毕业论文外文翻译-营销渠道与价值网络.doc

Marketing Channels and Value NetworksMost producers do not sell their goods directly to the final users between them stands a set of intermediaries performing a variety of functions. These intermediaries constitute a marketing channel also called a trade channel or distribution channel .Formally marketing channels are sets of interdependent organizations involved in the process of making a product or service available for use or consumption. They are the set of pathways a product or service follows after production culminating in purchase and use by the final end user.Some intermediaries-such as wholesalers and retailers-buy take title to and resell the merchandise they are called merchants. Others-brokers manufacturers representatives sales agents-search for customers and may negotiate on the producers behalf but do not take title to the goods they are called agents. Still others-transportation companies independent warehouses banks advertising agencies-assist in the distribution process but neither take title to goods nor negotiate purchases or sales they are called facilitators.The Importance of ChannelsA marketing channel system is the particular set of marketing channels a firm employs and decisions about it are among the most critical ones management faces. In the United States channel members collectively have earned margins that account for 30 to 50 of the ultimate selling price. In contrast advertising typically has accounted for less than 5 to 7 of the final price. Marketing channels also represent a substantial opportunity cost. One of the chief roles of marketing channels is to convert potential buyers into profitable customers. Marketing channels must not just serve markets they must also make markets.The channels chosen affect all other marketing decisions. The companys pricing depends on whether it uses mass merchandisers or high-quality boutiques. The firms sale force and advertising decisions depend on how much training and motivation dealers need. In addition channel decisions include relatively long-term commitments with other fins as well as a set of policies and procedures. When an automaker signs up independent dealers to sell its automobiles the automaker cannot buy them out the next day and replace them with company-owned outlets. But at the same time channel choices themselves depend on the companys marketing strategy with respect to segmentation targeting and positioning. Holistic marketers ensure that marketing decisions in all these different areas are made to collectively maximize value.In managing its intermediaries the firm must decide how much effort to devote to push versus pull marketing. A push strategy uses the manufacturers sales force trade promotion money or other means to induce intermediaries to carry promote and sell the product to end users. Push strategy is appropriate where there is low brand loyalty in a category brand choice is made in the store the product is an impulse item and product benefits are well understood. In a pull strategy the manufacturer uses advertising promotion and other forms of communication to persuade consumers to demand the product from intermediaries thus inducing the intermediaries to order it .Pull strategy is appropriate when there is high brand loyalty and high involvement in the category when consumers are able to perceive differences between brands and when they choose the brand before they go to the store. For years drug companies aimed ads solely at doctors and hospitals but in 1997 the FDA issued guidelines for TV ads that opened the way for pharmaceuticals to reach consumers directly. This is particularly evident in the burgeoning business of prescription sleep aids.Top marketing companies such as Coca-Cola Intel and Nike skillfully employ both push and pull strategies. Marketing activities directed towards the channel as part of a push strategy are more effective when accompanied by a well-designed and well-executed pull strategy that activates consumer demand. On the other hand without at least some consumer interest it can be very difficult to gain much channel acceptance and supportChannel Development  A new firm typically starts as a local operation selling in a fairly circumscribed market using existing intermediaries. The number of such intermediaries is apt to be limited: a few manufacturers sales agents a few wholesalers several established retailers a few trucking companies and a few warehouses. Deciding on the best channels might not be a problem the problem is often to convince the available intermediaries to handle the firms line. If the firm is successful it might branch into new markets and use different channels in different markets. In smaller markets the firm might sell directly to retailers in larger markets it might sell through distributors. In rural areas it might work with general-goods merchants in urban areas with limited-line merchants. In