satisfiy your customer needs.

The point of success in business such as a restaurant is to make a regular customer. They even joyfully wait for eating in a long line over 30minutes. As you see, good quality customers make money to owner steadily. To make regular customers you have to be sure about not only quality of goods but also the marketing strategy. For example, there are two ideal cases of Japanese corporation.
The baseball team named ‘Rakuten’ is cellar-dwelling team since 2005. However, the number of spectators is more and more growing. The reason is that they upgrade baseball stadium facilities and create many events for customers. They draw over 60 restaurants and make a luxurious bar for first seat customers. And also make a room for woman. People can use this baseball park as a them park for rest with family in a weekend. About a baseball game, they make a lot of event which make spectators participate themselves. For example, a national anthem played before game is sang by local school students or local chorus. In addition, families can enjoy themselves such as a catch ball in the play ground before the game start. In summer vacation, they invite child customers for camping event using the play ground. They can advertise their baseball team and also increase the interest of local people about baseball.
Another case is the small supermarket ‘Harashin’ located in local area in Japan. The special character of this supermarket is packing service. It is not normal packing service doing other supermarkets. The staffs of Harashin train hard to pack 20 stuffs in a 2minutes. And also they try to make a better wrapping design for customers can carry their stuffs easily.
To success in business, company has to focus on their customers needs. A little different strategy can make a huge different revenue in business. Make a different something compared with other companies.

http://www.economist.co.kr
20600171 6th entry

Construction Company

Do you know the Caterpillar? Caterpillar managed to as a high-tech, globally competitive, growth company. Caterpillar expanded its rental equipment business, reaching a new category of customers both at home and abroad. Actually, they sold or rented equipment to rental centers, and these centers, rerented the equipment to end users. Rarely did Caterpillar rent directly to customers.

Caterpillar is good at network of dealership. Many of Caterpillar’s dealership were privately owned. Also, the informal relationship between the company and its dealers were far more important than the formal contractual relations. Caterpillar had always protected its dealers against failure, under owner’s direction. In this reason, Caterpillar grew up, more quickly and highly.

As I know, In 1999, about 80 percent of the world’s population lived in developing countries, and Caterpillar’s sales to developing nations accounted for only about 20 percentage of the total company’s sales. Developing countries had limited access to water, electricity, and etc. Therefore, they needed to invest in building highways, bridge, dams, and etc.

Caterpillar want to made up to these customer’s needs, therefore, they focused on customer’s satisfaction and all things.
Now days, Caterpillar is one of the best construction-company in the worlds.

References

Koreaherald.com

www.cat.com

20300780 Entry 6

The iPhone in Europe: Lost in Translation

We discussed about euro disney with such a question. why was the launch of euro disney a failure? and here is similar (the market)situation. Apple's U.S. blockbuster isn't a hit across the Atlantic. How will it fare elsewhere?
Main problem is diffrent from euro disney. if you ask me. That is price!!

When Apple's iPhone first went on sale in Europe six months ago, hopes were high that the device would be just as big a hit there as it had been in the U.S. But analysts are now raising concerns that the iPhone may not translate as well overseas, with sales sluggish in Europe because of the device's high price and strong competition from Nokia (NOK) and others. "Our research indicates that European shipments to date have been far below [expectations]," says analyst Richard Windsor of Nomura Securities (NMR).

Mixed Signals
Apple and the three European car�riers have not disclosed up-to-date sales figures, and the company declined to comment on European sales. The carriers all have said they are happy with demand for the device.
Still, the iPhone's price has been an issue. Most phones in Europe are heavily subsidized, and customers can get even some high-end models for free. The iPhone had not been subsidized, selling for $600 or more with a 12- or 24-month service contract. In the past two weeks, however, two carriers have reduced the price for the iPhone.

