National Institute of Technology 2009 M.B.A Finance KETING MANAGEMENT - Question Paper

Relationship Marketing
The principles of personal selling and negotiation we have defined are largely transaction-oriented because their purpose is to close a specific sale. But in many cases the company is not seeking an immediate sale, instead wants to build a long-term supplier-customer relationship. The company wants to demonstrate that it has the capabilities to serve the account’s needs in a superior way. Today’s customers are large and often global. They prefer suppliers, who can sell and deliver a coordinated set of products and services to many locations; who can quickly issues that arise in various locations; and who can work closely with customer teams to improve products and processes.
Sales people working with key customers are large must do more than call when they think customers might be ready to place orders. They should call or visit at other times, take customers to dinner, and make useful suggestions about the business. They should monitor key accounts, know customers problems, and be ready to serve them in a number of ways.
When a relationship Management program is properly implemented, the organization will start to focus as much on managing its customers as on managing its products. At the identical time, companies should realize that while there is a strong and warranted move toward relationship marketing, it is not effective in all situations. Ultimately, companies must judge which segments and which specific customers will respond profitably to relationship Management.

Q.3: A) To what extent must the company adapt its product & marketing program to every foreign country?
ANS:
Most companies would prefer to remain domestic if their domestic market were large enough. Managers would not need to learn other languages and laws, deal with volatile currencies, face political and legal uncertainties, or redesign their products to suit various customer needs and expectations. Business would be easier and safer. Yet several factors are drawing more and more companies into the international arena:
The company discovers that a few foreign marketers current higher profit opportunities than the domestic market.
The company needs a larger customer base to achieve economies of scale.
The company wants to decrease its dependence on any 1 market.
Global firms offering better products or lower prices can attack the company’s domestic market. The company might want to counterattack these competitors in their home markets.
The company’s customers are going abroad and require International servicing.

Earning:   Approval pending.