在內外環境的衝擊之下，台灣的資訊業已經到了必須轉型的時候了。企業 為了追求長期的利潤及長期的競爭地位，通路的發展是最初也是最重要的 選擇，而直接外銷通路的發展是最能符合國際行銷導向的國際化拓展模式 ，對國際化觸角的延伸具有較大的貢獻。然而隨著公司所面臨內外環境的 不同，較適的通路拓展模式就不同的公司而言，未必相同。究竟那些內外 通路環境因素是廠商在 發展通路時，是較重要的考量因素，在本研究 裡，曾就以不同的角度來探討之（不同資訊產品、不同通路涉入程度、不 同通路控制群 @）。實證的結果顯示，公司的因素（通路內部環境）對通 路發展及通路權力來源的影響較大。在本研究中，特別探討產品特性（產 業因素）對通路策略的影響，以個人電腦及監視器為例。在國際行銷通路 上，通路權力結構是否仍存在，通路權力與通路發展型態之間的關係在過 去並未被探討，事實是否存在，能否透過通路的發展來改善通路權力或通 路權力來源。實證的結果顯示， 廠商可透過通路的發展來改善通路權力 來源，然而其改善的效果並 不是非常好。且由於在國際行銷通路上，通 路權力來源與通路權力 之間的迴歸關係的薄弱，使得經由通路的發展所 改善的通路權力來 源，無法傳遞至通路權力，故無法透過通路發展來 改善通路權力。

<p>The right to personal data is compared with the right to land. The concept of rights may be regarded as bundles of rights of which the right to use of scarce resources, the right to exclude and the right transfer rights are the most important ones. The development of Information Technology has reduced considerably the cost of using personal data leadingto an increased use of the data in the context of direct marketing by different firms. However, the use and processing of personal data may cause externalities, both positive and negative ones, on the individual to whom the data relates. This situation can be analysed with the Coase Theorem, where the transaction costs have important function. In a state of zero transaction costs the parties, firms and individuals, can make agreements of an optimal use of the personal data, independently of the assignments of rights to the personal data. Such agreements internalise further the externalities. However, in the real life the transaction costs are high meaning that the assignments of rights are most significant leading to that the externalities remain. To pass by the problem of transaction costs and externalities, zoning procedure with transference of rights can be used. The background of bundles of right to personal data together with the Coase Theorem and zoning procedure are applied to the Directive 95 /46/EC adopted by the European Union regarding the processing of personal data and the protection of privacy. This Directive may however be interpreted in different ways leading to that the assignment of rights and level of direct marketing is different between Member States.</p>

<p>The social media are internet facilities where people can communicate and discuss through different websites or blogs. The social media has changed the world in many aspect and people are becoming more and more addicted to use these networks. People are fond of the social media because they can be social with a high number of individuals, both be real life friends, as well as strangers. Since the social media has grown to become so popular, companies have taken advantage of this as well. Their goal is to promote themselves through these networks as this can be very lucrative for the business. There are many different social media networks however this study will only be about Facebook. The aim of the study is to find out and describe how companies use Facebook for marketing purposes. An observation of how 34 fashion companies use Facebook for marketing purposes was carried out.</p>

The right to personal data is compared with the right to land. The concept of rights may be regarded as bundles of rights of which the right to use of scarce resources, the right to exclude and the right transfer rights are the most important ones. The development of Information Technology has reduced considerably the cost of using personal data leadingto an increased use of the data in the context of direct marketing by different firms. However, the use and processing of personal data may cause externalities, both positive and negative ones, on the individual to whom the data relates. This situation can be analysed with the Coase Theorem, where the transaction costs have important function. In a state of zero transaction costs the parties, firms and individuals, can make agreements of an optimal use of the personal data, independently of the assignments of rights to the personal data. Such agreements internalise further the externalities. However, in the real life the transaction costs are high meaning that the assignments of rights are most significant leading to that the externalities remain. To pass by the problem of transaction costs and externalities, zoning procedure with transference of rights can be used. The background of bundles of right to personal data together with the Coase Theorem and zoning procedure are applied to the Directive 95 /46/EC adopted by the European Union regarding the processing of personal data and the protection of privacy. This Directive may however be interpreted in different ways leading to that the assignment of rights and level of direct marketing is different between Member States.

