A
good way of conducting a marketing audit
How
well are the 5 vital marketing processes established ?
Check if these 5 vital processes of marketing
are existing in your company & also how well are they established ? The symptoms of absence of these processes are given later.
1. MARKET SENSING PROCESS : Process of observing the reality and learning
from it so that a sound plan can be formulated depending on it. This process
tracks, analyzes and interprets what the environment and
competitive developments and thus provides a foundation of reality to all
actions.
2. STRATEGY FORMULATION PROCESS : This process helps the marketing company decide
what value it plans to create, for whom, and how will it compete
sustainably.
3. CUSTOMER FULFILLMENT PROCESS : This is a process of coordinating with internal
departments so that the strategy gets implemented, the product portfolio
gets developed and supported in line with the market needs, the stock gets
produced and distributed to the right locations and supply chain works properly
end to end.
4. GO TO MARKET PROCESS : This process consists of locating, prospecting,
contacting, promoting, advising, closing, transacting - and thus acquiring
customers - in order to generate revenues for the company.
5. CUSTOMER
FEEDBACK PROCESS : This
process gives frequent customer feedback on existing operations / marketing mix
. It consists of managing complaints, customer recovery, learning from
mistakes. It also consists of what gives rise to customer satisfaction from
existing ways of the business.
Symptoms (What
happens) if these 5 processes are absent ?
- WHAT HAPPENS IF MARKET SENSING PROCESS IS ABSENT ? The
“alignment” between the markets and the company is never measured (except by
the very obvious and post-facto measure of sales – “if we are selling well, we
must be aligned to the market”). If you do not sense the market at the time of
market entry you will fail because you may not be able to give what the market
wants – and which is better than what the competition is offering. Even if you
start with a good alignment and hence success in sales, the market and the
company may drift in different directions without continuous market sending and
thus the "fit with the market" may goes down progressively till the
company finds itself hopelessly out of date.
- WHAT HAPPENS IF STRATEGY FORMULATION PROCESS IS
ABSENT ? the company will try and go after multiple types of customers -
and for each it will try to create value – and in multiple ways. Ultimately the
company does not create a superior focus on any of these markets (customers)
and does not become a leader (among top 3) in any of the markets it operates.
In each market it becomes a "follower" and is subject to the pricing
and other rules set by the leaders and hence operates with its margins under
pressure. Being not a leader it also does not enjoy warm patronage of the
users, buyers, trade and vendors. No one's life depends much on such a company
but the company is at the mercy of a lot of people.
- WHAT HAPPENS IF CUSTOMER FULFILLMENT PROCESS IS ABSENT ? the right products,
with right product specifications, may not come to market at the right
time. Or the right products may not get produced and distributed such
that the right product is available at the right time.
- WHAT HAPPENS IF GO TO MARKET PROCESS IS ABSENT ? The revenue
generation and customer relationship creation suffers. Even if you make the
right product, revenue will not get generated unless you reach out to them,
talk to them, convince them, demonstrate to them, persuade them and make them
buy.
- WHAT
HAPPENS IF CUSTOMER FEEDBACK PROCESS IS ABSENT ? you lose out on
chances to learn by doing. Since the customers do not connect back to you, you
never learn what they think and want, and you do not come to know where are the
areas of opportunity. The customer relationship suffers because there is no
connect. The customer loyalty suffers and you lose a part of the "total
lifetime value" of the customer base - created by you - to your com
