Marketing Concepts in Strategic Management †MyAssignmenthelp.com

Question: Discuss about the Marketing Concepts in Strategic Management. Answer: Introduction The success of any business in selling its products and meeting its customers and clients demands is embodied in the marketing strategy of the company. The modern corporate world has become very competitive and industries are developing ways in which they will remain competitive in the market and also productive in terms of providing quality goods and services to its consumers (Dadzie et al. 2017, p. 247). Marketing strategies in a company play an important role in the overall success of a company and its products in the market. it involves the combination of different strategies as well as different marketing initiatives such as the development and use of a marketing mix. An effective combination of these initiatives and strategies ensures that the company reaches out to its customers and clients by addressing not only their present needs but also securing the future of the coming generation (Zeriti et al. 2014, p. 252). It is therefore important for managers to develop effective marketing strategies which will ensure growth and development of the company and ensure that the strategies are client-centered or ensure that the interest of their consumers come first. This study provides, therefore, provides background information on the marketing strategies employed by the CSL Company in development of its customer base and in addressing the demands of their customers and clients. Marketing background of CSL Company CSL Company is a biotechnology company and is known to be a global specialty in bio therapeutics and develops as well as delivers innovative biotherapies products which are used to save lives and also help people with life-threatening medical conditions. The company was founded by David Lamont in 1916 and is based in Melbourne in Australia (Dadzie et al. 2014, p. 240). The company uses its reputation of responsible conduct to maintain itself in the market and support its own organizational growth since it operates in a diverse and complex market that presents many opportunities and challenges. In its years of operation, the company has always tried to provide cost-effective prices to its customers by pricing their therapies fairly and competitively in all markets. The company pricing decisions are made through consultations with the government and other health stakeholders through a competitive tender process. The company operates in the medical and biotechnology industry which is ch aracterized by increased competition due to advancements in technology (SaetanPathomsirikul 2016, p. 117). For the company to remain more competitive in the industry then it had to become more innovative in their therapies. The company supports fair market competition and acts in forefront of forbidding health practices that would in any way mislead consumers of their products and contravene applicable trade practices or competition laws or promote unfairness in the market. The company works with other subsidiary companies which produce specialist kind of therapies and includes companies like Requires GmbH, CSL Behring, bioCSL Ltd and Zenyth Therapeutics ltd among other companies. Despite the growth and the profitability of the company, there has been a call for the company to work on its sustainability in the industry (Moorman Day 2016, p. 150). This, in other words, may be used to mean that the company has to develop initiatives which are sustainable or will help to propel the company to another level by acting or conducting itself in a particular manner. Some of the sustainability initiatives conducted by the company are by conducting eco-friendly practices. The company is therefore committed to red ucing GHG emissions which according to the sustainability report 2013 of the company was reported to reduce by an average of 1.62, through engaging in community services and charity events and using safe self-unloading vessels to improve the safety of their employees (Chari et al. 2014, p. 150). The company believes that it owes their employees, customers and the communities they operate the assurance that the company activities and operations are conducted in an open manner, ethically and with the utmost respect for safety and the environment. An effective marketing strategy is developed within the framework of the different market segments which are them used to set the targeted group of customers and clients as well determine the positioning of the company in the current and future markets (Lemon Verhoef 2016, p. 32). The understanding of marketing segmentation, targeting and positioning involve a set of activities which are always aimed at determining the specific groups of customers and clients and delivering the company goods and services which are attractive to that specific group. Segmentation of the market is used to imply the process of dividing the population into specific groups according to certain characteristics. Marketing segmentation of the company due to the services and products offered to the market may be done based on age of the customers, depending on their income capabilities or the consumer willingness to buy a product as well as through a combination of a number of factors (Dattaet al. 2017, p. 16) . Targeting, on the other hand, involves the choosing of a specific group identified as a result of segmentation to sell the products and services to. For example, the segment may be the young people above the age of 18 years but are working. Lastly, positioning involves a selection of the marketing mix suitable for the target customer segment. The CSL Company has positioned itself in developing and manufacturing vaccines and plasma protein