STRATEGIC MARKETING

GROUP MEMBERS

SHIRMEEN MEHRUKH

AMNA ZAFAR

SABA SAFDAR

GULL HASSAN

INAM -UL- HAQ

MARKETING MYOPIA
HARVARD BUSINESS REVIEW
BY THEODORE LEVITT

MARKETING MYOPIA

Marketing Myopia develops when a company competitive

Domain is defined primarily defined according to its products
rather than the needs of the customers (Levitt ,1960)

Its the mistake of paying more attention to a specific product

company offers rather then benefits and experienced provided
by the product (Kotler)

WHAT BUSINESS ARE WE

ACTUALLY IN??

THE HISTORY OF
EVERY DEAD AND
DYING GROWTH
BUSINESS SHOWS
HISTORY OF SELF
DECEIVING OF
BOUNTIFUL
EXPANSIONS

BUSINESSS

SUSTAINED
GROWTH
DEPENDS ON
HOW BROADLY
YOU DEFINE
YOUR BUSINESS

FATEFUL PURPOSES

RAIL ROAD BUSINESS

Product focused rather than being customer centered.

Need was fulfilled by other business

Wrong Assumption of railroad business on product rather then

transportation

Hollywood Business

Business incorrectly defined

Ravished by television

SHADOW OF OBSELENCE

EVERY INDUSTRY AT ONE TIME WAS IN THE GROWTH PHASE

AND THE BELIEF ITS SUPERIORITY LIES IN THE PRODUCT
WITH NO SUBSITITUE LEADS TO DECLINE

CONT

Dry Cleaning Business

Electrical Utilities

4 Myths

The belief that growth is assured by an expanding and more affluent population.

The belief that there is no competitive substitute for the industrys major
products

To much faith in mass production and in advantage of rapidly declining unit cost
as the output rises

Preoccupation of a product that lend itself to carefully controlled scientific

experimentation , improvement and manufacturing cost reduction

CONT

This article main focus will be on petroleum industry ,

automobile and electronic industry.

Industries have excellent reputation and confidence of the

investors.

Obsolesce discussed can cripple any industry.

Myth No#1

Belief that expanding markets and more people buying the product
is an indication of opportunistic future

Expanding markets, keeps the manufacturer away from thinking

hard and innovatively

Petroleum industry is one such industry

Despite continuous methods of improving efficiency , present

method of investment the industry is said to be in decline

CONT

The belief of generic products and no substitutes have further

put the industry to downfall.

This assumption can only hold true if customer tends to

compare product feature by feature

So far the efforts in petroleum industry is made in improving the

efficiency of getting and making the product rather than
improving generic product and its marketing

CONT

The development of superior alternatives such as gasoline ,

energy fuels and automobile fuel comes from new small oil
companies .

These companies are not only focused on production and

refining

Focus is on expansion of multipump gasoline stations , clean

layouts , quality at low price , efficient driveway services

MYTH NO#2

THE BELIEF THAT THERE IS NO COMPETITIVE

SUBSTITUTE FOR THE INDUSTRYS MAJOR PRODUCTS

IDEA OF INDISPENSIBILITY

Over Confidence in No substitute of the Petroleum

Industry

Refining Company own huge Profits

History disagree with the Petroleum Industrys Claims

Its Survival is mainly the cause of natural Disasters etc

PERILS OF PETROLEUM

Inventions of Bulbs , Internal Combustion engines and central

oil heaters had catastrophic effects on the Industry

War time

Central oil heating in serious competition with Natural Gas

Post War Years increased demand for the traditional oil

products

An Uncertain Future

Petro Chemical industry

Expected to grow by 10 % but will be unable to offset its drains

on crude oil consumption

Oil industry has never been too strong after world war 2

Obsolescence is inevitable

MYTH NO # 3

TO MUCH FAITH IN MASS PRODUCTION AND IN

ADVANTAGE OF RAPIDLY DECLINING UNIT COST AS THE

OUTPUT RISES

PRODUCTION PRESSURE

Mass Production Produce more and lack strategic marketing

efforts

Focus on selling rather than marketing

Selling Focus on needs of sellers

Marketing focus on needs of buyers

CONT

Large industries focus on selling and marketing minded firms

focus on creating value satisfying goods and services.

How a product is made ?

A lag in Detroit

Automobile company

Product centered

Compact cars selling revealed Detroit research failed

Repair , maintenance and point of sales were the un satisfying

needs of the customers.

CONT..

Retailing and servicing ends of the industry are not owned and
operated by the manufacturer.

57 of 7000 Chevrolet dealers provide night time maintenance

Motorist express dissatisfaction under the present selling set

up

What Ford Put First

Henry known as Senseless marketer

Refused to give any thing but a black car

Invention of Assembly line

Selling price of car $500

CONT

Marketing Strategy

Set price first , then determine cost

Execute operations

Improve article manufactured

PRODUCT PROVINCIALISM

Profits generated through low unit production cost

Self deceiving for growth industry

Put industry to declines

Product fails to adapt to changing market conditions

E.g. oil industry

New development in fuel system

Energy system replaced internal combustion system

Electric storage batteries

Solar energy conversion system

Oil industry specifically focus research of fuel cell

MYTH # 4

PRE-OCCUPATION WITH A PRODUCT THAT LEND IT SELF

TO CAREFULLY CONTROLLED SCEINTIFIC
EXPERIMENTATION , IMPROVEMENT , MANFACTURING AND
COST REDUCTION

DANGERS OF R&D

Focus on Profits through R&D

E.g.: Electronic , Oil companies

MARKETING SHORTCHANGED

Electronics industry

To much Focus on R&D

Focus on military subsidies

Devoid of marketing efforts

Product orientation is greater than customer orientation (Superior

products).

Marketing experts focus on product creation rather than satisfying

customer value.

CONT.

Products can be testable and manipulated

Belief that customers Are not aware of their needs and

products

Still the companies are growing ?

CONT

Oil companies focus on Advertisements and marketing tools to

increase sales and market share.

Not a customer oriented approach.

STEP CHILD APPROACH

Less R&D efforts were put and major advancements were not
made in the oil industry .

More effort is diverted into convincing advertising themes ,

sales promotion and market share of various companies what
people like or dislike etc

Customers taken as Step-child

CONCLUSION AND ANALYSIS

Focus on product rather than satisfying customer needs

leads to failure in long run .

Increase expansion, mass production, failure to

recognize substitutes leads to marketing myopia

Improve product , at the same time focus should be on

customer needs , and what business is actually in .

CONT.

The Beginning and the End

First focus on customer needs

Decide upon the product which will satisfy the need

Identify the raw material to deliver that product

Hence backward cycle

CUSTOMER OREINTED FIRMS

Customer Oriented Firms

RAW MATERIAL

PRODUCT

CUSTOMER
NEED

CONT..

R &D

High tech firms R&D focus more on product

improvement

Less on customers

Focus should be on taking customers as a problems

and innovating product according to it

CONT

FEEL OF GREATNESS

To be customer Oriented rather than product oriented

leader must be strong and visionary

Hence , leader should relate all activities of

organization to achieve buying customers.