Môi trường bên ngoài trong tiếp thị kinh doanh Các công ty thành công nhận ra tầm

quan trọng

liên tục quét (hoặc giám sát) các yếu tố môi trường bên ngoài. Cả vĩ mô và vi mô

các yếu tố môi trường bên ngoài thay đổi liên tục. Những thay đổi này tạo ra những cơ hội mới và

các mối đe dọa. Dựa trên việc phân tích các yếu tố môi trường bên ngoài và các cơ hội kết quả và

các mối đe dọa, các doanh nghiệp kinh doanh xác định mục tiêu và chiến lược của họ. Điều quan trọng
đối với một công ty kinh doanh là

hiểu rằng tất cả các yếu tố môi trường không liên quan và do đó, mỗi công ty nên xác định

các yếu tố môi trường liên quan cho hoạt động kinh doanh của mình và giám sát các yếu tố môi trường
liên quan. Không phải vậy

đầy đủ để phân tích và đo lường hiện trạng của các yếu tố môi trường liên quan. Nó được yêu cầu

ước tính hoặc dự báo trong tương lai (hoặc xu hướng) của nền kinh tế, công nghệ, nhu cầu thị trường,
chính phủ

các quy định, v.v. được thực hiện. Những dự báo này được sử dụng làm cơ sở cho việc lập kế hoạch
chiến lược và ngắn hạn

kế hoạch tiếp thị.

Khoảng thời gian để quét môi trường gần gấp đôi thời gian của một công ty

thời kỳ kế hoạch. Ví dụ, nếu một công ty kinh doanh đang phát triển một kế hoạch ngắn hạn là một năm,
thì khoảng thời gian quét môi trường là hai năm. Tương tự, nếu một công ty có kế hoạch chiến lược
trong 5 năm,

thời gian quét môi trường là mười năm.

Trách nhiệm phân tích môi trường, bao gồm cả việc dự báo các xu hướng trong tương lai nói chung là

được chia sẻ bởi bộ phận kế hoạch của công ty và các nhà quản lý cấp cao. Một số công ty kinh doanh
tìm kiếm sự giúp đỡ

từ các nhà tư vấn quản lý để lấy ý kiến chuyên gia.

Các nguồn thông tin về các yếu tố môi trường là (i) báo chí kinh doanh, (ii) ấn phẩm của chính phủ, (iii)
tạp chí thương mại, (iv) ấn phẩm chuyên môn, và (v) internet. Những ấn phẩm này

được phân bổ giữa các nhà quản lý tuyến và giám đốc điều hành kế hoạch của công ty, những người ghi
chú ngắn gọn về

các yếu tố môi trường liên quan. Những lưu ý này được thảo luận trong một nhóm các giám đốc điều
hành cấp cao để xác định

các yếu tố môi trường liên quan và các xu hướng cần theo dõi trong tương lai. Các nguồn thông tin khác
như đại diện bán hàng, khách hàng doanh nghiệp, đại lý, nhà phân phối và hiệp hội thương mại là

cũng được xem xét để thu thập thông tin về các yếu tố môi trường.
Macro Environmental Factors

These factors are as follows:

Economic Changes in economic environment needs to be monitored as it affects the willingness and

ability of business organisations to buy and sell. If business marketers serve domestic and international

markets, it would be necessary for them to examine the changes in the economic environment, both at

home and overseas markets. The various economic factors that need to be monitored are business
cycle,

purchasing power, prices, interest rates, currency rates, fiscal policies, investment, industrial production,
and so on.

It is interesting and sometimes confusing, when some of the predictions of world economy made

by different international agencies are contradicting. For instance, in its report dated Jan 11, 2007, the

United Nations predicted a deceleration (or slowing down) of the world economy in the year 2007, after

three straight years of growth. However, International Monetary Fund (IMF) chief said on Jan 17, 2007

that global economy was in good health and predicted a strong performance of 5 per cent growth. One

must go through these reports carefully and draw conclusions based on the analysis of various factors

like oil prices, inflation and the US housing market.

