MARKETING FOR NEW

FIRMS IN COMPARISON
WITH MAJOR INDUSTRY
PLAYERS

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION

1
COMPONENTS OF MARKETING

MARKETING MANAGEMENT PHILOSOPHIES

DEFINATION OF; A BRAND
BRAND SPONSORSHIP

FOREIGN MARKET ENTRY MODES

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INTRODUCTION

This is a research paper based on marketing and branding. It is aimed at helping new firms to
choose their marketing strategy with examples of what other companies have done to earn their
success. It contains both book view and personal view.
Marketing is what the whole company does to achieve customer preferences and as a result
achieving its own goals. Marketing is composed of many elements from numerous subjects,
areas and disciplines. For instance, economics, sociology, psychology, statistics, mathematics,

politics and law all these affect marketing in one form or another. Marketing affects each and
every one of us each moment of our lives even though we may not necessarily be conscious
about it. Each and every moment in our lives we are being marketed to in one form or another.
According to the American Marketing society (AMA) 1948 marketing is the performance of
business activities directed towards an incident to the flow of goods and service from producer to
consumer/user (Clankie 2002). It involves all the activities involved in getting goods of all
kinds including services from the hands of the producer to the hands of the consumer all the
business steps through which goods progress on their way to final consumption is the concern of
marketing. Marketing may be with the help of a diagram being represented as shown below.
(Pride & Ferrell 2008)

market (a collection of
buyers) will take what
the industry ofers in
exchange for money
and will give feedback
about what they think
of the goods ofered.

industry( a collection of
sellers) ofers goods
and services and
communicates about it
to the market.

Marketing has developed greatly in the recent past to separate disciplines that is even being
taught in universities. But the question is when did marketing really come into existence? The
transfer of goods from one person to another was probably one of the earliest social acts.
Whether through violence or barter, this transfer established that few people can satisfy their
desire all alone. The inability to produce everything desired alone. As society grows complex so
does the transfer of goods (Clankie 2002). As society and production expanded so did the
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limits of trade the range of goods and distance between traders, it became difficult for producers
to locate each and arrange mutually satisfactory exchanges without the help of middle men
(Lodish., Morgan & Archambeau (2007). The middle men in bringing together interested
parties must perform a variety of functions which amount to marketing.
Marketing therefore is made up of such physical activities as transporting, distributing, storing
and selling goods and of decisions which must be reached by individuals or groups who want to
move goods from production to use. Marketing involves understanding the customer
circumstances and attitudes that determine why certain people want certain products. Due to
marketing trends, activities and organizations are constantly changing and developing. In the role
of bringing together interested parties. The intermediary may also be involved in grading,
financing, assembling, packaging, refining or even altering the form of goods. (Lodish.,
Morgan & Archambeau 2007)

A large portion of the population in many countries is involved in marketing activities. E.g. in
West-Germany manufacturing and marketing activities of retail and wholesale trade account for
a third of the national income, while 25% of the workforce is engaged in fulltime marketing
activities.
Contribution of marketing is a matter of controversy among economist. They consider activities
such as refining, transporting, assembling and packaging productive while they consider sorting ,
commissions and merchandising activities parasitic and of no importance or of little value to
society.
If marketing unnecessary raise the cost of goods above the competitors price the product will be
priced out of the market. From the recent researches, it has been discovered that marketing
activities account for more than half of the cost of the product to the consumer.
Marketing involves giving up and simultaneously receiving something of value.
Marketing as an exchange process produces activities such as robbing stealing, begging and
production for own consumption (Clankie 2002). Buyers have a multitude of needs and wants
but only a limited income to satisfy their needs and wants.
Increasingly marketing process is also being applied to non-business situations. E.g. politicians
and political parties have to market them to voters. Job seeking individuals have to market
themselves to prospective employers and different religions to prospective followers.
COMPONENTS OF MARKETING
a) Controllable variables: activities or decisions of which a marketing executive can
manipulate to achieve marketing objectives. E.g. product planning, pricing,
distribution, promotion and marketing research.
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b) Non-controllable variables: marketing does not take place in a vacuum there are
non-controllable variables or macro-environmental factors which either facilitate
or hinder the activities of marketers. E.g. economic, legal, geographical, social,
competition and technological environments. These positively and negatively
influence the degree of freedom an individual marketer has in making decisions
on the product, price, place, and promotion variable.
IMPORTANCE OF MRKETING
How could a country without marketing be? People would not enjoy
products such as those marketed by different marketers. E.g. East African
Industries (Kimbo, Blue band, &OMO), EABL
It is through marketing that products find their way to the international
markets. E.g. coffee, tea,
Marketing raises the peoples living standards
Marketing creates employment many people earn a living by performing
marketing activities.
Marketing is a source of information.
MARKETING MANAGEMENT PHILOSOPHIES
The term philosophy refers to management attitude, orientation or state of mind as far as
marketing management practice is concerned. (Pride & Ferrell 2008)
There are five philosophies
1. Production concept: this is commonly practiced in developing countries where their
economies are characterized by shortages.
2. Product concept: marketers assume that consumers will buy products of high
quality(good things sell themselves)
3. Selling concept: marketers contends that consumers are not likely to purchase enough of
the firms produce unless some selling effort is applied
4. Marketing concept: this orientation believes that all marketing decisions should start by
understanding the target consumers and then work backwards to the organization.
5. Social marketing concept: the marketer is not only concerned with satisfying consumer
needs but also the welfare of the society in the long run. A marketer should consider the
societal consequences of his activities. E.g. an alcoholic company should inform the
consumers of the consequences of alcohol.
.
PERSONAL VIEW
Marketing is the process of making a manufactures product known and convincing
prospective customers why it is the best product. Marketing has a great impact on a
business/organization especially on their sales and profitability. It must work together
with organizational departments and cannot operate in isolation marketing helps to plan
the production schedule and plan financial budgets, it also helps human resource to plan
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labored conduct research and development in the organization. Marketing aims at

