Major economic changes are taking place in Poland, as in other East European countries. Privatisation of state owned enterprises is one of the most important elements of the economic reforms. Privatisation by means of Initial Public Offering (IPO) is the flagship of the property reforms in Poland. Although this method of privatisation concerns only a relatively small number of companies it is the most spectacular part of the whole process which has a major impact on the success of the entire Polish economic reform.
If the noise level in America seems to be rising these days, it may be because the baby boomers are in the middle of their own baby boom "echo." Men and women who were born in the years after World War II are now raising their own children. This new generation will eventually number over 70 million, almost as large a generation as the baby boomers themselves. So it's no surprise that the market for products and services designed for children will continue to grow in importance over the next two decades. In addition, today's children are especially important because they affect the economy in three different ways: They buy products and services themselves, they influence purchases in their families, and they represent an important market for the future as they grow into adolescence and adulthood. Therefore, manufacturers and advertisers need to market towards children both as present and as future consumers. Today, children represent a complex, powerful force in the marketplace. We believe the marketers who succeed in this youth market will be those who first have a thorough understanding of the world of the child in American today.
This paper examines the effect that the recession has had on the financial behaviour of small businesses and their optimism about the future. The main finding is that the age of the business and the change in its turnover over the preceding year are important determinants of behaviour and attitude. Hence, the conclusion is that these are essential components of any segmentation study, alongside the more commonly used size, sector and region variables. Furthermore, the author believes that the findings from the small business sector can be likened to the life stages used in consumer financial research, and draws a parallel between consumer disposable income and business turnover and profitability. There are similar parallels between new house-owners and new businesses.
Heavy up TV advertising for packaged goods has been the traditional way of estimating its effect on sales in the United States. With recent advances in information technology, testing can now be replaced by econometric modelling techniques that removes the influences of other marketing factors such as price changes, promotions, distribution and competition. The result is estimates of different sales responses over a range of television GRP delivery levels. This allows the TV budgeting and the local market allocation process to be planned on the basis of its contribution to sales. This paper begins with a discussion of evaluating advertising's sales response in the U.S. in an historical context, beginning as a design-driven process and recently moving to a model-driven process. The subject of econometric analysis for packaged goods product's advertising is introduced, and the technique for handling the residual effects of advertising is discussed. The non- linear nature of the advertising-to-sales relationship is displayed in a unique format for direct, end-user decision- making. Live examples demonstrate the power of the approach on both a national and local basis. There is a discussion of continuous vs. flighting schedules, day parts and limitations of the approach. A special-case application of econometrics is discussed for those who are wedded to test vs. control designs.
This paper summarises what is believed to be the most far-ranging review of the arts in Wales to have been conducted for 25 years. It attempts the measurement of the cultural, social and economic benefits of the arts to a nation. The study considers both professional and amateur activities and consideration is given to the arts in a wider context. The study of the market for the arts projects the potential size of the audience. Findings from a programme of qualitative research illuminate the public's perceptions of the arts. Consideration is then given to existing marketing approaches and recommendations are made for a more co-ordinated effort to communicate the benefits of the arts to a wider range of the community. The analysis of the economic impact of the arts in Wales uses existing data and the findings of commissioned research, to estimate the contribution of the arts to Gross Domestic Product in Wales and their significance in job retention and creation. The many sources of funding of the arts in Wales are analysed and a recommendation is made to create a National Endowment Fund for the arts in Wales. The study concludes with an examination of the arts in Wales within a British and European context and suggests that the way forward will be firmly grounded on increasing use of partnerships between all relevant authorities.