If the economy shows recessionary trends, the consumers will have a lower purchasing power to buy

consumer products. As a result, due to the derived nature of industrial demand, the demand for
industrial raw materials, components, and capital goods will decrease. However, the demand for
industrial

goods and services does not get affected equally due to the change in economic conditions, and that

there is a variation in the degree of impact among various industrial products and services.

For example, during the recessionary period in the Indian economy—from 1996 to 1998, the demand for
capital goods, steel, and aluminium fell much more than other goods such as computer

software, paper, chemicals, and pharmaceutical. Hence, business marketers, marketing their goods and

services to many business market segments need to find out the degree of impact of demand recession

in their market segments.

Demographic Business firms should not fail to consider changes in demographic environment.
Because of the derived nature of industrial demand, changes in population can have an impact on the
demand for industrial goods and services. For instance, the demand for steel will increase substantially,
if population increases considerably in the emerging economies like India and China. Increased
population will need more durable products like washing machines, refrigerators, and automobiles,
which require steel for production. However, population growth is uneven, with slow rate of increase
in some countries like Sweden, U.K., and Germany, and faster rate of growth in population in countries
such as India, Mexico, and South Africa6. Business firms should collect the data on population, develop
and monitor the trends, and use this information for short-term and long-term planning.

Natural Worsening of the natural environment like air and water is one of the major anxieties. There
are major concerns about air and water pollution, depletion of ozone layer due to certain chemicals, and
shortage of water and raw materials.
Air and water pollutions have reached dangerous levels in many world cities. Business organisations
manufacturing chemicals and pesticides pose serious threats to environment due to discharge of
untreated wastewater. Governments and courts in most countries have tightened safety and
environmental
regulations to force the defaulting firms to take corrective measures. For example, Delhi High Court,
in its judgment in 1997, asked a number of factories to close down as they failed to treat the liquid
waste
discharged from their factories. According to the World Bank report7, India’s small and medium
enterprises (SMEs) contribute 70 per cent of the total industrial pollution. The report stated that
aluminium,
cement, copper and distilleries, iron and steel, leather and pesticides were the most polluting industries.
Shortage of water has already become a political issue. Limited renewable resources like food and
forests should be used wisely, otherwise they can be a major problem. Companies making products that
use scarce nonrenewable resources, such as coal, oil, zinc, silver, and platinum may face considerable
cost increases. However, such firms have excellent opportunities to develop substitute materials by
using their research and development activities. In the book “Natural Capitalism: Creating the Next
Industrial Revolution”, authors8 have asked the organizations to practice a new type of industrialism
that will not only create jobs and profits, but also save the environment.
Technological Technological developments and changes have major impact on both business buyers
and sellers. There are rapid technological changes in some of the industries such as telecommunication,
computers, and semiconductors. Technological breakthrough can affect markets by starting new
industries (e.g. computer software) and radically change (or virtually destroy) existing industries (for
example, calculators destroyed slide-rule industry).
Rapid changes in technology are forcing business firms to (i) recognise limit to their existing
technologies, (ii) know which new technologies are emerging, and (iii) decide when to incorporate new
technologies in their products. There is also a need for working like a team among marketing, R&D,
production engineering, and manufacturing for responding effectively to the technological changes.
Governmental, Political and Legal As the global competition increases, business marketers have
to understand the actions of their governments as well as those of the governments around the world.
The major functions of the governments are to protect the consumers, companies, and the society from
unfair business practices and guide their industries towards growth. These functions are achieved by the
governments through political and legal systems.
For example, the government of India had served notices to the domestic pharma company Cipla
to pay a 193 Crore (a 1930 million), for overcharging of five drugs between August 2003 and March
2006. The company had challenged the inclusion of these drugs within the ambit of price control.
Supreme Court permitted the government to recover 50 per cent of the amount they claimed to have
been
overcharged.
Another illustration of protecting small and tiny enterprises from large companies is the bill passed
by the Indian Parliament, called micro, small and medium enterprises development (MSMED), in June
2006. As per this act, large companies that source inputs from small and tiny enterprises will now have
to pay up within 45 days of procurement, irrespective of any written agreement between the two. Large
scale enterprises will have to pay an interest rate of about 18 per cent on delayed payments to micro,
small, and medium enterprises.

