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| janitor supplies - Servicing existing custo_mers, however, is easier and less expensive. In fact, it is estimated that acquiring a new custo_mer costs five to eight times as much as keeping an existing one. To retain current custo_mers, some companies develop loyalty programs such as the frequent flyer programs used by many airlines. A marketer may also seek to retain custo_mers by learning a custo_mer's individual interests and then tailoring services to meet them. Amazon. com, for example, keeps a data_base of the types of books custo_mers have ordered in the past and then recommends new books to them based on their past selections. Such programs help companies retain custo_mers not only by providing a useful service, but also by making custo_mers feel appreciated. This is known as relationship building. Some products are marketed most effectively by direct sale from manufacturer to consumer. Among these are durable equipment such as computers, office equipment, industrial machinery and supplies, and consumer specialties such as vacuum cleaners and life insurance. The direct marketing of products such as cosmetics and household needs is very important. Formerly common door to door products, these are now usually sold by the more sophisticated house party technique. Many types of products and services now use direct mail catalogs or have a presence on the World Wide Web. Because many people are extremely busy, they may find it simpler to shop in their leisure hours at home by using catalogs or visiting Web sites. Comparison shopping is also made easier, because both catalogs and e-commerce sites generally contain extensive product information. For retailers, catalogs and the Web make it possible to do business far beyond their usual trading area and with a minimum of overhead. | More than 95 percent of the leading 1,000 companies in the United States sell products over the Internet. Television is a potent tool in direct marketing because it facilitates the demonstration of products in use. Direct sale of all kinds of goods to the public via home-shopping clubs broadcasting on cable television channels is gaining in popularity. Some companies also use telephone marketing, called telemarketing, a technique used in selling to businesses as well as to consumers. Most consumer products, however, move from the manufacturer through agents to wholesalers and then to retailers, ultimately reaching the consumer. Determining how products should move through wholesale and retail organizations is another major marketing decision. Wholesalers distribute goods in large quantities, usually to retailers, for resale. Some retail businesses have grown so large, however, that they have found it more profitable to bypass the wholesaler and deal directly with the manufacturers or their agents. Wholesalers first responded to this trend by changing their operations to move goods more quickly to large retailers and at lower prices. Small retailers fought back through cooperative wholesaling, the voluntary banding together of independent retailers to market a product. The result has been a trend toward a much closer, interlocking relationship between wholesaler and independent retailer. Retailing has undergone even more changes than wholesaling. Intensive preselling by manufacturers and the development of minimum-service operations, such as self-service in department stores, have drastically changed the retailer's way of doing business. Supermarkets and discount stores have become commonplace not only for groceries but for products as diversified as medicines and gardening equipment. |
