Unilever has actively launched new brands in the Japanese market as well as maintaining and expanding its presence in other Asia-Pacific markets. At the root of the approach has been a combination of using internal expertise in marketing techniques and experience, and a disciplined but creative approach to market research. It is a teamwork approach where the market researcher represents the consumer in the internal decision making process: by being a member of the marketing team, the researcher makes use of the findings from research studies ranging from the most simple to the most complex in such a way that the techniques are totally transparent to the rest of the team. The continuum of research is bound into a single process, taking the disciplines and philosophy of modelling, together with a common view of consumer behaviour, as the shell into which to fit various components from set of research techniques available. A series of mini case studies exemplifies the process as it occurred in a number of markets in the region.
From incorporation in 1971 until today Novaction has reported over 4000 studies based on marketing models. These projects have been conducted across the 5 continents in 55 countries. In Japan alone over 1200 projects have been reported. Over 250 categories have been covered: fast moving packaged goods, services, consumer durables, ethical drugs and industrial goods. Validations have proved the applicability of Novaction technology to all countries so far. The main goals of Novaction's marketing models are to identity, assess and maximise brand sales potential from early development until maturity. Our systems communicate the opportunities to be taken and allow the risks to be understood. They aim to reduce the uncertainty surrounding marketing decisions.
Three principles, drawn from several hundred experiments on positioning service businesses, help to summarise why a customer databank system assists the retailer in the continuity of organisation-wide strategic planning. Principle 1 : In marketing a service which caters for customer lifestyles, it is important to ask continually : which business are we in today, and what business should we be in tomorrow? Principle 2 : Four planning horizons contribute to the challenge of positioning a service business. Like a club, a total service policy should aim to unite : functional purpose, staff, members (i.e. customers), operational facilities. Principle 3 : A national chain of outlets comprises a global heart with local faces. For the customer, offer to stay competitive, the heart of the business needs a marketing edge : price (e.g. economy of scale), quality (e.g. expert central buying), added value character (e.g. a more enjoyable shopping experience). Together these principles help to focus on particular issues of measurement and analysis which research for retail strategies should address.
Unilever has been actively launching new brands in the Japanese market as well as maintaining and expanding its presence in other Asia-Pacific markets. At the root of the approach has been a combination of using internal expertise in marketing techniques and experience, and a disciplined but creative approach to market research. It is a teamwork approach where the market researcher represents the consumer in the internal decision making process: by being a member of the marketing team, the researcher makes use of the findings from research studies ranging from the most simple to the most complex in such a way that the techniques are totally transparent to the rest of the team. The continuum of research is bound into a single process, taking the disciplines and philosophy of modelling, together with a common view of consumer behaviour, as the shell into which to fit various components from set of research techniques available. A series of mini case studies exemplifies the process as it occurred in a number of markets in the region.
15 years of experience in developing and implementing market modelling techniques for the management of innovation are examined in the light of marketing across frontiers. Particular focus is given to: validation, marketing lesson, consumer responses inter-country similarities and dissimilarities including contrasts between Japanese cases and western counterparts.