Showing papers on "Marketing strategy published in 2014"
TL;DR: In this article, the authors reviewed and analyzed the research publications focusing on social media in tourism and suggested a future research agenda on the phenomenon, and suggested that the research on the impact of social media on tourism is still in its infancy.
718 citations
Journal Article•
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors provide a tool for revamping the decision process at the boundaries between functions and describe how Target, Nordstrom, and other large companies have identified important decisions at the seams and increased the impact of their marketing organizations.
Abstract: The gap between marketers� aspirations and what their organizations can accomplish creates intense pressure to reshape how marketing is done. In recent years some leading companies have developed an innovative approach that focuses on the seams between marketing and the other functions it interacts with--the C-suite, IT, sales, finance, and so on. It is at these seams that communication most often breaks down and processes stall. Typically, three categories of marketing-related decisions cross organizational seams: strategy and planning; execution; and operations and infrastructure. When marketing works closely with other units to execute key decisions, it can get things done far more quickly and effectively than in the past. But divergent assumptions or a lack of alignment and shared commitment between functions can get in the way. When the authors asked people in marketing and other relevant units what roles they played in a decision, the answers were all over the map. In a classic example, both marketers and product developers in one automaker�s European division believed that they had the final say on which features to include in a new model. The authors provide a tool for revamping the decision process at the boundaries between functions and describe how Target, Nordstrom, and other large companies have identified important decisions at the seams and increased the impact of their marketing organizations.
701 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present the real challenges companies are facing going digital and present these challenges based on results of a survey among a convenience sample of 777 marketing executives around the globe, revealing that filling talent gaps, adjusting the organizational design, and implementing actionable metrics are the biggest improvement opportunities for companies across sectors.
540 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a survey of marketing managers showed that firms face internal and external pressures to adopt a digital presence in social media platforms, and marketers must focus on relationship-based interactions with their customers.
454 citations
TL;DR: Increasingly, and inevitably, all of marketing will come to resemble to a greater degree the formerly specialized area of service marketing, only with an increased emphasis on marketing analytics.
Abstract: The nature of marketing science is changing in a systematic, predictable, and irrevocable way. As information technology enables ubiquitous customer communication and big customer data, the fundamental nature of the firm's connection to the customer changes: better, more personalized service can be offered, from which service relationships are deepened, and consequently, more profitable customers grow the influence of service within the goods sector and expand the service sector in the economy. Marketing is becoming more personalized, and marketing science techniques that exploit customer heterogeneity are becoming more important. Information technology improvements also guarantee the increasing importance and usage of computationally intensive data processing and “big data.” Most importantly, these trends have already lasted for more than a century, and they will become even more pronounced in the coming years as a result of the monotonic nature of technology improvement. These changes imply a transformation of marketing science in both the topics to be emphasized and the methods to be employed. Increasingly, and inevitably, all of marketing will come to resemble to a greater degree the formerly specialized area of service marketing, only with an increased emphasis on marketing analytics.
364 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors draw attention to the emerging phenomenon of business to business (B2B) digital content marketing, offers a range of insights and reflections on good practice and contributes to theoretical understanding of the role of digital content in marketing.
Abstract: Purpose – This paper aims to draw attention to the emerging phenomenon of business to business (B2B) digital content marketing, offers a range of insights and reflections on good practice and contributes to theoretical understanding of the role of digital content in marketing. B2B digital content marketing is an inbound marketing technique and hence offers a solution to the declining effectiveness of traditional interruptive marketing techniques. Design/methodology/approach – Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 15 key informants involved in B2B content marketing in the USA, UK and France, in five industry sectors. Findings – B2B digital content marketing is an inbound marketing technique, effected through web page, social media and value-add content, and is perceived to be a useful tool for achieving and sustaining trusted brand status. Creating content that is valuable to B2B audiences requires brands to take a “publishing” approach, which involves developing an understanding of the audience’s...
