Route to market
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Route to market describes set of activities (road-map) which need to be performed by the company to get new product to market success[1]. It involves following basic steps:
- Selecting proper market - this is based on the fact that the target market should be chosen to obtain the optimal result and result with appropriate marketing expenses. It will give us the opportunity to achieve higher profits and gain a better position on the market. The company should focus on the activity on the target market and locate its activities there. The basis for the selection of target markets is market segmentation. It is the division of the market according to specific criteria into relatively homogeneous groups of consumers. These groups are called segments, they determine the area where the company focuses its operations and constitute a reference point for formulating a marketing strategy that the company will use to promote the product and its brand. Segmentation is used due to the fact that it is not able to meet the needs of all potential customers (there are too many of them, they are dispersed in the field and differentiated according to expectations). Therefore, the organization should identify the most attractive segments and focus their attention on them instead of competing in the whole market. This increases your chances of success and achieving maximum profits[2].
- Identifying customer's needs - needs consists in getting to know the information about his needs, preferences, interests and habits. Thanks to the identification, we can learn the differences between individual needs in order to match the offer to the customer's needs in accordance with its previous recommendations.
- Setting realistic goals - correctly formulated goals should be detailed, accurate, attractive, possible to meet, and should specify the time of their implementation and the stages in which they will be implemented. Included in them should be what we want to achieve them, why we want to implement them and the method that we will achieve the given goal.
- Selecting proper distribution channels - a distribution channel is a group of all clients through which one or more streams associated with marketing flow.
- Establishing monitoring systems
- Building competent sales team with high selling skills
- Building good relationships with distributors
- Execute transactions
- Provide after sale service - provide after-sales service which is the last element of the product sales process. The company should ensure that the customer is fully satisfied with the purchase. Thanks to this, the chances for the next transaction will increase and the satisfied customer will share a positive opinion among his friends and thus the number of clients will grow. You need to take care of each client because every customer is valuable. All cooperation and relationship will be affected when the client is dissatisfied.
Selection of distribution channels
The company has three options for choosing a channel:
- Creating a new distribution channel - this is associated with cooperation with other companies that implement the tasks of subsequent entities in the course of product distribution.
- Adaptation of distribution channels that already exist - entities without any changes perform tasks that involve distribution.
- Changing existing distribution channels - this is connected with a change in the functioning of the channel for which the company has decided.
References
- Kahn, Kenneth B. (2006). New Product Forecasting: An Applied Approach.
- Klepper S., J.(1996). Entry, Exit, Growth, and Innovation over the Product Life Cycle The American Economic Review, 86(3), 562-583
- Krattenmaker, T. G., & Salop, S. C. (1986). Competition and cooperation in the market for exclusionary rights. The American economic review, 76(2), 109-113.
- Wilson, Alan and Zeithaml, V.A. and Bitner, M.J. and Gremler, D.D. (2012). Services Marketing: Integrating Customer Focus Across the Firm.
- Wilson, H., & Daniel, E. (2007). The multi-channel challenge: A dynamic capability approach. Industrial Marketing Management, 36(1), 10-20.
Footnotes
Author: Izabela Palonek