one part of the country it might grant exclusive franchises in another it might through outlets to handle the merchandise. In one country it might use international sales agents in another it might partner with a local firm. International markets pose distinct challenges. Customers shopping habits can vary by countries and many retailers such as Germany's Aldi the United Kingdoms Tesco and Spains Zara have redefined themselves to a certain degree when entering anew market to better tailor their image to local needs and wants. Retailers that have largely stuck to the same selling formula regardless of geography such as Eddie Bauer Marks amp Spencer and Walt-Mart-marketing strategy for Its entrance into 1MUS. market to slack different national manufacturer have sometimes encountered trouble in entering new markets.  In short the channel system evolves as a function of local opportunities and conditions emerging threats and opportunities company resources and capabilities and other factors. Consider some of the challenges Dell has encountered in recent years.  Hybrid Channels Todays successful companies are also multiplying the number of quot go-to-market quot or hybrid channels in anyone market area. In contrast to Dell HP has used its sales force to sell to  large accounts outbound telemarketing to sell to medium-sized accounts direct mail with an inbound number to sell to small accounts retailers to sell to still smaller accounts and the Internet to sell specialty items. Staples markets through its traditional retail channel a direct-response Internet site virtual malls and thousands of links on affiliated sites.Companies that manage hybrid channels must make sure these channels work well together and match each target customers preferred ways of doing business. Customers expect channel integration characterized by features such as: the ability to order a product online and pick it up at a convenient retail location；the ability to return an online-ordered product to a nearby store of the retailer；the right to receive discounts and promotional offers based on total online and off-line purchases. Circuit City estimated in-store pick-ups accounted for more than half its online sales in 2006. Heres a specific example of a company that has carefully managed its multiple channels. REI（Recreation Equipment Inc.） What s more frustrating: buying hiking boots that cripple your feet or trying on the perfect pair only to find the store is out of stock in the size or style you want at Recreational Equipment Inc. large accounts outbound telemarketing to sell to medium-sized accounts direct mail with an inbound number to sell to small accounts retailers to sell to still smaller accounts and the Internet to sell specialty items. Staples markets through its traditional retail channel a direct-response Internet site virtual malls and thousands of links on affiliated sites.    Companies that manage hybrid channels must make sure these channels work well together and match each target customers preferred ways of doing business. Customers expect channel integration characterized by features such as: the ability to order a product online and pick it up at a convenient retail location；the ability to return an online-ordered product to a nearby store of the retailer；the right to receive discounts and promotional offers based on total online and off-line purchases. Circuit City estimated in-store pick-ups accounted for more than half its online sales in 2006. Heres a specific example of a company that has carefully managed its multiple channels. REI（Recreation Equipment Inc.） Whats more frustrating: buying hiking boots that cripple your feet or trying on the perfect pair only to find the store is out of stock in the size or style you want at Recreational Equipment Inc.Understanding Customer Needs Consumers may choose the channels they prefer based on a number of factors:the price product assortment and convenience of a channel option as well as their own particular hopping goals economic social or experiential.As with products segmentation exists and marketers employing different types of channels must be aware that different consumers have different needs during the purchase process. Researchers Nunes and Cespedes argue that in many markets buyers fall into one off our categories. Habitual shoppers purchase from the same places in the same manner over time.  High-value deal seekers know their needs and quot channel surf quot a great deal before buying at the lowest possible price.  Variety-loving shoppers gather information in many channels take advantage of high touch services and then buy in their favorite channel regardless of price.  High-involvement shoppers gather information in all channels make their purchase in a low- cost channel but take advantage of customer support from a high-touch channel.  