BS 7th
Week 10:
Subject: Entrepreneurship
Lecturer: Abrar Ahmad Bhatti GCMS Pesh
Customer Relationship Management, In Small Medium
Enterprise
INTRODUCTION:
Customer relationship management (CRM) is not just the application of technology, but is a strategy to learn
more about customers' needs and behaviours in order to develop stronger relationships with them. As such it is
more of a business philosophy than a technical solution to assist in dealing with customers effectively and
efficiently. however, successful CRM relies on the use of technology.
Definition:
Customer relationship management (CRM) makes businesses to gain an insight into the behaviour of their
customers and modify their business operations to ensure that customers are served in the best possible way.
In essence, CRM make a business to recognise the value of its customers and to capitalise on improved
customer relations. The better you understand your customers, the more responsive you can be to their needs.
CRM can be achieved by:
 finding out about your customers' purchasing habits, opinions and preferences
 profiling individuals and groups to market more effectively and increase sales
 changing the way you operate to improve customer service and marketing
A major benefits can be the development of better relations with your existing customers, which can lead to:
 increased sales through better timing due to anticipating needs based on historic trends
 identifying needs more effectively by understanding specific customer requirements
 cross-selling of other products by highlighting and suggesting alternatives or enhancements
 identifying which of your customers are profitable and which are not
This can lead to better marketing of your products or services by focusing on:
 effective targeted marketing communications aimed specifically at customer needs
 a more personal approach and the development of new or improved products and services in order to
win more business in the future
CRM solutions fall into the following four broad categories:
Outsourced solutions:
Application service providers can provide web-based CRM solutions for your business. This approach is ideal if
you need to implement a solution quickly and your company does not have the in-house skills necessary to tackle
the job from scratch. It is also a good solution if you are already geared towards online e-commerce. E.g Amazon
Off-the-shelf solutions:
Several software companies offer CRM applications that integrate with existing packages. Cut-down versions of
such software may be suitable for smaller businesses. This approach is generally the cheapest option as you are
investing in standard software components. The downside is that the software may not always do precisely what
you want and you may have to trade off functionality for convenience and price. The key to success is to be
flexible without compromising too much. E.g. ERP—Enterprise Resource Planning packages. CRM—Customer
Relationship Management packages. POS—Point of Sale packages.
Custom software:
For the ultimate in tailored CRM solutions, consultants and software engineers will customise or create a CRM
system and integrate it with your existing software. However, this can be expensive and time consuming. If you
choose this option, make sure you carefully specify exactly what you want. This will usually be the most
expensive option and costs will vary depending on what your software designer quotes. E.g. Content management
systems (CMS), Customer relationship management (CRM), A business process automation system, Automated
invoicing, Company-facing / Customer-facing web portals.
Managed solutions:
A half-way house between custom and outsourced solutions, this involves renting a customised suite of CRM
applications as a tailored package. This can be cost effective but it may mean that you have to compromise in
terms
of
functionality.
E.g.
Managed Networks
and
Infrastructure,
Managed Security,
Managed Support Services, Managed Print Services, Managed Cloud Infrastructure, Managed Software as
a Service (SaaS), Managed Wireless and Mobile Computing, Managed Communication Services.
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BS 7th
Subject: Entrepreneurship
Lecturer: Abrar Ahmad Bhatti GCMS Pesh
How to implement CRM:
The implementation of a customer relationship management (CRM) solution is best treated as a six-stage process,
moving from collecting information about your customers and processing it to using that information to improve
your marketing and the customer experience.
Stage 1 - Collecting information
Stage 2 - Storing information (Data)
Stage 3 - Accessing information (Communicating)
Stage 4 - Analysing customer behavior (Customer Profiles)
Stage 5 - Marketing more effectively
Stage 6 - Enhancing the customer experience (Customers Complaints)
Week 11:
Strategy of Success of, Small Medium Enterprise
INTRODUCTION:
The concept of strategy emanated from a military background (perspective) where generals laid out plans on
how to organize their forces to defeat the adversary army. Scholars define strategy as an enterprise plan design
with the aim to achieve and sustain competitive advantage over rivals in a specific marketplace. Like every
other business with a quest for survival, SMEs as well as entrepreneurs have come to the understanding that
strategy development is essential for the success of their business. Surprisingly, some SMEs are still new to the
aspect of developing a clear written plan for the activities of their business. An organization's strategy enables
the owners and managers to state clearly where the business is and where it wants to be at a particular time in the
future. When organization clearly define strategy, and communicate to their employees across the
organization, behavior alignment for optimum strategic implementation is easily achieved.
Strategy of success for Small Medium Enterprises:
Michael Porter (1980) proposed three generic strategies for use in organization to achieve competitive
advantage, including cost
leadership, market focus, and differentiation.
Porter set the foundation for strategy development in the management. Small and large organizations that have
resulted to most organizational strategies orientated towards the same set of principles tested over time. Faced with
the fast-changing nature of the business environment, resource constraints, low barriers to entry by new
competitors, and fast-moving technology that have resulted to removing boundaries towards access to
information, owners, and managers of SMEs are met with challenges to develop consistent and resilient strategies
to compete in the unstable and highly competitive marketplace.
STRATEGIC choices FOR SME’s:
As expounded from Porter's competitive strategy, found that contemporary strategy used by SMEs and
entrepreneurs to
sustain survival and growth include focus Strategy (market niche)
and differentiation strategy. Although many scholars have agree with Porter's generic competitive plans to
be suitable for the growth of enterprises, others argued that not all three strategies are ideal for implementation in
Small businesses due to their unique nature of small size and resource constraints. Small businesses do not
possess the resources to become industry leader (cost leadership) or secure a brand that keeps a significantly high
number of loyal customers to make positive margins, the differentiation strategy.
