Introduction
A brand name is a blot used to show ownership and that’s why my friend is a brand loyal to Panasonic. Panasonic is one of the three big video manufacturers; the other two are Sony and JVC. My friend always uses Panasonic VHS and Super VHS recorders and editors for several reasons. For one, Panasonic produced VHS and Super VHS VCRs, and industrial VCRs and editors some years before Sony did. Secondly, Panasonic is really Matsushita and is also sold as a National brand in other countries. Thirdly, Panasonic prosumer equipment is more resilient and reliable than the punter versions of similar models, and if purchased from most consumer outlets, the consumer versions are typically much more expensive. (Marconi J, 2000, p. 65).
Findings on my friend’s brand loyalty
Using a vendor-managed inventory model, Panasonic has taken on accountability for the inventory of its products in the retailers’ supply chains. Everybody wins with this model. The retailers get rid of or reduce the costs of owning the inventory but then share out their higher margins with Panasonic. For its part, Panasonic gets an even superior benefit: an end-to-end view of its retailers’ supply chains in real-time, enabling Panasonic to better administer its business activities, including production timing, and that’s why my friend prefers it. (Marconi J, 2000, p. 70).
Background on Panasonic and how it is promoted in the market
Panasonic is one of the principal electronic product manufacturers in the world, comprised of over 600 companies. The manufacturer and market over 15,000 products under brands such as; Panasonic, National, and Technics to augment and enrich lifestyles all around the world. (Marconi J, 2000, p. 72).
Panasonic is comprised of 14 business realm companies. Each company has its own distinct R&D, production, and sales divisions that act in response to its own business section, such as AV, home appliances, industrial solutions, and extra electronic and consumer products. (Marconi J, 2000, p. 75).
Panasonic is promoting corporate social responsibility by reviewing their economic, social, and environmental events from a global perspective as implied by the company’s administration philosophy, to enhance accountability and advance corporate values. (Marconi J, 2000, p. 78).
Importance of Marketing Research and How Marketing Information Is Used
Market research is essential for a company to know what type of products or services would be beneficial to introduce in the market. Moreover, with respect to its accessible products in the market, good market research enables a corporation to know if it has been able to gratify customer needs and whether any changes require to be made in the packaging, delivery, or the product itself. (Armstrong G, 2006, p. 90).
Marketing research consists of a plan that charts how pertinent data is to be collected and analyzed so that the outcomes are useful and appropriate for making marketing decisions. Once the research and the associated analysis are absolute, the results are communicated to management. This provides management with thorough information concerning crucial factors that have an impact on the target market and existing marketing mix. (Armstrong G, 2006, p. 93).
Marketing information can be derived by observing the environment of their position and the competition’s location. Small-scale surveys and focus groups are low-cost ways to assemble information from potential and existing consumers. (Armstrong G, 2006, P. 95)
Primary research serves to offer information through monitoring sales levels and measuring the efficiency of existing business practices like service quality and tools for communication being used by the corporation. It cautiously follows competitor plans to assemble information on market competition. (Armstrong G, 2006, p. 98).
Buyer Behavior
Tackling the buying resistance problem begins with understanding how customers or companies make buying decisions. Buyers will characteristically go through a variety of stages to make the decision to purchase. These stages occur in varying degrees depending on the difficulty of the purchase and the buyer’s behavior. (Smith M, 2004, p. 90).
- Need Awareness: The commencement point of most purchasing is the prospective buyer’s recognition of a need in their life. This need can be recognized by encountering a problem or prompted by a company’s marketing. (Smith M, 2004, p. 91).
- Information Search: With the rise of the internet, it has never been easier for buyers to examine their purchases. The customer here tries to search for information that can assist him to realize the product that he needs. (Smith M, 2004, p. 91).
- Evaluation of Alternatives: After an information search, the customer will assess all the available options. Options include required features, pricing, and company trustworthiness. (Smith M, 2004, p. 92).
- Purchase Decision: This is the instant when the customer wants to buy. Deals are easily lost when you keep selling to the consumer. There’s an old saying in sales, when the consumer says, “I will take it,” maintain your mouth closed, and close the deal. (Smith M, 2004, p. 92).
