Principlesofmarketing.com

Chapter Seven

Marketing High Technology

High Technology

“Sophisticated knowledge associated with some field of endeavor” Thus, the computer industry is not all ‘hi-tech’ Nor is the coal industry all ‘lo-tech’ However, almost all industries have some aspect of

them which is ‘hi-tech’ This chapter is devoted to those aspects of

industries that are ‘hi-tech’ or require sophisticated knowledge to understand and manage

Revisiting ‘market-driven’ versus ‘sales-driven’ and ‘technology-

driven’

Market-driven management requires that the firm constantly gather market intelligence and apply it to improve the company’s ability to meet customer needs

Technology-driven is the philosophy that if the firm strives to build the ‘highest tech’ products around, then success will follow

(Production or technology driven emphasis - ‘build a better mousetrap and the world will beat a path to your door’) – what benefits are people seeking in a mousetrap?

Characteristics of sales- driven organizations

     The top executive for marketing has the title: Vice-President of Sales and Marketing

     The marketing department has no marketing research personnel assigned to it

     Sales personnel have little or no input into what products are developed

     Sales personnel are paid primarily on a commission structure with little incentive to develop long-term customer relationships

Characteristics of Technology-driven organizations

  Marketing Department has little or no input regarding what products are developed

The only programs for marketing research are visits to present customers by R&D personnel and field reports filed by salespeople resulting in context specific information only

  No sophisticated technologies are used to uncover present and potential customer needs

  Marketing’s primary role is seen as either ‘sell what we make’ or ‘find someone to buy what we make’

Characteristics of Market-driven organizations

Marketing is a partner with other functions in uncovering and serving customer needs

Sophisticated marketing research programs operate on a continuous basis targeted at understanding customer needs better and monitoring the competitive environment

Marketing’s primary role is seen as gathering up-to-date, valuable market intelligence

Marketing concept (also known as ‘Customer as Monarch’)

Meet customer needs and provide customer satisfaction above all things

Meet organizational goals through serving customers

Coordinate marketing activities Monitor and perform better than

competing organizations

How to identify ‘benefits sought’

Use creativity techniques and ask yourself: How could things be better in this product or

service area? In a fantasy world, what would I do to improve

the satisfaction customers gain by being associated with my organization?

Use these ideas to form ways to improve

Quality Function Deployment

This is a method used to translate benefits into features

For example, the benefit of feeling a car is ‘safe and solid’ is partially a function of how the door sounds when you close it. A solid ‘clunk’ gives most people a feeling of quality and security whereas a tinny, ‘clink’ gives you more a feeling of low-quality, shoddy workmanship.

Try it with the doors on your car! Be sure to visit the website indicated in your book and

read the article, okay?

Exercise in understand market-driven, sales-driven, and

technology-driven

Most of you are presently working – therefore, identify characteristics of your workplace (or the organization for which you presently work) that are representative of each of the three orientations we talked about today: market-driven, sales-driven, and technology-driven.

Some final comments

All individual work will be handed back next week (I appreciate your patience)

Informal mid-term evaluation will be this week