Small businesses are not often successful in implementing any two of the three Porter's generic competitive
cost leadership and differentiation at the same time. Small businesses
were found to be well adept at implementing the focus strategy . Moreover,
strategies;
Small businesses who use clear distinction with focus strategy can increase revenue growth than those that
apply a purely low-cost focus strategy.
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BS 7th
Subject: Entrepreneurship
Necessity-based entrepreneurs
Lecturer: Abrar Ahmad Bhatti GCMS Pesh
more often prefer to pursue
cost leadership
strategy than a differentiation strategy. The strategic choices in small firms are mediated by the
available human capital. Small firms with a strategic focus of low cost or differentiation were more likely to
achieve success if accompanied with the development of strong internal managerial competences. Small
enterprises which are highly innovative were able to implement differentiation as a competitive strategy.
Another key variable that influence the choice of strategy for an SME is the
business
environment; firms in dynamic environment favored product innovation strategy, whereas
firms in competitive
environment used process innovation to achieve performance.
Small businesses that used differentiation strategies (Dynamic Environment) with an emphasis on quality,
delivery performance, and flexibility were able to provide products and services, which are more valued by
customers and less imitable by the competition. An effective growth strategies (Competitive Environment)
underscored by researchers for SMEs is the use of process innovation which requires the acquisition of
technological knowledge to reduce cost, facilitate process, and enhance competitive advantage and the use of
both product and process innovation in their research for the source of competitive advantage amongst SMEs,
suggested that as SMEs prefer market that accepts product offers at low cost and average quality products and
services through innovation-oriented approach, medium enterprise (MEs) focus more on process innovation,
while very small enterprises (VSE) concentrate on product innovation.
Highly successful SMEs shifted from a single level strategy to a multi-level strategic orientation, pursuing
both innovative differentiation and product/service customization strategy.
CONCLUSION:
While the development and implementation of a clear written business strategies remains an important ingredient
for success, owners and managers must watch out for barriers to implementing such strategies including internal;
management, communication, skills, leadership; organizational structure, information systems, and information
technology; and external environmental barriers; sudden new entrant and government policy.
Week 12:
Use of Resources, Operation, People, Marketing, Finance
INTRODUCTION:
A business is usually split into a series of different departments. Each department has a specific function in the
operation of the business. For example, the accounting department will be responsible for the management of all
financial matters relating to the business. This might include managing the businesses bank accounts, invoicing
customers, collecting debts and so on. Each of these different functions is a crucial part of the overall business.
USE OF RESOURCES:
Operations Management:
The production function is perhaps the clearest of all. It may also be called the 'operations' function of the firm.
The responsibilities of the production department may include:
 New product development - in association with the marketing department
 Research and development (R & D) - R&D refers to systematic investigation or innovation; the outcomes
of which are new or improved materials, products, devices, processes, or services. Prototypes of new
products may be tested by the marketing department with potential customers.
 Production planning - the production department will consider the layout of the facility, the optimum
location of production, the method of production, the type of machinery and so on.
 Quality control - the quality of the product or service is crucial if the reputation of the firm is to be
maintained and enhanced.
 Distribution - the production department will organise the distribution of the good or service to the
customers. This may be through middlemen or 'intermediaries' such as retail shops or agents or direct to the
customer through e-commerce.
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BS 7th

Subject: Entrepreneurship
Lecturer: Abrar Ahmad Bhatti GCMS Pesh
Purchasing and stock control - the production department is responsible for the purchase of stocks or raw
materials required for production.
Human Resource Management HRM or just HR:
The human resources department is responsible for the management of people. The responsibilities of the HR
department will include:
 Recruitment - the process of finding appropriate people for a given role. This includes advertising a
vacancy, selecting candidates for interview, managing contracts of employment, job descriptions and so
on...
 Training - both new and existing staff will need training to help them develop and improve their skills and
this will be the responsibility of the HR department.

Wages and Salaries - people work for money and this process needs managing. How much is each job
worth, what other benefits do employees get (pension entitlement, fringe benefits and so on), what happens
when people are sick? All these questions and issues are dealt with by the HR department.
 Employee relations and welfare - this includes pay negotiations with employees, disciplinary procedures,
considering grievances of employees as well as health and safety, social activities and so on. All these will
usually be handled by the HR department.
Marketing (is not just advertising):
This is seen by many as the heart of the business as the marketing department tends to have the most direct contact
with customers. It is important to realise that marketing is not the same as 'selling', but is a much broader concept.
The responsibilities of the marketing department may include:
 Researching the market - identifying market opportunities, examining the nature of customers and
potential customers, understanding the target market for the good or service, testing consumer reaction to
potential products and so on.
 New product development - the marketing department will often work together with the production
department to develop new products and services. The marketing department will test if there is a market
for the product, identify the features or characteristics that the product requires and may carry out test
launches of the product in advance of the full product launch.
 Marketing mix - the marketing department will develop the mix of strategies that will help with selling the
product. This includes the pricing of the product, the promotion, the nature of the product and the
distribution channels for the product.
Accounting and Finance:
The accounting and finance department is responsible for all issues related to the management of money and the
flows
of
money
around
the
business
and
between
the
firm
and
other
firms or customers.
The Accounting function involves the collection, recording, presentation and analysis of financial data. This may
include 'management accounts' for the directors of the firm to view on a regular basis or the public or 'financial
accounts' for anyone to view (if the firm is a public limited company).
The Finance function, on the other hand, is concerned with raising the money required for all business operations
and the decision-making on how and where that money should be spent.