307 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors review the academic literature on factors that drive social media marketing adoption in SMEs and organization and provide a balanced view of the current state of global social media adoption research.
243 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors outline the nature, effects and present status of the Social Media, underlying their role as customer empowerment agents and propose two possible Social Media marketing strategies: a passive approach focusing on utilizing the social media domain as source of customer voice and market intelligence, and an active approach i.e. engaging the social Media as direct marketing and PR channels, as channels of customer influence, as tools of personalizing products and last but not least develop them as platforms of co-operation and customer-generated innovation.
198 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors explore the history of the concept of competency, tracing its history and its role in the current scenario, and propose a competency mapping process that helps the organization in developing a clear strategy for developing competencies of their workforce.
Abstract: In a knowledge-based economy, the success of organizations depends mostly on the quality of their human resource. Organizations rely on their competent employees as a main resource. The performance of organizations depends not only on the workforce competency, but also on their evaluation and development on an ongoing basis to meet the global competition. For obvious economic and business reasons, organizations have always been concerned about the competence of its people. In the modern world, characterized by rapid and dramatic change, the attainment of competence has become an integral component of individual and organizational strategies. The competency mapping process helps the organization in developing a clear strategy for developing competencies of their workforce. It supports successful performance of the employees within the organization. Gone are the days where gigantic plant, superior technology and marketing strategy played central role in organizational success. The organizational strategy must be designed to identify, nourish and utilize the competencies. This paper seeks to delve deeper into the concept of competency, tracing its history and its role in the current scenario.
143 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, four new premises to guide marketing thought and practice for achieving and sustaining strategic advantage are presented, including the following: marketing needs to take a lead role in assisting the enterprise to enable value co-creation by customers.
Abstract: Marketing needs a new mindset to fulfill its proper role in creating and sustaining strategic advantage. To extend its influence beyond the boundaries of current offerings, the firm, and conventional practice, marketing and markets must be viewed through a service lens. This lens allows marketing to take a lead role in assisting the enterprise to enable value co-creation by customers who have jobs to be done. This article offers four new premises to guide marketing thought and practice for achieving and sustaining strategic advantage.
138 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors explored the idea of adapting a co-production strategy from service marketing to marketing communication sent to personal media, and found that perceived customization of the communication interacts strongly with risk perception and marginally with coupon proneness as related to attitude toward the communication when marketers enter the world of consumers' personal media.
TL;DR: This article created a tourism marketing knowledge grid and used it as a framework for the review of existing tourism marketing research, finding that most of the existing research has focused on how service promises are made and kept, and has mostly generated frameworks to improve managerial decision making or provided insights about associations between constructs.
TL;DR: In this article, the role of social media for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) is analyzed in terms of the number of likes and followers, richness of content, interaction with customers and the use of language.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors investigated whether the link between customer equity drivers (value equity, brand equity and relationship equity) and loyalty intentions is sensitive to the cultural environment and found that Eastern consumers in general have higher loyalty intentions than Western consumers.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors investigate the role of boundary spanners in tacit knowledge exchange between sales and marketing and its ability to enhance marketing success (i.e., marketing program innovativeness, relative efficiency, and relative effectiveness).
TL;DR: The social marketing literature has been dominated by questions about the field's legitimacy along with the ethical and other implications of its relationship with commercial marketing as mentioned in this paper, however, the authors of this paper acknowledge then move beyond these concerns, enabling a focus on the opportunities created for this vibrant field in the current environment.
Abstract: The social marketing literature has been dominated by questions about the field’s legitimacy along with the ethical and other implications of its relationship with commercial marketing In reviewing social marketing’s origins and considering its future, this paper acknowledges then moves beyond these concerns, enabling a focus on the opportunities created for this vibrant field in the current environment Three thematic areas frame the paper’s discussion: the legitimacy of social marketing as a field in its own right; the broadening and deepening of the field and the consequences for social change; and the strengths and opportunities arising out of social marketing’s relationship with mainstream marketing The paper reviews social marketing’s origins, before considering how the field might draw on the turbulent environment and the dynamic developments taking place within marketing to shape its future
TL;DR: In this paper, the influence of green marketing mix elements on the dimensions of consumer-based brand equity in a green marketing context is evaluated, and the potential moderating influence of consumers' environmental concerns and their consideration of the future consequences of current behaviors are also investigated.
