Univ., Diss.--Erlangen-Nürnberg, 2007.

The aim of the diploma thesis is to define the marketing manager activities, their evaluation and subsequent suggestions drafting for improvement of the company Spojené kartáčovny. The company is mainly engaged in production of household cleaning supplies, dental hygiene products and painting tools and painting supplies.

Today, information is largely processed, managed and stored in information systems of companies and thanks to these achievements can be further shaped into required outputs for leadership. For the management of any company, information is important in the managing and decision-making processes, especially when it comes to processes and activities associated with the marketing support of our products and services offered. Marketing-driven company applies marketing knowledge, techniques and methods in overall strategic decision-making with the help of marketing information system.

Recent developments and hype around artificial intelligence (AI) have arisen as result of two main factors: increase in computational power and data. Although marketing is considered as one of the main business applications within AI today, there is a lack of literature combining the disciplines. Marketing management tools, which utilise AI in supporting decision making are referred to as knowledge-driven marketing management support systems (MMSS). These systems provide besides quantitative analysis, further qualitative facets into marketing management. Despite the willingness of many SMEs to engage with the technology that may foster competitive advantage, many adoption processes fail. The purpose of this thesis is to explore the factors influencing adoption of knowledge-driven MMSS in SMEs in Finland and Sweden. Qualitative primary data was collected from nine company representatives at top management level in Finnish and Swedish firms. Companies were classified in three categories, providers, adopters and non-adopters of knowledge-driven MMSS.   The findings show that there are several factors influencing adoption of knowledge-driven MMSS. The factors were grouped into technological, organizational and environmental factors, based on the TOE framework. Even though SMEs suffer from a lack of resources compared to large companies, this research suggests that they are at the forefront of adopting AI for marketing purposes. Additionally, it was found that the factors affecting adoption are dependent on whether the knowledge-driven MMSS is built in-house or outsourced.   This study has contributed to the identified gaps in literature by combining the disciplines of AI, marketing and SMEs, and by exploring the factors behind adoption of knowledge-driven MMSS. The authors of this thesis have the aspiration that the developed post-empirical framework will serve as a guiding tool for top management and marketing managers in SMEs looking to adopt knowledge-driven MMSS into their organizations.

The main objectives of this thesis was to characterize the mission of the company, to reveal the market opportunities for business and to suggest several types of marketing management based on the gathered informations. In my thesis I focused on the activities of Eurotransport Josef Cibuzar company, which deals with international freight transport vehicles over 3.5 tonnes total weight.The thesis is divided into theoretical and practical part. The theoretical part deals with the marketing management in general. The practical part deals with the characteristics of the marketing management in the selected company. Furthermore the situational analysis is performed, where the macroenvironment is analysed by using the PEST analysis. Also the opportunities and menaces of the company are revealed by the OT analysis. The conclusion includes suggested procedures of the marketing management.

Programas de incentivos são um conjunto de benefícios oferecidos por fornecedores a distribuidores conforme distribuidores alcançam objetivos estabelecidos pelos fornecedores. Os incentivos em canais são utilizados para alocar recursos e alinhar interesses. Apesar do seu amplo uso pelas empresas, estes programas carecem de uma análise teórica mais profunda. Esta tese buscou entender como são compostos os programas de incentivo em canais de distribuição e também propor um método para sua construção. São feitas proposições teóricas que combinam diferentes linhas e os colocam como compostos por quatro principais variáveis, sendo o conjunto de metas de desempenho pedidas aos canais, os benefícios oferecidos, a presença de exclusividade no relacionamento entre distribuidor e fornecedor, e finalmente, o nível de formalização alcançado no relacionamento. Além disso, a caracterização dessas variáveis é sugerida como dependente da distribuição de poder entre fabricante e distribuidor. Foi utilizado o método de estudos de casos múltiplos com a inserção do estudo comparativo entre Brasil e EUA. Foram selecionadas três empresas no Brasil e as mesmas três nos EUA no setor de defensivos agrícolas e seus programas de incentivo em canais foram compreendidos e comparados, com o uso de análise documental e entrevistas pessoais. Por fim, a tese faz uso dos conceitos teóricos de diversas linhas em canais de distribuição e dos estudos de caso para propor uma seqüência de etapas para a elaboração de um programa de incentivos em canais. As etapas sugeridas são análise externa e da rede, definição da estratégia de valor, metas de desempenho, benefícios e gestão de canais especiais. / Incentive programs are a set of benefits offered by manufacturers to dealers as dealers achieve the objectives established by manufacturers. Incentives in marketing channels are used by manufacturers to allocate resources and to align channel members objectives. Although marketing channel incentive programs have been widely used by different industries, they lack a deeper theoretical analysis. This thesis aimed at understanding how incentive programs are composed and at proposing a method for building an incentive program from a manufacturer perspective. Several different research lines were combined and theoretical propositions were formed to suggest that incentive programs are composed by four main variables, being the set of performance objectives asked to dealers, the set of benefits offered to them, the exclusivity level and finally the formalization of the agreement. Besides, the variables contents were suggested to be dependent on the distribution of power between the dealer and the manufacturer. The method used was a multiple case study approach with the use of a cross country analysis between Brazil and USA. Documental analysis was used along with personal interviews. Three crop protection manufacturers were selected in Brazil and the same three in USA and their incentive programs were compared and analyzed. Finally a method for building a marketing channel incentive program was suggested composed of a sequence of 5 steps. The steps are the external and the network analysis, the value strategy definition, performance objectives, benefits, and the key channel management.

