Marketing Mix Concept: of Triangle Creative Ltd - Case Study Example

?Business-to-Business Marketing Table of Contents 0 Introduction 3 2.0 Marketing Mix 4 2 Marketing Mix Concept 4 2.2 Marketing Mix of TCL 4 2.2.1Product 4 2.2.2 Price 5 2.2.3 Place 5 2.2.4 Promotion 6 2.2.5 People 6 2.2.6 Process 7 2.2.7 Physical Evidence 7 3.0 Relationship Variables and Business Networks 8 3.1 Importance of Business-to-Business Relationship and Network 8 3.2 Importance of Business-to-Business Relationships and Network for TCL 9 4.0 Structuring The Sales Force 12 4.1 Customer Based Sales Force 12 4.2 Geographical Based Sales Force 12 4.3 Product Based Sales Force 13 5.0 Conclusion 15 6.0 References 17 7.0 Bibliography 20 1.0 Introduction Business-to-business refers to a method which is performed in between two businesses. Therefore, business-to-business marketing is a procedure between the different business houses such as the manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers. Triangle Creative Ltd is an advertising agency which was founded by David Thorpe and Angela Brown in the year 1998. The company is based in Cambridge, United Kingdom and employs around 25 staff. Business-to-business relationship plays a major role in the long run. During the periods of economic downturn also business relationships have proved to be extremely helpful to an organisation by minimising the amount of threats and uncertainties in the business. The objective of the paper is to analyse the marketing mix concept in terms of Triangle Creative Ltd (TCL) and to evaluate which marketing mix approach would be more effective in the business-to-business sector for TCL. Certain suggestions have also been mentioned in this paper with regards to the Triangle Creative Ltd in order to remain competitive in the advertising and marketing sector. 2.0 Marketing Mix 2.1 Marketing Mix Concept Marketing is a process performed by the organisations for delivering their products to the customers or clients and also to exchange the information which is profitable for the organisation and the customer as well. The marketing strategy or plan of an organisation depends on various factors. The most significant factors that play a major role in developing the marketing strategy of an organisation are product, price, place, promotion, people, process and physical evidence. These major factors are also widely referred as the seven Ps of marketing (Arnold IT, 1988; Borden, 1984). 2.2 Marketing Mix of TCL 2.2.1 Product TCL is an organisation operating in the marketing and advertising sector which generally renders services to the business houses. TCL produces the marketing as well as advertising materials such as radio and TV advertisement for these business houses. TCL has been regularly using the services of a single company called PJW Media Production and has quite a good relation with the company. Therefore, in terms of the services provided, it can be advised that TCL should introduce other modernised technologies to the customers for advertisement of their products apart from producing only TV and radio advertisement. 2.2.2 Price TCL has been noticed to practice a very rigid pricing system which depends on various factors such as timeframe, design, type of media and frequency. TCL usually charges a specific percentage of the total marketing budget of the customers. The company remains very strict and rigid in terms of the prices while dealing with the customers instead of practicing a flexible pricing policy. This kind of pricing system has been noticed to be preferred by the present customers but, the new customers are not likely to be attracted by such type of pricing policy. The new customers are likely to prefer a pricing policy which is flexible and so they can negotiate and also play a part in determining the prices. Apart from TCL there are many other small firms in the advertising sector which are quite flexible in terms of their pricing strategies as compared to that of TCL. Moreover, these small firms charge only flat fee for their services instead of charging at percentage commission rate as done by TCL. Therefore, it can be stated that as a result of the rigid pricing policy, TCL can satisfy and retain the existing customers but, may not be able to attract new clients because many of the customers may get attracted by the other small advertising agencies. Hence, TCL can introduce a pricing policy which is reasonably flexible and allows the customers to negotiate in terms of prices. 2.2.3 Place TCL is a Cambridge based organisation and usually operates around Cambridge and also serves certain small and standard sized enterprises which are based in London. For the further development of the company, TCL can be advised to expand its business, but it is also a fact that the number of resources of TCL is limited and internationalisation would not be a feasible decision for the company at present time. Therefore, TCL should concentrate in the retention of the present customers and focus upon increasing their customer base in the existing locations. 2.2.4 Promotion TCL’s promotional and advertisement activities are largely dependent upon the word-of-mouth communication. The company also has a website and many a times gives advertisement in certain business magazines as well. However, according to certain estimates about 80% of the new customers are attracted by the word-of-mouth communication. Although in the recent scenario of economic climate, a company should not rely upon word-of-mouth communication only for the promotion purpose and TCL needs to practice certain other promotional activities to get the company noticed by the customers such as online advertisements on social networking sites. 2.2.5 People TCL is quite a reputed company situated in Cambridge and has been known for providing a reliable and friendly service to the customers. Hence, it can be confirmed that the present employees of TCL are well trained and are capable of handling the clients efficiently. To survive during the economic downturn, TCL is opting to structure a new force and in this context, it is advisable to TCL that the new sales force should be as well be trained as the present employees and in addition could also be able to handle customers efficiently. The employees need to be provided guidance for handling their assigned operations resourcefully. 2.2.6 Process The whole process of rendering services in case of TCL starts from the purchase of media for the advertisement to making of the advertisement. This process which TCL generally applies for rendering the services could be considered to be a quite lengthy process which is at times disliked by the clients. Therefore, TCL should attempt to implement the latest technologies that are available for rendering their services such as online advertisements. 