Pank9033@gmail.

com

SIKKIM MANIPAL UNIVERSITY DEPARTMENT OF DISTANCE EDUCATION ASSIGNMENT SEMESTER 2 FULL NAME ROLL NUMBER LEARNING CENTER SUBJECT NAME SUBJECT CODE BOOK ID MODULE NO : Galchar Pankaj N : 521113886 : 1771 : Marketing Management : MB0046 : B1135 : SET 1

DATE OF SUBMISSION AT THE LEARNING CENTRE : 19-June-2012 FACULTY SIGNATURE :

1|Page

Pankaj_galchar@yahoo.com

Pank9033@gmail.com
Master of Business Administration-MBA Semester 2nd MB0046 Marketing Management -4 Credits Assignment Set- 1

Q 1 Explain the various stages involved in new product development Ans:

Introduction Product: A good, service, person, place, event or organization offered to consumers to satisfy his need or want. A good is a tangible product, which can be seen and touched. These tangible items can be produced in bulk and inventoried. For example, switches from Bajaj Electricals are goods. A service is an intangible product, which requires simultaneous consumption and production. These are also perishable in nature. For example, Wockhart hospital offers heart surgery, which consumers cannot see but need to undergo when there is a pain in the heart. Hence surgery a service, is perishable in nature, needs to be produced and consumed simultaneously. New Product Development :New products are essential for existing firms to keep the momentum and for new firms they provide the differentiation. New product doesnt mean that it is absolutely new to the world. It may be a modification, or offered in a new market, or differentiated from existing products. Therefore it is necessary to understand the concept of new products. Meaning of New Products: a. They are really innovative. For example, Googles Orkut, a networking site which revolutionized social networking. In this site people can meet like minded people; they can form their own groups, share photos, comments and many more. b. They are very different from the others: Haier launches path-breaking 4-Door Refrigerators first time in India c. They are imitative; these products are not new to the market but new to the company. For example, Cavin Kare launched Ruchi pickles. This product is new to Cavin Kare but not to the market. New product development process: Stage 1 - Idea generation: New product idea can be generated either from the internal sources or external sources. The internal sources include employees of the organization and data collected from the market. The external source includes customers, competitors and supply chain members. For example, Ingersoll Rand welcomes new ideas from the General public

2|Page

Pankaj_galchar@yahoo.com

Pank9033@gmail.com
Stage 2-Idea screening: Organization may have various ideas but it should find out which of these ideas can be translated into concepts. In an interview to Times of India, Mr. Ratan Tata, chairman TATA group discussed how his idea saw many changes from the basic version. He told that he wanted to develop car with scooter engine, plastic doors etc... But when he unveiled the car, there were many changes in the product. This shows that initial idea will be changed on the basis of market requirements. Stage 3 - Concept development: the main feature or the specific desire that it caters to or the basic appeal of the product is created or designed in the concept development. Concepts used for Tata Nano car are - Concept I: Low-end 'rural car,' probably without doors or windows and with plastic curtains that rolled down, a four-wheel version of the autorickshaw Concept II: A car made by engineering plastics and new materials, and using new technology like aerospace adhesives instead of welding. Concept III: Indigenous, in-house car which meets all the environment standards Stage 4 - Concept testing: At this stage concept is tested with the group of target customers. If any changes are required in the concept or the message it will be done during this stage. Also the effectiveness is tested on a minor scale. If the concept meets the specific requirements, then it will be accepted. Stage 5 Marketing strategy development: The marketing strategy development involves three parts. The first part focuses on target market, sales, market share and profit goals. TATAs initial business plan consisted sales of 2 lakhs cars per annum. The second part involves product price, distribution and marketing budget strategies. TATAs fixed Rs 1 lakhs as the car price, and finding self employed persons who work like agent to distribute the cars. The final part contains marketing mix strategy and profit goals. Stage 6 - Business analysis: it is the analysis of sales, costs and profits estimated for a new product and to find out whether these align with the company mission and objectives. Stage 7 - Product development: during this stage, product is made to undergo further improvements, new features or improvised versions are added to the product. There is also scope for innovation and using the latest technology into the product. TATA Nano car development (Source: business world nanolution) Tried to outsource the product from all over the world. Development of mule or prototype with 20bhp. Designing the small engine Thermodynamic simulations and final engine Development of MPFI with help of Bosch. Cost reduction and negotiating with vendors. Sona Koyo and Rane Group came up with hollow steering shafts, saving cost and cutting weight. Sharda Motors and Emcon designed the exhaust system and MRF tweaked the tyres to bear extra weight on rear wheels. Stage 8 - Test marketing: is the most crucial stage for the testing products performance and its future in the market. There are certain cases where product has failed in the test marketing and had to be withdrawn. The product is introduced into the realistic market The 4Ps of marketing are tested. The cost of test marketing varies with the type of product.

3|Page

Pankaj_galchar@yahoo.com

Pank9033@gmail.com
Stage 9 - Commercialization: In this stage product is completely placed in the open market and aggressive communication program accompanied with promotion activities is carried out to support it.

