New E Marketing example essay topic

Like dusting powder on fingerprints, new e-marketing tracking tools are out now that make vital information visible. Certain tools and feedback loops can show e-marketers which content customer segments are interested in by disclosing viewing patterns, which are then automatically turned into rich, detailed reports that clearly define customer trends and preferences. Placing value on learning is not an easy thing for companies to do, but it's critical for evaluating the true return on investment of marketing initiatives. A greater understanding of what customers are interested in and the ability to use that information to drive your next communique'e is at the conceptual heart of customer loyalty programs. The difference between today's e-marketing capabilities and old-fashioned offline and online programs is that increasingly intelligent analytic's make ongoing b-to-b and b-to-c dialogues actually possible. Accepting this as finally real and valid will open a new perspective on what constitutes a strong initiative and will encourage e-marketers to leverage all the new tools that are making it possible.

But still, quantifying its value in terms of dollars and cents is a challenge. Call a research provider and ask how much it would cost to do a detailed analysis of marketing trends in your sector. How much would it cost to interview, say, 3,000 people and then draw buying behavior trends from the feedback? Share the information with research and development and ask if it provides insight into a new product development. Does it change what they already had in mind?

How much do you save catching a false start early? Does it give them a new idea or eliminate the need to test several different products? How much is that worth in terms of eliminating needless development? (Schultz, Don E pp 34- 40) At a recent Association of National Advertisers meeting, Peter Sealey, former vice president of global marketing at Coca-Cola Co. and now new-technology person extraordinaire, proposed that in the near future, all the traditional marketing and communication activities that have been developed and in which have built major capabilities will become irrelevant.

In fact, they likely will disappear. Sealey argues that the three major elements required creating the e-commerce marketplace (bandwidth, storage and processing power) soon will be given the current technological developments and rapidly declining costs, for all intents and purposes, free to the consumer. When that happens, Peter says, the traditional marketer-driven, marketer-controlled marketplace will be severely challenged. In fact, Sealey makes the case that both the marketplace and marketing communication as we have known them for the past 50 years or so likely will simply disappear. Disappear! And, when that marketplace disappears, many of the traditional plans, programs and promotions skilled at developing in the past probably will become out of date.

Sealey makes a strong case for this view and has lots of success stories to support his premises, but the question is, will the change be total, or might it be a bit of in-between? Obviously, given the type of marketing and communications shift Sealey visions, many of the traditional marketing approaches and systems will be challenged. There is little question that the marketplace is in transition, but it is transition, not revolution. Not everything can be sold via e-commerce, delivered over wires or through a satellite up link. How about services or goods such as childcare or dentistry? People almost have to be there to receive them.

There will be a need for demand for-things that require human interaction and traditional marketing expertise. The challenge for marketing, and particularly marketing communication, is sorting out the issues and finding a route to transition. That means not rushing willy-nilly onto the Net simply because it is there and everyone else is doing it. In spite of convenience, savings, time pressure and all the other things that should push them online, some still want to shop.

Some still want to get in their cars and go to the mall or the store and jostle, push, see and feel. Some still want to interact with humans in person. Some still want to watch television, strange signal and all. Some still want to clip coupons and carry them in their purse or wallet, not in their laptop. While there is little question electronic commerce is having an impact, it will not destroy the world of marketing as we know it, at least not immediately.

Also keep in mind that the world works in the short-term. (: Goodwin, Kathleen pp 231-290) Marketing in the Web era is different because of the incredible amount of real-time information that is potentially available about the behavior and interests of customers. E-CRM (customer relationship marketing) systems, for example, help companies to gather information on customers, to segment them, and to base interactions with them on their preferences and needs. This is a marketer's dream. But e-CRM systems are expensive and difficult to design, sometimes take a long time to set up, and are hard to manage.

Hence, many start-ups find themselves overcharged with information that they do not know how to use. The temptation is to ignore it in the rush to get their operations off the ground. But in so doing, they fail to build the capabilities for monitoring customer behavior and are in danger of losing sight of their relationship with consumers. It is only by monitoring and using information that companies will be able to learn quickly about their customers' needs, and thus how to convert, develop, and keep customers. From the outset, a company should set very specific marketing goals for the relationship it wants to create with customers and establish some key indicators that will show if the business is on track. If, for example, a key element of the value proposition is the building of a customer community, the number of open discussion forums and the percentage of visitors who actively participate in them are good but simple indicators of the richness of the community.

If the core of the value proposition is providing technical information, time spent on the site indicates whether the company is delivering. If the site specializes in news, the frequency of visits is a good performance indicator. (Don nolo, Mark, Metzger, Marc pp 657-701) Until now, large traditional businesses have been the primary beneficiaries of integrating internet technology into their marketing and sales strategies. These companies are increasing sales effectiveness and making improvements in profitability that most internet startups won't see for years. Because the Web eliminates many of the physical constraints of a company's marketing channels, such as sales channel reach or inadequate brick-and-mortar infrastructure, small and midsize companies can now attain virtual marketing parity with their larger competitors.

It is now a market imperative that companies compete effectively in the electronic environment. As you size up your e-marketing needs, pay close attention to three crucial elements: presence, customer alignment and relationship. (Karpinski, pp 23-29).