This paper will show how the tools of marketing research, marketing, financial analysis and strategic planning were used to assist in the repositioning of the Museum of Victoria. It will show how these tools heightened the realisation that the Museum had to learn to stand in the market place and to provide reasons for consumers to direct their discretionary time and income towards it rather than to available alternatives. Group Discussions, Household and locational surveys brought home to management of the Museum the importance of understanding viewpoints held by their current and potential customers. Interviews with potential commercial sponsors showed the degree of professionalism which would be required to gain support from appropriate bodies. Recommendations were developed for the introduction of the Marketing Role into the Museum structure and for the use of internal and external resources to ensure its effective functioning. A significant aspect of the study was to bring home to the management group the financial implications of the options which it was considering. To this end a series of financial forecasts was developed which showed the likely outcomes of alternative Museum development options. The need was shown for a new approach to Museum funding, including the introduction of an entrance fee for the first time. The various steps in the study led to the production of a Demand Curve for the Museum, the ranking of the development options, and the evaluation of societal benefits of the Museum.
In this paper, Ian Fox, a Council Member of the Wexford Festival. Opera, Ireland, traces the evolution of research at the Festival. This started with a simple questionnaire in 1979 which was used to help formulate policy in the 1980s, to a more complex and original study in 1988 by the economist, Prof. John O'Hagan, Trinity College, Dublin, in which he analysed the social and economic factors governing the event. This had been commissioned to provide information when raising support from government sources and sponsors. The study combined a qualitative review with a quantitative analysis of visitors to the Festival. The results showed that the Festival is providing extra tourist revenue for Ireland, particularly at a time of the year (October) when tourism is at a low ebb. Prof. O'Hagan concluded that the Festival has a beneficial effect on the social life of the community and estimated its economic benefit. He also moved from a stance of doubting the value of such festivals to the State, to a position in which he feels there is clear evidence to suggest arts events such as the Wexford Festival can make real contributions to the national economy and should receive increased state support. Ian Fox concludes his review of the study with five main pointers for future research into an arts event: -1 it is possible to put hard figures on the value of an event; -2 the data should be of direct use to the organisers; -3 research encourages fresh thinking about and development of an event; -4 a good arts profile can help a nation or community attract new industries; and -5 a mix of qualitative and quantitative studies is essential to colour-in the full picture.
This paper outlines in very broad terms the current situation in the cereals market. The picture is one of a combination of high institutional prices and improved technology increasing industry output faster than it can be absorbed by Community markets. The result is increasing volume of exports onto world cereal markets and the possibility of rapidly escalating stocks. The budgetary implications of this are not politically viable and so changes in policy have been introduced and will continue to have effect. Other measures are being considered and the merits and demerits of these are briefly considered.
The result of this compromise is a new five-year farm bill that sharply reduces support prices for virtually all commodities while maintaining many of the income support provisions contained in previous U.S. farm bills. The FSA85 was implemented with the 1986 crop season and will provide the basic farm policy foundation for U.S. agriculture through 1990. The FSA85 was designed to reduce government intervention in agricultural markets, and improve U.S. competitiveness in world markets by dramatically lowering basic support levels' primarily the loan rate. The major problems with the FSA85 are associated with the larger than expected costs of the program and the absence of immediate results.
This paper is concerned with the research carried out to assess the impact of the recession on gas sales in the North West of England, and to use this information as an aid to predicting the future sales trend.
Many factors have influenced magazine publishing and circulation strategies, particularly the emergence of commercial television. These have lead to the development of special interest publications and an emphasis on selective circulation marketing. Formerly regarded as primarily a physical distribution function, circulation management is now emerging as a real marketing opportunity and, as such, it is expected to "sell" magazines to the "right" reader and to make a contribution to profits. The application of the computer to subscription maintenance and sales has probably had the greatest single impact on circulation management. Presently under development is an "information system" capable of collecting, analyzing, and reporting the principal elements that influence subscription sales profitability. Several computer models have been constructed to assist in the analysis of the multitude of interrelated variables impacting optimum circulation marketing. One of these is a model of the complete publishing operation incorporating components for sales, manufacturing, and distribution. This system is used to evaluate the long-term financial impact of alternative publishing opportunities under varying constraints.
We understood this work essentially as an automatisation of the actual way of making budgets in a great international company. But the huge size of the model prevents a real back and forth movement of information between central management and decentralised units (feedback effects).