Effective Management for Marketing - Case Study Example

Name Grade course Institution Tutor Date Staffing Support Plan Strategies for mentoring and coaching of staff throughout the period of the proposed marketing activities (marketing, promotional and sales activities) Mentoring and coaching are two very critical roles that the management of any company should play so that the set goals for the organization can be attained. It is incumbent upon every prudent manager to ensure that his members of staff have the necessary skills which can propel the organization to greater heights especially in the modern world where there is cut throat competition. Mentoring involves a person with a greater wealth of experience helping his colleague who is less experienced to be more effective in their area of specialization. During mentoring the employees is able to gain tips, knowledge and good practices. On the other hand, coaching can be said to be a discussion whereby a staff member being coached is able to set goals so that they can hone their skills, develop professionally, and enhance performance at their place of work. The importance of coaching is that employees get to change their attitudes and the way they perceive phenomena (Lusch and Vargo 86). Such employees become more intelligent emotionally. The combination of coaching and mentoring inspires employees. The employees get to be more committed and their productivity increases a great deal. Modern managerial practice demands that there be coaching and mentoring of the employees. This paper focuses specifically on the marketing jobs of Houzit chain. This is a business which sells home ware stores and based in Brisbane, Australia. The company has set an ambitious plan, and for it to achieve its set goals, then marketing is one area that must be critically looked at. Seminars and workshops Seminars and workshops play a critical role in enhancing the productivity of employees. Seminars should be run by professionals who are knowledgeable and are known to have made it in their area of specialization. In the case of this paper, Houzit would need to acquire the services of successful marketers in the area of home wares. Such a seminar should be organized once the trainers identify the needs of the company. Marie and Tony would meet people who would help them eliminate fear and increase their self esteem. A seminar would present challenges to the employees who they would be required to solve and enhance their creative thinking. If conducted properly, the work would produce a paradigm shift and this would make Tony realize that there could be different ways of making the presence of Houzit on the web to be felt on a larger scale. With new skills imparted on the people charged with the responsibility of marketing, Houzit would expect to post better figures in terms of sales. Having employees take ownership of the work they do The senior management team at Houzit should strive to make the people involved in marketing that they have a huge responsibility on their shoulders. The marketers should take pride in the fact that their contribution to the company is invaluable and if they feel as part of the company then they are likely to be more dedicated and determined to increase their productivity (Reinartz and Thomas 67). The members of staff should play a central role in coming up with the mission of the company. Rather than presenting the marketing team with a marketing strategy, it would be instructive if the company engaged the members of staff in session whereby they would brainstorm and come up with a strategy which they feel is right (Luo and Donthu 74). This enhances the morale of the staff members who feel appreciated and part of the company. Short duration with an organization dealing with the same product Houzit should second their members of the marketing team to other companies which are successful in areas that it wishes to improve on. Tony, the expert in search optimization, could be seconded to a company which deals purely with online marketing and such an experience would enable him to adopt newer and innovative ways of ensuring that Houzit is able to be better at marketing its products through the world wide web. Marie the public relations manager could also be attached to a company which is reputed for its successful use of public relations in overcoming barriers which many business experience in reaching out to the wider public. Models for assessing use of resources (Time, money, material) provided to attain required marketing outcomes Resources which are at the disposal of a company are usually finite. These resources require to be utilized in the most efficient way. Efficient use of resources is ensuring that such resources are able to generate the highest possible rate of return to the company. The resources available to the company are time, money and materials. Utilizing these resources properly would assure the company of a successful outcome in marketing and the sales of such an organization would post better results (Luo and Donthu 76). Financial resources determine whether a business is able to execute its plans. Houzit has an ambitious plan to change its marketing strategy to enhance its sales in its chain of stores. Marketing through the proposed channels which includes buying advertising space would require a hefty financial investment. The strategy can only work if the finances are managed very carefully and that they are only released after the finance manager satisfies himself that the money shall be used for the intended purpose (Reinartz and Thomas 69). Marketing as a matter of fact, requires a lot of materials. These materials would require to be purchased and it only makes financial sense to the company if the materials are utilized efficiently and thus avoid wastage and premature 'retirement' of the resources. Some of the expensive requirements in a company include computers, printing machines, and scanners, among a host of others. Proper training is a prerequisite before one is allowed