The social media are internet facilities where people can communicate and discuss through different websites or blogs. The social media has changed the world in many aspect and people are becoming more and more addicted to use these networks. People are fond of the social media because they can be social with a high number of individuals, both be real life friends, as well as strangers. Since the social media has grown to become so popular, companies have taken advantage of this as well. Their goal is to promote themselves through these networks as this can be very lucrative for the business. There are many different social media networks however this study will only be about Facebook. The aim of the study is to find out and describe how companies use Facebook for marketing purposes. An observation of how 34 fashion companies use Facebook for marketing purposes was carried out.

Background: LF is active in three markets: Property &amp; casualty insurance, pension and banking. The main objective for such a strategy is to differentiate by offering all the services to the customer who can enjoy the benefits of having their whole personal economy at one place. LF’s market requires great customer loyalty as the high fixed costs of acquiring a new customer does not make the customer profitable until several years later. If the company then can achieve excellent customer loyalty, there are great reasons to invest in this field. Direct marketing is a method known to be focusing on long term aspects by establishing a relationship which increases the customer loyalty. Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to study Länsförsäkringar Kalmar Län and analyse how they can use direct marketing to increase customer loyalty while operating in different service markets. Method: This thesis is using a case study on the relationship between Länsförsäkringar Kalmar Län and their beneficiary customers. The data has been collected through interviews with key personnel at the company and through a survey with participants from a key segment of the company’s beneficiary customers. The empirical findings were then analysed qualitatively. Conclusion: To successfully use direct marketing to increase customer loyalty the company needs to go through a four step process: Firstly, the company needs to know their customer by gathering data through CRM systems. Secondly, the company needs to understand their customer by interpreting the collected data. Thirdly, the company needs to inform their customer through customised direct marketing. At last, the company earns customer loyalty as the behaviour of the customer changes. The company now needs to gather new information and the process goes on in a continuous cycle. / Bakgrund: Länsförsäkringar Kalmar Län är idag aktiva på tre marknader: Sakförsäkring, Pension och Bank. Det viktigaste målet med en sådan strategi är att särskilja sig genom att erbjuda alla dessa tjänster till kunderna som får fördelen av att ha hela sin privatekonomi samlat på ett ställe. En sådan strategi kräver hög lojalitet hos kunderna på grund av att de höga fasta kostnaderna som uppstår vid förvärvet av en ny kund eftersom kunden ej blir lönsam förrän flera år senare. Om företaget kan uppnå hög kundlojalitet finns det stora skäl att investera inom området. Direkt marknadsföring är en metod som är känd att fokusera på långsiktiga aspekter genom att etablera en relation till kunden som på sikt höjer kundlojaliteten. Syfte: Syftet med den här uppsatsen är att studera Länsförsäkringar Kalmar län och analysera hur de kan använda direkt marknadsföring för att höja kundlojaliteten medan de är aktiva i flera marknader för tjänster. Metod: Den här uppsatsen använder en fallstudie på relationen mellan Länsförsäkringar Kalmar Län och deras förmånskunder. Datan har samlats ihop genom intervjuer med nyckelpersoner på företaget och genom en enkätundersökning med deltagare från ett nyckelsegment bland företagets förmånskunder. De empiriska undersökningarna analyserades sedermera kvalitativt. Slutsats: Genom att använda direkt marknadsföring för att höja kundlojaliteten på ett lyckat sätt borde företaget gå igenom en process i fyra steg. För det första ska företaget lära känna sina kunder genom att samla data med hjälp av CRM system. För det andra, ska företaget förstå sina kunder genom att tolka den insamlade datan. För det tredje ska företaget kontakta sina kunder genom anpassad direkt marknadsföring. Slutligen ska företaget förtjäna kundlojalitet genom att ändra beteendet hos kunden. Eftersom beteendet hos kunden ändras behöver företaget nu samla in ny information och så fortgår processen i en cykel.

