The steps of sale

Others refer to it as the marketing or sales cycle and others as the steps of sales. No matter how it is called or how many steps of sales exist, one thing is sure. In order to obtain a new client or customer there is a certain procedure. The client should pass through some phases. Those phases are in general: Cognition of existence, Product Knowledge and Readiness for sale. In the first stage the customer gets aware of your product or service and of your existence. In the second step he becomes familiar with the product either he/she learns a lot of things or he/she knows of the basic features of the product. In the last stage the customer is ready for action that is to buy the product. It is not as much important to name correctly the steps or to break those down to even more stages, as the comprehension of that exact process. There are four types of customers: those who know nothing, those who know little or many, and those who are ready. It is of great importance for a successful sale for the customer to go through all stages step by step. The immediate transference from stage 1 to stage 3 is exertion of great press. The customer should successively transfer from stage to stage and this may require more time (e.g. more visits) and effort but in exchange it will build a strong relation between you and your customers, repeated sales, word – of – mouth and many other advantages.

What’s new in this blog?

Major Changes were done and are going to be done very soon. This blog has changed character. It is now becoming Scientific and Technical only. Particularly Marketing and subcategories of Marketing, Internet and other related issues should be discussed exclusively! Since I now have my MSN Space, I would post other topics there.

Moreover the sidebar was changed:
Links to other Marketing Blog were added as well as other Marketing Sites. Furthermore these links should be updated and many more should be added soon. Do you have any links to suggest? Go on, add a comment / post of the relevant URL or send me email!!!

My first podcast!!

My first podcast through Nostos Radio is available at the URL: http://www.archive.org/audio/audio-details-db.php?collectionid=Nostos_Podcasting2&collection=opensource_audio

It has technical contents about podcasting and is in Greek Lanquage. More podcasts may be available in the next days!

Kinds of Corporate Social Initiatives and major problems-challenges when designing a Corporate Social Responsibility Program

Those involved with the development of corporate social responsibility initiatives always face the problem of which kind of corporate programs about social responsibility to adopt. This is indeed a great challenge for a marketer and may lead to an unprecedented success or a complete disaster! Hence there is great need for a careful plan to be designed and be successfully integrated. Although there are several categories that social initiatives fall in, it is preferable for a company to choose one or more categories rather to implement many different programs which will likely cause little cooperation and may confuse the customers. A full descriptive study about different types of CSR initiatives is included in Kotler’s and Lee’s book: Corporate Social Responsibility. The writers group the most common CSR programs (those which fall into the corporate social responsibility concept umbrella) in 6 categories: cause promotion, cause related marketing, corporate social marketing, corporate philanthropy, social responsibility practices and employee volunteering. Also note that this categorization is not the only one. For example many companies choose to categorize programs in group of similar activities such as environmental activities etc. Or other companies implement social responsibility programs categorized according to the respective stakeholder. For each CSR category there are specific steps in creating the plan of action. Many of these steps are similar for different categories or even exactly the same.

The second more important decision, beyond what social issue should one get tied with, is if one should include partners (both for-profit or not-for-profit) and if so, what partners and what kind of partnership to tie? Partnerships can play a very important role in a CSR’s program success. Strong Partners can wield great influence upon pressure groups and consumers and thus they can reinforce the company’s brand name and add value for the firm. Moreover partners can link the company with several stakeholders, they can add validity and reliability to a CSR initiative and provide with the necessary know-how.

My first uplifting trance track Now ONLINE!!!

I 've recently uploaded one of my trance tracks at www.archive.com (using Creative Commons License) made with Fruty Loops. Feel free to download it, listen it, copy it, distribute and remix it, there are no copyrights!!! It's name is "Uplifting Friday" and the URL is:

"http://www.archive.org/audio/audio-details-db.php?collection=opensource_audio&collectionid=Zip3UpliftingFriday"

I am going to make more of my tracks available for downloading soon... So stay tuned for more urls and tracks...

Customer Relationship Management (CRM)

The last days while surfing the internet, I have come across many sites and blogs about customer relationship management. I have taken aback by the amazing wealth of resources and programs these sites include and the lot of fuss among internet users about this topic!

Customer Relationship Management has come to satisfy the need of marketers for better repurchase rates (repeated sales) of current customers. They have found that total quality management, after and during the sale services and all other value-adding processes are not enough to achieve customer retention (due to the rough competition and the increasing customer demands); they also need to build strong relations with their customers and to find ways to manage that relationship efficiently! Customer Relationship Management systems provide the frame and the tools for the necessary and appropriate activities. Through the data-mining of customers they can response to his / her needs better (e.g. by customizing the product to suit one’s needs).

