Abstract:

Marketing of consumer goods has undergone important changes in most European countries in the past ten years and this evolution has not yet come to an end. New selling methods and new types of business firms in retailing and wholesaling, ever increasing marketing costs for industry, concentration of business companies, as well as growing competition abroad and at home, are some of the reasons which focus interest of company managers on a problem which has been neglected a good deal in the past : the managerial approach to analysis and evaluation of channels of distribution used so far or to he used in the future by the company in order to market more effectively its products . The channel of distribution is a firm's direct connecting line with the market, its only way to reach the customer or consumer. The efficiency of this channel and its different links, its strength and length in comparison with other possible choices are decisive for the company's marketing strategy and its success. Apart from comparatively few studies on channels of distribution made by market research institutes for their business clients, not much has been undertaken to analyse channels from the point of view of the business firm. General economic surveys on channels of distribution in various branches of industry and product groups, however, have been established to a larger extent and they often present excellent and valuable material which for a business firm too is of interest. But these analyses are not sufficiently detailed and are naturally lacking certain information which the company manager needs to decide his selection of channels as a basis for his marketing policy. The general statistical picture presented in these studies is only one part of analysing a given channel. The marketing policy and techniques of the links of such a channel as well as the cost and profit comparison are further important points of consideration.