Notes on Stakeholders, Marketing Concept, and Global Marketing Orientation

Suppliers: provide components (metal, plastic, glass, radios); often external; if the company struggles, suppliers lose business.
Farmers/China relationship: farmers produce crops; China buys crops (cash flow to farmers). If China reduces purchases, farmers face trouble; the farmer can be viewed as a supplier to China in this scenario.
Government: stake in the company via taxes; wants revenue.
Community: stake because the company provides local jobs.
Competitors: stake because their survival can be affected by your performance; competition can influence market dynamics.

Core idea: meet the wants and needs of customers.
Requires marketing research to sense the market and guide product/services.
A company that ignores customer wants and only produces what it likes may not be sustainable.

Whirlpool sells to retailers (e.g., Best Buy, PC Richards) and also competes with them directly.
Retailers often mark up prices; Whirlpool may offer wholesale price to retailers, while retailers run promotions for consumers (e.g., 10% off for first purchase, then an additional $5\%$ off).
Example pricing: consumer-facing price around $9.98$ ; discounts can make direct-from-manufacturer offers more attractive to customers.
Question for marketing orientation: should manufacturers allow retailers to price-disadvantage them or should they align pricing to meet consumer needs? This reflects channel conflict vs. pricing strategy.
Concept: retailers achieve a margin; manufacturers set wholesale prices; discounts can affect perceived value and competition.

Suit separates targeted at everyday middle-class consumers; later expansion toward upscale markets via focus groups.
The emphasis is on listening to consumers and adapting offerings to meet actual wants, not just the company’s ideas.
Marketing orientation: products should be guided by consumer input; customers are the focus.

Marketing should consider the global marketplace; think globally when planning marketing.
There is a whole chapter on global marketing orientation and strategy.