customer needs as opposed to goods themselves. (Lodish., Morgan & Archambeau
(2007)

It gets the word out as it creates awareness of the product leading to growth and success
of the organization. It ensures that the organizations products are known by both
prospective and existing customers. Sales increase as the word spread. Marketing also
aims at winning the brand loyalty and building the organizations reputation in the
community. The word reaches customers, potential customers and other companies about
the product, services, prices although greatly desired and important, it is also expensive
especially for a start out.
Marketers in every field are always on their toes to try and outdo their competitors in
their field.
DEFINATION OF; A BRAND
A brand is a name, term, symbol, design or a combination of both which is intended to identify
the goods and services of a seller or a group of sellers and to differentiate them from those of
competitors. A brand is not a product. Its the products essence, its meaning and its direction,
and it defines its identity in time and space. (Coomber 2002)
DEFINITION; BRAND DECISION STRATEGY
Involves decisions put forward to popularize a brand
A brand name consist of words, letters or numbers which may be vocalized or pronounced e.g.
Sanyo refrigerators and are a combination of words to identify a product and also differentiate it
from other products. (Clankie 2002)
Brand mark is the part of the brand which appears in the form of a symbol, design or distinctive
coloring/lettering; could be recognized only by sight but may not be pronounceable e.g. the
symbol of a crane of Uganda Airlines
When a brand name/mark is registered and legalized it becomes a trade mark. Thus registered
brands are trademarks. Hence all trademarks are brands but not all brands are trademarks.
FUCTIONS OF BRANDING

Helps in product in product identification and gives distinctiveness to a product

It indirectly denotes the quality/standard of a product
Eliminates imitation of products
Ensures legal right on a product
Helps in advertising and packaging activities
Helps to create and sustain brand loyalty to particular products

Helps in price differentiation of products

Branding is an important decision designed to enhance the identity of product through use of
unique brand name, symbols and other distinctive measures (Coomber 2002). With the
intensive growing competition in almost all industries, strong brand establishment allow an
organizations product to stand out and avoid potential pitfalls like price wars that have befallen
many products.

WEB VIEW
Different brand decisions use to popularize a product include:
BRAND POSITIONING
The marketer can position their product in the mind of the mind of the consumer in three ways

Attribute- these are the features of a producer. The marketer can emphasize on the
product attributes and in this way he/she can position the product the in the minds of its
consumers, e.g. pears faces wash- to clean the face.
Benefit- Involves the benefits the consumer gets from the product, e.g. pears face washfor soft skin.
Beliefs and values- the marketer positions their product in the consumers mind by giving
them stronger beliefs e.g., pears face wash to make one feel attractive.

BRAND NAME SELECTION

It is very important for the company to select brand name carefully. This must be decided after
analyzing the product, its benefits and target market.
CHARACTERISTICS OF A BRAND NAME

Should be easy to pronounce, spell and remember.

Distinctive and attractive; it draws people towards it in large numbers.
Suggest products benefits.
Extendable, belief and simple.
Able to translate in other foreign languages easily.
Capable of registration.
Should be appropriate for the product.

