6. What does a swot analysis identify? Why is it important to carry out a swot analysis?

Managing the marketing function begins with a complete analysis of the company’s situation.

The marketer should conduct a SWOT analysis by which it evaluates the company’s strengths (S), weaknesses (W), opportunities (O), andthreats (T).

Strengths include internal capabilities, resources, and positive situational factors that may help the company serve its customers .

Weaknesses include internal limitations and negative situational factors that may interfere( помешать)with the company’s performance.

Opportunities are favorable factors or trends in the external environment

Threats are unfavorable external factors or trends that may present challenges to performance.

The goal of SWOT analysis is to match the company’s strengths to attractive in the environment, while overcoming the weaknesses and minimizing the threats.

SWOT Analysis is a very effective way of identifying your Strengths and Weaknesses, and of examining the Opportunities and Threats you face. Carrying out an analysis using the SWOT framework helps you to focus your activities into areas where you are strong and where the greatest opportunities lie.

7. What is international marketing? Describe the factors of prioritizing foreign markets for company’s entry and growth.

International marketing is a marketing done on international level.

International marketing occurs (случаться)when a business directs its products and services toward (относительно)consumers in more than one country.

International marketing combines multiple disciplines, but is mainly focused upon marketing goods and services across geographical boundaries, of entering foreign markets, or sustaining marketing and sales efforts within foreign countries and of coordinating marketing activities in multiple countries and regions.

A company faces six major decisions in international marketing.

• Looking at the global marketing environment

• Deciding on the global marketing organization

• Deciding on the global marketing program

• Deciding how to enter the market

• Deciding which markets to enter (регистрироватьзаявку)

• Deciding whether to go global

8. What does market segmentation identify? How does it work?

Market segmentation involves dividing a market into smaller segments of buyers with distinct needs, characteristics, or behaviors that might require separate marketing strategies or mixes. The company identifies different ways to segment the market and develops profiles of the resulting market segments.

Buyers in any market differ in their wants, resources, locations, buying attitudes, and buying practices. Through market segmentation, companies divide large, heterogeneous markets into smaller segments that can be reached more efficiently and effectively with products and services that match their unique needs.

9. Define the difference between segmentation in b2b market and that of b2c market.

B2B and B2C marketing stand for business to business and business to consumer marketing respectively. There are people who think that whether you are marketing your product directly to consumers (B2C), or to companies (B2B), it is one and the same thing, which is a wrong approach. The motivating factors behind the two types of buyers are different and also there is a difference in the information that they seek when making a decision to buying products. These and many other differences in the two types of marketing will be highlighted in this article to help small business owners when making marketing decisions.

The biggest motivating factor in making a purchase by an end consumer is emotion whereas in the case of a business it is cool logic. This is one factor that decides the kind of marketing you should indulge into when marketing a product or a service to a company or when marketing it to end consumers. The terms B2B and B2C were coined with the practice of marketing on the net to sell products directly to end consumers (B2C). The first step of marketing is essentially the same whether you are marketing to end consumers or to other businesses. It is to find out who the customer is and what it is that he needs to hear from you. It is from there on that different marketing approaches are adopted for successful selling.

Features of B2C

• Driven by product

• Huge customer opportunities

• Fast buying process

• Emotion based decision to buy

• Need to create a desire for consumers to buy

The ultimate objective of B2C marketing is to convert as many as possible prospective customers either by luring (coupons, discounts, offer), or by creating a need or desire for the product in their minds. Email campaigns are a part of this type of marketing where the customer is lured on to a landing page where he has to make a few clicks to complete the transaction. Great customer service is a must to have loyal customers.

Features of B2B

• Relationship driven

• Small, targeted customer base

• Longer sales cycle and longer buying process

• Rational buying decision

Although the goal here is same as in B2C, it is clear that audience here is a business rather than a single person and this company can buy in large numbers than a single end consumer. Rewards are more but the process is lengthy as the buyer makes the decision of buying on a rational basis rather than on an emotional impulse. The buyer here has to see that the deal is profitable that helps his company to make profits on the transaction.

B2B vs B2C Marketing

Customer service is critical in both B2B and B2C though its effects are more pronounced in the case of B2C. Creating a brand image is perhaps more important in B2B, while creating a desire in the minds of end consumers is more important in B2C. It is important to understand the needs of the target audience in both B2B and B2C.