Around the turn of the millennium, there was a lot of interest in the idea of customers as financially relevant. Thus work started to concentrate on the idea of customer equity. Customer equity was sometimes equated with the idea of customers as assets. This is an important aim (even though I have some measurement quibbles)….
Category: Marketing Concept
Discussions of marketing concept
A Unified Theory Of Marketing
One of the challenges with marketing is that there are so many bits that don’t fit together. As such let me put on record that I appreciate the potential for customers to be put at the center of all the marketing approaches. CLV, the value of a customer to the firm, has potential for a…
Artificial Intelligence And Its Challenges
Artificial Intelligence (AI) has thrown up all sorts of questions for business and society. What then of artificial intelligence and its challenges? What To Do With It One of the first problems was recognizing what to do with it. Nowadays we can see AI making considerable impacts on the world but that this would happen…
Accounting For Brands
In a 2003 piece Tony McAuley discussed the history of accounting for intangible values. He interviewed Michael Schurch, CFO of RHM (Rank Hovis McDougall). They discussed the company’s decision to add the value of brands to the balance sheet back in 1988. This created a bit of a stir at the time, and has influenced accounting for…
Data Without Small T Theory
Standard Deviations Gary Smith’s impressive Standard Deviations book concerns an important point. Statistically inclined people often seem to miss that theory small t matters. Smith is keen to note that data isn’t enough on its own. “Data without theory… is treacherous” (Smith, 2014, page 233). Smith describes a case of a cholera outbreak. This outbreak…
Bad Arguments
A lot of arguments simply don’t make sense. Spotting bad arguments is a vital, and I’d guess, rare skill for academics and business people. Ali Almossawi has a fun little book on bad arguments. They are all illustrated to make them more memorable. I don’t completely endorse all the descriptions. Still, he raises important things to bear in mind…
Market Driving (And Being Just Really Good)
Some firms don’t seem to follow the market. Instead, they chart their own course. They are market driving. Who Drives The Market? The classic example of such a firm might be Apple. It looks to many that Apple is able to influence tastes in the market rather than just serve the consumers’ tastes. Whether this…
Models Of Marketing Strategy
In North American academic marketing the area of strategy research seems to be losing its place. [Written in 2015 some are a bit more positive now]. We need to ensure strategic thinking is rigorous. Critically, it also need to be seenas rigorous by managers and fellow academics. One way to do this is by forming…
Competitor Orientation And The Evolution of Business Markets
My first major article was on Competitor Orientation And The Evolution of Business Markets. I think it is a fun one. Even though it took years and years to publish. Some may have agreed. it was fun That said, it is a bit mathy at times. Aiming To, Is Not Maximizing Profits When people envisage…
Too Much Information
Peter Shawn Taylor’s article in the July issue [2014] of Canadian Business tackled an interesting issue. Can we give consumers too much information? The Problem Of Too Much Information In Disclosures Consumers need adequate information to reward marketers offering a good a deal. As such, information is generally a good thing. That said, long legal disclaimers…