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Featured Marketing, Management Article, sales force cross-sell
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Refocusing the sales force to cross-sell

December 2007

Many salespeople resist cross-selling, so management must address their misgivings head on and convince them of its benefits.

Featured Marketing, Management Article, business management strategy
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Confronting proliferation: A conversation with four senior marketers

August 2007

A quartet of prominent marketing practitioners discusses the challenges and opportunities of proliferation.

Featured Marketing, Management Article, business management strategy
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The evolving role of the CMO

August 2007

Many chief marketers still have narrowly defined roles that emphasize advertising, brand management, and market research. They will have to spread their wings.

The Archive

2007
Confronting proliferation ... in retail: An interview with Wal-Mart’s John Fleming Premium Content

July 2007

The giant retailer’s chief merchandising officer explains why and how it is trying to reach a wider range of consumers than it has in the past.

Confronting proliferation ... in online media: An interview with Yahoo!’s senior marketer Premium Content

June 2007

Cammie Dunaway explains how she is preparing for the future by shifting the company’s marketing dollars to vehicles whose returns can be measured and by fostering intellectual curiosity.

Confronting proliferation ... in beer: An interview with Carlsberg's Alex Myers Premium Content

May 2007

Carlsberg's senior vice president, Western Europe, explains what the company is doing to cope with proliferating channels, media, and customer segments and describes the benefits of its functional-excellence programs.

Confronting proliferation ... in mobile communications: An interview with Nokia's senior marketer

May 2007

Keith Pardy discusses the challenges of maintaining a strong global presence while keeping pace with the explosion of products and marketing channels.

How consumer goods companies are coping with complexity Premium Content

May 2007

A recent survey suggests that the rapid pace of change in the industry is leaving some marketers behind.

2006
Escaping the middle-market trap: An interview with the CEO of Electrolux Premium Content

November 2006

Hans Stråberg discusses the challenges of serving both the high and low ends of the market successfully.

Capitalizing on customer insights Premium Content

August 2006

To stimulate growth in today's marketing environment, companies must identify and prioritize opportunities at points where proliferating segments, channels, and product categories intersect.

Managing a marketing and sales transformation Premium Content

August 2006

Executives hoping to transform a commercial organization must tailor their change-management approach to several specific challenges posed by sales and marketing.

The power of a commercial operating system Premium Content

August 2006

To avoid heightened complexity and a disjointed allocation of resources in a proliferating marketing environment, companies need a blueprint for consistent processes, tools, and performance-management systems.

Profiting from Proliferation

June 2006

An explosion of new customer segments, sales and service channels, media, and brands is challenging marketers to reinvent themselves so they can simultaneously prioritize opportunities in a more sophisticated way and increase the consistency and coordination of their marketing execution.

Fighting cannibalization Premium Content

February 2006

Optimization techniques used to plan operations can also be applied to sales and marketing.

The 'moment of truth' in customer service Premium Content

February 2006

Focus on the interactions that are important to customers—and on the way frontline employees handle those interactions.

2005
The vanishing middle market

November 2005

Changing customer needs are prompting a range of strategic responses.

Transforming sales and service

November 2005

Incumbents can serve the whole market—without getting stuck in the middle.

Mitigating channel conflict Premium Content

August 2005

Some partners are more important than others.

Leading change: An interview with the CEO of P&G

July 2005

Alan G. Lafley discusses how to stretch a company's aspirations without overpromising. Second in a series of interviews with leading executives on change management.

Better B2B selling

June 2005

Although collaborative relationships with customers can be complex and time consuming, when they are done well the rewards can be substantial.

A credibility gap for marketers Premium Content

May 2005

CMOs should be aware of how they are perceived within the organization and alter their approach accordingly.

Boosting returns on marketing investment

May 2005

Rules of thumb from the 1960s and '70s are losing their effectiveness. A more rigorous approach is required—one that treats marketing expenditures as investments.

2004
Steering customers to the right channels

November 2004

Migrating customers to a new channel can be a pain—for them, the company, and its channel partners. But the rewards can make the effort worthwhile.

2002
Keeping your sales force after the merger

November 2002

Merging companies should look to their revenues, not just their costs.

2001
Making solutions the answer Premium Content

August 2001

Many companies hard-pressed to maintain their margins through products alone are turning to ’solutions.’ But to succeed, they must not only embrace competitors but also often turn away existing customers.

2000
A new way to market Premium Content

May 2000

For traditional marketers, organization means structure: distinct product, channel, and customer groups. But new-style marketing organizations understand that “boxes and lines” structures can’t drive value in fast-moving environments.

1999
Think small, win big Premium Content

February 1999

Companies often treat small businesses as a single segment. What’s needed is better insight into which customers you can serve most profitably. Technology and alliances can play a big role.

1998
Breadth of a salesman Premium Content

November 1998

Salesforces will need to create value, not just communicate it. But even in the same industry, different customers see value very differently. Matching selling strategy to customer type.

1997
Channel conflict: When is it dangerous? Premium Content

August 1997

Separating complaints from economic reality. When there is a conflict, there are effective options. Don’t overreact, but don’t get paralyzed either.

1996
Are you tough enough to manage your channels? Premium Content

February 1996

Too often emotion triumphs over reason. Some improvements, like fixing incentives, can be made quickly. But emerging channels are hard to spot.

What’s wrong with the consumer goods organization? Premium Content

February 1996

A new category-based structure is about to be born. Teams fixed functional silos; now there’s no one to integrate processes. The “soft stuff” matters, particularly compensation and evaluation.

1995
Salesforce Management: Packaged goods salesforces - beyond efficiency Premium Content

February 1995

Up to 30 percent return on spending. The movement toward account profitability.

1994
Reinventing the marketing organization Premium Content

November 1994

A field report on how leading marketers are moving beyond their traditional organizations.

1993
Marketing’s mid-life crisis Premium Content

May 1993

New challenges—and a new competitive environment—mean that the marketing function must reinvent itself.

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