Page 64 - DMGT408DMGT203_Marketing Management

Unit 2: Understanding the Marketplace and Consumers

Public constitute a major force in the micro environment and marketers have to very carefully Notes
study their opinion, values, beliefs and attitudes in order to design a proper marketing
strategy for goods carefully tailored to meet the needs of the target consumer segment.
Other techniques to analyse the market place include consumer analysis, market analysis,
competitor analysis and company analysis.

A database refers to the collection of comprehensive information about customers and
prospects such as demographic and psychographic profiles, products and services they
buy, and purchase volumes, etc., arranged in a manner that is available for easy access and
retrieval. Internal database is the most basic starting point in developing a strong MIS.
Census Bureau is one key source of information regarding various demographic variables.
Internet is a source of extensive data on almost any subject. Different types of published
data, research findings, statistics, and figures are available either free or on payment.

The research process includes a series of steps, which the researcher has to undertake. The
research design is selected depending on the purpose of study. For all descriptive
information, quantitative research designs are helpful and if the purpose is to generate
new ideas, then qualitative research techniques can be used.

2.9 Keywords

Customer Analysis: It involves Collection and evaluation of data associated with customer needs
and market trends, through customer focus groups, customer satisfaction measurement etc.

Database: It is the collection of data arranged for ease and speed of search and retrieval.
Data Mining: It is sorting through data to identify patterns and establish relationships.
Data Warehousing: It is termed as a subject-oriented, integrated, time-variant and non-volatile
collection of data in support of management’s decision making process.
Environment Analysis: It is Evaluation of the possible or probable effects of external forces and
conditions on an organisation’s survival and growth strategies.

Macro Environment: It involves the Factors that influence a company’s or product’s development
but that are outside of the company’s control.
Micro Environment: This is also known as the task environment and affects business and
marketing at the daily operating level.
MIS: It refers to a programme for managing and organizing information gathered by an
organisation from various internal and external sources.
2.10 Review Questions

1. Suppose you are a businessman dealing in garments. How will demographic and cultural
factors affect your business?
2. Discuss the impact on consumption patterns in the Indian society due to cultural changes
as a result of latter day marketing activities.
3. Did the environment influence marketing activities of some foreign companies in India?
How did they respond?

4. A bank wants to know what its customers think about its customer service and waiting
line management. Discuss each step that the bank would have to undertake to ascertain
the same (research process) in brief.

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