Business marketers are benefited by anticipating and influencing government actions. Before

governmental regulations and laws are enacted, the captains of industries can influence governmental

actions by discussions with the concerned ministry through industry associations like Confederation of

Indian Industries (CII) and Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industries (FICCI).

Political environment includes the stability of governments, their policies towards business and
international trade. In many countries, protection against foreign imports is brought about through use
of

import tariffs or imposition of artificial barriers or enacting anti-dumping laws.

For instance, the US imposed unilaterally Super 301 sanctions against certain countries on the

pretext of ‘human rights violations’. In India, Competition Act, 2002 was passed by the parliament,

replacing Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices (MRTP) Act. The Competition Commission of

India (CCI) is implementing the competition law. CCI Chairman expressed in an interview that the

enforcement of the provisions regarding anti-competitive agreements and abuse of dominance would

promote competition in the market and would benefit companies as well as the ultimate consumer. On

August 17, 2011, CCI has slapped a penalty of a 630 crore (US $115 million) on a real estate company

for unfair practices, abuse of market dominance and a brutal disregard of consumer rights relating to a

housing project. One more example is: Japan imposes 15–20 per cent commodity tax on sales in Japan,

which is waived for exports from Japan.

Public It consists of various groups who help or hinder a business organisation’s effort to serve its

markets. Some of these groups are press, institutional investors (or financial institutions), shareholders,

banks, public interest groups, and general public.

Press (mass media) is capable of publishing news that can help or hinder the reputation of a business

firm. For example, Anubhav Plantation company received negative publicity in the press when the
company’s senior executives were arrested for not honouring the payment commitments to its
customers. Similarly, in 1998, the Unit Trust of India (UTI) received negative publicity in the press and TV
for

its most popular “US-64” scheme.

Institutional investors like Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) and UTI who buy shares of a firm, exert

influence on the management of the firm if they are not satisfied with certain policies of the firm. For

instance, in January 1999, Tata group’s proposal to enhance its shareholding in ACC (Asbestos Cement

Company) through preferential issue was successfully opposed by domestic financial institutions led

by Industrial Development Bank of India (IDBI) to protect the rights of minority shareholders.

Business firms consider the objections or interests of public interest groups while developing firms’

long-term objectives and strategies. The public interest groups seek to protect the ecological
environment (such as air and water), women’s rights, or child labour and other such interests. For
example,

Cogentrix Power Project in Karnataka State had to face stiff resistance from the environment protection

groups. Many tannery units in Kanpur faced protests against child labour from public interest groups.

The general public does react, when a large population gets affected. For example, when the industrial
accident occurred at Union Carbide in Bhopal due to the leakage of deadly methyl isocyanate, the

company had to wind up its operations in India and pay compensation to the victims of the gas tragedy.

Cultural and Social The impact of changes in cultural and social environment is felt more for consumer
markets than business markets. However, if business firms decide to have joint ventures with

foreign companies or decide to set up factories abroad, there is a need to study the cultural and social

aspects of the societies in those countries to ensure better compatibility.

Strategies for Managing External Environment

Effective use of marketing mix-variables such as product, place, price, and promotion are not adequate

for the survival and success of business firms in a dynamic external environment. The first step is the

continuous gathering and monitoring of information on the relevant external environmental factors.

This is done by (a) collecting information on customers and competitors through marketing and field

sales persons and use of the internet, (b) analysing trade and government publications, and (c) carrying

out marketing research and economic forecasting within or through external market research agencies.