Brand name selection is difficult hence in that case different kinds of brand names evolve in
order to reflect certain aspects of the manufacturers products.
1.
2.
3.
4.

individual brand name e.g., lux and pears

family/ umbrella brand name e.g., Amul
Company brand name e.g., Videocon
Coined name its purposely created to stress more on producers identity e.g. the word
Parlor alone is meaningless unless attached to ink or pen.
5. Arbitrary name- a name that is neither related to the product nor the process
6. Suggestive name the name suggests something about the product or its functions e.g.,
Brand Aid Sticking Plaster
7. Descriptive name- it fully describes the product e.g., Glucose Biscuit, cocoa sweets

BRAND SPONSORSHIP
Through whom should the product be sold
Can be through many ways
i.
ii.
iii.
iv.

Manufacturers brand-the product could be launched in the stores as manufacturers

brand e.g. Bajaj, Videocon, Haier.
Private brand- the manufacturer may sell the product to the seller who gives a private
name e.g. big bazaar
License brand-there may be licensed brand e.g. the seller of gents wear may use many
licensed names like Reid, Taylor, john player etc.
Co-branding/ partnership branding- two companies can join together for co-branding
e.g. Intel, HP, idea-Hdfc

d. brand development
This involves brand development through different strategies as below
i.

ii.

iii.

Line extension- introducing additional items in the given product category e.g. the
product Colgates brand development is done by its line extension by introducing
Colgate calciguard, Colgate total, Colgate gel and Colgate active
Brand extension- extending a successful brand name to more products; it is a very
strong tool in brand development and the product enter easily without any extra cost
e.g. Amul milk, Amul butter, Amul cheese, Amul bread spread etc .
Product flanking- introduction of different combination of product at different price,
package, size e.g. tea in 50gm pack, 250g pack and 1 kg pack.

iv.

v.

Multi-brand- sometimes to look up its retail shops shelves, companies generally

launch additional brand in the same category e.g. Hindu Stan liver ltd, toothpaste,
close up, peps dent.
New brand- a company introduces a new brand name in case when it is entering into a
new product category and for that product existing brand name is not suitable.

Advantages of brand name

i.

ii.

iii.

To the manufactures
a. Identifies it product and distinguishes it from other competing products,
protecting the interest of the manufacturer
b. Saves advertising cost if the brand name is popular.
c. If properly promoted, the brand name creates confidence in and good will for the
product.
d. Widens the market for the product.
To the consumers
a. It affords an easy way for purchase by easily identifying a product
b. The brand name indirectly assures certain quality by identifying its manufacturers
behind the product.
c. The brand name assures fixed prices
To the distributors
a. Widely popular brands ease the selling process and lead to a large sales
b. Helps in advertising and sales promotion programmers.
c. The distributer is able to easily find out the quick moving products.
d. Branding reduces price flexibility which in turn reduces the risk in business.
e. Special efforts need to be under taken. This reduces distribution costs and hence
the final price.

SALES PROMOTION TACTICS THAT MAY ENDANGER BRAND BUILDING

1. While brand building activities such as advertisement are very much individual creations,
sales promotions are easily replicated by competing firms.
2. Strategic activities can be thought of as building up brand loyalty. Sales promotions may
be viewed as the reverse, helping to break down competitors brand loyalty.
3. Sustained sales promotions also cause erosion of profitability, which highlights the need
to limit them. They can also engender a degree of boredom and acceptability which
undermines the impact of the sales promotion effort
4. Poorly presented sales promotion campaigns may create negative images for the brand
5. Sales promotion can seem even more attractive for their short-term impact, though
consumer can quickly become bored with one particular promotion.
BRAND EXTENSION
A brand can be stretched in the process of product development by introducing minor product
variations as in the extension of Coca-Cola line to include Diet Coke
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ADVANTAGES OF BRAND EXTENSION

When market entry barriers are high or rising, brand extension is a means
by which a company can achieve growth by capitalizing on its existing
brand assets.
It gives readymade and lower cost access to an existing distribution and
retail operation.
There may be economies in promotion and advertising, since there is no
need to build public awareness of the name.
The use of an existing brand name gives own products or new business
an instant position and reputation
The perceived quality of the existing retail offer is transferred by the
customer to the new product.
A recognizable brand name reassures a prospective purchaser that the
retail offer is well supported and hence encourages initial purchases.

(Pride & Ferrell 2008)

DISADVANTAGES OF BRAND EXTENSION

Brand extension may discourage innovation and may lead to companies

producing too many lookalike products
The brand extension may weaken the core brand by diluting its appeal.
The company may waste resources producing products which are very
similar to the original, and which may gain their sales at the expense of
the original.
There is a temptation for the company to rely on the power of the core
brand name and hence not give sufficient financial support to the
extension.
Any bad publicity for the original product will affect any other products
with the same brand name.