The responsibilities of the finance function include:
 Sources of finance -decisions about the most appropriate source of finance for each activity.
 The Balance Sheet, Income Statement, Owner Equity Statement
 Cash flow -the way in which money moves in and out of the business. It is important to balance and
manage these flows. If too much money flows out at a given time, the firm is in danger of insolvency.
 Credit control - the process of collecting debts and managing payments. At any given time a firm will be
owed money by its customers and may owe money to its suppliers.
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BS 7th
Week 13:
Subject: Entrepreneurship
Lecturer: Abrar Ahmad Bhatti GCMS Pesh
Identification of Target Market, Target Market, Bottom
up rather than Top Down
‘Target marketing can be your key to increasing sales’
Using targeting in marketing serves both customers and brands. It improves product development and
operations, and it allows a brand to differentiate itself, stand out, and make a bigger impact. But before you
start target marketing, you need something important. The best target marketing plans start with creating a
clear and detailed buyer persona.
A buyer persona is a description of a semi-fictional character that represents your ideal customer. It is a
detailed summary of the characteristics, qualities, and habits of a person who is in your target audience.
Knowing your ideal audience helps you decide which target markets to focus on. When you deeply know
your ideal customer, you can identify ways to segment them into a more defined audience.
A detailed buyer persona is essential for helping you identify ways to use targeting in marketing and drill
down into a more specific niche market.
Here are two other tactics that help you identify opportunities within target markets.
Target marketing involves breaking a market into segments and then concentrating your marketing efforts
on one or a few key segments consisting of the customers whose needs and desires most closely match your
product or service offerings. It can be the key to attracting new business, increasing sales, and making your
business a success.
The beauty of target marketing is that aiming your marketing efforts at specific groups of consumers makes
the promotion, pricing, and distribution of your products and/or services easier and more cost effective and
provides a focus to all of your marketing activities.
1. For instance, suppose a catering business offers catering services in the client’s home. Instead of advertising via a
newspaper insert that goes out to everyone, the caterer would first identify the target market for its services. It
could then target the desired market with a direct mail campaign, flyer delivery in a particular residential area, or
a Facebook ad aimed at customers in a specific area, thereby increasing its return on investment in marketing and
bringing in more customers. Social media platforms, such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram, have
sophisticated options to allow businesses to target users based on market segments.
2. Although you can approach market segmentation in many different ways, depending on, the most common types
are demographic segmentation, geographic segmentation, and psychographic segmentation.
Demographic Segmentation:
Demographic grouping is based on measurable statistics, such as: Gender, Age, Income level, Marital status,
Education, Race, Religion
Geographic Segmentation:
Geographic segmentation involves segmenting the market based on location. Home addresses are one
example, but depending on the scope of your business, you could also use: Neighborhood, Postal or
ZIP code, Area code, City, Province or state, Region, Country (if your business is international).
Psychographic Segmentation:
Psychographic segmentation divides the target market based on socioeconomic class or lifestyle
preferences. The socioeconomic scale ranges from the affluent and highly educated at the top to the
uneducated and unskilled at the bottom. The UK-based National Readership Survey segregates social class
into six categories: Upper class, New money, Middle class, Working class, Working poor, Poverty level.
Target Marketing Case Study: McDonald's:
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BS 7th
Subject: Entrepreneurship
Lecturer: Abrar Ahmad Bhatti GCMS Pesh
According to QSR magazine's 2019 QRS 50, (Quick-Service and Fast Casual Restaurant News and
Information) McDonald's is the largest fast-food chain in the U.S. ranked by sales. It's also one of the most
successful examples of demographic target marketing, aiming its products at children, teenagers, and young
urban-dwelling families by offering PlayPlaces & Parties, the Arch Card (reloadable cash card), free wifi,
Happy Meals that include toys such as Marvel Studios characters, special promotions, and clever ad
campaigns. Targeted advertising and aggressive pricing have enabled McDonald's to capture over 18.5%
percent of the fast-food market share in the U.S. as of 2020.
Bottom up rather than Top Down
Bottom-up marketing is a concept with no single definition, but a few distinct components that set it apart
from traditional top-down marketing strategies. Unlike traditional marketing, where executives create a
marketing plan and a strategy to promote a company's products and services, bottom-up marketing is
mainly driven by the employees of a company. Employees recognize one specific customer need the
company can meet and create a marketing strategy around that single idea.
In their book "Bottom-Up Marketing," Al Ries and Jack Trout argue that employees know more about
the needs of customers than senior management does. This means it makes more sense for your employees
to develop the company's marketing strategy, because they are the people who are interacting with your
customers and understand what they want and need from you.
Finding a Void (GAP) in the Market:
In a bottom-up marketing strategy, your employees are tasked with finding the one thing that competitors
are not doing that customers need. In addition to listening to customer feedback, your employees must also
analyze the competition. They should look at the strategies competitors are following that work and those
that have not been so successful. This will help them to find a gap in the market that your company can fill.
Your marketing strategy can then be built around this one concept.
Flexibility:
Your marketing plan needs to be flexible in order to stay relevant. A bottom-up marketing strategy allows
you to adjust your marketing efforts according to new initiatives in the marketplace and challenges from
competitors. If your company has multiple locations, you can tailor your marketing strategies to meet the
different needs of the customers in each location. Instead of having to completely rewrite your existing
marketing plan if faced with an unexpected situation, you can simply adjust it as needed. This is more
flexible than a top-down marketing strategy, where senior management first decides on the goals they want
the company to achieve and then marketers are left to find a way to achieve them.