To assess what factors are driving the exponential growth of farmers’ markets in Kentucky, geospatial and statistical analysis of a database of 121 farmers’ markets was conducted. A statewide survey of market leaders and a case study of a single farmers’ market both identified reasons for growing support of farmers’ markets in Kentucky. Market distribution, vendor levels, and gross sales were mapped against a backdrop of county urban classification, median household income, and education levels. Kruskal-Wallace analysis was used to identify if Kentucky’s rural, micropolitan, and metropolitan markets differ significantly in terms of their age, number of vendors, and market sales. Geospatial analysis indicates that farmers’ markets are more concentrated in metropolitan areas of the Commonwealth. However, statistical analysis reveals that farmers’ markets have been established longer in micropolitan areas of the state. Markets across urban classes have significantly different ages and gross sales, but all markets tend to sustain a similar number of vendors. Population levels appear to have the strongest correlation with the variables studied, although education and household median income also may play a role in farmers' market strength. Market stakeholders believe that markets are gaining popularity as consumers become more aware of food safety and environmental problems in the mass market system. Farmers’ markets are considered an important tool for strengthening the local economy, connecting farmers with consumers, and increasing local availability of fresh and nutritious foods.

<p><strong>Background: </strong>LF is active in three markets: Property & casualty insurance, pension and banking. The main objective for such a strategy is to differentiate by offering all the services to the customer who can enjoy the benefits of having their whole personal economy at one place. LF’s market requires great customer loyalty as the high fixed costs of acquiring a new customer does not make the customer profitable until several years later. If the company then can achieve excellent customer loyalty, there are great reasons to invest in this field. Direct marketing is a method known to be focusing on long term aspects by establishing a relationship which increases the customer loyalty.</p><p><strong>Purpose: </strong>The purpose of this thesis is to study Länsförsäkringar Kalmar Län and analyse how they can use direct marketing to increase customer loyalty while operating in different service markets.</p><p><strong>Method: </strong>This thesis is using a case study on the relationship between Länsförsäkringar Kalmar Län and their beneficiary customers. The data has been collected through interviews with key personnel at the company and through a survey with participants from a key segment of the company’s beneficiary customers. The empirical findings were then analysed qualitatively.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>To successfully use direct marketing to increase customer loyalty the company needs to go through a four step process: Firstly, the company needs to know their customer by gathering data through CRM systems. Secondly, the company needs to understand their customer by interpreting the collected data. Thirdly, the company needs to inform their customer through customised direct marketing. At last, the company earns customer loyalty as the behaviour of the customer changes. The company now needs to gather new information and the process goes on in a continuous cycle.</p> / <p><strong>Bakgrund:</strong> Länsförsäkringar Kalmar Län är idag aktiva på tre marknader: Sakförsäkring, Pension och Bank. Det viktigaste målet med en sådan strategi är att särskilja sig genom att erbjuda alla dessa tjänster till kunderna som får fördelen av att ha hela sin privatekonomi samlat på ett ställe. En sådan strategi kräver hög lojalitet hos kunderna på grund av att de höga fasta kostnaderna som uppstår vid förvärvet av en ny kund eftersom kunden ej blir lönsam förrän flera år senare. Om företaget kan uppnå hög kundlojalitet finns det stora skäl att investera inom området. Direkt marknadsföring är en metod som är känd att fokusera på långsiktiga aspekter genom att etablera en relation till kunden som på sikt höjer kundlojaliteten.</p><p><strong>Syfte:</strong> Syftet med den här uppsatsen är att studera Länsförsäkringar Kalmar län och analysera hur de kan använda direkt marknadsföring för att höja kundlojaliteten medan de är aktiva i flera marknader för tjänster.</p><p><strong>Metod:</strong> Den här uppsatsen använder en fallstudie på relationen mellan Länsförsäkringar Kalmar Län och deras förmånskunder. Datan har samlats ihop genom intervjuer med nyckelpersoner på företaget och genom en enkätundersökning med deltagare från ett nyckelsegment bland företagets förmånskunder. De empiriska undersökningarna analyserades sedermera kvalitativt.</p><p><strong>Slutsats:</strong> Genom att använda direkt marknadsföring för att höja kundlojaliteten på ett lyckat sätt borde företaget gå igenom en process i fyra steg. För det första ska företaget lära känna sina kunder genom att samla data med hjälp av CRM system. För det andra, ska företaget förstå sina kunder genom att tolka den insamlade datan. För det tredje ska företaget kontakta sina kunder genom anpassad direkt marknadsföring. Slutligen ska företaget förtjäna kundlojalitet genom att ändra beteendet hos kunden. Eftersom beteendet hos kunden ändras behöver företaget nu samla in ny information och så fortgår processen i en cykel.</p>

