competitors.

5. Potential Product

All the augmentations and transformations a product might undergo

in the future.

Kotler noted that much competition takes place at the Augmented

Product level rather than at the Core Benefit level or, as Levitt put it: 'New
competition is not between what companies produce in their factories, but
between what they add to their factory output in the form of packaging,
services, advertising, customer advice, financing, delivery arrangements,
warehousing, and other things that people value.'

6. Marketing concepts are the philosophies that guide the policies and their
practice in an organization – Discuss.

7. Explain he various steps involved in personal selling.

Personal selling is a skill that managers can teach employees as part

of a regular in-service training program. Not only will effective selling
increase profitability, but it can differentiate a store from its competitors,
which are totally self service or deliver poor quality sales support to
customers.

Steps are as follows:-

Step 1. Prospecting and Qualifying

Step 2. Pre-approach

Step 3. Approach

Step 4. Presentation/ Demonstration

 Step 5. Handling Objections

8. Suggest suitable distribution strategy for the following and justify your
choice:

a. Mobile phone: Mainly advertising in electronic stores and on

television. Also using print media as certain features and
specifications have to be listed. If very feature rich can be displayed
and promoted outside college campuses and business houses.

b. Packed food: Mostly can be displayed and sold in departmental stores

and malls. Could also be advertised on television.

c. Soft drinks: Can be mainly advertised on television and print media.

Use of brand ambassadors like movie stars and sports celebrities can
help.

d. Baby food : Can use television exposure to promote as well as print

media mostly in the form of mothers and maternity magazines

9. Discuss the problems and prospects of rural marketing in India.

 Rural Markets are defined as those segments of overall market of any
economy, which are distinct from the other types of markets like stock
market, commodity markets or Labor economics. Rural Markets constitute
an important segment of overall economy, for example, in the INDIA, out of
about 3000 countries, around 2000 counties are rural, that is, non-urbanized,
with population of 55 million. Typically, a rural market will represent a
community in a rural area with a population of 2500 to 30000

Strategies

Dynamics of rural markets differ from other market types, and

similarly rural marketing strategies are also significantly different from the
marketing strategies aimed at an urban or industrial consumer. This, along
with several other related issues, have been subject matter of intense
discussions and debate in countries like India and China and focus of even
international symposia organized in these countries.

Rural markets and rural marketing involve a number of strategies, which

include:

• Client and location specific promotion

• Joint or cooperative promotion.
• Bundling of inputs
• Management of demand
• Developmental marketing
• Unique selling proposition (USP)
• Extension services
• Business ethics
• Partnership for sustainability

Present position

Rural markets, as part of any economy, have untapped

potential. There are several difficulties confronting the effort to fully explore
rural markets. The concept of rural markets in India, as also in several other
countries, like China, is still in evolving shape, and the sector poses a variety
 of challenges, including understanding the dynamics of the rural markets and
strategies to supply and satisfy the rural consumers.

Problems

However rural marketing does still to this day face certain hurdles like:

• Exploitation by Landlords and money lenders

• Govt. policies
• Taxation policies
• Pressure of competition by urban and modern markets
• Lack of sources of capital
• Poor infrastructural facilities
• Outdated laws regarding rural marketing and slow decision making
patterns.

10. Describe the process of consumer’s buying decision making.

Six Stages to the Consumer Buying Decision Process (For complex

decisions). Actual purchasing is only one stage of the process. Not all decision
processes lead to a purchase. All consumer decisions do not always include all
6 stages, determined by the degree of complexity.

The 6 stages are:

• Problem Recognition (awareness of need)--difference between the
desired state and the actual condition. Deficit in assortment of products.
Hunger--Food. Hunger stimulates your need to eat.

Can be stimulated by the marketer through product information--did not

know you were deficient? I.E., see a commercial for a new pair of shoes,
stimulates your recognition that you need a new pair of shoes.

• Information search--

Internal search, memory.

External search if you need more information. Friends and relatives

(word of mouth). Marketer dominated sources; comparison shopping;
public sources etc.

A successful information search leaves a buyer with possible

alternatives, the evoked set.

• Evaluation of Alternatives--need to establish criteria for evaluation,

features the buyer wants or does not want. Rank/weight alternatives or
resume search. May decide that you want to eat something spicy, indian
gets highest rank etc.

If not satisfied with your choices then return to the search phase. Can you
think of another restaurant? Look in the yellow pages etc. Information
from different sources may be treated differently. Marketers try to
influence by "framing" alternatives.

• Purchase decision--Choose buying alternative, includes product, package,

store, method of purchase etc.
• Purchase--May differ from decision, time lapse between 4 & 5, product
availability.

• Post-Purchase Evaluation--outcome: Satisfaction or Dissatisfaction.

Cognitive Dissonance, have you made the right decision. This can be
reduced by warranties, after sales communication etc.

After eating an Indian meal, may think that really you wanted a Chinese
meal instead.

Report By: - Vineet. M. Ganvi.

For: - JKITM (MARKETING MANAGEMENT)