Examples
Ries and Trout cite Domino's Pizza as a classic example of successful bottom-up marketing. The company
took one marketing tactic, to guarantee that pizza will be delivered in 30 minutes, and built a very
successful marketing strategy around it. They also credit the success of Fedex to bottom-up marketing. In
the early days of the company, it used a top-down approach of heavily promoting all of its shipping services
to consumers. After listening to what customers really wanted, Fedex marketers learned that people were
most interested in overnight shipping, so they created a company slogan that focused only on promoting
this service.
Week 14:
Interactive Marketing Methods, The Entrepreneurial Marketing Mix,
Word of Mouth Marketing
The practice of interactive marketing, which is marketing through open dialogue with customers, has
boomed in the Internet age because it is easier than ever to open a line of communication between your
business and your consumer. This type of marketing, where you try to engage or get some type of response
from customers -- be it joining your social network, watching a video, clicking on a link or commenting on a
blog post -- enables you to learn more about your customers and their habits, which can help you appeal to
them more effectively.
Websites
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BS 7th
Subject: Entrepreneurship
Lecturer: Abrar Ahmad Bhatti GCMS Pesh
Websites are a great first step in establishing a connection with a customer. Think of your company’s
website as a mini Amazon.com. Amazon entices people to create accounts, and when people are logged in, it
tracks what they do on the website. While your website may not have the capability to do such personal
tracking, you can follow a similar interactive strategy through Google Analytics. This is a free service that
enables you to track the activity on your site. You can see which items people are clicking on, what pages
they look at and how they are arrive on your site. This allows you to serve up items or pages that people
want, or put items that aren’t getting as many visits in more prominent areas. You can also add features like
"request a call," where visitors fill in their contact details to get a call back from your company.
Blogs
Blogs are an interactive marketing method designed to build a relationship with a client rather than a direct
sell to them. Company blogs could feature posts about industry news or helpful tips related to your
company’s product base. These do not outright sell to your customers but help you stay top of mind,
especially if you customers come to consider you as an information resource. Blogs also enable readers to
comment on your posts, which establishes a dialogue with the consumer.
E-newsletters
E-newsletters can be a vehicle to bring your blog posts, as well as other company news, to your customers.
Most, if not all, email distribution companies require that your subscriber lists are full of people who opted
to receive your newsletter as opposed to a list you buy or emails you use without people’s permission. The
simple act of opting in is already an interactive element with your customers as they sought out your
product and asked to receive it. Like the website, many distribution systems have tracking capabilities that
enable you to see which items interest your customers the most.
Social Media
Social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube group people together via their
interests. Conversations are happening, and your company can freely take part in the conversation. Whether
this is through commenting on posts or starting a discussion, social media can help get your message out to
consumers. Michaels does a great job on Pinterest by creating boards based on activity type -- kids crafts,
day weddings or holiday ideas -- that allow them to show off their products without being disturbing.
People opt to follow the boards and receive the feed. Plus, Michaels positions the products as ideas rather
than ads. People can also comment on the boards, which allows the company to see which products work
and which don’t.
Search Engine Marketing
Search engine marketing, or SEM, is a way of marketing through search. Many online marketing companies,
such as Reach Local, partner with small companies to launch SEM campaigns. Together, you come up with
search terms that you want your company’s ads to appear in. So if you sell dolls, whenever someone
searches “dolls” on Google, your search ad would appear at the top of a results page marked off as “paid
ads.” You can also have your ad follow searchers around for a set amount of time. This means that when
they are surfing the web, your online banner ads periodically appear.
Sponsorships – Partnerships with companies that have a more established online presence can be a great
way to connect with new customers
The Entrepreneurial Marketing Mix:
Describes the basic set of strategies and approaches that marketers use to identify and reach their target
market. A target market is the specific group of consumers for which a company seeks to provide a good or
service.
One common way of understanding and remembering the components of the marketing mix for products
and services is by thinking in terms of the “7 Ps.” While each of these can be part of a company’s marketing
mix, the first four relate more to products: product, pricing, promotion, and place (and traditionally have
been called “the 4 Ps of marketing”). The remaining three relate more to services: physical environment,
process, and people. While the 7 Ps are conceptually the same for all businesses, how a company addresses
each “P” will be specific to that company’s needs and goals.
For a better understanding of the marketing mix, look at how Figure, breaks down the 7 Ps into their related
activities.
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BS 7th
Subject: Entrepreneurship
Lecturer: Abrar Ahmad Bhatti GCMS Pesh
Product refers to a good or service that creates value by fulfilling a customer need or desire. Goods are
tangible products that can be touched, smelled, heard, and seen, such as a pair of tennis shoes, a granola bar,
or a bottle of shampoo. In contrast, services are intangible products. They usually entail paying an expert to
do something for you, such as car repair or house cleaning.
Promotion
Communicating a product’s benefits to customers is a significant aspect of any marketing mix. Even if a
product is the best in its class, a company must communicate this value to customers, or it will fail. This is
what promotion does: It is the process of communicating value to customers in a way that encourages them
to purchase the good or service. Some typical forms of promotion are advertising, social media, public
relations, direct mail, sales promotions, and personal selling.
Price
One of the most important and challenging elements of the marketing mix is pricing. Price is the value that
must be exchanged for a customer to receive a product or service. This is usually monetary and has a direct
impact on sales. Many entrepreneurs are intimidated by financials and the prospect of using statements and
other information to make projections (you will learn about these in Entrepreneurial Finance and
Accounting). Correctly pricing your product enables your company to be competitive while maximizing
your product’s profit potential.
