Just last month, Mansmith and Fielders, Inc. released a book entitled Marketing Breakthroughs : From Trials to Triumphs. This book is an updated compilation of talks delivered by the Mansmith team of training masters held during a two-day conference in 2009. Available only through Mansmith website, the contents of the book remain relevant to present times. There are nine articles covering various topics such as from market-driven to market-driving, from insighting to foresighting, from consumer to prosumer, from pull to push (trade marketing), from silos to solidarity (service), from tipping point to trend, from turn down to target (sales), from fright to fight (leadership) and from advertising to advocacy.
We will be featuring part of the summary in this column to give our readers an idea of how this book can help businesses convert trials into triumphs.
Josiah Go’s article that synthesized various concepts such as market-driven to market driving strategies (MDS) provides a fresh perspective on the concept of workable and profitable innovation by looking into a company’s logic of industry and business system. The article challenges the reader to venture forth into uncharted territories where one can find underserved and unserved markets instead of battling it out with competitors to serve the existing market already using the product or service. In market-driving strategy, we are challenged to look into strategic and disruptive not just incremental innovative changes, to be different and not just better, to provide solution through both value proposition and value chain, to be more entrepreneurial in orientation and to go for market penetration and not just market shares. There are seven analytical tools that are used to reach a systematic but inspired market-driving idea and the article discussed one business model tool that stressed three major components or the 3Vs of value creation, value capture and value maneuver. The Mansmith Business Model Map puts all these concepts together into an easy-to-apply and systematic framework for innovation.
In MDS, the marketer asks several questions, one of which is to uncover the different types of unserved and underserved customers and their priorities as well as unique value propositions and business systems. Two ways to arrive at these new ideas are through insighting and foresighting. Dr. Ned Roberto connects the need to provide a relevant business model that addresses the underlying consumer behavior model for an enterprise to be successful or to continue to be successful in its future endeavors. He provided foresighting models that can help the marketer “see” tomorrow’s consumer behavior changes and market emergence, given that the future may fall into one of three configurations—totally unknown at zero visibility, so clear at almost perfect visibility or in between at 50% visibility. Dr. Roberto also suggested some hybrid foresighting models which bounds the polar points of zero to perfect visibility.
From insighting and market-driving, the next article discussed the evolved consumer, also called “prosumer” who now has different ways to acquire products and services. Donald Lim discussed how roles of producers and consumers will eventually merge with more consumers willing to be more self-reliant and more proactive in searching for, participating in and obtaining solutions to their needs. Much of these changes were brought about by the internet that revolutionized how information is now accessed or even how goods and services are acquired.
After understanding the rise and new roles of prosumers, Emilio Macasaet III discussed how independent and now more empowered customers can still be converted into buyers at the point of purchase.
Macasaet stressed the need to invest in shopper insighting research to fully understand behaviors in the areas of shopper occasion, need, brand loyalty and even customer experience. He discussed a case on Watsons Men Zone, which was developed based on research that there is a growing number of male shoppers at Watsons who are already interested in skin care including whitening and anti-aging plus other merchandise such as condoms and lubricants. The double-digit sales growth was attributed to efforts in improving layout and presentation as well as rationalizing the assortment of products to ensure productivity.
(To be continued next week)
Mansmith and Fielders, Inc. is the leading marketing and sales, strategy and innovation training company in the Philippines. Marketing Breakthroughs : From Trials to Triumphs is 208 pages long and available on Lazada and Shopee. For more information, you may also text us at 0918-81-168-88 or email info@mansmith.net.