Chapter 2: Company and Marketing Strategy

Strategic planning

The process of developing and maintaining a strategic fit between the organisation’s goals and capabilities and its changing marketing opportunities.

Mission statement

A statement of the organisation’s purpose-what it wants to accomplish in the larger environment.

Business portfolio

The collection of the businesses and products that make up the company.

Portfolio analysis

The process by which management evaluates the products and businesses that make up the company.

Growth-share matrix

A portfolio-planning method that evaluates a company’s SBUs in terms of market growth rate and relative market share.

Product/market expansion grid

A portfolio-planning tool for identifying company growth opportunities through market penetration, market development, product development, or diversification.

Market penetration

Company growth by increasing sales of current products to current market segments without changing the product.

Market development

Company growth by identifying and developing new market segments for current company products.

Product development

Company growth by offering modified or new products to current market segments.

Diversification

Company growth through starting up or acquiring businesses outside the company’s current products and markets.

Value chain

The series of internal departments that carry out value-creating activities to design, produce, market, deliver, and support a firm’s products.

Value delivery network

A network composed of the company, suppliers, distributors, and ultimately, customers who partner with each other to improve the performance of the entire system in delivering customer value.

Marketing strategy

The marketing logic by which the company hopes to create customer value and achieve profitable customer relationships.

Market segmentation

Dividing a market into distinct groups of buyers who have different needs, characteristics, or behaviours and who might require separate marketing strategies or mixes.

Market segment

A group of consumers who respond in a similar way to a given set of marketing efforts.

Market targeting

Evaluating each market segment’s attractiveness and selecting one or more segments to serve.

Positioning

Arranging for a product to occupy a clear, distinctive, and desirable place relative to competing products in the minds of target consumers.

Differentiation

Actually differentiating the market offering to create superior customer value.

Marketing mix

The set of tactical marketing tools-product, price, place, and promotion-that the firm blends to produce the response it wants in the target market.

SWOT analysis

An overall evaluation of the company’s strengths (S), weaknesses (W), opportunities (O), and threats (T).

Marketing implementation

Turning marketing strategies and plans into marketing actions to accomplish strategic marketing objectives.

Marketing control

Measuring and evaluating the results of marketing strategies and plans and taking corrective action to ensure that the objectives are achieved.

Marketing return on investment (marketing ROI)

The net return from a marketing investment divided by the costs of the marketing investment.