Here are several methods that entrepreneurs can use to effectively price products:
Cost-led pricing, premium pricing (perceived value pricing), penetration pricing, or pricing below
competitors, Customer-led pricing, Introductory offers (use lower initial prices), skimming (highest
price possible: Apple), bundling (discount price), odd numbers strategy (psychological pricing
strategy: $19.99,)
Place
Place refers to the channels or locations—physical or digital—where customers can purchase your
products; it is sometimes called distribution. For the entrepreneur, the choice of place lies in figuring out
which channels will create the most profit. In other words, which channels will reach the majority of the
target market at the most efficient cost. Choosing the right distribution channels is one way to create a
competitive advantage and generate more success for your business. Certain channels have specific
capabilities such as reaching more customers, providing promotions, and providing credit.
Taking advantage of multiple distribution channels is one strategy companies use to expand their brand and
grow their profits. This can include having a physical storefront, developing an e-commerce website to sell
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BS 7th
Subject: Entrepreneurship
Lecturer: Abrar Ahmad Bhatti GCMS Pesh
goods online, and distributing goods through wholesalers and retailers. Including multiple touchpoints with
the customer can increase the likelihood that they will choose your product.
The longer your distribution channels, the longer it takes for your product to reach the end consumer, and
the less control you have over the product and the price. As an entrepreneur, you must decide which
channels best fit your product and pricing requirements.
Additional Ps for Services
As you have learned, products include services as well. These include legal, accounting, consulting, medical,
entertainment, advertising, banking, and other professional services. When providing services, three
additional Ps should be considered in the marketing mix.
People
People, or a company’s human resources, will always be a key factor in any successful business. In a
service-oriented business, the people who interact with customers are especially important. Because the
service is the product, they are the face of the brand and a direct link between the company and the
customer.
When an employee delivers an acceptable or outstanding service, customers are encouraged to return to
purchase the service again and also share their positive experience with others. When customers go into a
jewelry store and receive good service from the salespeople, they will likely let their friends and family
know about the positive experience through a personal referral or on social media.Companies should take
into consideration that no matter the size of a business, they must market not only to their customers but
also to their employees, as they are the face of the company and the ones who interact with customers.
Employees can make or break the brand.
Physical Environment
The physical environment where a service is provided is an important part of the marketing mix. It can
influence the company’s image and convey a lot of information about the quality of a product, service,
company, or brand. The old saying that you “get only one chance to make a first impression” is especially
true for new businesses. Tangible cues—décor, smell, music, temperature, colors—send an immediate
message to customers about quality and professionalism.
For example, if you walked into two dentists’ offices (remember, they are also entrepreneurs), and one
office smelled and looked clean, and one did not, which one would you choose? The same goes for
restaurants, retail stores, and any other physical environment. Since a service cannot be inspected before it
is received, these cues help customers make their decisions.
Process
Process is the chain of procedures or activities required to provide a service to the customer. It is all of the
activities that take place between the service provider and the customer, from beginning to end.
In the case of a doctor’s office, this would include making the appointment, filling out paperwork, waiting to
be seen, seeing the doctor, and paying. Because processes can be long and involved, they need to be
designed to flow as efficiently and logically as possible. In the case of services that are provided online,
process includes the website’s design and functionality, and all of the steps customers take from browsing
through check out. A strong website design helps the entrepreneur say what the company is about, what it
does and for whom, and what actions the customer can take. Actions can range from clicking for more
information, the ability to purchase a product, or checking whether there is availability for a service and
being able to book it or make an appointment.
Word of Mouth Marketing:
Definition: An unpaid form of promotion in which satisfied customers tell other people how much they like a
business, product or service. Word-of-mouth is triggered when a customer experiences something far
beyond what was expected.
- Don't depend on your staff to trigger word-of-mouth by delivering "exceptional customer experience."
Physical, nonverbal statements are the most dependable in triggering word-of-mouth. These statements
can be architectural, kinetic or generous, but they must go far beyond the boundaries of what's normal. If you
don't want to be average, why do you insist on being normal? Here are some examples of these statements:
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BS 7th
Subject: Entrepreneurship
Lecturer: Abrar Ahmad Bhatti GCMS Pesh
Architectural. The piano store that looks like a huge piano, with black and white keys forming the long
awning over the long front porch. The erupting volcano outside the Mirage in Las Vegas. A glass-bottom
floor that allows customers to see what's happening on the floor below them. Do you remember when
McDonalds began building attached playgrounds to all their restaurants? It's worked like magic for
more than 20 years.
 Kinetic. The tossing of fresh fish from one employee to another at Pike Place Market in Seattle. The
magical, twirling knives of the tableside chefs at Benihana. Kissing the codfish when you get "screeched
in" at any pub in Newfoundland. (A screech is a loud and funny ceremony during which nonNewfoundlanders down a shot of cheap rum, repeat some phrases in the local dialect and kiss a codfish.
Everyone who visits that wonderful island returns home with a story of being "screeched in.") While it
may at first seem like a kinetic word-of-mouth trigger is a violation of #2 above, "Don't depend on your
staff...," it's really not. A kinetic word-of-mouth trigger is constantly observable by management. It isn't
a "customer service" experience delivered privately, one on one.
 Generous. Are you willing to become known as the restaurant that allows its guests to select--at no
charge--their choice of desserts from an expensive dessert menu? You can cover the hard cost of it in the
prices of your entrees and drinks. Flour, butter and sugar are cheap advertising. Are you the jewelry
store that's willing to become known for replacing watch batteries at no charge, even when the
customer hasn't purchased anything and didn't buy the watch from your store? Word will spread. And
watch batteries cost less than any type of advertising.
Architectural, kinetic, generous: These are the flour, butter and sugar of effective word-of-mouth. Will you put
these rich ingredients into the mouths of your potential word-of-mouth ambassadors?