- Purchase: Finally, the consumer makes the choice of purchasing the product because he has been overwhelmed by certain features of the product and in most cases is based on the deal and guarantee. (Smith M, 2004, p. 93).
- Post Buying Behavior: An unnoticed piece of customer buying behavior is what occurs after the purchase. The buyer will look for fortification from media, friends, and other sources confirming they made the right decision. Cognitive dissonance occurs when the buyer begins to feel the purchase wasn’t right for them. (Smith M, 2004, p. 93).
Steps in Market Segmentation, target marketing, and Position
The most extensively employed model of market segmentation comprises seven steps; each of them is intended to hearten the marketer to come with an innovative approach. (Armstrong G, 2006, p. 100).
Step 1: Identify and name the broad market: Figure out what large market your business aims at. If your corporation is already on a market, this can be a preliminary point; more options are accessible for a new business but capital would normally be a little limited. (Armstrong G, 2006, p. 101).
Step 2: Identify and make an inventory of potential customers’ needs: This step pushes the ingenuity challenge even further since it can be compared to a brainstorming session. What you have to figure out is what needs the customers from the broad market acknowledged earlier might have. The more probable needs you can come up with, the better. (Armstrong G, 2006, p. 104).
Step 3: Formulate narrower markets: Formulate sub-markets, then aggregate comparable people into this section on the condition to be able to gratify their needs using the equivalent marketing mix. Start building a column with dimensions of the foremost need you try to cover. This will make it easier for you to make a decision if a given person should be incorporated in the first segment or you should form a new segment. (Armstrong G, 2006, p. 107).
Step 4: Identify the determining dimensions: Carefully evaluate the list resulted from the preceding step. You should have by now a list of need dimensions for every market segment: try to recognize those that carry a formative power. (Smith M, 2004, p. 97). Reviewing the needs and attitudes of those you incorporated within each market segment can assist you in stature out the determining dimensions. (Smith M, 2004, p. 98)
Step 5: Name possible segment markets: Evaluate the determining dimensions of your market segments one by one and give them a suitable name. A good way of naming these markets is to rely on the main significant determining dimension. (Smith M, 2004, p. 99).
Step 6: Evaluate the behavior of market segments: Once you are through naming each market segment, permit time to reflect on what other aspects you know about them. It is imperative for a marketer to comprehend market behavior and what triggers it. You might notice that, while the majority of segments have similar needs, they’re still dissimilar needs: understanding the dissimilarity and acting upon it is the key to attain success by means of competitive offerings. (Smith M, 2004, p. 104).
Step 7: Estimate the size of each market segment: Each segment recognized, named, and studied during the preceding stages should lastly be given an estimated size, even if, for lack of data, it is merely a rough estimate. Estimates of market segments will come in useful later, by offering support for sales forecasts and assist plan the marketing mix. (Smith M, 2004, p. 106).
Conclusion
It ought to be noted that branding is not marketing; rather it is an essential part of your marketing strategy. It’s also an imperative part of how you interrelate with clients, vendors, employees, prospects, and anybody else with whom you come in contact. Branding creates an image and proper branding creates loyalty.
Brand loyalty enables consumers to select your brand, time and time again, even if they experience infrequent poor service or if an additional product comes along that seems to be better suitable to their needs. To attain brand loyalty, you need to offer a product that is extremely differentiated, with an abundance of value-added, but also you need to offer them extraordinary service at a level they will not get it anywhere else. For instance; Panasonic offers vendor managed inventory model, providing this echelon of service will guarantee that they will never switch.
Reference
Armstrong, G; & Kottler. P (2006) Marketing: An Introduction. Upper Saddle River, Prentice Hall.
Marconi. J (2000) the Brand Marketing Book: Creating, Managing, and Extending The Value, McGraw-Hill Professional Publishers. ISBN: 0844222577.
Smith. M (2004) Fundamentals of Marketing Research, SAGE Publishers. ISBN: 0761988521.