Abstract: A substantial gap – or disconnect – exists between the stated pro-environmental beliefs and actual consumption behaviors of purportedly green consumers. Given this complicating factor, the construction and execution of successful green marketing strategies generally require more than broad-brush development and applications of short-term marketing plans. This study was initiated to evaluate the influence of managed green marketing mix elements on the dimensions of consumer-based brand equity in a green marketing context, in an effort to develop insights that will allow green marketers to close this gap. The potential moderating influence of consumers' environmental concerns and their consideration of the future consequences of current behaviors are also investigated. A model is developed and tested using a snowballing sample of consumer and five global brands selected from Interbrand. Seven discrete green marketing implications – each related either to the strategic management of green products, promotion...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors adopt a multivariate copula model using a pair-copula construction method to jointly model opt-in time, opt-out time, and average transaction amount.
Abstract: The rise of new media is helping marketers evolve from digital to interactive marketing, which facilitates a two-way communication between marketers and customers without intruding on their privacy. However, while research has examined the drivers of customers' opt-in and opt-out decisions, it has investigated neither the timing of the two decisions nor the influence of transactional activity on the length of time a customer stays with an e-mail program. In this study, the authors adopt a multivariate copula model using a pair-copula construction method to jointly model opt-in time (from a customer's first purchase to the opt-in decision), opt-out time (from the opt-in decision to the opt-out decision), and average transaction amount. Through such multivariate dependences, this model significantly improves the predictive performance of the opt-out time in comparison with several benchmark models. The study offers several important findings: (1) marketing intensity affects opt-in and opt-out times, (2) cus...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors developed a model of drivers of sustainable export marketing strategy adaptation and explored the circumstances under which such a strategy affects export performance using a sample of U.K. exporters.
Abstract: Despite the growing global importance of sustainability issues, scant research has examined marketing strategy sustainability issues in international settings. Although significant prior work has examined drivers and performance consequences of adaptation/standardization of marketing strategies in international markets, researchers have yet to apply this avenue of inquiry to sustainable marketing strategies. Building on contingency theory and the concept of strategic fit, the authors develop a model of drivers of sustainable export marketing strategy adaptation and explore the circumstances under which such a strategy affects export performance. Using a sample of U.K. exporters, they find that various macro- and microenvironmental factors are responsible for sustainable export marketing strategy adaptation, which shapes the nature of sustainable export marketing strategy fit and its export venture performance outcomes. The results indicate that sustainable export marketing strategy adaptation is the outcome of the differences between home and export markets in terms of economic and technological conditions, competitive intensity, customer characteristics, and stakeholder pressures. Moreover, the performance relevance of sustainable export marketing strategy adaptation requires adequate fit with these macro- and microenvironmental factors.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors analyzed the meaning and interpretations placed on the term "organic" and how they are integrated, as a way to explain consumption behavior and concluded that the term plays an important role as a heuristic cue to superiority, irrespective of the consumer's knowledge about the real features of organic food.