A New Approach?
The Cupertino (Calif.) company drives a hard bargain with its wireless partners, which may make them reluctant to subsidize the iPhone. It takes a cut of the revenue that wireless operators collect for voice and data services each month, something no other phone�maker is believed to get. Strategy Analytics estimates Apple gets $5 to $20 per month for each customer from its wireless partners.
Apple's experience in Europe raises questions about the iPhone's prospects around the world. The company has said it wants to sell 10 million units by the end of 2008. But Apple may need to change its business model to reach that target, perhaps by moving to nonexclusive contracts or giving up its cut of service revenues. The company may make less money off each iPhone, but it could sell many more. "If they really want to be successful in this market, they had better [change]," says Shiv K. Bakhshi, director of mobile research and devices at research firm IDC (IDC).

http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/08_17/b4081000500950.htm?chan=rss_topStories_ssi_5

20700110 - Kim SungKi
6th Entry

Ford's marketing strategy: Equity

Ford is a huge car manufacturing company. And their market ranged all around of the world. If you're the manager of Ford's marketing division, what will do for marketing? Maybe most of us cost a lot for the product. Because the market is so wide that we have to make product's image different. But Ford's marketing was different from our guess. Instead of making name complicately, they maintain their car name consistently. For example, the Fiesta, Ford's small size car, is all same around the world.
Through this marketing strategy, they can cut their marketing cost. But there are also much risks you can face if you use this strategy. Actually, the mainstream of marketing is diversification. Many global companies are now trying to make their product's image localized. Because values of each country are very different. If you try to use the Equity strategy, you should be careful about these aspects.
Then what's the main reasons about Ford's marketing success? I think it's their constant marketing efforts. Fiesta was firstly introduced in the late 70s. At that time, Fiesta was so unpopular that they didn't get any market share. But they focused on the cheap price of their product and 'Fiesta' is sound like 'cheap'. Through this differentiation strategy, Ford can make their product competitive and it's the main reason of long life of Fiesta. Naturally, Fiesta is intimate both America and other world. Now they enjoy their marketing cost reduction and they can make their product more cheaper than past period.
What's the lesson of Ford's marketing strategy? I think it's the constant effort to make their product intimate. In Korea, many products are disappearing fastly. Consequently, companies always find the creative way to express their product very attractive. But I think these kinds of marketing cannot make continuous profit for companies. I want to expect that someday in korea there must be a historical and valuable products through equity and constant marketing strategy.

reference: http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/08_12/b4076063825013.htm?chan=innovation_auto+design_top+stories

entry 6 20700067

Starbucks' Retro Logo

          Instead of its green-based logo, in an effort of restoring some of the goodwill and image for the brand, Starbucks is now going to use its traditional image of the twin-tailed mermaid inside the brown medallion,which was used when the Starbucks was first established, for certain periods of time. This brown logo was first introduced in 1971 and had changed for many times until it finally settled with the current image.
          This is their second time restoring the use of the traditional logo; in 2006, to celebrate Starbucks' 35th anniversary, this was also used for a certain period of time. The main reason for this year is to "...restore some of the goodwill and warm feelings for the brand that have gone by the wayside because of increasing coffee prices, machine-made lattes, and bad press" (BusinessWeek).
          Furthermore, Starbucks will introduce the new blend which has been crafted for a smoother and cleaner finish than other traditional blends of Starbucks after criticism they have received from the reviewers of Consumer Reports that those blends taste burned.
          Some worry that this promotion would hurt the company's brand image because the traditional logo is brown-based and includes a mermaid with bare breast. However, Starbucks is only planning to have this promotion for only 8 weeks, and they will go back to its well-known green color logo leaving the traditional one only in ads and as the logo for Pike Place bags of coffee.
          As a marketing student, now I realize more than before that how brand's logo or image can affect customers greatly in many ways. Introducing or changing brand's logo would not be a easy decision to take even if it would last only for a short period of time. However, in a way that Starbucks tries to remind its customers where their roots started from by showing its traditional logo, I think it's very fresh and quite touching strategy for people to actually feel that they are a part of their favorite coffee brand's heritage.

Reference;
http://www.businessweek.com/innovate/content/apr2008/id20080411_065581.htm?chan=innovation_innovation+%2B+design_top+stories

20601008 - Entry 6th