- What’s the latest in customer loyalty programs? For the answer, do a search for “loyalty programs” at SearchCRM.com, http://searchcrm.techtarget.com.
- Considering a career in marketing? Read articles about different marketing topics of interest and visit the Marketing Jobs and Career Services and Student Resources areas at the American Marketing Association site, http://www.marketingpower.com.
- What’s different about business-to-business marketing? Find out at the Business Marketing Association site, http://www.marketing.org.
- How satisfied are American consumers today? The American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) is an economic indicator based on modeling of customer evaluations. Find the latest survey results at http://www.theacsi.org.
- So what’s so important about branding? Learn more about branding products at http://www.allaboutbrands.com.
- See how one consulting firm helps clients pick the right name by pointing your web browser to http://www.namebase.com.
- At Brandchannel.com, an online exchange, you’ll find branding success stories, failures, debates, and more: http://www.brandchannel.com.
- Companies are turning to smart-pricing software to improve margins on products. Find out how one company’s software works at Zilliant’s website, http://www.zilliant.com.
- If you have ever wondered how manufacturers make certain types of products, this is the site for you! At How Products Are Made, you can find the details on everything from accordions and action figures to zippers, and everything in between: http://www.madehow.com.
Chapter 11 End Page
Recap
Marketing plays a key role in the success of businesses. It is the task of marketing to generate sales for the firm. Sales revenue, in turn, pays workers’ salaries, buys supplies, covers the costs of new buildings and equipment, and hopefully enables the company to earn a profit. This chapter looked at the nature of marketing and the creation of product and pricing strategies to meet customers’ needs. In this chapter, you learned about the marketing concept, marketing strategies, and consumer and business buying decisions. You also saw how the marketing mix is used to create sales opportunities. We discussed how new products are created and how they go through periods of sales growth and then decline. Next we discussed how managers set prices to reach organizational goals.
Resources
Looking Ahead
Next week we will cover Distributing and Promoting Products and Services.