In the following activity, you are presented with an excerpt of a discussion from a manager’s meeting for a newly formed firm that is setting up as a manufacturer of bicycles. Essentially, they are discussing which marketing orientation/philosophy they should adopt. Your task is to determine which orientation/philosophy that you think would be most appropriate approach for this firm.
ACTIVITY/TASK
James:
As you all know, I’ve been a keen cyclist for many years. And I think that there’s a real opportunity for innovative state-of-the-art bikes. There’s always someone out there who wants the latest gadget. We’ve all seen that in the entertainment market (with PlayStation and iPod for instance). So I think that we can easily pick up on that trend in the bike market.
Julie:
Sure, that’s an option, but you’re talking about a pretty small market. I think that we should go mass market. These days some kids own two or three bikes, or get a new one every year. Success in that large market is simply price. If we make the bikes efficiently and sell them at a low price – then the bikes will roll off the shelves as fast as we can make them.
John:
Yeah – maybe that will work. But today’s world is celebrity and brand crazy. For many kids today, it’s all about image and status. So I think that we should get a high-profile celebrity to endorse our product, and then get out there and really build a strong brand. This is a real opportunity – I mean, you can list a dozen brands of cereal, but how many brands of bicycles do you know?
Jane:
But do people really choose a bike based on the brand? Or do they choose a bike that really suits them and has a good range of features. You know what I think – I think we should run some focus groups with kids, teenagers, and young adults and find out what they really want in a bike. Meeting customer needs is the key to success.
Jenny:
Well, of course, we should meet customer needs! But wouldn’t it be great if we could make a difference to the environment as well. You know, encourage people to cycle (not drive) whenever they can. And we could also generate a lot of free publicity by using this approach.
QUESTIONS
- Which marketing orientation/philosophy is each person essentially referring to? (Choose from the list below.)
- Based on the information you have, which particular orientation do you think that the firm should follow? Why?
- Which orientation approach do you think is adopted by most large firms?
- Production Concept
- Product Concept
- Sales/Promotion Concept
- Marketing Concept
- Societal Marketing Concept
