Vocabulary notes

demanding – (зд) носящий состязательный характер

bang – ударять, хлопать

toughness – жёсткость; несговорчивость

direct – открытый, прямой

get to the point – доходить до сути (дела, вопроса)

excessive – чрезмерный

with an emphasis on smth – c акцентом на что-либо; особо подчёркивая что-либо

clever visuals – искусные зрительные эффекты

presentation – презентация, представление

exploratory stage – этап выяснения отношений, изучения проблемы

counterpart(s) – противоположная сторона; партнёры по переговорам

put one’s point across – успешно завершать какое-либо дело

TEXT 11

THE EVOLUTION OF MARKETING

The marketing function has changed significantly over the years. During the production era (which lasted until the 1930s), manufacturers were generally able to sell all that they produced. They could rely on a good, solid product to sell itself, so they could comfortably limit their marketing efforts to taking orders and shipping goods. The production era had sellers’ markets(marketplace characterized by a shortage of products) in many industries, meaning that demand for products exceeded supply.

Once new technological advancements increased production capacity, however, the market for manufactured goods became more competitive. To stimulate demand for their products, firms spent more on advertising, but they still focused on selling whatever the company produced. Consequently, this period (1930s to 1950s) was labeled the sales era, and it lasted until companies began facing a new challenge – an overabundance of products or a buyer’s market (marketplace characterized by an abundance of products); that is, supply exceeded demand.

Faced with excess product, companies shifted from pushing whatever they produced on all consumers to finding out what buyers wanted and then filling that specific need. They became more customer centered. This shift in focus began the marketing era that continues to develop and expand today.

Although some companies still operate with sales or production-era values, most have adopted themarketing concept. They stress customer needs and wants, they concentrate on target markets, they seek long-term profitability, and they integrate the marketing function – that is, they use cross-departmental teams to make marketing decisions. These teams draw from the collective knowledge and experiences of employees working in sales, advertising, product management, market research, and so on.

Vocabulary notes

era – эра, эпоха

solid product – качественный (надёжный) продукт

sellers’ market – рынок продавцов (рынок, характеризующийся нехваткой

товаров)

demand and supply – спрос и предложение

production capacity – производственная мощность

overabundance – избыток; переизбыток

abundance – изобилие, достаток

buyer’s market – рынок покупателей (рынок, характеризующийся

изобилием товаров)

shift – переключаться, перемещаться

marketing concept – концепция маркетинга

integrate – объединять в единое целое; увеличивать

TEXT 12

HOW RESEARCH CAN HELP THE MARKETING EFFORT

Marketing research is the process of gathering data about marketing issues and transforming that raw data into meaningful information that can improve the quality of marketing decisions and reduce the risks inherent in every marketing action. Companies rely on research when they set product goals, develop new products, segment markets, and plan future marketing programs. They also use research to monitor a program’s effectiveness by analyzing the number of consumers using a product or purchasing it more than once. In addition, they use marketing research to keep an eye on the competition, track industry trends, and measure customer satisfaction.

Sometimes you need to gather primary data (data that are gathered for a specific purpose or for a specific research project). Primary data can be collected by observation, focus groups, surveys or questionnaires, and experiments. Other times you can use secondary data, or existing data that were collected for another purpose. Secondary data can be obtained from company sales analysis reports, publications, journals, research services, and a variety of materials available on the Internet. When using secondary data. remember that researches have biases, statistics can be twisted, and respondents’ answers depend both on the kinds of questions asked and on the technologies used to conduct the survey. Also, it’s always a good idea to confirm statistics and limit your research to reliable sources. Be careful to collect the right data and use that information appropriately.

Coca-Cola’s experience with new Coke is a classic example of how marketing research can lead a company astray when data are not used correctly. In an effort to stem the growth of archcompetitor Pepsi, Coca-Cola conducted extensive taste tests to find a cola taste consumers liked better than either Coke or Pepsi. On the basis of this research, the company launched New Coke, replacing the 100-year old Coca-Cola formula. New Coke simply did not sell, and Coca-Cola had to mount an expensive marketing effort to salvage the brand. At the same time, the public outcry drove the company to bring back the original formula, renamed Coke Classic.

What went wrong? First, researchers focused only on taste and failed to look at the emotional attachment consumers had to the traditional Coke soft drink. Second, many of the people who participated in the test did not realize that old Coke would be taken off the shelf. If the company had asked the right questions, the rocky course of New Coke’s introduction might have been smoother.