Direct mail response factors for an industrial service

This article addresses the lack of quantitative research on industrial services marketing communications by providing a quantitative study of a direct mail promotion for an industrial service. Prenotification, the structure of the letter, the ethnic background of the signatory, personalization, and prequalifying the respondent were tested as factors influencing the response rate in the direct mail promotion. The results are useful as baseline information for current practitioners and to provide insights for the future development of theories of marketing communications for industrial services.     

Pretesting the effectiveness of industrial advertising

This article addresses the pretesting of industrial advertising messages diffused through (mass) communications media such as professional and trade journals. It is based on case-study experience and presents a normative framework for pretesting industrial advertising.     

Marketing to the industrial lease buyer

This article reports on a survey of financial executives concerning their attitudes towards the leasing of industrial equipment. Specifically, the study seeks to explore the reasons why lessees lease. The research findings are viewed in terms of their implications for the marketing of industrial equipment.     

A sales mix model for effective industrial selling

The purpose of this article is to focus on one aspect of the marketing mix for industrial firms. Specifically, the control of promotion centers on the promotional mix, which includes personal selling, advertising, and sales promotion. The personal sales mix model (Figure 1) highlights those factors that are controllable by the industrial sales representative. Also, the uncontrollables involved in industrial selling are discussed. An understanding of the personal sales mix model should aid industrial marketers in satisfying buyer's needs through effective selling.     

Industrial product innovation: An international comparison

This paper presents and discusses the data obtained from a study of 500 industrial innovations introduced in major industrialized countries from 1953 to 1973. The trends in industrial innovation of both the country of origin and the country of market introduction are examined based on the data presented.     

Marketing research by a small industrial firm: A case study

There is a growing need today for industrial marketers to conduct marketing research and use the results in making profitable business decisions. This paper describes a marketing research study conducted by a small industrial firm and discusses the nature and extent of its impact on the firm's operations. Several implications and practical guidelines are derived for industrial marketers in general, based on the firm's marketing research experience.     

Industrial marketing education: Practitioner's views

A study of industrial marketing practitioner perspectives on industrial marketing education was conducted. Attitudes toward the educational process, definition of skills, continuing education, practitioner assistance in education and topic importance were queried. In general it was found that practitioners are favorably disposed toward industrial marketing education, are willing to assist in the educational process and have distinct perceptions on the nature of the educational process and how it should be carried out.     

Marketing to firms in developing asian countries

The Newly Industrialized and Developing Asian countries represent a substantial and growing market for capital goods and for industrial components. Industrial buyer behavior among firms in these countries is different from that exhibited by firms in the advanced, industrialized countries. Therefore, different marketing strategies are required to penetrate NIC and LDC markets. This article discusses industrial buyer behavior in the NICs and LDCs and makes recommendations for marketing strategies.     

The Neglect of Technology Management

The economic and industrial problems of the past ten years have raised serious questions about the way managers are trained. Critics have suggested that business schools should do a better job in such areas as manufacturing management, ethics, human resource management, and long term financial analysis. John Crisp argues that in a competitive world, the effective management of technological innovation is a key activity. From his perspective , managers of industrial enterprises in Australia, and elsewhere, have a legacy of attitudes, sensitivities, and techniques which leaves them ill-equipped to deal with the new competition. His proposals for improving the education of managers are provocative.     

A comparison of opinion and regression forecasting for an industrial product

Opinion-based forecasting techniques are widely used by industrial marketers. Rarely, however, are the results of these forecasts compared with alternative forecasting techniques and/or evaluated against actual operating results. In this study, opinion-based forecasting results for an industrial equipment manufacturer are evaluated against actual sales data. Further, the opinion-based predictions are compared with the predictions of a naive regression model. The results of these analyses suggest that the current opinion-based forecasting system is deficient.     

Women as industrial sales representatives

The incidence of women in industrial sales is rising, and females can now be found frequently in traditional all-male type industries such as steel, lumber, and heavy machinery. A strong consensus exists among sales managers that women are effective in industrial selling, and the representatives' records sustain this opinion. Women are proving themselves as worthy, capable, and competent, although they do face special problems in this type of work, some of which are role reversal, production pressures, sexual overtures, and loneliness during travel.     

A critical review of recent organizational buying research

The purposes of this article are to examine the major contributions toward understanding industrial buying behavior and to suggest possible areas for future research. Many of the more recent studies have attempted to apply research findings in communications theory, consumer behavior, quantitative methods, and managerial decision theory in defining the decision process which constitutes industrial buying behavior. These research efforts have not been thoroughly evaluated.     

A new marketing tool: Life-cycle costing

Life-cycle costing is a method of calculating the total cost of ownership over the life span of the industrial product. It can be especially useful in the marketing of industrial products that sell for high initial prices, but which provide long-run cost savings. This paper explains the life-cycle concept and its implementation.     

Coalitions in organizational buying

It has been argued that many, if not most, organizational buying decisions are made not by individuals, but by coalitions. At the same time, coalition formation has been all but ignored in theoretical and empirical research on the buying process. This article discusses the nature of coalitions and their likelihood in industrial buying. Managerial implications of the presence of coalitions are drawn for both the industrial buying and selling organization.     

A critical review of industrial market segmentation

This article reviews approximately 30 articles over the past 20 years that have addressed the topic of industrial market segmentation. The pursuit of a normative model to guide practitioners in segmenting industrial markets has made some progress with three identifiable models. There are a host of problems with the work done in the area both conceptual and methodological.     

Increasing the role of direct mail marketing in industrial marketing strategy

Direct marketing has long been a dominant factor in the distribution strategy of industrial goods and services. Yet frameworks for strategy formulation in this area are nearly nonexistent in the literature. Much that has been written focuses on successful techniques, such as how to use a specific type of sales letter to improve results. This article outlines a set of key perspectives that industrial marketers may use to evaluate the potential effectiveness of direct marketing strategies.     

Researching marketing problems and opportunities with focus groups

Focus group research is a popular and effective qualitative research method for generating ideas and assessing marketing programs and concepts. This article provides marketers with insights about implementing focus groups in the industrial environment. It presents a specific procedure for conducting focus groups, potential industrial applications for the research technique, guidelines for making decisions about selecting moderators, establishing objectives, recruiting study participants, and controlling costs.     

Realigning industrial marketing channels

Dramatic changes are occurring in industrial patterns of distribution. This article provides a structure for analyzing realignments in industrial marketing channels. Specifically, the analysis centers on the channel efficiency and effectiveness dimensions that were generated by a shift from industrial distributors to a public warehouse.     

Pricing practices in two industries

Although a critical part of marketing decision making, very little has been written about industrial pricing policy and strategy. This article has three objectives: First, to report the pricing practices of the chemical and construction industries; Second, to compare their pricing policies; and third, to develop a simple pricing framework for industrial marketers. The results of this study are interesting and somewhat unexpected. The buyer and his behavior only play a small part in pricing policy. A pricing framework or model is presented in a logical and systematic way.     

A descriptive model of the trade-show budgeting decision process

Spending decisions for industrial trade shows are studied here. A discriminant analysis procedure identifies those factors that separate products that use trade shows from those that do not. The product category, fraction of sales made to order, industry sales level, importance of the product to the customer, and purchase frequency were found to be most instrumental. Another model evaluates the level of spending for products that use trade shows. The sales of the product and stage in the life cycle are shown to be most important in the budget-setting process. The potential use of these results for industrial communications and promotional planning and evaluation decisions is discussed.