biotherapies. The segmentation of the company as a marketing strategy is under biotechnology and healthcare products (Dadzie et al. 2017, p. 243). All its products and services, therefore, are categorized under this segment and the company offers a variety of products and commands a wide coverage as the company has their healthcare facilities in Australia, Germany, Switzerland, and United Kingdom and in the United States. The company main strategic targets for their products are the healthcare sector including hospitals and clinics. As an expansive strategy for the company operations the company seeks to target the global market and entering other foreign markets and therefore it seeks to increase its economies of scale and their client base to over 100 countries (Venter Dibb 2015, p. 73). Such strategic segmentation, targeting, and positioning help the company develop its marketing stra tegy, understand its customers and their products in order to offer quality health and medical services and meet the required marketing standards for their products. CSL Company marketing Mix and sustainability The company has overemphasized on the importance of sustainability in its marketing initiatives and therefore an effective market mix should have an element of sustainability in which sustainability should be incorporated into the various marketing decisions. Marketing sustainability, in this case, refers to a way of building relationships with consumers and ensuring that the company development agenda meets the present needs of their customers or clients without any compromise to the ability of the future generation in meeting their future needs (Mari?ior?evi? 2015, p. 245). A marketing mix, on the other hand, refers to a set of company actions and tactics which are aimed at promoting the company brand or product in the market. CSL Company has therefore employed the use of the 4Ps as its typical marketing mix strategy and includes the analysis of the company product, promotion, price and place which are later used in the decision-making and ensure effective marketing planning for th e company. CSL Company is an international biotechnology company and as discussed earlier employs the use of other subsidiary companies in development and manufacture of different health care products including vaccines and plasma therapies (Kiessling et al. 2016, p. 475). The company, therefore, produces a range of life-saving products including plasma-derived therapies, vaccines, anti-venoms, diagnostic products and pharmaceuticals. The products are of high quality as the company is the global leader in the production of therapeutic medical solutions and are made to ensure they help solve the different health problems or conditions. The products are stored in special medical bottles and packaged in corrugated shipping boxes for distribution to various targeted groups. It has continued to engage in research and development programs to develop plasma-derived and recombinant protein-based product. The quality of the products and the responsiveness of the company to the clients needs help the com pany sustain its growth capacities of their products (Taylor-West et al. 2014, p. 440). The company has engaged in safe partnership programs which aim at ensuring that the products manufactured are safe for use and also ensure the protection of its employees and the community they operate from. The pricing strategies and the decision of the products manufactured by the company are made after consultations with the government and other stakeholders in the health sector through a competitive tender process to ensure that the price of the products is cost-effective. This is because it is essential for the company to have a pricing policy which should be competitively priced in the market. To enable access to their products the companies opted to price their products fairly so that they can help their clients to afford the therapies as well as maintain the firms profitability (Chen Schiele 2017, p. 221). Through consultations with relevant stakeholders the company has continued to be the price leader and has had a competitive advantage over its competitors in the market who include; life therapeutics, Aptech, and pharmasynth. The company pricing structure and policy are major components of the company public image and are crucial to securing and keeping their clientele. Promotion versus sustainability Product promotion is a key element of a company marketing strategy. The product promotion strategies help the company in selling their products to their potential clients and other targeted groups. Companies employ different product promotion strategies but all the same whichever the strategy used the main aim is usually to develop the company brand (Winch 2014, p. 718). The most common promotion strategies used include the use of advertising strategy, through public relations and sales promotion strategies such as offering discounts or other packages suitable for the clients. Due to the nature of the business in which the quality of the products and its effectiveness in solving various medical conditions, CSL Company employs the public relations strategy by engaging the various stakeholders in consultations in production and manufacturing of the products. This helps their clients to grow confidence in their products as they are designed to meet certain standards based on consumer pr eferences and are also cost-effective. The products are also advertised in the company websites which shows all the products produced by the company as well as their importance and use (PAHARIA et al. 2014, p. 658). Public relations help in sustaining the relationship with the stakeholders and especially with the community. Distribution strategy is a very important