Marketing Strategies: Analyzing Consumer Behavior in the Digital Era

This essay delves into the evolution of marketing strategies in the digital age, emphasizing the crucial role of consumer behavior. It explores how businesses leverage online platforms and social media to engage with customers, build relationships, and tailor their offerings. The essay highlights the benefits of digital marketing, such as direct customer interaction, global reach, and data-driven insights, while also acknowledging the challenges, including impersonal communication, cyber security risks, and the ongoing costs of technological advancements. The analysis incorporates various perspectives from academic research, examining the effectiveness of different marketing approaches in the international market, the importance of adapting to changing consumer preferences, and the potential drawbacks of relying heavily on social media data. The essay underscores the need for businesses to develop comprehensive marketing strategies that effectively address customer needs, manage online presence, and adapt to the dynamic nature of consumer behavior in the digital era.

Marketing Strategy
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ESSAY
According to Guille and et.al., (2013), marketing is regarded as the process of actions or
functions taken by an entity to promote and encourage their products and services so as to drive
more sales and profitability. It is important for the marketers to effectively advertise their goods and
services to enhance their customer base, Consumers are the central part of every organization as
they are the ultimate users of all the goods and services produced by the corporation. Without
satisfying actual requirement of the users, none of the entity can survive into the market in highly
competitive age. Referring current market scenario, where technological innovation and
advancement takes place at faster rate, it becomes essential for all the marketers to use web-based
technology in order to maintain strong relationship with their audiences and maximize their
satisfaction level. According to Gil de Zúñiga, Jung and Valenzuela (2012), looking at the
internationalized markets, it becomes very important for the companies to deal with their consumers
appropriately, so that, they can identify actual requirement of the users and deliver services
accordingly. Establishment require maintaining strong relationship with their clients to retain
existing customer base and attract more and more consumers towards business. In order to maintain
this objective, large number of business units use internet and websites to establish closure
interaction with the audiences so as to develop long-lasting relationship with them. Online web
services allow entities to identify that what consumers actually need and develop unfiltered and
unique relationship with the final users. Likewise, as per the view point of Burgess and Green
(2013), in the earlier years, individuals have to visit at company’s stores and shops to buy a
particular product and services to meet their demand. In this, users can physically verify and inspect
product quality and design and if it met their expecting criteria, then they will buy. However, after
the integration of advanced technology in corporate sector via the use of internet and websites, there
is no need exists for the users to visit at the actual stores. As now-a-days, customers can access sites
and internet to generate required information about variety of goods and services available in the
market and chose the best to meet their expectations. In such respect, there is no direct interaction
takes place between entity and final product users as they develop their own perception and believe
towards business brand portfolio without an eye contact.
Further, in the study of Lewis, Gonzalez and Kaufman (2012), it has been explained that
internet enable entities to provide direct access to the consumers via online booking, delivery of
goods at home, customer inquiry, consumer compliant handling process, which in turn, helps to
develop unfiltered relationship with the target audiences. Marketers integrated online platform in
their operational functioning of product design and creation process. Use of websites and social
networking sites like Facebook, Web 2.0 internet based application and user- generated content etc.
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facilitates establishments to assess their consumer requirement, so that, they can manufacture goods
as per their customer preferences and serve them beyond expectations. Web-based services and
facilities such as e-mail, instant messages, online forums, twitter, and blogs are various means used
by the organizations to establish strong interaction with the users. Thus, by delivering quality goods
as per the customer requirement, companies can maximize their satisfaction level and retain their
existing consumer rate. This argument can also be evident from the findings of Shriver, Nair and
Hofstetter, (2013), online networking and communication channel enable entities to upload
digitalized images, photos, share videos, posts and share wide range of information about variety of
products, prices and brand. For instance, in fashion industry, Burberry advertise and marketing its
goods and services using online platform and sites. Burberry established a strong market reputation
and position by exerting their social media platform. Its specific content strategy, remarkable and
excellent web savy, digital media front, technological incorporation, social media purchase facilities
enable users to order garments just on a single click. Its highest following list on Facebook over
more than 18 million likes and greater than 84000 customer visits clearly indicates that it helps to
gain customer traffic. Moreovers, company also share posts, videos, collection of photographs and
events on Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest on a consistent basis. Furthermore, visualized content,
acoustic backing tracks, consumer inquiry etc. enable users to get required information any time.
However, on the critical note, it has been argued by Vergeer, Hermans and Sams, (2013), as
his study explained that although integration of web-technology and advancement offers wide range
of advantage to the users, but still, it consist of number of limitations and drawbacks. One of the
main disadvantages of proliferation of internet technology in the current times is impersonal mode
of communication. Before the use of web-platform, customers contact directly with the managers to
resolve their issues and problems. However, in the modern days, they can file complaint on
websites and eliminate their issues without any need of visiting personally at the stores. Another
study conducted by Myneni and et.al., (2015), criticized the internet and websites, as in the present
times, risk of cyber crime may loss the confidential information due to illegal activities conducted
by hackers.