to use them and once trained the personnel should follow the best practices to achieve optimal use of the materials (Lusch and Vargo 89). Feedback: A model and mechanism for providing feedback to staff throughout the process. Feedback is very important especially in marketing. This enables the management to know whether they are getting their strategies right or whether there is need to go back to the drawing board (Worsam 18). One important ways of obtaining feedback is through audit of finances and the materials. It is vital that financial records are checked to ensure that money was used only for the intended purposes and nothing else. It is also vital that stock is taken on the available materials and their state vis a vis when the process began. Another way of getting feedback throughout the marketing process is by checking the number of hits that the site has had. The more people visit the web site then more the hits that would be registered. To determine whether the web as a platform for marketing can actually work would be established by determining the number of orders which are done through the website as compared to the overall sales for the company. The total amount in sales would be a pointer as to whether a company is making progress in the right direction. The primary purpose of marketing is to enhance the sales and hence, the amount of sales would be important in establishing the level of success attained by the company (Lusch and Vargo 90). The correspondence received from customers is relevant. If customers' response points to the fact that they like the services of the company, then this would be a plus for the company since it would translate to new sales due to the power of word of mouth and referrals. Performance: Performance refers to a measure of someone's achievement as gauged against standards of accuracy and competence which are preset. Performance is a very important indicator about whether any given organization is headed in the right direction or is doomed to fail. For Houzit, performance would be measured against the sales targets that have been set by the company. Performance would thus be pegged by what degree the company is able to attain or get close to attaining its set objectives. Another way of measuring performance would by getting feedback from customers about how they came to know about the products. It can then be established whether it is through the website, the advertisements in the papers or through the word of mouth. Performance is important in enabling the company know whether its strategies are working out or not. Scenario 1: One on one coaching for Tony Houzit has employed Tony to ensure that the company is able to achieve greater sales through the use of the internet. Tony is an expert in designing WebPages and in optimizing web searches. First, it is worth recognizing the central role that Tony plays in marketing. A one-on-one coaching for Tony would be conducted by someone with a greater wealth of experience in online marketing and designing of web pages. The mentor to Tony would share with him about strategies that work and those which do not. Tony would have a chance of getting to know the best way to structure the web pages. There is a whole lot of information regarding web programming and this would come in handy in achieving web pages which provides better interaction with the clients and the company. Scenario 2: Performance of Tony The performance of Tony led to an increase in sales through orders made through the website. Many clients appear to be warming up to the idea of purchasing their home wares through an online platform. However, the management feels that the online platform could do better. To ensure that marketing outcomes continue to be achieved, the management would decide to hire an assistant to Tony. The other alternative would be to have Tony go to a technology company for a refresher course and probably motivate him by making his terms of service better. Corrective Actions for Tony In case Tony fails to meet the set targets, then corrective measures would have to be put in place. These measures would include some form of warning to him that he needs to ‘up his game.’ Tony would also need to undergo some refresher training to ensure that his skills become up to date. If all else fails, the company would have no option but to fire Tony and find a replacement who would aid the organization set its objectives. Conclusion The aim of every employee is to be able to live up to their full potential in whatever they are involved in doing. Companies stand to benefit a great deal from their members of staff performing at their optimum because at that time, delegation becomes possible and organizational goals are met and even surpassed. Motivating of employees takes different forms and it behoves a good manager to identify what would work well within his organization. This is because different types of organizations would require different approaches in attaining the goal of having productive staff members. Coaching and mentoring require a lot of resources. This includes sacrificing time for the trainings to be conducted, dedicating finances to attain the goal and having the necessary human resources to accomplish the set goals and objectives. Many organizations that engage in enhancing the productivity of their employees reap handsome returns in the end. Works Cited Luo, Xueming and Donthu, Naveen. Marketing's Credibility: A Longitudinal Investigation of Marketing Communication Productivity and Shareholder Value. Journal of Marketing Vol. 70, No. 4 (2006), pp. 70-91. Lusch, Robert and Vargo, Stephen. The Service-Dominant Logic of Marketing: Dialog, Debate, And Directions. New York: M.E. Sharpe, 2006. Print. Reinartz, Werner and Thomas Jacquelyn. Balancing Acquisition and Retention Resources to Maximize Customer Profitability. Journal of Marketing Vol. 69, No. 1 (2005), pp. 63- 79. Worsam, Mike. CIM Coursebook 02/03: Effective Management for Marketing. New York: Taylor & Francis, 2003. Print. Read More