The concept behind CRM is Relationship Marketing (treat each of your customers specially) and Database Marketing (which enables data-mining practices for the relationship management). Actually the hard core of CRM software includes a huge database where all customers’ data are entered, processed and kept in order to provide fast and accurate information about the customer in the first demand. Information about the customer can bring great success to the company in many ways as described below.

Advantages of CRM systems:

• They can provide marketers with vital and of great importance information about the products they sell, the market’s needs, they can also help with the positioning of the product (in consumers’ minds) and with segmentation.

• They can facilitate processes of the sales force. For example some regularities such as fixed sales every month for a customer.

• CRM systems may provide the necessary information about the product customization for a specific client

• They can add great value to the brand name, the company and its products by offering value to its customers. For example a company can offer a gift at a customers’ birthday or a check for products on its stores. These practices can lead to increased customers’ satisfaction and enhanced brand loyalty (something which typically will evoke high repurchase rates!)


CRM systems are continuously being adopted by an increased number of enterprises which are now starting to evaluate the great value and importance these systems provide. Also note that a CRM system should provide adequate information without being too much information saturated because that will became a great hindrance for marketers to make the right decisions and will cause much inefficiency.

Corporate Social Responsibility # 2: Business Ethics

Continuing the article about CSR (corporate social responsibility), I would like to discuss about the ethical part of businesses and the part ethics play both in the performance of a company and in the planning of a CSR program.

Ethical questions arise very often in the business world not only in strategic level but also in everyday decisions about normal and usual activities of the company. Managers should follow the guidelines and the main principals of the company in order to resolve ethical problems and answer to difficult questions. Under the context of CSR and Business Ethics a manager should always seek to find the moral answer to his questions and decide to act good to the environment and the society in general. Reasons to support the context of CSR have been discussed in an older post below. Consequently, managers when deciding which option to choose, the first which cause harm or the second which has a positive impact on society, should choose the latter.

Real problems arise when both choices are ethically right and good!!! On occasions like this –which are not very rare – managers face great dilemmas as to which option to choose and which good practice should sacrifice in order to provide greater welfare to individuals and society. A good idea then is to consult the main principles of the company or organization in which he/she works and find which option is evaluated as more important and higher in the main objectives list. One can ask guidance from his/her supervisors, from code of ethics of one’s company or relevant manuals, etc. However there are some dilemmas which are not being addressed by the code of ethics of the company (or organization) or are ambiguous. In those occasions things are even harder for managers to decide. The real interest and an integrated education and deployment of ethics in the organization in which ethical questions have not been addressed can provide the ground for the solution of the problem/challenge, while the final answer would be made by the manager. An example of such a good against good decision is given –among others – in the book “Business Ethics” by Chris Moon, Clive Bonny et al., (Profile Books Ltd.): A company has very strict rules against bribery but when it comes about human lives which can be saved (for example a pharmaceutical company during a war), decisions are very tough to be made and may be against shareholders opinions, law and reputation. Thus when one have to choose between conceding bribery for many lives to be saved or against bribery (in favor of company integrity, legitimacy and good reputation) and loss of lives, could be in deep water. Many examples could be cited (one is referred to the above book), but the questions are not being addressed.

On conclusion, as above, moral integrity and ethical education can provide the frame for answering difficult moral questions but cannot provide solutions to real dilemmas, who have to been addressed effectively by individual managers.

Another good reference is: Kotler Philip, Lee Nancy, Corporate Social Responsibility, John Wiley & Sons Inc., 2005

New to blog?

Are you newbie to blogging? You must know that new innovative technologies like blogs can offer you a great mean to get and stay in touch with your friends all over the world or even obtain new with common interests like you!

Especially for those who don’t know html scripting and want an easy and prompt way to post messages and publish ideas, images and get feedback! The friendly interface however can limit the user’s choices concerning the appearance and the personal style of the blog. Although there are some themes/templates ready to use (which in fact are very nice and practical) those are few and cannot represent the personal style of the owner. However, the user can alter and modify those templates in fit his/hers personal taste and personality by editing the html script.

Html scripting is in fact very simple and easy if taught or studied but an inexperienced user cannot dissemble the code very easily at once. One has to learn the basics to comprehend the way html script works. As regards the blogs, most blogger templates consist of 3-4 units. The main page – index which provides the main routines and the header, the place where posts are published, the sidebar which includes other parts of the blog like user’s profile, post indexes, etc. and may have a footer. So, when one would like to add a site meter should use the sidebar for better viewing and effictiveness of the blog. He or she should find the part of the code which contain the script for the sidebar and add the meter (for example he/she could paste the html code) wherever decides to be viewed. That is how the personal modification of the blog works. One can decide for example to change the fonts, colors or to add several web components on his/her blog and improve its appearance and functionality.

