Marketing IT Products and Services / Edition 1

by Jessica Keyes

Overview

Characterized by lightning quick innovation, abrupt shifts in technology, and shorter lifecycles, the marketing of IT products and services presents a unique set of challenges and often requires IT managers and developers to get involved in the marketing process. Marketing IT Products and Services is written to help busy IT managers and marketing managers get up to speed quickly and easily on what’s needed to develop effective marketing strategies and campaigns.

Focusing on the unique issues involved, this one-stop resource provides everything needed to understand the roles, responsibilities, and management techniques essential for the development of successful strategies. It covers strategic market planning, targeting markets, researching markets, understanding the competition, integrating market and sales strategies, nuances of global markets, developing marketing budgets, pricing, and implementing marketing campaigns. A plethora of appendices included on the book’s downloadable resources allow you to get up and running right away.

Aside from a complete marketing glossary, two complete marketing plans—one for a hardware product; the other for a software product—enable you to bypass the "scut" work of developing a marketing plan so you can focus on the creative aspects of marketing. Because a marketing plan is closely aligned with an organization’s business and strategic plans, this book provides you with templates for both of these, as well as a template for that all-important business plan executive summary.

The downloadable resources also feature loads of fill-in templates including customer and competitor analysis surveys, sample press releases, letters of agreement, demographic and target market worksheets, and cost benefit forms. If you have a marketing need, this book has an effective template to meet that need.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780367385248
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	09/19/2019
Pages:	344
Product dimensions:	6.12(w) x 9.19(h) x (d)

Table of Contents

Marketing IT Products and Services xiii

Acknowledgments xv

About the Author xvii

1 Introduction to Strategic Marketing Management 1

The Micro-Marketing Level 3

The Macro-Marketing Level 4

Business Plan versus Strategic Plan versus Marketing Plan 4

Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats (Trends) (SWOT[T]) 5

4Ps: The Marketing Mix 7

Marketing Planning 8

Marketing Ethics 8

Subliminal Advertising 10

Murketing 10

Conclusion 11

References 11

2 Strategy and Implementation 13

Strategic Planning 14

Strategy Implementation 17

Implementation Problems 21

Conclusion 24

References 25

3 Understanding the High-Tech Customer 27

The Customer Satisfaction Survey 28

Using Force Field Analysis to Listen to Customers 30

The Customer Economy 31

Conclusion 33

References 34

4 The Expanding Market 35

Global Markets and International Marketing 37

Strategic Dimensions of Technology 40

Conclusion 44

References 45

5 Market Research 47

The Marketing Research Process 47

Step 1 Defining the Problem 48

Steps 2 and 3 Analyzing the Situation and Getting Problem-Specific Data 48

Step 4 Interpreting the Data 49

Step 5 Solving the Problem 49

Target Markets: Segmentation and Evaluation 49

Competitive Analysis 52

Conclusion 57

References 57

6 Product Strategy 59

The Product Life Cycle 60

Product Life-Cycle Management (PLM) 62

The Product Development Process 64

Moving Ideas off the Conceptual Plane to the Marketplace 64

The S-Curve and Continuous Innovation 66

Branding and Positioning 68

Branding Checklist 69

Conclusion 72

References 73

7 Innovation Management 75

Encouraging Innovation 75

The R&D Process 77

Measuring Innovation 81

The Six Steps for Increasing Creativity 82

Step 1 Make Sure Your Company's Goals Are Consistent with Your Value System 82

Step 2 Pursue Self-Initiated Activity by Choosing High-Motivation Projects 82

Step 3 Take Advantage of Unofficial Activity 84

Step 4 Be Open to Serendipity 84

Step 5 Diversify Your Stimuli 84

Step 6 Create Opportunities for Information Communication (Meet and Greet) 84

Rewarding Employees for Innovative Ideas 85

Conclusion 86

References 87

8 The IT Product Development Cycle 89

New Product or Service Introduction 89

The IT Product Development Process 91

Idea Generation 91

Idea Screening 92

Concept Development and Testing 93

Marketing Strategy Development 93

Business Analysis 93

Evaluation of Total Sales 94

Evaluation of Profits and Costs 94

Product Development 94

Market Testing 95

Commercialization 95

When (Timing) 96

Where (Geographic Strategy) 96

To Whom (Target-Market Prospects) 97

How (Introductory Market Strategy) 97

Conclusion 97

9 Pricing Products 99

Factors Affecting Pricing Decisions 100

Pricing Strategy 102

The Internet's Effect on Pricing 104

The Ethics of Pricing 105

Pricing in a Global Environment 106

Conclusion 106

References 107

10 Communications Strategies 109

Developing an Integrated Marketing Communications Program 110

Promotion 110

Traditional Marketing Strategies 112

Print Advertising 113

Radio and Television Advertising 113

Public Relations 113

Marketing in the Digital Age 114

Cutting-Edge Internet Marketing Strategies 115

WOMM Strategies 119

Using WOMM Services: P&G Tremor and BzzAgent 119

WOMM Methodology 120

Search Engine Marketing 121

Search Engine Optimization 121

Google 123

Virtual Trade Shows 125

Conclusion 127

References 128

11 Distribution Strategies 129

Channels of Distribution 129

Selling Intermediaries 131

The Supply Chain 132

Multichannel Distribution 134

Packaging 135

Partnership Techniques 135

Affiliates 136

Acquisitions 137

Joint Ventures 139

Negotiating the Sharing of Information 140

Conclusion 142

References 143

12 Marketing Implementation and Control 145

Marketing Control 145

Feedback Improves the Marketing Management Process 146

Good Implementation Builds Relationships with Customers 147

Sales Analysis Shows What's Happening in the Market 147

Marketing Cost Analysis 148

Balanced Scorecard 148

Marketing Math 149

Marketing Financial Analysis 151

Control Analysis 154

Markups and Markdowns 154

Marketing Audit 155

Marketing Manager Evaluation 156

Conclusion 157

References 157

13 Social Networking and the Sales Strategy 159

Why Social Network 159

Brand Advertising on Social Networks 161

Moving from Traditional to Social 162

Conclusion 163

14 E-Commerce as a Sales Medium 165

Advantages of E-Commerce 165

Disadvantages of E-Commerce 166

Value Chains in E-Commerce 166

The E-Commerce Model 167

Niche Models 171

Chief Selling Propositions 172

Internet Failures 173

Web Site Legal Issues 174

Privacy Policy 175

Terms and Conditions 175

False Advertising and Unfair Competition 176

Defamation 176

Use of Domain Names 176

Trademarks 177

Copyrights 177

Patents 178

Conclusion 179

References 180

Appendix A Sample Marketing Plan for Computer Hardware 181

Appendix B Sample Marketing Plan for Computer Software 197

Appendix C Business Plan for an Established Business 219

Appendix D Strategic Plan-Sample 239

Appendix E Business Plan Executive Summary 243

Appendix F Business Plan for a Start-Up Business 253

Appendix G Marketing Plan Template with Directions 273

Appendix H Strategic Plan Outline 281

Appendix I Marketing Glossary 283

Index 307