These actions would help the company to (i) understand changes in customer needs, (ii) monitor
competitors’ actions and strategies, (iii) identify technological innovations, (iv) consider the changes
taking
place in governmental, political, and legal factors, (v) identify changes in demand of major customers

and the total market, and (vi) consider the changes in any other relevant environmental factors. A
continuous monitoring of the external environment will spin out new opportunities and threats which
need

to be identified. The following three strategies are available to respond proactively and creatively for

managing the external environment.

Independent Strategies These are the independent efforts of a business firm by using its own

resources (or strengths). There are several examples of independent strategies depending upon an
organisation’s initiative and strengths. To overcome a competitor’s strategy of price cuts, a firm pursues

an aggressive pricing by undercutting the competitor’s prices, or differentiates its product superiority

through product development. To meet the public concern for ecological environmental protection, a

firm carries out environmental controls and creates awareness through corporate image advertising. To

take care of political or legal regulation on protection to public sector firms or government undertakings,
it uses the influence (lobbying ) of local MLAs or MPs. If the demand for its products is too inadequate in
a certain geographical area in relation to the cost of marketing, a firm may decide to demarket

(not to market) in that area.

An example of an independent strategy can be given about the Aditya Birla group, which decided

to set up viscose staple fibre (VSF) plant in China, when its group company Grasim’s Nagda plant was

faced with water scarcity. This strategy helped the group to cater to the huge demand for VSF from the

Chinese market9.

Another illustration of independent strategies to overcome global competition is by Indian software

service suppliers, who added consulting expertise to meet the changing needs of their clients10. Infosys
set up a consulting subsidiary, called Infosys Consulting, and roped in senior professionals from

leading consulting firms. Wipro acquired US-based, NerveWire, a mid-size business and IT consulting

firm. Similarly, Cognizant acquired Fathom Solutions, a consulting company and Mphasis group acquired
Princeton Consulting. Thus, Indian IT companies have also got on to the turf of IBM, Accenture,

and others, who offer technology and business solutions to meet their clients’ needs.

Cooperative Strategies In these strategies, a business firm cooperates with other firms, industries,

or groups in the environment. For example, industry associations such as Confederation of Indian

Industries (CII) and Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industries (FICCI) protect the

Indian industries from unfair political or legal regulations of the government. For instance, in 1993/94,

Bombay Club at Mumbai and Windsor Club at Bangalore were formed by certain leading business
firms to protect Indian industries from unfair business practices, tariff differences, and to decide how

to meet and survive international competition as a result of the liberalisation policies of the Indian

Government. The Japanese firms, while competing fiercely in the domestic market, cooperate with
thesame competing firms while exporting to foreign markets. Some Indian firms operate with implicit

or explicit understanding on pricing with competing firms, and thus form price syndicates or cartels,

which is illegal.

Both Yahoo and Microsoft’s internet unit, MSN, compete and also follow cooperative strategies (i.e.

co-opetition), in order to take advertising revenues away from more established media, including
television. Both web portals have a common goal of increasing their online advertising share of the total

advertising budgets of large advertisers.

Strategic Planning A business firm carries out strategic planning by identifying long-term product/

markets, based on its forecasts of external environment, analysis of its strengths and weaknesses, and

its long-term objectives and goals. This would help a business firm to take strategic decisions on
diversifying through “backward”, “forward” or “horizontal” integration or by expanding its markets from

domestic to international markets.

In backward integration, a company seeks ownership or control of its supply system. For instance,
Crompton Greaves went for backward integration by setting up its manufacturing plant for steel

stampings, which were earlier supplied by GKW.

In forward integration, a company seeks ownership or increased control of its distribution systems.

A material handling company, for example, opened its own branches with warehousing facilities, in

place of its agents, in order to improve customer service.

In horizontal integration, a company seeks ownership or control of some of its competitors. For

instance, VIP company reduced competition by acquiring the management control of some of its
competing firms.