4|Page

Pankaj_galchar@yahoo.com

Pank9033@gmail.com
Q 2. discuss the importance of SWOT analysis to develop effective marketing mix? Ans:Developing an effective marketing mix: Following example shows how Big Bazaar has worked out on its marketing mix in India after doing a SWOT analysis: SWOT analysis indicates the 4 specific and crucial areas by which an organization can know its position in the market. SWOT analysis can be done by any kind of organization, dealing with any kind of products or services, at any point of time and whenever it feels the need to do so. SWOT analysis is an analysis showing the Companys a) Strengths i.e. areas where it has got advantage, its core processes, its unique or successful brands, key people etc. If the company has a good reputation in the consumer market then it becomes strength of that company. b) Weaknesses i.e. areas where the company is weak or having drawbacks and which needs to be improvised or eliminated from the existing system. If the company is feeling that its sales force has too many inefficient people then it becomes the weakness of the company. c) Opportunities i.e. areas where company can establish itself and the challenges that it can accept to its benefit as well as the consumers. Suppose a company knows that there are consumers all over the world who consume companys products then there presents opportunity of expanding its activities globally. d) Threats i.e. areas where the company feels that it might be subject to pressure situations or where it is unable to pull itself from a possible crises or the threat may simply come from competitive forces or other external factors such as Recession

5|Page

Pankaj_galchar@yahoo.com

Pank9033@gmail.com
Q.3 Briefly explain the major external and uncontrollable factors that influence an organization decision making, performance and strategies Ans :Major external and uncontrollable factors that influence an organisation's decision making, and affect its performance and strategies, factors outside and enterprises control. These factors include the economic, demographics, legal, political, and social conditions, technological changes, and natural forces. Social and demographic environment is concerned with society as a whole; it covers health, media, education, minorities, women, organised labour, legal system and demographics. The biggest challenge to firms is the society's changing demands. Health : As defined by World Health Organization (WHO), it is a "State of complete physical, mental, and social well being, and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity". Health is a dynamic condition resulting from a body's constant adjustment and adaptation in response to stresses and changes in the environment for maintaining an inner equilibrium called homeostasis. My aim is not to discuss health but the impact it has on organisations. Example on how changes in social environment can affect a business Extract from bbccouk 'It's our human right to smoke' By Tom Warren BBC News, Birmingham Takings at Stechford Working Men's Club have slumped by 20,000 since the smoking ban came into force. Just before July last year members at the long established Birmingham club began working hard to improve the venue to try to retain trade from smokers. They painted the walls, laid new carpets and installed a partially covered smoking shelter equipped with heaters. But since new smoking laws came into force across England, smokers have deserted the club in droves, preferring to light up at home. 'Desperate' situation Treasurer Ray Guest, who has been a member for 23 years, said nothing had prepared the club for the huge drop in trade which he blames directly on the ban ban. Media : Communication channels through which news, entertainment, education, data, or promotional messages are disseminated. Media includes every broadcasting and narrowcasting medium such as newspapers, magazines, TV, radio, billboards, direct mail, telephone, fax, and internet. Media usage : Media (the plural of "medium") is a term referring to those organized means of dissemination of fact, opinion, entertainment, and other information, such as newspapers, magazines, outof-home advertising, cinema films, radio, television, the World Wide Web, books, CDs, DVDs, videocassettes, video games and other forms of publishing.

6|Page

Pankaj_galchar@yahoo.com

Pank9033@gmail.com
Literacy : The traditional definition of literacy is considered to be the ability to read and write, (basic literacy) or the ability to use language to read, write, listen, and speak. In modern contexts, is more of a (functional literacy), the word refers to reading and writing at a level adequate for communication, or at a level that lets one understand and communicate ideas in a literate society, so as to take part in that society. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has drafted the following definition: "Literacy is the ability to identify, understand, interpret, create, communicate and compute, using printed and written materials associated with varying contexts. Literacy involves a continuous learning to enable an individual to achieve his or her goals, to develop his or her knowledge and potential, and to participate fully in the wider society". Basically, someone who is well educated in one language and go to work at another country, cant communicate in the language of a host county, is functionally illiterate. For example In UK, there are many educated and experienced people from Eastern European countries like Poland, Czech Republic but cant speak English, as a result they end up doing menial jobs. Knowledge capital The introduction of the term is explained and justified by the unique characteristics of knowledge. Unlike physical labour (and the other factors of production), knowledge is: Expandable and self generating with use: as doctors get more experience; their knowledge base will increase, as will their endowment of human capital. The economics of scarcity is replaced by the economics of self generation. Transportable and shareable: knowledge is easily moved and shared. This transfer does not prevent its use by the original holder. However, the transfer of knowledge may reduce its scarcity value to its original possessor. Human capital refers to the stock of productive skills and technical knowledge embodied in labour. Labour competences are what make a nation more competitive and innovative.