marketing strategy and an element of a market analysis. Customers value the convenience and ease of access to the required products or services. The success of marketing a product is depended on the distribution channels used by the company to deliver products to their clients or targeted markets (Baines et al. 2014. P. 176). The company has therefore developed and implemented a supply chain management system that helps in distribution of their products through various channels including wholesalers, specialty distributors, pharmacists, IDNs, and GPOs. The supply chain ensures that the companys products are distributed to different clients based on their requirements and locality and enables the company to address various distribution concerns form their clients (Chaves et al. 2017, p. 65). The system has enabled the company to have a sustainable product distribution mechanisms as it is highly controlled and ensures there are security measure s taken in protection of consumer interests through distribution policies. Comparison of the company marketing mix with that of Life Therapeutics Company The Life Therapeutics Company is one of the greatest competitors of CSL Company as they operate under the same health sector and in the same biotechnology industry. The company operates or is located at Clarkston, Southeast of United States and is specialized in manufacturing of plasma therapies products and diagnostic practices (Essex-Lettieri et al. 2016. P. 57). However in comparison with the CSL company marketing mix, the company has not developed its product through innovations, the company has specialized in essentially in the production of plasma therapies and diagnostic activities as compared to CSL which has developed a number or a range of products. The main aim of marketing mix product is to create innovative products that satisfy the customers. The pricing strategy used by Life Therapeutics is also different as it's not competitive in the market; the company pricing decisions are based on the U.S market and are not done in consultations as it is the case of the CSL Company(David et al. 2017, p. 32). The companies use equally the same promotion strategies however the CLS relies more on the public relations strategy which is not the case of the Life Therapeutics which relies on advertising through the company websites (ZismerSchuh 2016, p. 53). CSL Company has a more reliable and manageable supply chain distribution channel as compared to Life Therapeutics Company who are yet to grow a supply chain management system as the company main operations are in the United States, unlike the CSL Company which operates in a number of countries. SWOT analysis is a process that is used to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of a company as well as identifying the available opportunities for expansion and the [possible threats to the market. Strengths- the company enjoys a number of strengths which act as a pillar and a motivation to the company in achieving its goals. The biotechnology industry in which the company operates has become one of the fastest growing industries in the world and CSL Company forms a great market share in Australia. The company also enjoys a competitive advantage of selling a range of products in the market. Weaknesses- the company has not extended its services to many countries and operates in a small geographical area and therefore suffers from diseconomies of scale. The health industry is sensitive of ethical issues related to genetics and these standards affect the success of their businesses. Adoption of new technology is capital intensive and would require huge capital investment by the company. Opportunities- The company has a great opportunities for expansion and growth as there has been an increased awareness about use of enzymes, stem cells and others and therefore the company can expand on these business opportunities. The company can also capitalize on the development of the new technology such as nanotechnology which can be combined with biotechnology to produce future therapeutic products. Threats- however the company faces a number of possible threats in the industry as there are a lot of government regulations through product safety standards and other health care regulation standards as well as the increased need of skilled labour in the industry. There is also a possible challenge of offshore activities as reported in areas such as china which may affect the company expansion strategies. Recommendations The development of a company product marketing mix is therefore important and helps the companies in making decisions in relation to pricing strategies, product development policies, the promotion, and distribution decisions. It is therefore recommended that the CSL Company develops more promotional strategies and especially in sales promotions and also in the distribution of their products through the creation of a website where clients globally can make their orders and deliver them either through shipping or other distribution channels. Such strategies will help the company grow and expand its operations globally. Conclusion Marketing analysis is, therefore, a very important element of a business and calls for the development of effective marketing strategies to ensure that the business understands well the business environments in which operates as well as the needs and demands of their customers. Evaluation and understanding of the company product mix helps in helping the company understand its brand or product and make appropriate decisions regarding the product, its pricing decisions and the relevant promotion and distribution strategies that will help the company achieve its goals and objectives. 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