Abstract: One of the strategies employed by companies to differentiate themselves from others, in the food market, has been to market organic products according to the assumption that environmental values are an important influence on people's behavior. However, studies of the behavior of organic food consumers show that there is some debate on this subject. Although some studies associate organic food consumption with motives and attitudes in which the environment plays a predominant role, a greater number conclude that the motives for consuming this type of food are basically egoistic (related to health, food safety, or the quality or flavor of the food). This can lead to problems in deciding the central thrust of the marketing strategy. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the meaning and interpretations placed on the term “organic,” and how they are integrated, as a way to explain consumption behavior. Qualitative research methods were adopted for this purpose. Four focus group sessions with different sociodemographic profiles, held in the cities of Madrid and Seville, in Spain, displayed two evident paradoxes, which could indicate that environmental motives are not important for consumers in this market. It is concluded that the term “organic” plays an important role as a heuristic cue to superiority, irrespective of the consumer's knowledge about the real features of organic food. Three alternative models are presented to explain consumer behavior. These results could be useful to food companies, largely in connection with positioning this type of product and with their communications policy.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined the expected adoption rate of gamification in marketing campaigns and found that gamification's primary goals perfectly align with three core marketing concepts: engagement, brand loyalty and brand awareness.
Book•
01 Nov 2014
TL;DR: In this article, the authors describe ongoing developments in social media within the tourism and hospitality sector, highlighting impacts on both the demand and the supply side, highlighting opportunities, threats and strategies.
Abstract: This book describes ongoing developments in social media within the tourism and hospitality sector, highlighting impacts on both the demand and the supply side. It offers a combination of theory and practice, with discussion of real-life business experiences. The book is divided into three parts, the first of which provides an overview of recent trends in social media and user-generated content, clarifies concepts that are often used in an overlapping way and examines the digitization of word of mouth via online networks. The second part analyzes the impacts that social media can have on traveler behavior for each step in the travel process and also on suppliers, highlighting opportunities, threats and strategies. In the third part of the book, future potential trends deriving from the mobile marketing technologies are explored and possible methods for social monitoring by means of key performance indicators are examined. It is considered how engaging customers and prospects by means of social media might increase customer loyalty, foster electronic word-of-mouth communication, and consequently have important effects on corporate sales and revenues. The discussion encompasses methods to measure company performance on each of the social media in order to understand the optimal mix that will support and improve business strategies.
TL;DR: The criteria offer a verifiable explanation for differences in marketing elasticities and an actionable connection between marketing and financial performance metrics and establish that combining marketing and attitudinal metrics criteria improves the prediction of brand sales performance, often substantially so.
Abstract: Marketing managers often use consumer attitude metrics such as awareness, consideration, and preference as performance indicators because they represent their brand's health and are readily connected to marketing activity. However, this does not mean that financially focused executives know how such metrics translate into sales performance, which would allow them to make beneficial marketing mix decisions. We propose four criteria---potential, responsiveness, stickiness, and sales conversion---that determine the connection between marketing actions, attitudinal metrics, and sales outcomes.
We test our approach with a rich data set of four-weekly marketing actions, attitude metrics, and sales for several consumer brands in four categories over a seven-year period. The results quantify how marketing actions affect sales performance through their differential impact on attitudinal metrics, as captured by our proposed criteria. We find that marketing--attitude and attitude--sales relationships are predominantly stable over time but differ substantially across brands and product categories. We also establish that combining marketing and attitudinal metrics criteria improves the prediction of brand sales performance, often substantially so. Based on these insights, we provide specific recommendations on improving the marketing mix for different brands, and we validate them in a holdout sample. For managers and researchers alike, our criteria offer a verifiable explanation for differences in marketing elasticities and an actionable connection between marketing and financial performance metrics.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present an in-depth qualitative study to present an analysis of the contribution that networking makes to small firm marketing, and the benefits contained within these links, and how these benefits contribute to the small firm's marketing activities.
Abstract: It is generally accepted that networking is one means through which owner–managers of small firms market their goods and services. However, though there has been considerable attention directed toward the concept of small business networking, previous studies have failed to present a comprehensive investigation of the contents of network links, an analysis of the benefits contained within these links, and an expatiation of how these benefits contribute to the small firm, specifically its marketing activities. To that end, this paper reports on an in-depth qualitative study to present an analysis of the contribution that networking makes to small firm marketing.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors investigate the impact of marketing science articles and tools on the practice of marketing and find that the impact is either direct (e.g., an academic article may be adapted to solve a practical problem) or indirect (i.e., its contents may be incorporated into practitioners' tools, which then influence marketing decision making).