Budget to deliver the experience that will trigger word-of-mouth. Sometimes your word-of-mouth budget
will be incremental, so that its cost is tied to your customer count. Other times it'll require a capital investment,
so that repayment will have to be withheld from your advertising budget over a period of years. The greatest
danger isn't in overspending but in under spending. Under spending on a word-of-mouth trigger is like buying
a ticket that only takes you halfway to Europe.
Don't promise it in your ads. Although it's tempting to promise the thing you're counting on to trigger wordof-mouth, these promises will only eliminate the possibility of your customers becoming your ambassadors.
Why would a customer repeat what you say about yourself in your ads? You must allow your customers to
deliver the good news. Don't rob your ambassadors of their moment in the sun.
Word of Mouth Marketing Statistics:
 Nielsen report that 92% of consumers believe suggestions from friends and family more than
advertising.
 Beyond friends and family, 88% of people trust online reviews written by other consumers as much
as they trust recommendations from personal contacts.
 And 74% of consumers identify word of mouth as a key influencer in their purchasing decisions.
 But only 33% of businesses are actively seeking out and collecting reviews.
 Despite that fact that a little, can do a lot. When specific case studies were analyzed, researchers
found a 10% increase in word-of-mouth (off and online) translated into a sales lifts between 0.2 –
1.5%.
Week 15:
Interactive Marketing Communication,
Personal Methods, Impersonal Methods
Interactive marketing is a new direction of work with end-users, assuming direct participation of the
consumer in the advertising campaign. Interactive marketing includes the enormous possibilities of Internet
resources such as games, contests, social networks and other related services. By itself, interactive
marketing is a form of direct marketing. However, taking into account its wide distribution in the world at
present, it is fair to single out interactive marketing in an independent form of marketing communications.
An important role of interactive marketing is the dissemination in the online space of a convincing brand
image for consumers.
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Subject: Entrepreneurship
Lecturer: Abrar Ahmad Bhatti GCMS Pesh
Example of Interactive Marketing
With the growing popularity of social networks and mobile phones, there are many opportunities for the
introduction of interactive marketing. This new trend can be illustrated by the example of world famous
companies.
Coca-Cola. The campaign entitled "Share Coca-Cola with ...", in which the famous logo on the bottle was
replaced by different names, is very popular all over the world. In fact, this is a viral action aimed at
launching a new trend in social networks. In Instagram, the hashtag of the #shareacoke campaign has
already been used more than 340,000 times, with 96% of the reviews either positive or neutral. Place in a
profile photo with a bottle of Cola means not just enjoy a drink. It's about capturing the moment, and the
name that flaunts on the bottle gives the moment a special importance.
Yoplait. Every year Yoplait (FRANCE) donates 10 cents from the sale of specially labeled yogurts to the
Fund for Breast Cancer of Susan G. Komen. Interaction with customers always benefits the company. If to
give buyers a sense of involvement in a big business, they will be much more willing to recommend a
product to their friends and acquaintances.
Jack Daniels. The world brand of whiskey Jack Daniels, developing its campaign called "The Few & Far
Between" counted on the fact that everyone likes to hear a good story. Its essence lies in the fact that any
person can share incredible stories about adventures in taverns (LODGING) around the globe. And the
brand of Jack Daniels was not used in all the stories. As in the case of Coca-Cola, this company is not focused
on immediate success - but nevertheless, it took a place in the memory of customers.
Interactive Marketing Best Practices:
 Multimedia – Use multiple different kinds of media from pictures, to text, to video, to games
 Personalization – Make the ad experience unique to each user.
 Opt-In – Respect customer's privacy by only contacting them if they sign up for a program
 Include A Compelling Offer – Use the targeting abilities of online advertising to offer customers
special deals or offers.
 Tell A Story – Multimedia tools can be used to tell a story which helps to reinforce the image of the
brand in the minds of consumers
 Make It Immersive – The more deeply a customer engages with advertising the more likely they are
to buy a product. Use online tools to make marketing messages as engaging as possible.
 Usability – Online ads should be intuitive and user friendly.
 Effective ROI – Use any tool that has been shown to deliver a high return on investment.
 Reshaping The Brand – Plan for and facilitate opportunities for users to reshape the image of a
brand
 Viral Sharing – Make marketing messages easy to share and transmit through the web.
Impersonal Methods and Personal Methods:
(A) Paid Impersonal Communications:
Following methods come under paid impersonal communications:
(I) Sales Promotion:
Retail sales promotion is a scheme undertaken by a business to encourage an increase in store’s sales,
practice or trial of a product or service. In this process, a store persuades the customer to buy a particular
product through normal personal selling. Today, sales promotion has various forms. It involves various
communication tricks that are used to provide added value or incentives to customers, retailers,
wholesalers, or other retail store customers to excite instant sales.
(II) Advertising:
An advertising campaign has a lot of significance to a retail firm. It not only promotes the organization’s
sales but also may change the fate of a retail firm. A careful consideration of several factors like the nature of
competition, consumers’ attitude, products’ features, availability of funds, reach of advertising media etc are
must.
(III) Store Atmosphere and Visual Merchandising:
Store Atmosphere: Store atmosphere is the key aspect for communicating the retailer’s image to the
customers. It is the ambience created within a store to communicate information about the store’s offerings
that gives an idea about store’s pricing policy, varieties and fashionability of its offerings.
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Visual Merchandising (VM): Visual Merchandising (VM) is the art of creating visual displays and arranging
merchandise assortments within a store to improve the layout and presentation and to increase traffic and
sales which puts the merchandise in spotlight. VM informs the visitors, creates desire and finally augments
the selling process.