7|Page

Pankaj_galchar@yahoo.com

Pank9033@gmail.com
Q 4. discuss the potential benefits associated with MIS. Ans:
Introduction In the earlier chapter, we saw how marketing environment is changing and presenting new opportunities and threats to an organization. The main responsibility for identifying significant changes in the market place falls on the marketing department. They are better placed and have advantages in undertaking this task because they are regularly interacting with customers and observing competition. The Marketing Departments need to develop Marketing Information Systems that provide them information about buyer wants, preferences, behavior and also about competition. They are able to do this by setting up systems and marketing related research methods to collect this valuable information which is ultimately used to make marketing decisions. A Marketing Information System is a set of procedures to collect, analyze and distribute accurate, prompt and appropriate information to different levels of marketing decision makers. Benefits of MIS : Various benefits of having a MIS and resultant flow of marketing information are given below: 1. It allows marketing managers to carry out their analysis, planning implementation and control responsibilities more effectively. 2. It ensures effective tapping of marketing opportunities and enables the company to develop effective safeguard against emerging marketing threats. 3. It provides marketing intelligence to the firm and helps in early spotting of changing trends. 4. It helps the firm adapt its products and services to the needs and tastes of the customers. 5. By providing quality marketing information to the decision maker, MIS helps in improving the quality of decision making.

8|Page

Pankaj_galchar@yahoo.com

Pank9033@gmail.com
Q 5. describe five interdependent levels of basic human needs (motivators) as propounded ny Abraham maslow.
Introduction Consumers are individuals, households or businesses who use the products. In this unit we are limiting our study to individual and households use of products for personal consumption. Consumer characteristics vary from country to country. Therefore it has become challenging task for marketer to understand the need, buying behavior of consumer before developing product and marketing program. In this section we will discuss consumer buying behavior and his/her decision making process. We will also look into the decision process of buyer for new product. Consumer motives and behavior models are analyzed to identify buying environment. Motivation: Abraham Maslows Need Hierarchy Theory: One of the most widely mentioned theories of motivation is the hierarchy of needs put forth by psychologist Abraham Maslow. Maslow saw human needs in the form of a hierarchy, ascending from the lowest to the highest, and he concluded that when one set of needs is satisfied, this kind of need ceases to be a motivator. As per his theory these needs are:

I) Physiological needs: These are important needs for sustaining the human life. Food, water, warmth, shelter, sleep, medicine and education are the basic physiological needs which fall in the primary list of need satisfaction. Maslow was of an opinion that until these needs were satisfied to a degree to maintain life, no other motivating factors will work. 9|Page

Pankaj_galchar@yahoo.com

Pank9033@gmail.com
ii) Security or Safety needs: These are the needs to be free of physical danger and of the fear of losing a job, property, food or shelter. It also includes protection against any emotional harm. iii) Social needs: Human beings are social animals. They strive to be in the society. In this type of needs people will try to satisfy their needs for affection, acceptance and friendship. iv) Esteem needs: According to Maslow, once the people satisfied with social needs. They would like to have esteem needs. This category includes power, prestige status and selfconfidence needs. It includes both internal esteem factors like self-respect, autonomy and achievements and external esteem factors such as states, recognition and attention. v) Need for self-actualization: Maslow regards this as the highest need in his hierarchy. It is the drive to become what one is capable of becoming; it includes growth, achieving ones potential and self-fulfillment. It is to maximize ones potential and to accomplish something Marketer is interested in finding what state of need hierarchy the consumer is in and what type of product to be developed to suit his or her needs. If person needs security for his car than the mileage then auto companies should highlight that benefit in their marketing communications.

10 | P a g e

Pankaj_galchar@yahoo.com

Pank9033@gmail.com
Q6. List the important differences between Consumer market and business markets Ans :Business Marketing is the practice of individuals, or organizations, including commercial businesses, governments and institutions, facilitating the sale of their products or services to other companies or organizations that in turn resell them, use them as components in products or services they offer, or use them to support their operations. Also known as industrial marketing, business marketing is also called business-to-business marketing, or B2B marketing, for short. (Note that while marketing to government entities shares some of the same dynamics of organizational marketing, B2G Marketing is meaningfully different.) Business marketing vs. consumer marketing Although on the surface the differences between business and consumer marketing may seem obvious, there are more subtle distinctions between the two with substantial ramifications. Dwyer and Tanner (2006) note that business marketing generally entails shorter and more direct channels of distribution. While consumer marketing is aimed at large demographic groups through mass media and retailers, the negotiation process between the buyer and seller is more personal in business marketing. According to Hutt and Speh (2001), most business marketers commit only a small part of their promotional budgets to advertising, and that is usually through direct mail efforts and trade journals. While that advertising is limited, it often helps the business marketer set up successful sales calls. Marketing to a business trying to make a profit (Business-to-Business marketing) as opposed to an individual for personal use (Business-to-Consumer, or B2C marketing) is similar in terms of the fundamental principals of marketing. In B2C, B2B and B2G marketing situations, the marketer must always:
successfully match the product/service strengths with the needs of a definable target

market; position and price to align the product/service with its market, often an intricate balance; and communicate and sell it in the fashion that demonstrates its value effectively to the target market.

11 | P a g e

Pankaj_galchar@yahoo.com