TL;DR: In this article, the history of destination image studies is traced to its eventual evolution into destination branding and the concept of destination brand equity is discussed as more than a simple return to a destination's marketing strategy.
Abstract: Brand equity is a well-known concept within the marketing sciences. It refers to a product’s value from the return generated from a firm’s marketing strategy. The concept is not easy to apply to a destination as the destination ‘firm’ is a mix of various stakeholders including residents who offer their space to tourists without remuneration. In this article, the history of destination image studies is traced to its eventual evolution into destination branding. The concept of destination brand equity is then discussed as more than a simple return to a destination’s marketing strategy. The case is made that destination brand equity is integrally tied to sustainability. The article offers a model and corresponding equations to measure destination sustainability arguing that brand equity measurement is one and the same process. Owing to the unique characteristics of a destination the two concepts converge.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors introduce and examine a new marketing concept that a small set of leading firms has begun to adopt: marketing doctrine, which refers to a firm's unique principles, distilled from its experiences, which provide firmwide guidance on market-facing choices.
Abstract: The authors introduce and examine a new marketing concept that a small set of leading firms has begun to adopt: marketing doctrine. Marketing doctrine refers to a firm's unique principles, distilled from its experiences, which provide firm-wide guidance on market-facing choices. As such, marketing doctrine provides a firm-wide common approach to decision making. Importantly, marketing doctrine helps a firm address the classic consistency–flexibility conundrum by providing high-level guidance to all decision makers in the firm (thus ensuring consistency) but not specifying execution details (thus allowing for local flexibility). Across three samples, the authors explore the concept using a discovery-oriented, theories-in-use approach with 35 executives from several industries. This article makes four contributions. First, it offers a parsimonious definition of the marketing doctrine construct and contrasts it with related constructs. Second, it offers insight into how firms can develop marketing doctrine. ...
Journal Article•
TL;DR: The Effective-Brands and its partners conducted a study involving 10,000 marketers from 92 countries, which examined what separated high-performing marketers from the pack as discussed by the authors and found that high performers, the study showed, excelled in three areas: integrating data about what customers are doing with an understanding of why they are doing it; communicating a brand purpose (the functional, emotional, and societal benefits of the offering); and delivering a ''total experience'' to customers.
Abstract: Though social and digital media are rapidly transforming marketing and new tools emerge daily, in most firms the organization of the function hasn�t changed in 40 years. How should marketers revamp their strategies, structures, and capabilities to meet the new realities? To find out, the consultancy Effective- Brands and its partners conducted a study involving 10,000 marketers from 92 countries, which examined what separated high-performing marketers from the pack. High performers, the study showed, excelled in three areas: integrating data about what customers are doing with an understanding of why they are doing it; communicating a brand purpose (the functional, emotional, and societal benefits of the offering); and delivering a �total experience� to customers. To provide this kind of experience, high performers break down silos and enlist the help of the entire organization. That means they must link marketing strategy tightly to business strategy and to other functions; inspire employees across the company with the brand�s purpose; focus and align around a few key priorities; set up nimble, cross-functional teams; and build internal capabilities through extensive training at all levels. Surprisingly, few companies have been able to put all these pieces together. Only half of even high-performing organizations excel on some of these capabilities. But that shouldn�t be discouraging; rather, it just illuminates where there�s work to do.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors propose the developmental process of institution-driven and legitimacy-embedded efficiency, and emphasize the confluence of legitimacy and efficiency in the context of business marketing, highlighting several promising directions for further research on the development of institutional theory and its application in business marketing.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors investigated factors associated with the choice of three direct marketing strategies (DMSs) and applied a selectivity-based approach for the multinomial logit model to assess the relationship between DMSs and the financial performance of the business.