A interação entre consumidores no encontro de serviços é parte de sua prestação. Essa interação é mais importante em serviços de alto contato. Um dos fatores que influencia na opinião quanto ao comportamento de outros consumidores no ambiente de serviço é a idade. Este trabalho teve como objetivo principal identificar e analisar as atividades de marketing referentes ao encontro de serviços quando tratam de consumidores de diferentes idades com verificação de campo em cursos de idiomas. Para atingir esse objetivo, realizou-se, primeiramente, um referencial teórico, abordando serviços, marketing de serviços e o setor de cursos de idiomas. Como método para a pesquisa de campo, utilizou-se o estudo de caso. Tendo em vista que cursos de idiomas é um serviço de alto contato, em que há interação de consumidores de diferentes idades, este trabalho teve aplicação nesse setor. Três cursos de idiomas - Instituto Cervantes de São Paulo, Associação Alumni e CNA Pinheiros - foram analisados, tendo em vista as seguintes atividades de marketing: sistema de informação de marketing, segmentação, posicionamento e composto de marketing de serviços. É possível concluir que as atividades utilizadas pelas empresas para gerenciar o encontro de serviços em que há consumidores de diferentes idades são as mesmas. Há variação em como elas executam essas atividades. Há empresas em que as atividades de marketing são complexas e conforme a teoria, em outras as ações são mais indutivas. Foi possível relatar que, quando as empresas identificam um maior número de segmentos, as atividades de marketing são mais adequadas para atender às necessidades de consumidores de diferentes idades. / Consumer\'s interaction during the service encounter is part of the service delivery. This interaction is more important in high-contact services. One of the factors that influence the opinion regarding the behavior of other consumers in the service environment is age. This study aimed at identifying and analyzing marketing activities for the service encounter in language courses when dealing with consumers of different ages. To achieve this goal took place first a theoretical framework, covering services, services marketing and the industry of language courses. The method used for the field research was the case study. Given that language courses provide high-contact services, with interaction among consumers of different ages, this research was done in this sector. Three language courses - Instituto Cervantes de São Paulo, Associação Alumni and CNA Pinheiros - were analyzed in view of the following marketing activities: marketing information system, segmentation, positioning and service marketing mix. It was concluded that the activities used by companies to manage the service encounter in which there are consumers of different ages are the same. There is difference in how they perform these activities. There are companies in which marketing activities are complex and similar to the theory, while in others actions are more inductive. It was possible to describe that when companies identify a larger number of segments, marketing activities are most appropriate to meet the needs of consumers of different ages.

M.Comm. (Business Management) / The main research focus is stated as follows: "This research study will endeavour to identify the focus areas for a strategic marketing plan for the Polythene Division in Polifin by constructing a product / market matrix using the results of a situation audit, and to determine what a comparative study of Polifin's performance relative to competitors may reveal for a more intelligent approach to implementing the marketing plan. " The results should make it possible to prepare a strategic marketing plan for the Polythene Business Unit as well as providing specific objectives and action plans for the successful implementation of the plan.

In the new economy customers are becoming more demanding, therefore organizations should embrace services as excellent opportunities to differentiate themselves from their competitors. Internal marketing is a tool that service organizations can utilize to ensure that they build a sustainable competitive advantage in the marketplace. Organizations who successfully want to improve and implement internal marketing need to identify employees’ perceptions and expectations on the concepts of services, organizational capital, and communication within the organization. The internal marketing challenge is not an easy one. It is an ongoing process through which organizations have to change operational procedures and convince management and employees to alter their behaviour and beliefs. Organizations which succeed internally will excel externally. / Prof. C.J. Jooste

Africa is seen as the last investment frontier and according to literature will have a GDP of $1.5 trillion by the year 2016 and a population that is double the size of Europe. The rapid expansion of infrastructure and construction in African countries, such as Mozambique and Zambia has increased the demand for commercial vehicles. This has sparked unparalleled marketing opportunities for automotive manufacturers and the continent is fast attracting major players in this sector. The international marketing literature still lacks detailed studies and research into the marketing deliberations and trades in Africa. Therefore, according literature a greater representation of African culture within the international marketing literature would provide relevance and richness in the global market place and offer greater insight to organisations who are seeking to invest and expand their businesses in Africa. The management issue here is to comprehend the diversity and vastness of this region and putting together all spheres to ensure growth and creating brand loyalty. The key challenge here is for management to be able to grasp and understand not only the various cultures but also the way of doing business in such a vastly different region. It is therefore imperative for Ford Motor Company to fully understand these factors so as to take full advantage associated with entering a market early which is commonly referred as first-mover-advantage. A case in point is when General Motors entered the Chinese automotive industry in 1997 when the Chinese market was relatively small. General Motors’ enthusiasm and commitment back in 1997 was driven by a belief that China would ultimately become an economic powerhouse and emerge as one of the world’s largest automotive markets. By the year 2010 China was one of the world’s biggest automotive markets and General Motors was a dominant force in this market. Africa has all the key elements for the growth and development of a robust automotive market. By studying past experiences and outcomes from empirical studies on international marketing with emphasis on the automotive industry, it will be possible to draw lessons and experience about the potential growth of the automotive sector on the African continent. This study will also be of great significance to other automotive manufacturers and suppliers looking to expand their business and market share across Africa due to the increase of the middle class. Therefore creative strategies and thinking of how to circumvent challenges in the African cultural environment, creativity in managing bureaucracy and due diligence about business and investment opportunities will uncover unprecedented volumes of profitable business that lies untapped on the African continent. Data from the quantitative study suggest that culture, political environment, country-of-origin, competition and country infrastructure in Nigeria, are essential factors to the development of a successful international marketing strategy for Ford South Africa. This study therefore concludes that Ford Motor Company of South Africa can utilize this framework in order to gain greater market share and ultimately success in Nigeria. Recommendations were also made for future research studies that can contribute to the international marketing literature with emphasis on the African market.