Chapter 11

Unique Marketing
Issues
Bruce R. Barringer
R. Duane Ireland

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 Chapter Objectives
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1. Explain the purpose of market segmentation.

2. Describe the importance of selecting a target market.
3. Explain why it’s important for a start-up to establish
a unique position in its target market.
4. Illustrate the two major ways in which a company
builds a brand.
5. Identify the four components of the marketing mix.

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 Chapter Objectives
2 of 2

6. Contrast cost-based pricing and value-based

pricing.
7. Explain the difference between advertising and
public relations.
8. Explain how firms use social media to strengthen
their brand and promote their products.
9. Weigh the advantages and disadvantages of selling
direct versus selling through intermediaries.
10. Describe the seven-step sales process.

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 Selecting a Market and Establishing a
Position in the Market
• Important Questions That All Start-ups Must Ask
– In order to succeed, a new firm must address this important
issue: Who are our customers and how will we appeal to
them?
– A well-managed start-up approaches this query by
following a three-step process:
• Segmenting the market
• Selecting a target market
• Establishing a unique position

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The Process of Selecting a Target Market
and Positioning Strategy

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 Market Segmentation

• Involves studying a firm’s

industry and determining the
different target markets in that
industry.
Segmenting the • Markets can be segmented in
Market a number of different ways,
including
- Product type
- Geography (city, state, region)
- Demographic variables

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 Selecting a Target Market

• Once a firm has segmented

the market, a target market
must be chosen.
• The market must be sufficiently
Target Market
attractive and the firm must have
the capability to serve it.
• By focusing on a clearly defined
market, a firm can become an
expert in that market and then
be able to provide customers a
high level of service.
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 Establishing a Unique Position
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• After selecting a target market, the

firm’s next step is to establish a
“position” within the market that
differentiates it from its rivals.
Positioning
• A “position” is the part of a market
that the firm is claiming as its own.
• A firm establishes a unique
position in its customers’ minds
by drawing attention to two or
three of the product’s attributes.

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 Establishing a Unique Position
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• Positioning (continued)
– Firms often develop a “tagline” to reinforce the position
they have staked out in their market, or a phrase that is used
consistently in a company’s literature and thus becomes
associated with the company.
– An example is Nike’s familiar tagline, “Just do it.”
• The beauty of this simple three-word expression is that it applies
equally to a 21-year-old triathlete and a 65-year-old mall walker.

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Taglines—Developed to Reinforce a
Firm’s Positioning Strategy

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 Branding
1 of 4

• Establishing a Brand
– A brand is the set of attributes—positive or negative—that
people associate with a company.
• These attributes can be positive, such as trustworthy, dependable,
or easy to deal with.
• Or they can be negative, such as cheap, unreliable, or difficult to
deal with.
– The customer loyalty a company creates through its brand
is one of its most valuable assets.
• Brand Management
– Some companies monitor the integrity of their brands
through a program called “brand management.”

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Branding
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What’s a Brand?

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 Branding
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• Establishing a Brand
– So how does a firm establish a brand?
• On a philosophical level, a firm must have meaning in its
customers’ lives. It must create value—something for which
customers are willing to pay.
• On a more practical level, brands are built through a number of
techniques, including advertising, public relations, sponsorships,
support of social causes, and good performance.
• A firm’s name, logo, Web site design, Facebook page, and even its
letterhead are part of its brand.

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 Branding
4 of 4

• Power of a Strong Brand

– Ultimately, a strong brand can be a very powerful asset for
a firm.
– Over 50% of consumers say that a known and trusted brand
is a reason to buy a product.
– A brand allows a company to charge a price for its products
or services that is consistent with its image.
– A successful brand can increase the market value of a
company by 50% to 75%.

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The Four Ps of Marketing for New Ventures

Product Price

Marketing Mix

Promotion Place (or

distribution)

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 Product

• Product
– Is the good or service a firm offers to its target market.
– The initial rollout is one of the most critical times in the
marketing of a new product.
– All firms face the challenge that they are unknown and that
it takes a leap of faith for the first customers to buy their
products.
• Some start-ups meet this challenge by using reference accounts.

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 Core Product vs. Actual Product

Core Product Actual Product

The product itself, such The product plus all the

as an antivirus software attributes that come
program. with it such as quality
level, features, design,
packaging, and
warranty.

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 Price

• Price
– Price is the amount of money consumers pay to buy a
product.
– The price a company charges for its products sends an
important message to its target market.
• For example, Oakley positions its sunglasses as innovative, state-
of-the-art products that are both high quality and visually
appealing.
• This position in the market suggests a premium price that Oakley
charges.
– Most entrepreneurs use one of two methods to set the price
for their products, as shown on the next slide.

