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The Art and Science of Marketing by Dowling: Chapter 1

I have been reading the most amazing book on marketing! Before you start thinking that this is the next big thing, it's not! I am a great advocate of the fact that we should master the basics before we start getting fancy. And that is exactly what The Art and Science of Marketing: Marketing for Marketing Managers by Grahame R. Dowling is all about.

If you want to see for yourself, here is the link to the Google Books version and if you would like to purchase (which I would strongly recommend), here is the link to Amazon.

Following is a summary of what I got out of Chapter 1:

"There is only one valid definition of business purpose: to create a customer. (To achieve this purpose): Any business enterprise has two, and only two, basic functions - marketing and innovation." - Peter Drucker (The founder of modern management).

p1
Most consumers are agnostic to particular forms of technology. What they really want and value are the benefits and the solutions to problems that the technology can provide them with.

p2
Marketing, as the root word in the term implies, is the function of a business or a not-for-profit organisation that focuses on the marketplace. This begs the question of what is a market?

Dowling then uses the example of how the Polaroid camera competed with the entertainment market in the 90s. 18 to 30 year olds stopped going out so much, but rather took instant photographs at house parties and so denting the entertainment industry's market share with a total different need satisfaction object.

Supply-Side View
This perspective traditionally focuses on all the competitors that supply physically similar products and services. Descriptions include the type of industry, the number and nature of competitors, business models, manufacturing processes etc. Adopting a supply-side perspective can result in losing sight of the needs of customers.

p3
Business-to-enterprise / Internal Marketing
Another group of people to whom the ideas of marketing can be applied is employees. Here, the task of managers is to 'sell' the vision, culture, control systems, operating procedures, etc. of the organisation to employees and agents.

p5
Two of the roles of marketing are to act as:

• the 'match making' function of the organisation
• the market-sensing part of the organisation

Living the Brand: Aligning Organisational Culture & Strategy

"If you want to out-execute your competitors, you must communicate clear strategies, reinforce those values in everything the company does, and allow people the freedom to act, trusting they will execute consistent with the values. It calls for a commitment from employees that goes way beyond the normal company-employee relationship" (Gerstner as quoted by Ind, 2009:4). This can be done through ‘Living the Brand’ strategy.

The Challenge

A company must make ‘living the brand’ a key business objective which requires a multi-dimensional approach, including everyone from HR to Logistics, to the Accounts department and more. To get everyone on the same page, excellent communication is necessary to create a culture where employees are valued. This of course then creates a sense of belonging through loyalty, pride and commitment (Boyd & Sutherland, 2006).

This culture, should be the building blocks in creating a 'Living the Brand' strategy.

Your Corporate Brand and Living the Brand

A brand is the outward manifestation of the organisational strategy. Your brand is a component of everything your company does. Therefore a brand is represented by the entire organization. A strong brand requires that everyone in the organisation has a complete understanding of and an ability to express the brand (Spark, 2003).

This suggests that ‘living the brand’ is about ensuring the linkage between employee attitudes and behaviour and overall business goals (Ind, 2009).

When internal stakeholders (employees) care about and believe in the brand, they’re motivated to work harder and their loyalty to the company increases. Employees are unified and inspired by a common sense of purpose and identity (Mitchell, 2002).

For the brand to come to life with customers (and create a bond based on values that are backed up by performance), it needs to form the backbone of organisational culture (Spark, 2003). The organisation should therefore strive to attain a culture of ‘living the brand’.

Some background… Socio-cultural Connection

An employee defines her/himself in their world of work in terms of identity as a member of a group, one’s place within a larger community, one’s role in regard to others, and relationships

• Interaction and the creation of reality
• Culture
• Community
• Symbols
• Context
• Establishment of identity

Corporate Culture

Culture is constantly enacted and created by our interactions, and shaped by leadership behaviour, structures, routines & rules. [Organisational] culture is pervasive & holistic.

It is embodied by:

• Observed behavioural regularities when people interact
• Group norms
• Espoused values
• Formal philosophies
• Rules of the game (more often unwritten)
• Climate
• Embedded skills
• Habits of thinking, mental models
• Integrating systems embodied in aesthetics
• Formal rituals or celebrations
  

Making it Work

The stronger the culture and the more it is directed toward the marketplace, the less need for policy manuals, organisation charts, or detailed procedures and rules (Waterman as quoted by Hofstede, 1994:179). An organisation should attempt to guide its members toward a strong culture.

Organisational Culture and Living the Brand

Brand values need to become the invisible glue of the organisation, and in so doing project a culture of oneness. The brand values (should) embody cultural values; by living the brand, you exude organisational culture. This provides direction and clarifies expectations for customers, employees and the organization.

Constructing the Living the Brand Strategy

True culture is voluntarily accepted and collectively created by employees, not coercively enforced by top management.

Look within first: are you achieving congruence between the organisation’s soul and culture producing mechanisms? Whilst truth is fundamental, an element of vision needs to be included in your organisational culture creating campaign. Translate the strategy into the tangible.

Mechanisms of Implementation

On a tactical, mid-management level, internal branding may include ongoing training, encouragement of formal & informal communications such as newsletters & internal market segmentation.

At the strategic, top management level, internal marketing extends to the adoption of supportive management styles and personnel policies, customer service training and planning procedures.

Lastly

Millions are spent each year on the right location, information and logistics technology, when the employees render all value-adding measures useless with their lack of passion for the strategic vision. This can be corrected with actively pursuing the strategy through culture creation. True success lies in the fundamental fabric of the culture of an organisation. Living the brand is that fundamental fabric.

Sources

BOYD, G. & SUTHERLAND, M. 2006. Obtaining employee commitment to living the brand of the organisation, South Africa Journal of Business Management, 37(1):9-20.

HOFSTEDE, G. 1994. Cultures and Organizations: Software of the Mind, London: Harper Collins Publishers.

IND, N. 2009. Inside out: how employees build value, http://www.mycustomer.com/ct/DOWNLOAD/5355/3/doclibrary/download/5355/insightexec-077.pdf, Date Posted: 2003, Date Accessed: 3 May 2009

MITCHELL, C. 2002. Selling the Brand Inside: You tell customers what makes you great Do your employees know? Harvard Business Review, 80(7):99-105, July.

SPARK, J. 2003. Living the Brand drives sustainable competitive advantage, http://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/82/2751.html, Date Posted: 13 November 2003, Date Accessed: 2 May 2009.

TELLIS, G.J., PRABHU, J.C. & CHANDY, R.K. 2009. Radical Innovation Across Nations: The Pre-eminence of Corporate Culture, Journal of Marketing 73:3–23, January.