Marketing management - Research Paper Example

Quick Books: Environmental Scan: Quick Books Quick Books is an example of an accounting software package, which is marketed and developed by Intuit. Intuit is a company that was formed in 1983, and the founders of this company are Tom Proulx, and Scott Cook. The first software package that the company developed was Quicken, and based on its success, the company decided to develop a similar software package that could target small scale business owners (Burns, 17). Furthermore, the company did not have the ability to produce a software package that could provide for double entry accounting records.

In 1994, Intuit was able to purchase the rights of using a double entry accounting software, called money counts (Tremblay, 22). This program was developed and managed by Parsons Technology Company. The company gave this software a new name, Quick Books. Quick books became popular amongst small scale business personalities, and this is because most of them did not have the accounting skills or training. Because of this popularity, the company was able to acquire approximately 85% of the small scale business accounting packages.

Quick books continue to control this market (Ford, 31). This environmental scan identifies significant trends and competitive issues that face Quick Books. Significant Trends: Social Trends of Quick Books: One of the most important and significant social trend is the development of cloud computing. Cloud computing refers to a process whereby it is possible to use servers that are stored in the internet, for purposes of managing, storing, and processing data. This is a significant trend that affects small businesses, and hence the company has to innovate its products for purposes of satisfying the needs of customers, based on these trends (Burns, 22).

Technology Developments: The emergence of touch screen technology, and mobile phones have shaped the manner in which people are doing business in the world. It is now possible to access business information by using tablets, mobile phones, etc (Siegel and Jae, 11). The organization should therefore build an application that enables small scale business owners to use their mobile phones and tablets for accounting purposes. Economic Factors: Economic factors play a large role in the performance of a business organization.

The economic system of the world is globalized, and therefore the company manages to sale its products to various countries in the world. Business organizations need to have information and data regarding their financial performance, hence the software’s of the company will sale, despite any economic recession (Ford, 33). However, when the economy is good, the company will sale more, and this is mainly because of an increase in the number of people who are opening small businesses. Demographic Shifts: Due to the globalization of the economy, the company is now focusing on marketing its products to emerging markets, such as China, Brazil, South Africa, etc.

These are emerging economic giants, and the company does not want to lose on such markets. Initially, the major market of the company was United States and Europe, and these markets still consist of the largest revenue base for the company. Regulatory Base: Quick Books faces stiff regulation from the government. This is because the government seeks to encourage competition and not monopoly. Quick Books is considered the largest and most profitable accounting package company, and hence the need of regulating it, to prevent it from abusing its dominance.

Cultural Trends: Culture refers to a shared beliefs, values, morals, and customs of a particular group of people. Since the economic recession of 2007, most business organizations are always willing to create and maintain proper accounting records. Quick Books aims at making this possible. Competitive Issues: In as much as it is the most dominant and profitable accounting soft ware company, Quick Books has a variety of competitors. The most notable are, Fresh Books, Capterra, Sage 50, and Xero.

Capterra began in 1999, and it has managed to capture various markets all over the world. However, its main market base is Europe. Sage 50 is an alternative to Quick Book, and it is much cheaper (Siegel and Jae, 11). The only disadvantage is that it has some hard user interface, making it difficult for customers to use it. The major advantages of Quick Books are that it has an easy user interface, and the company has engaged in a strong marketing campaign to popularize the products. BCG Matrix: High *Quick Book Oline- 75% of the company’s revenues Low Cash Cows *Quick Book Package Dogs On an overall perspective, Quick Books is aware of its strengths and weaknesses, and the company has developed strategies aimed at taking advantage of its strengths, and minimizing its weaknesses.

Works Cited: Burns, John. Organisational and accounting change. Bradford, England: Emerald, 2006. Print. Ford, Gabrielle. Accounting packages: a conceptual framework. Durban: Butterworths, 2001. Print. Siegel, Joel G., and Jae K. Shim. Accounting handbook. 4th ed. Hauppauge, NY: Barrons, 2006. Print. Tremblay, Thom. Autodesk Inventor 2012 and Inventor LT 2012 essentials. Indianapolis, Ind.: Wiley Pub./Sybex, 2011. Print.