Marketing Trends

Marketing Trends

Background

The growth in the adoption of the Internet in marketing has been revolutionary in the last decade. Although the first wave of growth of the Web was in the business-to-consumer domain, the business-to-business domain is regarded as larger, with e-commerce transactions expected to be in the range of US$800 billion by the year 2003 — five times as much as business-to-consumer transactions. In the first stage, the Internet was utilized to enhance the efficiency of processes through a dramatic reduction in exchange costs (Batirel, 2008). This enhancement of the efficiency of exchanges could be in the domain of information (e.g., sales materials, manuals), customer support (e.g., frequently asked questions), and transactions. In the second stage, firms sought to enhance the effectiveness of their transactions.

Business-to-business marketers used the Internet to increase their supplier and customer involvement in order to enhance customer satisfaction and loyalty. Business marketers such as GE's Jet Engine Division that have increased their utilization of the Internet in their marketing processes have seen increases in both efficiency and effectiveness of those processes.

The primary impetus for the move toward the Internet is the value that can be generated. Since the Internet can be used to reduce the ''exchange friction'' that exists both within and between organizations, business marketers can better deliver value to their customers. This paper suggests that the Web is fundamentally changing, and will continue to change, business-to-business marketing thought and practice. The paper builds on research that the author has conducted with his colleagues (Ang, 2001).

The implication of the nonadoption of Internet technologies will be dramatic. If business marketers do not capture the value that emerging technologies such as the Internet provides, value will migrate from their firms. Value migration is an issue that has affected most industries at most times. For example, value migrated from small-lot manufacturing of automobiles toward mass-produced Ford automobiles in the early part of the century. Similarly, General Motors captured value and enhanced their market share in the automobile market by providing variety to customers.

Top Marketing Trends

Online Content Marketing

The Internet is an agent for change that can disrupt markets. In its essence, the Internet is an intelligent ubiquitous information platform. The information platform is flexible, and firms utilize the Internet to provide information, to accommodate connectivity, community, and transactions, and to share cost reductions. The impacts of the Internet on business-to-business marketing strategies will be based predominantly on how business firms utilize the Internet for marketing to their customers. Advanced technology is increasing the communication flows between suppliers and buyers. Therefore, value migrates from firms at a more rapid pace. Technology such as Internet, electronic commerce, and EDI are fundamentally changing business processes. If firms do not adapt their processes to include the Internet, value will migrate due to technology enablers (Broek, 2009).

Information

The most significant/greatest impact of the Internet has been on informational access. The Internet affords access to vast amounts of information that can be programmed to cater to the stated or ...