2.2.7 Physical Evidence While buying a service, the client can be considered to be undertaking a risky business as a service can only be experienced after it is being delivered. Consequently, it is advisable to TCL to provide the customers with certain kind of physical evidence that assure the clients about the services which they are going to receive. A well developed website though which the clients can resolve their queries can be used as an important physical evidence for the clients. 3.0 Relationship Variables and Business Networks 3.1 Importance of Business-to-Business Relationship and Network Every organisation deals within a network comprised of its customers and suppliers which is generally known as the supply chain of the organisation. An organisation should attempt to understand the supply chain that it is dealing to run the business efficiently. Understanding the supply chain is likely to facilitate in the enhancement of the relationship between the organisations and the customers and that of the suppliers. This helps in the retention of the present customers and also attracts new clients as well (Business Link, n.d.). Business relationships act as quite significant in developing and maintaining efficient business operations. A good business relationship also includes the effective communication channels between the organisation, suppliers and customers. The importance of business relationships are seemed to be more in the sales sectors and many of the organisations in this sector need to be quite serious in this context and take measurable steps. The various relationship variables comprise cooperation, satisfaction, commitment, communication and trust. Business relationships facilitate in the creation of demand among the customers and also facilitate in the understanding of customer needs which results in the development of products as well as services (Hawkins, 2011). Among the numerous contacts that an organisation has it can be seen that majority of them are based on human relationships only. Therefore, the development of business-to-business relationships can be considered to be a process of creation of mutual understanding and value with the customers for a long-term association. A business relationship enhances the knowledge of the organisation about its customers and facilitates in developing an unambiguous perception regarding the needs and the desires of the customer. This as result changes the commodities provided by the organisation into an excellent experience and creates a value for that particular product and/or service and the organisation. A business relationship between different business houses facilitates in the development of long-term tie ups of the firms and achievement of mutual benefits (Bagdoniene & Zilione, n.d.; Clements, 2009). The major aspect of success in case of business-to-business marketing is the relationship between the business houses. An efficient business network also enables a business organisation to enhance its sustainability in the market. Business network comprises collaborative network, coordinated network and alliance network. To achieve mutual benefits, the business houses need to establish and sustain a good relationship with the related firms. In the recent market scenario of competitiveness, the customers can be regarded as the most important source of competitive advantage and developing business relations is a very efficient way of attracting new customers and also retaining the existing clients. By maintaining a good relationship with the customers, a company can also get to know about the recent trends of the market and can also generate ideas for new developed products. In addition, creating a long-term relationship with the customers can facilitate in a higher mutual benefit for both the customers and the company (Bagdoniene & Zilione, n. d.). 3.2 Importance of Business-to-Business Relationships and Network for TCL TCL, from the very beginning, has given great importance to business relationships. TCL has been always trying to create and to maintain a good working relationship with its customers for a longer period of time. Business relationships facilitate in the mutual benefit between the customers and the business houses. TCL in the course of time has gained a good reputation among the customers which can help it to retain its existing customers even in the time of economic downturn. However, it is also a fact that the clients of TCL are likely to reduce their advertising and marketing budgets as result of the poor economic conditions. These companies are in present context looking for a low budget but efficient ways of marketing which may tend to make it difficult for TCL to retain its existing customers. In this context, TCL might find it to be difficult to retain the customers despite maintaining a very good relationship with the customers. The relationship with the customers may assist TCL in knowing and understanding the needs of the customers which would facilitate TCL in introducing services according to the requirements of the customers. These new services which are an outcome of the relationship with the customers may assist TCL in retaining the existing customers and can also facilitate in attracting new customers. In such cases, it can be noticed that business relations are facilitating in the predevelopment procedure making the company competitive in the present economic scenario. Along with the economic downturn, TCL has also been facing a strong competition from the highly fragmented market which is comprised of a huge number of companies. In this case, business alliances can be virtuous in preventing the company from losing the current customers to the fragmented market of newly formed business firms. As a result of the good business relations, TCL can satisfy the customers even during the time of economic recession. The amount of uncertainty can also be reduced by mutual trust and benefit which can only be possible by maintaining a good relationship with the customers. As a result of the business relationships, the customers are observed to be more committed towards the organisations and a higher amount of loyalty can be expected from the customers. In addition to mutual benefits, business relations can also facilitate in the sharing of business risks and emphasise on mutual goals. Technological development is also facilitated by business relationships and as a result can make TCL competitive within the present market. As TCL maintained a good working relationship with the customers, the company can seek for advice from the customers and can also solve the problems together. This process can result in quick and effective solution of the problem (Bagdoniene & Zilione, n.d.). Moreover, business relationships also facilitate in the easy and effective communication between the company and the customers which may help TCL to remain updated with the market which consequently would facilitate in taking quick decisions to adapt with the changing marketing conditions. It was observed in an IMP literature that during the past years, the interest of the organizations towards business relationships has grown to a great extent. The