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Basics of Marketing - Kotler Philip

System for collecting external current marketing information

The system of collecting external current marketing information provides managers with information on the latest developments.

System of collecting external current marketing information ? A set of sources and methodologies through which managers receive daily information about events occurring in a commercial environment.

Executives collect external current marketing information by reading books, newspapers and specialized publications, talking to customers, suppliers, distributors and other persons not related to the firm's regular employees, and by exchanging information with other managers and employees of the firm itself. Well-organized firms take additional measures to improve the quality and increase the amount of collected external current marketing information. First, they train and encourage their sellers to record the events that occur and to report them. After all, trade agents? This is the "eyes and ears" of the firm. They are in an exceptionally advantageous position to collect information that you will not get by any other methods.

Secondly, the firm encourages distributors, retailers and other allies to pass on important information to it. In some firms, specially appointed specialists responsible for collecting external current marketing information. In particular, firms are sent to the places of so-called imaginary buyers, who monitor the retail staff. You can learn a lot about competitors: 1) acquiring their goods; 2) visiting "open days" and specialized exhibitions; 3) reading reports published by them and attending meetings of shareholders; 4) conversing with former and current employees of competing organizations, their dealers, distributors, suppliers and agents for freight operations; 5) collecting their advertising; 6) reading the newspapers "Wall Street Journal" and "The New York Times" and documents of professional associations.

Third, the firm buys information from third-party suppliers of external current information. The firm "A. K. Nielsen Company "sells data on the share of the market of branded goods, retail prices and the percentage of stores selling this or that commodity. The firm "Market Research Corporation of America" ​​sells reviews of weekly changes in market share, packaging and prices of branded goods, as well as data on transactions with these goods. To obtain compilations of competitors' advertisements, information about their advertising costs and the set of means of advertising they use, they resort to paid services of clip-bureaus.

Fourthly, a number of firms have special departments for the collection and dissemination of current marketing information. Employees of these departments look through the most important publications in search of relevant news and send specially prepared newsletters to marketing managers. In these departments, a dossier of information of interest to the firm is kept. Employees of the departments assist managers in the evaluation of newly received information. Such services can dramatically improve the quality of information coming to marketing managers.