In direct marketing, understanding the response behavior of consumers to marketing initiatives is a pre-requisite for marketers before implementing targeting strategies to reach potential as well as existing consumers in the future. Consumer response can either be in terms of the incidence or timing of purchases, category/ brand choice of purchases made as well as the volume or purchase amounts in each category. Direct marketers seek to explore how past consumer response behavior as well as their targeting actions affects current response patterns. However, considerable heterogeneity is also prevalent in consumer responses and the possible sources of this heterogeneity need to be investigated. With the knowledge of consumer response and the corresponding heterogeneity, direct marketers can devise targeting strategies to attract potential new consumers as well as retain existing consumers. In the first essay of my dissertation (Chapter 2), I model the response behavior of donors in non-profit charity fund-raising in terms of their timing and volume of donations. I show that past donations (both the incidence and volume) and solicitation for alternative causes by non-profits matter in donor responses and the heterogeneity in donation behavior can be explained in terms of individual and community level donor characteristics. I also provide a heuristic approach to target new donors by using a classification scheme for donors in terms of the frequency and amount of donations and then characterize each donor portfolio with corresponding donor characteristics. In the second essay (Chapter 3), I propose a more structural approach in the targeting of customers by direct marketers in the context of customized retail couponing. First I model customer purchase in a retail setting where brand choice decisions in a product category depend on pricing, in-store promotions, coupon targeting as well as the face values of those coupons. Then using a utility function specification for the retailer which implements a trade-off between net revenue (revenue – coupon face value) and information gain, I propose a Bayesian decision theoretic approach to determine optimal customized coupon face values. The optimization algorithm is sequential where past as well as future customer responses affect targeted coupon face values and the direct marketer tries to determine the trade-off through natural experimentation. / text

Media and consumer attention has propelled local food to prominence, and a significant price premium has signaled its potential as a value-added option for family farms looking to transition from commodity production. Many of these farms –entering an unfamiliar market– have been selling local food in groups, to share risks and investments. This strategy has introduced a scale of production and operations to the marketplace that could challenge some of the basic premises of the local food contract. This research project was premised on the notion that the local food movement –dominated by small-scale production and direct marketing– appears to be governed by a set of principles that would be tested by the introduction of farms and farm groups of increasing scale. To understand the implications –for these farm families, local food marketing groups, and growing local food systems– this research sought to address whether these groups would adopt a more conventional approach to meet their needs, and fit their scale, or change their approach and practices to conform to the requirements and expectations established by the principles of governance that characterize local food systems. ‘Local beef’ chains from across Ontario were selected to capture a range of operational and geographic scale. Interviews with farmers and coordinators investigated the extent to which scale –at farm and group level– affected motivations, as well as group governance decisions. The research found that increased group scale limits the range of options available, and magnifies pressures towards conventionalization. Transition to larger scale favours governance based on surveillance and discipline, and suffers from lack of infrastructure that would facilitate mid-scale aggregation, distribution, and the development of bridging capital. Farmers who had direct input into decisions invested more time and effort, but also identified more strongly with their group. Farmers who marketed through larger-scale intermediary-led groups faced fewer costs, but were treated as commodity input suppliers, and were less engaged in the group’s success. Most farmers did not see these intermediary-led groups as a long-term solution, and looked instead to policy solutions, or other alternative marketing models – including smaller-scale regional intermediaries.