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 Core Product vs. Actual Product

Cost-Based Pricing Value-Based Pricing

The list price is The list price is

determined by adding a determined by
markup percentage to a estimating what
product’s cost. consumers are willing
to pay for a product.

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 Promotion

• Promotion
– Refers to the activities the firm takes to communicate the
merits of its product to its target market.
– There are several common activities that entrepreneurs use
to promote their products and services.
• Advertising
– Advertising is making people aware of a product or service
in hopes of persuading them to buy it.

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 Pluses and Minuses of Advertising
Pluses

• Raise customer awareness of a product.

• Explain a product’s comparative features and benefits.
• Create associations between a product and a certain lifestyle.
Minuses

• Low credibility.
• The possibility that a high percentage of people who see the ad
will not be interested.
• Message clutter.
• Relative costliness compared to other forms of promotion.
• Intrusiveness.
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Steps Involved in Putting Together an
Advertisement

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 Google AdWords and AdSense Program
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• AdWords
– Allows advertisers to buy keywords on the Google home
page.
– Triggers text-based ads to the side of (and sometimes
above) search results when the keyword is used.
– The program includes local, national, and international
distribution.
– Advertisers pay a certain amount per click.
– Advertisers benefit because they are able to place their ads
in front of people who are already searching for
information about their product.

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 Google AdWords and AdSense Program
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• AdSense
– Allows advertisers to buy ads that will be shown on other
Web sites instead of Google’s home page.
– Google selects sites of interest to the advertiser’s
customers.
– Advertisers are charged on a pay-per-click or a per-
thousand impression basis.
– Advertisers benefit because the content of the ad is often
relevant to the Web site.
– Web site owners benefit by using the service to monetize
their Web site.

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 Public Relations

• Public Relations
– One of the most cost effective ways to increase the
awareness of the products of a company is through public
relations.
– Public relations refer to efforts to establish and maintain a
company’s image with the public.
– The major difference between public relations and
advertising is that public relations is not paid for—directly.

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 Public Relations Techniques

Traditional media
Press release
coverage

Social media Articles in industry

coverage press and periodicals

Blogging Monthly newsletter

Civic, social, and community

involvement

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 Social Media

• Social Media
– Consists primarily of blogging and connecting with
customers and others through social networking sites like
Facebook and Twitter.
• Blogging
– The idea behind blogs is that they familiarize people with a
business and help build an emotional bond between a
business and its customers.
• Facebook and Twitter
– Businesses establish a presence on Facebook and Twitter to
build a community around their products and services.
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 Other Promotions Techniques

Viral Marketing Guerrilla Marketing

Facilitates and A low-budget approach

encourages people to to marketing that relies
pass along a marketing on ingenuity,
message about a cleverness, and surprise
particular product or rather than traditional
service techniques

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 Place (or Distribution)

• Place
– Encompasses all the activities that move a firm’s product
from its place of origin to the consumer.
– The first choice a firm has to make regarding distribution is
whether to sell its products directly to consumers or
through intermediaries (such as wholesalers and retailers).
– Within most industries, both choices are available, so the
decision typically depends on how a firm believes its target
market wants to buy its product.

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 Selling Direct Vs. Selling Through an
Intermediary
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Approach to Description
Distribution

Selling Many firms sell direct to the customer, maintaining

Direct control of the distribution and sales process.

Selling Through Other firms sell through intermediaries and pass off
Intermediaries their products to wholesalers who place them in retail
outlets to be sold.

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Selling Direct Vs. Selling Through an
Intermediary
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 Sales Process
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• Sales Process
– A firm’s sales process (or sales funnel) depicts the steps it
goes through to identify prospects and close sales.
– A formal sales process involves a number of identifiable
steps.
• Importance of Process
– Some companies simply wing it when it comes to sales,
which isn’t recommended.
– It’s much better to have a well thought-out approach to
prospecting customers and closing sales.

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Sales Process
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 Sales Process
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• Usefulness of Sales Process

– Mapping the sales process in the manner shown on the
previous slide provides a standard method for a firm’s
employees to use, and provides a starting point for careful
analysis and continuous improvement.
– Often, when companies lose an important sale they’ll find
that an important step in the sales process was missed or
mishandled.
– Having a well thought-out sales process, along with
appropriate follow-through, can dramatically improve a
company’s sales performance.

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