different business houses now-a-days try to develop a mutual satisfaction, trust and loyalty with other business houses (Silva & Et. Al., 2010). However, according to Jansson (2008), there is also an adverse affect of business to business relationships. The reason being that the organizations are often faced with the problem of disclosing financial results in their forecasts and the organizations many a times find it to be not feasible to gain business relationships on the cost of their accounts. These kinds of conflicts in business to business can be solved by maintaining a good working relationship with the business houses through mutual understanding. Development of business relationships can furthermore develop the socio economic environment 4.0 Structuring The Sales Force The market in which TCL is operating is facing the problem of economic crisis which has hampered the advertising industry to a great extent. The prominent customers of TCL along with all other companies have cut off their marketing budget and are now looking for low budget promotional plans. 4.1 Customer Based Sales Force To deal with the present economic condition and market scenario, TCL may need an increased number of employees in the sales team. This additional number of employees may turn to be extremely helpful to the company. As a result of the increased number of employees, the company would be capable of serving a greater section of the market and can also facilitate in attracting new customers. Therefore, in this context TCL should employ a new customer based sales team which would facilitate in ensuring better customer satisfaction. 4.2 Geographical Based Sales Force The Directors of TCL are thinking to appoint both inside and outside staffs. In this context, it may be advised to the directors of TCL that in present economic scenario it would be more helpful to TCL if the Directors emphasize more on the outside sales team. Since, TCL has a very good reputation among its customer and also gives importance in maintaining a good relationship with the customers, so the threat of losing the present customers can be considered to be reasonably low in comparison to the need of attracting new customers. It is also worth mentioning that most of the promotion of TCL is carried out by word-to-mouth communication because of its goodwill in Cambridge. Thus, the company needs to source business deals from outside Cambridge as the outside sale team may facilitate in understanding the needs of the customers of outside markets. This would help TCL to develop the services according to the requirements of the customers. 4.3 Product Based Sales Force From the view of developing the products, it is advisable to TCL that employing a new sales team is a profitable decision for them to survive the economic downturn. The sales team that TCL possess are adapted to the previous products and may not be readily accustomed with the latest technologies which are quite important for sustaining in the long run. TCL should structure the new sales force so that they are capable of applying the latest technologies for developing the products as per the requirements of the clients. However, the employment of a new sales team may also have several impacts on the present employees and also on the company. These impacts could be either positive or negative. Employing a new team may hamper the interest of the present employees to work for the company as they might feel that they were not capable of serving the company properly and that is why the company is appointing a new sales team. If the present employees lose their interest in working with the company then it would have a severe adverse affect on the company because the present employees understands the needs of the customers of TCL and can work according to their requirements and if the present employees are not willing to work with the company then there is a huge chance of losing the present customers as well. The company owes its reputation and goodwill to the employees who work for them so, employing a new team on the cost of losing the present employees is not a feasible decision to take for the company. The present customers may also find it to be difficult to communicate with new team and consequently may not be fully satisfied with the company which will have an adverse affect on the company’s business. Therefore, it can be recommended to the Directors, David Thorpe and Angela Brown of TCL that they should employ the new sales team for the outside purpose. Since, TCL has already gained a good reputation in the Cambridge market with the present employees that TCL has and a new sales team for the Cambridge market may hamper the interest of both present customers and employees. Moreover, the company according to the present economic scenario should seek for expansion of the business and source customers from outside Cambridge and in this prospect a new outside sales team is more advantageous than a new inside team. 5.0 Conclusion TCL is situated in Cambridge and mainly operates within Cambridge and London. TCL is essentially a service based company which provides advertising material to other business houses. The advertising materials provided by TCL are usually TV and radio advertisements. In terms of pricing policies, TCL generally practice a very rigid pricing strategy. This kind of pricing policy is not likely to be appreciated by the new customers as they prefer a flexible pricing policy in which they could negotiate on the prices rather than a rigid pricing strategy, even though, the present customers of TCL has adapted themselves to the company’s rigid and stiff pricing systems. This has turned into a good opportunity for the competitors of TCL because they could easily attract the new customers with their flexible pricing strategies. TCL from the very establishment has been found to be concerned about their relationships with the customers. This is likely to help company to retain its present customers even during the period of economic downturn. Maintaining good business relationships can facilitate TCL in understanding the current product trends which may result in the development of product and as a result may also make the company compatible to the current market. Good business relations can also facilitate TCL in lowering the risk factor associated with the business by sharing the risk with the customers and by emphasizing on achievement of mutual goals. The Directors of TCL are opting to employ a new sales team cope up with the present market scenario. However, the employment of a new team may hamper the interest of TCL’s present customers as well as present sales team. For the reason that the present sales team understands the requirements of the customers and the customers may face difficulties to deal with the new team which should be taken into concern. 6.0 References Arnold IT, 1988. The Marketing Mix. The Challenge: Use the Right Blend Of Techniques. 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