Chapter one

Introduction to Marketing
Information
System
By: hailemariam kebede/PhD/
Marketing
Information System
• A marketing informationsystem
(MkIS) is:
• Designed specifically for managingthe
marketing aspects of a business
• Intended to bring together disparate
items of data into a coherent body of
information
Marketing
Information System
• A marketing information system
(MkIS) is a continuing and interacting
structure of people, equipment and
procedures to gather, sort, analyze,
evaluate and distribute needed,timely
and accurate information for use by
marketing decision makers toimprove
their marketing planning,
implementation, and control.
Marketing
Information System
• Assess the informationneeds
• Develop needed information
• Analyze information
• Distribute information
Features of
Marketing Information System
• Continuous System
• Permanent and continuous systemof
collecting information

• Basic Objective
• To provide the right informationat the
right time to the right people to help
them take right decisions
Features of
Marketing Information System
• Computer-Based System
• Uses computer, so is up-to-date and
accurate

• Future-Oriented
• Provides information for solvingfuture
problems
Features of
Marketing Information System
• Used by all levels
• Usedby all three levels of management

• Sources
• Collects information from bothinternal
and external sources
Features of
Marketing Information System
• Collects Marketing Information
• Information about consumer
competition, marketing environment, etc.

• Helps in Decision-Making
• Supplies up-to-date and accurate
information that helps take quickand
right decisions
A. Internal Reporting System
The internal reporting systems
enable a company to always
be aware of how they
are performing as a team and what
issues may need addressing.
Marketing managers get lots of
information from the internal-records
of the company. These records
provide current information about
sales, costs, inventories, cash flows
and account receivable and payable.
Many companies maintain their
computerized internal records.
The internal records that are of
immediate value to marketing
decisions are: orders received,
stockholdings and sales invoices.
Most marketing managers use
internal records and reports regularly,
especially for making day-to-day
planning, implementation and control
decisions.
Internal records information consists
of information gathered from sources
within the company to evaluate
marketing performance and to detect
marketing problems and
opportunities.
B. Marketing Intelligence
System
The marketing intelligence
systems are used to deal with the
costs of running a marketing
department and a business as a
whole. It will process all the facts
and figures delivering what needs
to be spent where and what may
be using too much money.
Itcollects information from external
sources. It provides information about
current marketing-environment and
changing conditions in the market.
This information can be easily
gathered from external sources like
magazines, trade journals,
commercial press, trade press,
census, so on.
This information cannot be collected
from the Annual Reports of the Trade
Association and Chambers
of Commerce, Annual Report of
Companies, etc. The salesmen’s
report also contains information about
market trends. It can also gather
information from Sales Force,
Dealers and Distributors, and
suppliers.
The information which is collected
from the external sources cannot be
used directly. It must be first
evaluated and arranged in a proper
order. It can be then used by the
marketing manager for taking
decisions and making policies about
marketing.
• systems allow a company to really find
out what their customers/potential
customers think of the current trends
and their views on certain items, or
polices.
• can also delve into a customer's habits in
the hope the company can spot a gap in
the market or service
• can gather quantitative andqualitative
information
• provides information to themarketing
managers
• conducted to solve specificmarketing
problems of thecompany
• a proactive search forinformation
• act as a concept or theory and a lot of
campaigns will be built with this
guidance in marketing
• tools which help the marketingmanagers
to analyze data and to take better
marketing decisions
These tools are:
• Time series sales models
• Brand switching models
• Linear programming
• Elasticity models (price, incomes, demand, supply,etc.)
• Regression and correlationmodels
• Analysis of Variance (ANOVA)models
• Sensitivity analysis
• Discounted cash flow
• Spreadsheet 'what ifmodels
Three levels of decisionmaking:

1. Strategic decisions are characteristically

one-off situations. This level of decision
making is concerned with deciding on the
objectives, resources and policies of the
organisation.
2. Control decisions deal with broad policy
issues. Such decisions are concerned
with how efficiently and effectively
resources are utilised and how well
operational units areperforming.
3. Operational decisions concern the
management of the organisation's
marketing mix. These involve making
decisions about carrying outthe "specific
tasks set forth by strategic planners and
management.
 Marketing Marketing
Information System Research
Meaning to collect, analyze systematic process
and supply relevant of collecting and
marketing analyzing
information to the information to solve
marketing managers a specific marketing
problem
Purpose to provide relevant to solve a specific
information to marketing problem.
marketing managers
and enable them to
make effective
marketing decisions
Scope Wide Narrow
 Marketing Marketing
Information Research
System
Reports gives four types provides only one
of reports namely, report called as
plan-reports, ‘MR Report’
periodic-reports,
triggered-reports
and demand reports

Orientation Future Oriented Past & Present

Oriented
Problems solve many different only deals with a
marketing problems single marketing
at one time problem at one
time
 Marketing Marketing
Information Research
System

Data collected more not collected

frequently, usually frequently
almost daily

Operation permanent and not a continuous

continuous system system.

Computers heavily based on hardly makes use

the use of of computers
computers
 MkIS helps managers to recognize
marketing trends. The changing
trends may be in respect of prices,
product design, packaging,
promotion schemes, etc.
 MkIS provides the information
necessary to develop marketing
strategy. Provides the foundation
for the development information
system-dependent e-commerce
strategies.
 Effective market planning is
required in terms of product
planning, pricing, promotion
and distribution.
 A firm has to take quick
decision for this purpose; it
requires fast flow of
information which is facilitated
by a properly designed MkIS.
 In every aspect of marketing, there
is need to make constant and
correct decisions. A properly
designed marketing information
system promptly supplies reliable
and relevant information.
 MkIS makes it possible to
tap business opportunities
as it can supply required
and reliable data.
 Marketing intelligence refers to information
of the events that are happening in the
external environment, i.e., changes in
customer tastes, expectations, competitor’s
strategies, gov’t. policies, international
environment, etc. with the help of MkIS
specialists, it is possible to collect marketing
intelligence which is vital to make effective
marketing decisions.
A firm which is well
equipped with MkIS will be
able to realize the need to
change the line of
business.
 Firms, which are largely
decentralized can gather
information which is scattered at
many centers or departments and
integrate it for effective decision
making.
 MkIS provides support for product
launches, enables the coordination of
marketing strategies, and is an integral
part of sales force automation (SFA),
customer relationship management
(CRM), and customer service systems
implementations.
 MkIS brings together many
different kinds of data,
people, equipment, and
procedures to help an
organization make better
decisions.
 MkIS can organize data
collection and store these
important data for over
several time periods.
ESSENTIAL REQUISITES OF A GOOD MKIS
Unified and centralized:
 MkIS must be unified and centralized.

Facilitate decision making:

 MkIS must facilitate decision making.

Quick and accurate information:

 MkIS must provide quick and accurate
information.
Economical:
 MkIS must be economical.
Selective:
 MkIS must be selective.
Future-oriented:
 MkIS must be forward looking i.e. future-
oriented.
Supply information regularly:
 MkIS must supply information regularly.
Use new techniques:
 MkIS must use new techniques for
collecting, analyzing, storing and supplying
information.
End of chapter one