Corporate Social Resposibility

I 've been inactive for a while, sorry about that!

I would like to discuss a few things about corporate social responsibility, a fast growing concept which is not as considered such a new idea!

Corporate Social Responsibility

Corporate Social Responsibility is about activities undertaken by corporations and organisations as regards environmental and social issues. It is about environmental protection measures such as reforestation or activities against sea contamination; sociatal issues such as unemployment programs, human rights support, local communities support etc.

Social Responsibility while it seems to be against shareholders' interests and share value can have a positive impact to the price of a share. Several researches from many countries have shown that although there are some others with ambiguous results.

Corporate Social Responsibility:

• Can boost a corporation's reputation (by increased publicity, strong Brand name building, word-of-mouth, etc.)
• Can save millions from prosecutions, negative publicity, riots, provoked by dissatisfied customers, pressure groups, local communities and the sevaral stakeholders (there are many examples of corporations which have been damaged in millions dollars and reputation)

There are several programs that corporations undertake, some of them may be:

• Support for literacy
• Support for Humal Rights and Labour Relations
• Fight against environmental pollution (air pollution, sea contamination)
• Fight against hunger, diseases (such HIV), race and other discriminations
• Support for child's rights and against children's employment
• Local community support (local umemployment, sustainable development and resources of local communities)
• Support for culture, science, sports etc.

There is not any standard program to undertake or any best policy to adopt. The best way to involve into corporate social responsibility practises is to find the needs of your corporation, the obtainability of your objectives and the impact your business has to the sociaty and the environment. Then you can choose the best program to fit your business goals and objectives and create your plan of action. It is also crucial to enable channels for interaction and communication with your stakeholders (shareholders, state, employees, suppliers and customers, pressure groups etc.) and support feedback from those groups. Thus you can be enable to predict the impact of your actions, mentain a good and honest communication and relation with your stakeholders something which will give you their help and support.

That's for now! Stay tuned-in for more articles and resources about Business and Marketing practices...

Social Publishing

In recent times we have witnessed a new way of "Journalism". This is often called Social Publishing and is the ability of practically anyone to publish his/her opinion widely through the Internet using channels such as the Blogs, Websites, Forums, Groups etc.


The Internet provides great potentials toward that movement such as:

• Big audiences
• Little or no costs for publishing
• International coverage
  

Moreover the continually interest of people for social, political and moral issues, creates the ground (the will) for that kind of reporting. It is a common place for several citizens who have a common stake or share similar views as regards a specific issue to form Non Government Parties for controlling and judging Government and Businesses activities.

That modern trend covers from News (all over the world) coverage and reporting to criticizing and judging several policies and practices which are implemented by organizations, governments and businesses.

That new kind of Journalism may provoke dangers from propaganda to wrong informing. Furthermore criticism and reporting about several issues (such as the economy) provoked by not-experts is at least wrong information. Those who are non-experts about a specific issue should abstain from judging it.

However, Social Publishing is welcome because we can use it as a new mean of expression and exertion of political power and pressure. In the long term we will count on this form of expression to establish a global mass democracy where all can actively participate.

Last News

My last News...!

Due to business and academic commitments I am not able to prepare and publish this month's Journal in my Group...

Right now I am studying for a University Task about Corporate Social Responsibility and Societal Marketing and at the same time I am doing my summer practice in the accounting office in a greek subsidiary of a huge multinational company.

First Journal released

I am very happy to announce that my first Journal in the Marketing Community Yahoo! Group was released today! Due to the fact that the number of members is too small, the Journal was taken upon me and because of my mid-term I included only one article and a brief paper in the Journal. However more topics will be included in later issues. The article is about Marketing Plan (structure + basics) and the Brief Paper (which's main target is to remind marketers with some key elements of the marketing) is about the Marketing Mix.

If you want to visit my group click here

You are free to comment my work (as a matter of fact I strongly support feedback). Please free and do not hesitate to contact with me for commends, recommendations and anything else.

About my nick...

As regards my nick you should know that I use this nick since 2000. The use of my nick is not concerning only activities over the internet but all everyday activities in which I want to remain anonymous.
Thus, use of this nick is forbitten by other users in every occasion and at least without my explicit consent!!!

Invitation to my Yahoo! Group

visit the below link:
http://finance.groups.yahoo.com/group/Marketing_Community/

(For all interested in Marketing Science, it really is worth your valuable time!!! You will not regret it!)

This Blog's Creation

Today 10/06/05 I created my Blog! My nick is Zip3 and I am Greek. No more personal details are available ( I want to maintain my anonymity)