(IV) Websites:
Website is the most recently developed way of communication with customers. Retailers have been
increasingly using websites to build their brand image and to communicate with the consumers about the
followings: (i) Information about the company, (ii) Lines of businesses, (iii) Store’s Offerings, (iv) Special
Offers, (v) Prices, (vi) Store’s location – from where customers can buy merchandise, (vii) How to place
orders, (viii) Special discounts (if any), (ix) Store’s ranking/position in the industry, (x) How to contact
(B) Unpaid Impersonal Communications:
Publicity: Publicity is one component of promotion which gives some sort of positive or negative image on
the basis of activities done by the store. For example, if a retail store gives huge donation for some noble
cause, it attracts media’s attention and then leads to media coverage.
Publicity is non-personal communication, which is typically in the form of a news story that is transmitted
through the mass media. The purpose of publicity is to draw favourable attention to a company and/or its
products without having to pay the media for it. One product that received an incredible amount of publicity
was Viagra. Sometimes, a film – especially one that is controversial – can generate a great deal of publicity.
(C) Paid Personal Communications:
(I) Personal Selling: As the very name implies, in this sort of communication, sales staff assist customers
directly (face to face) and satisfy their needs and wants through exchange of information. Personal attention
is the integral part for the success of personal selling. Personal selling can be at a store level or at customers’
residence or at their place of work.
(II) E-Mail: Just a few years ago, e-mail communication used to be a method of communication with nears
and dears. But due to technological advancement, its credibility and lightening speed has made it an
essential lifeline to revolutionize business communication. It basically involves sending messages over the
internet.
These days, retailers are using this method to communicate following information: (i) About the company,
(ii) Line of businesses, (iii) About new launch, (iv) About new sales promotion programmes, (v) Franchisee
information etc.
(D) Unpaid Personal Communications:
Word of Mouth Communication:
This type of communication belongs to unpaid personal communication. It is basically the reference to pass
the message verbally by face to face spoken communication or some sort of telephonic conversation. It
includes a variety of sub-categories like blog, viral, buzz, cause, grass root, influencer and social media
marketing.
Because of personal nature of communication between individuals without paying anything (Rupees), make
it unpaid personal communication. It is firmly believed that message transferred in this way travels very
fast and has an added layer of confidence.
Week 16:
Entrepreneurial Marketing, 4Is Rather than 4Ps
Definitions/explanations of entrepreneurial marketing
Author (s)
Definition/Explanation
Stokes (2000)
The entrepreneurial marketing concept is focused on innovations and the
development of ideas in line with an intuitive understanding of market needs
Collinson and
Entrepreneurial marketing is characterized by a responsiveness to the marketplace
Shaw (2001)
and a seemingly intuitive ability to anticipate changes in customer demands
Morris,
Entrepreneurial marketing is proactive identification and exploitation of
Schindehutte and
opportunities for acquiring and retaining profitable customers through innovative
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LaForge (2002)
Bäckbrö and
Nyström (2006)
Miles and Darroch
(2006)
Kraus, Harms and
Fink (2010)
Hill et al. (2010)
Subject: Entrepreneurship
Lecturer: Abrar Ahmad Bhatti GCMS Pesh
approaches to risk management, resource leveraging, and value creation
Entrepreneurial marketing is the overlap between entrepreneurship and marketing. It
is the behavior by any individual and/or organization to establish and promote
market ideas while developing new ones to create value
Firms adopting entrepreneurial marketing processes (EMPs) will engage in
marketing processes that emphasize opportunity creation and/or discovery,
evaluation, and exploitation
Entrepreneurial marketing is an organizational function and a set of processes for
creating, communicating, and delivering value to customers and for managing
customer relationships in ways that benefit the organization and its stakeholders, and
that is characterized by innovativeness, risk-taking, proactiveness, and may be
performed without resources currently controlled
Entrepreneurial marketing is a spirit, an orientation, as well as a process of pursuing
opportunities and launching and growing ventures that create perceived customer
value through relationships, especially by employing innovativeness, creativity,
selling, market immersion, networking or flexibility
Differences between traditional marketing and entrepreneurial marketing
Traditional Marketing
Entrepreneurial Marketing
An essentially reactive stance with
The firm attempts to influence or redefine aspects of the
respect to the external environment
external environment
Marketing strives to follow customers,
Marketing strives to lead customers, creating new
serving existing markets
markets
Focal point is efficient management of
Focal point is new value creation for the customer
the marketing mix
through relationships, alliances, resource management
approaches, and the marketing mix
Risk is to be minimized
Risk is necessary and marketing’s job is to manage the
firm’s risk profile in a calculated fashion
Marketing as an objective, dispassionate
While acknowledging the value of science and learning,
science
recognition is given to the roles of passion, zeal, and
commitment in successful marketing programs
Reliance on proven formulas and
Psychology of challenging commonly shared assumptions
established rules of thumb
Marketing supports the innovation
Marketing is the home of the entrepreneurial process in
efforts of other functional areas of the
the organization
firm, most notably R&D
Marketing as a functional silo
Marketing as a cross-disciplinary and inter-functional
pursuit
Promotion and customer
The relative investment or resources in different areas of
communication receive the greatest
the marketing mix are context specific
amount of attention from marketers
Scarcity mentality, zero-sum game
Opportunity is pursued regardless of resources controlled;
perspective on resources
philosophy of resource leveraging is paramount
Heavy dependency on survey research
Skeptical use of conventional research; employment of
alternative methods (e.g., lead user research, “backward”
research)
Marketing facilitates transactions and
Marketing facilitates speed, change, adaptability, agility
control
Source: Based on Morris, Schindehutte and La Forge (2002).
4Is are important to build a winning and enduring brand.
1. Identity: (Brand)
If you're a photographer and someone mentions GoPro, you think of a super-sturdy camera for the adventurous.
