6.3 Varieties of the Marketing Strategy


6.3.1 Strategy Readjusting the Business
1. Overall Growth Investment Strategy The overall growth investment strategy refers to an active investment from the firm to support and develop the business. It is mainly suitable for the star-like business. Its main contents are introduced hereinafter: (1) It focuses on the input of the marketing costs so as to maintain and enlarge the market share and consolidate the leading position of the firm in the market. (2) It focuses on the input of the production costs so as to enlarge the production capacities and its investment rate into equipments may be superior to the average level in the industry.

6.2.2 Determination of the Business by the Grand Strategy Approach
When a firm locates itself in Quadrant 1, its competitive position is strong and the market of its business grows rapid, so it is wise for the firm to develop the product and the market Quadrant 2 shows us that the market grows fast, but the competitive position of the firm is relatively weak, therefore the firm located in Quadrant 2 should analyze the reason why it operates ineffectively and how it improves its competitiveness quickly. In Quadrant 3, one can find that the firm is in weak competitive position and the market where its business lies grows slowly. Quadrant 4 tells us that the firm lies in strong competitive position, but its market grows slowly.
(3) It focuses on the input of the scientific research funds, keeps innovating, strives to shape good image of the firm by applying the high R&D funds, intensive promotion, good quality and high price. Differentiation strategy is its remarkable feature. (4) It focuses on the input of the management costs in a certain business and assigns the backbone forces in production and sale departments to manage this business. 2. Sustainable Market-Expansion Strategy This strategy is aimed at sustaining, consolidating and expanding the market position of some businesses. It adapts to the cash-dog-like business. Its main contents include the following points: (1) It emphasizes the market competition, inputs suitable promotion costs, uses all kinds of tools so as to solidify the existent market position, to maximize the profits and to maintain the current market share. (2) It also controls the investment of equipments in order to keep the existent production capacities.
Part III Marketing Elements
Chapter 6 Marketing Strategies
6.1 Generalities


6.1.1 Connotation of the Marketing Strategy
Strategies usually mean the pathway to reach the target. Philip Kotler points out that when an organization has ascertained its targets, it knows what it is doing and where it will go. The problem lies in which pathway is the best to go there and thus it needs an overall plan to implement its plan, and this is the strategy, he adds. The marketing strategy means a whole action plan with a long period made by the enterprise for the marketing activities so as to survive and develop in the dynamic sharpened competitive market. It is laid down upon the analysis of the conditions inside and outside the enterprise. It is aimed at adapting to the fluctuating marketing environment by expanding the horizon, seizing the market opportunities and avoiding the marketing myopia in the angle of the enterprise’s strategy.



6.1.2 Functions of the Marketing Strategy
The marketing strategy can make it possible for the decision makers to take a broad and long view to the issues existing in the operation in order to overcome the difficulties both in the favorable and the unfavorable conditions. The marketing strategy urges the managers to carefully observe and analyze the market tendency and to foresee the orientation in the future The marketing strategy may alleviate or even eliminate the damage caused by the unexpected market fluctuation or events and then avoid the grave chaos correspondently. To sum up, by formulating the marketing strategy, the enterprise can greatly strengthen the motivation, the predictability, the integrality, the orderliness, and the effectiveness of the marketing activities in order to sharpen the competitiveness and reaction capacities of the enterprise.




6.1.3 Difference Between the Marketing Strategy and the Overall Strategy