PERSONAL VIEW
Branding is a necessary feature of the market place because without brand management there
would be no strategies to understand the essence and position of the retail operation. The
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ultimate aim of management must be that of brand strength and immortality. These aims require
adaptation of the brand to the new and evolving demands of customers, competitive moves and
the changing market place.
Companies must however manage their brands carefully Better still, the company should carry
on internal brand building to help employees understand and be enthusiastic about brand
promise. Also it can train and encourage their distributors and dealers to serve their customers
well.
Finally the companies, institutions or organization need to periodically audit their brands
strengths and weaknesses. They should ensure that;

Their brands excel at delivering benefits that consumers truly value,

That the brand is properly positioned and their consumer touch points
support to brand positioning
Brand managers understand what brand means to customers and if the
brand receives proper sustained support.

FOREIGN MARKET ENTRY MODES

There are five strategies available for foreign market entry modes
1. Exporting.
It involves
production of goods in the home country followed by distribution in the
foreign country. This method is followed by companies entering the foreign the foreign
markets for the first time as it minimizes the financial risk.
2. Licensing.
In this method, the company wants to protect its patent and trade mark rights and license the
production of its products to another company for a royalty. This method is used when the
markets are developed for the first time or when there are export barriers. For example, parie soft
drinks are produced under license in the Middle East countries (Pride & Ferrell 2008).
3. Joint ventures
When a company does not have the capacity to analyses and handle market, it enters into
joint ventures. The main reason is to protect itself against political and economic risks. Other
reasons for joint ventures include lack of competent to handle foreign markets; wholly owned
operations are not permitted by foreign governments.
4. Manufacturing.
The company moves in this direction when it develops an international orientation. This can
happen when it has recorded substantial growth in the life cycle with respect to international
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business. This can motivate the company to invest in the foreign markets and develop its own
manufacturing marketing system (Walvis 2010).
This can reduce costs since it can enjoy duty and tax exemptions. Companies like nestle and
lever have adopted this mode of entry in many foreign markets. (Coomber 2002)

5. Contract management.
When the company does not have the requisite managerial and technical talent to exploit its
imported assets, a management contract can be signed by the company or the government to
be signed by the company with another company or the government to manage the assets
till the time it has developed the require competence.

BENEFITS OF INTERNATIONAL MARKETING

Survival.
International competition is not a matter of choice in the era of globalization. It can in
fact be the reason for survival of many firms.
The growth of overseas markets.
International markets can expand the horizons of a domestic firm beyond the national
borders, for an Indian firm, it may always be desirable to share a chunk of the large
international market.
Sales and profits.
Foreign markets contribute a large share of the revenues for many firms like IBM
Company, Coca-Cola, etc.
Diversification.
It can help products whose demand is affected by cyclical factors such as recession and
climate. In such cases, the company can diversify to consider foreign markets as a
possible solution.
Inflation and price.
Export benefits are obvious. They can bring in higher profits to the firm and help in
combating inflation domestically.
Employment and living styles.
Domestic firms scouting international markets can lead to generation of higher
employment and better standards of living. This will become more obvious in a
developing country.

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MAKING DECISIONS IN A COMPLICATED INTERNATIONAL MARKET PLACE

This discussion focuses on development data required for making decisions needed to achieve
various international marketing strategy, goals and objectives.
It is critically important today to prepare thoroughly before attempting to tackle the global
market place. There are many difficulties in finding useful data for making international
marketing decisions. (Walvis 2010)

PERSONAL VIEW ON GLOBAL MARKETING OFFERING

Global marketing offering refers to a situation where marketers go beyond their own countries or
they go international or global.
Its marketing that covers the whole world in attempt by the marketers to reach many customers
and compete with other competitors who are already in the market or those who are intending to
enter the market.
Before a marketer decides to go globally, he or she must be keen on some factors that might the
whole marketing process as below:
Understanding the lifestyle patterns in that country so that he or she can deliver products
that are affordable to all people from different social class since their income are different
i.e. there are high income earners and low income earners.
Understand the buying patterns in that particular foreign country i.e. the type of products
that are mostly sold or bought.
State of technology used in that country especially in the developed countries, the
marketer must be keen on the kind of technology lest his or her products be outdated
compared to those of his or her competitors.
Social-cultural practices must be looked into with big concern and the marketer should
ensure that the products to be delivered are in favor of the culture of the customers in that
foreign market.
NOTE:

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In global marketing, the marketer may decide to concentrate on more than one country as long
as his or her products satisfies the customers in those particular countries and the profit got
through this satisfaction of customer needs by delivery of value to them is viable. (Walvis
2010)

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