Why is that? Because GoPro has done a good job defining their brand.
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BS 7th
Subject: Entrepreneurship
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Not remembering a brand logo is no big deal, but if your target consumers do not know what your company
represents, then you have a lot of issues that need to be fixed. Please remember It’s Not What You Sell, It’s What
You Stand For. “The goal is to make your brand irreplaceable, and you do that with emotional connectivity:
mystery, sensuality and intimacy,” says Roberts, author of Lovemarks: The Future Beyond Brands. “You want
loyalty beyond reason and loyalty beyond recession. For small-business owners, this is even more vital because
they don’t have the purchasing power that large corporations do.”
An epic example of brand long life is Coca-Cola. The company has fulfilled its promise of lighthearted fun for 129
years—with its bottle shape, logo and flavor remaining recognizable for nearly all of that time. Yet this branding
powerhouse is constantly inventing new products, most recently Coke Zero with new types of artificial
sweeteners, and Diet Coke Plus with vitamin additives.
2. Integration
Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) is more important than ever!
IMC plays an integral role in communicating brand message to a larger audience. It considers all points of
contact your brand has online and offline. The point of IMC is to make sure that every piece of marketing is paid
attention to. If every piece is in harmony, the overall result is much more powerful and the audience will be able
to hear what your brand is trying to say. Each piece, no matter how small, shares the same responsibility in
providing a strong brand identity.
A new revolution has taken place when the adoption of smartphone took off and connectivity is now everything.
For the first time, visual sharing platforms like Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook are allowing customers to play
a critical role in defining brand experience and identity. While the voice of the customer has always been one of
the most powerful concepts in marketing, it was typically text driven and dictated or heavily moderated by brands.
Now that has changed. Customers have the power to visually define brands, amplifying their experience and
influencing their peers, all with a simple photo or video share.
This includes captions, hashtags, @tags, location data, demographic data and more. Brands can use this data to
inform their marketing in a way that makes a real difference to their customers. They can celebrate die-hard fans
and highlight evangelists, connecting with the buyers on a whole new level.
With Instagram, I can post a training photo and 10 minutes later have Nike wish me luck on my next race. Does
that make me feel closer to Nike? You bet it does. Not only do I feel connected, but Nike now understands more
about me as a brand advocate.
3. Innovation
Business needs to innovate to remain relevant and competitive. But how?
Below are some of the ways to anchor your brand’s innovation – some more obvious and traditional; and,
potentially seen as low hanging fruit. The best and most sustainable results are achieved when a business has two
or more is a complementing highly competitive capabilities on which to focus innovation. Plus, marketing
excellence is the constant condition.
a. Product Innovation
It is usually expensive to create new, innovative products; it is expensive to launch and market; they are the easiest
thing to copy or imitate; and then, the process can never stop. We have to constantly innovate product offerings
and recognize and capitalize on new opportunities for product innovation.
b. Brand Innovation
Businesses that are able to create a strong presence or reputation, have an extra advantage of a ‘halo’ effect for
their products and services. They still need to evolve, improve and delight, but the pull created by a brand makes
selling easier, cheaper and more profitable.
c. Price Innovation
Pricing is an art – one shade lighter or darker can make a difference between a painting and a masterpiece. There
is only one way to price anything: Value-pricing. Value is perceived in high or low price.
d. Cost Innovation
Keeping costs low to be more profitable is critical to business success, especially for businesses wanting to take
advantage of large emerging markets.
The effective approach to cost innovation is through innovative strategic cost-based design that solves customer
and business problems by creating value. Cutting cost by eliminating features or cheaper substitutions lowers
value and can destroy the brand.
e. Marketing Innovation
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Marketing innovation like Brand Innovation above is about building culture and an environment that attracts
loyalty of customers and staff. There are activities to make a difference through marketing innovation: embracing
technology to own new communication channels to connect with customers; creating brand evangelists (this
starts in house); creating purposeful networks that help get and act on market insights before anyone else.
f. Platform Innovation
Having a unique platform is one of the strongest sources of a competitive advantage. Think: Amazon –
conquered Sony’s superior e-reader because of its unique online platform; Apple – oops, Sony again – destroyed
Sony Walkman and changed the music industry with iTunes.
g. Hybridized Market Re-positioning
“Nothing’s new under the sun.”
Great opportunities exist in putting known elements in new combinations to solve unmet needs and anticipate
customers’ wants. Cirque du Soleil has re-engineered circus experience, creating a whole new market of circusgoers. Andre Rieu re-positioned classical music experience and filled stadiums with people who never listen to
classical music.
The final two points are the most powerful ways to innovate: a system that is highly relevant to the market,
very hard to imitate and can be replicated in new markets.
h. Cultural Innovation
A growing number of successful organizations start or embark on culture creation because they know that in the
fast changing environment a manager’s role and best use of their time is to create value and connect people
and ideas, rather than manage people’s tasks and controlling processes.
Establishing a self-driven, self-correcting culture around a clear Vision and Mission and a simple and flexible
decision-making system that provides people with ‘freedom within framework’ is the way to innovate with impact.
I. Business Model Innovation
This is the strongest form of executing a competitive strategy. Here a business is able to combine several
competitive elements from the above approaches and together create an impossible to imitate market advantage.
This is a recipe for perpetual success.
4. Never Stop Improving
This is the phase of Apple right now. As a company, they are simply improving what has already been built.
Improvement is a key need for every company. It is essential, as in this digital age, quality counts more than ever.
Miss on quality, and the word spreads like wildfire. If improvement is your main innovation, the quality must be
flawless.
Improvement = Safe and Reliable Quality
‘THE END’
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Wish you good luck..
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