One study of 40 grocery and clothing retailers in France Germany and the United Kingdom found that retailers in those countries served three types of shoppers:1. Service/quality customers who cared most about the variety and performance of products in stores as well as the service provided .2. Price/value customers who were most concerned about spending their money wisely .3. Affinity customers who primarily sought stores that suited people like themselves or the members of groupsthey aspired to join. As Figure 15.1 shows customer profiles for these types of retailers differed across the three markets: In France shoppers placed more importance on service and quality in the United Kingdom affinity and in Germany price and value. Even the same consumer though may choose to use different channels for different functions in making a purchase. For instance someone may choose to browse through a catalog before visiting a store or take a test-drive at a dealer before ordering a car online. Consumers may also seek different types of channels depending on the particular types of goods involved. Some consumers are willing to quot trade upquotto retailers offering higher-end goods such as TAG Heuer watches or Calla way golf clubs these same consumers are also willing to quot trade down quot to discount retailers to buy private-label paper towels detergent or vitamins.Value Networks  A supply chain view of a firm sees markets as destination points and amounts to a linear view of the flow. The company should first think of the target market however and then design the supply chain backward from that point. This view has been called demand chain planning. North westerns Don Schultz says: quot A demand chain management approach doesnt just push things through the system. It emphasizes what solutions consumers are looking for not what products we are trying to sell them.Quot Schultz has suggested that the traditional marketing quot four Ps quot be replaced by a new acronym SIVA which stands for solutions information value and access. An even broader view sees a company at the center of a value network-a system of partnerships and alliances that a firm creates to source augment and deliver its offerings. A value network includes a firms suppliers and its suppliers suppliers an diets immediate customers and their end customers. The value network includes valued relations with others such as university researchers and government approval agencies.  Demand chain planning yields several insights. First, the company can estimate whether more money is made upstream or downstream, in case it might want to integrate backward. or forward. Second, the company is more aware of disturbances anywhere in the supply chain that might cause costs, prices, or supplies to change suddenly. Third, companies can go online with their business partners to carry on faster and more accurate communications, transactions, and payments to reduce costs, speed up information, and increase accuracy. With the advent of the Internet, companies are forming more numerous and complex relationships with other firms. Managing this value network has required companies to make increasing investments in information technology and software. They have invited such software firms as SAP and Oracle to design comprehensive enterprise resource planning systems to manage cash flow, manufacturing, human resources, purchasing, and other major functions within a unified framework. They hope to break up department silos and carry out core business processes more seamlessly. Marketers, for their part, have traditionally focused on the side of the value network that looks toward the customer. In the future, they will increasingly participate in and influence their companies upstream activities and become network managers, not only product and customer managers.营销渠道与价值网络管理公司的混合渠道必须确保这些渠道一起工作和相互匹配的目标客户首选的做生意的方式。客户希望渠道整合高 通过诸如在线订购产品的能力和在一个方便的零售地点捡东西的能力；能够将网上订购的产品转化为零售商的附近商店 接受折扣和促销优惠的基础上总在线和离线购买。电路城估计店内接售占其在线销售额的一半以上2006。这是一个特定的 一个精心管理多渠道的公司的IC例子。REI（游乐设备公司）更令人沮丧：买登山靴，削弱你的脚或试图在完美的排 R只找到商店的大小或风格，你想在娱乐设备公司的股票。大多数生产者并不直接销售产品到最终用户，他们代表的是一套执行多种功能的中介机构。这些中介机构构成了一个营销渠道，也称为贸易渠道或分销渠道，正式的营销渠道是一组相互依存的组织，参与的过程中，使产品或服务可供使用或消费。他们是通过产品或服务来确定生产后最终使用用户。一些中介机构，如批发商和零售商购买所有权和转售商品，他们被称为商人。其他经纪商代理销售代表寻找客户，并可能代表生产商谈判，但不采取标题的货物，他们被称为代理。还有一些运输公司、广告公司、独立仓库银行协助分发过程，他们被叫做促进者但没有把货物所有权或洽谈购买权或销售权给他们。渠道的重要性营销渠道系统是一个企业特定的营销渠道并且关于它的决策是管理层面临的最关键的问题之一。在美国的渠道成员集体获得的利润占最终销售价格30至50。相反，广告通常占了不到最终价格的5成或 7成。营销渠道代表一个巨大的机会成本。营销渠道的主要作用是将潜在的买家变成有利可图的客户。营销渠道不仅要服务市场还必须使用市场。渠道选择影响其他所有的营销决策。公司的定价取决于是否采用大卖场或高品质的精品店。企业的销售力和广告决策取决于经销商需要多少培训和激励。此外，渠道决定还包括对除了对那些芬兰人相对长期的承诺之外的一套政策和程序。当一个汽车制造商签署支持独立的经销商去销售他们汽车的时候，以后汽车制造商就不能用公司拥有的网点去取代他们。与此同时，营销渠道的选择依靠自己公司的市场战略以及对目标的细分和定位。使整体营销获得在这些所有市场决策中的不同领域的集体价值最大化。在中介企业的管理中必须决定它投入多少努力在推拉营销中。推式策略是使用制造商的销售力量促进贸易资金或使用其他手段诱导中介进行对最终用户的宣传和产品销售。推式策略适合用于选择低忠诚度的品牌产品，在这个品牌店里的项目，产品推动效益都是被理解。在拉式策略的制造商中使用通信广告宣传等形式，在拉动策略中，制造商使用广告促销和其他形式的沟通来说服消费者向中介机构要求产品，从而促使中介机构订购产品。拉的策略是适合在消费者进入店前就能够感知品牌差异和品牌选择的，拉式策略合适这种品牌有高忠诚度和高涉入度的。多年来，药物公司只针对医生和医院的广告，但在1997 FDA发布的电视广告指南，开辟