Furthermore, the study also founded that distraction due to system failures and interruption
causes hurdles and complexities in the operations. Similarly, according to Baños, Borge-Holthoefer
and Moreno, (2013), it has been critically argued that although in the modern times, large
proportion of the population place order online, but still, cutting-edge technology is an ongoing or
continuous expenditures which raise cost. Companies not only require designing their own sites and
managing IT departments and infrastructure, but also need to spend money on proper maintenance
and data update. Apart from this, having skilled and talented workforce to deal appropriately with
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the consumers is also necessary. In such regards, they are required to recruit highly experienced
human force and also need to conduct training sessions so as to improve their competencies, skills
and capabilities. Such activities and operations incur huge amount of cost, which in turn, diminish
overall return. In addition to this, at the time of improper system functioning or failure, revenue can
be lost due to halted production process and loss of services rendered to the users.
McCoy (2016), founded that technology play a significant role in an enterprise in building
close relationship among various kinds of customers which further helps in retaining all kinds of
customers for long time within the business premises. Customer relationship management software
has been used in which an enterprise will seek regular feedbacks from all their customers. Surveys
have been posted on the website of an enterprise in which answers of different questions are taken
in the form of polls which helps in determining the majority of the decisions. The majority of the
polls decisions will be taken as suggestions in order to improve the weaknesses of an entity. Blogs
will be created by an entity on their company's website which will further helps an organizations in
taking advice of professional blogger and normal public who will support the firm in their every
business decisions related to new cause or policies framed by an enterprise. Customers’ cell services
are incorporated with every purchase which will helps in enhancing the customer satisfaction
among various customers.
According to Hill, C.W., Cronk and Wickramasekera, (2013) with passage of time more and
more business firms are using internet and websites for doing their marketing in the international
market. Apart from this, firms are increasingly using websites and social media to deal with
customers in the international market. Business firms are not setting customer care centers in each
and every nation. Instead they are giving franchisee to the local people. This model is followed by
the firms like HP or Dell. These firms are not only following brick and mortar model to handle
customers but are also using social media and their websites to deal with customers. These firms
create their own page on social sites like Facebook where customers can post their queries and can
obtain answers. Most times, these firms respond to customer queries within 24 hours. Hence, by
using social media and website firm is directly dealing with the customers and solve their problems.
By solving customer’s queries in short time period firms are promoting positive word of mouth
marketing in respect to them in the international market.
As per views of McCaughey and Ayers, (2013) on the websites and Facebook page of the
firm products are advertised and detail description is made available to the customers. Thus, in the
international market without spending huge amount of money on the traditional channel of
communications firms like HP and Dell are advertising they name in the international market. Apart
from this these business firms enter in to business with firms like Flipkart and Amazon etc. Through
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these firms that sale products through online platform firm is indirectly dealing with customers.
Thus, it can be said that business firms have internet as good alternative because by using same they
are not only selling products to the people but also solving their problem in short time period if
possible.
Contrary to this Ross, (2014) state that online platforms are not effectively used by the
business firms to deal with the customers. This is because when any customer posts his query on the
Facebook page firm give response within 24 hours. Many-time response given by the firm proved
useless for the customers. For example if any person purchases HP laptop and after two years it stop
working then he will post his query on Facebook page. In query he may like to obtain information
about the reason due to which his laptop battery is not working properly. HP representative in
response will demand many information’s like product code name and many other things. Customer
will furnish required information to the HP representative then latter entity will make available
information in technical language which is irrelevant for the customer. Hence, due to such kind of
communication barrier firm failed to deal with its customer in proper way in the international
market. This is the big shortcoming of the internet and website that is used to deal with the
customers in the international market.
According to Hull, (2012) consumer behavior change from nation to nation. It is not
necessary that each nation customer will keep same thinking or opinion on specific aspect of the
product. Hence, it become very important for the company’s to deal with the customers with proper
marketing and grievance addressing strategy. By using specific technology firm capture relevant
information in terms of talking that people do about their product on the social media. By analysis
of such kind of things business firms like Dell comes to know about the way in which people think,
their preference and opinion that they have about the firm product. All these information helps
business firms in crafting their product marketing strategy in the right direction. Thus, firm comes
in the position from where it can deal with the customers in better way in the international market.
Contrary to this Lambrecht and Tucker, (2013) state that there is no doubt that business
firms are using using a social media or internet and website to deal with the customers in the
international market. Creation of marketing strategy by using information obtained from social
media is not a most viable option. This is because consumer behavior of the people never stable and
some changes come in same at regular intervals. Huge amount of money is spending on the
extraction of relevant information from social media. If consumer behaviour changes in the short
time period then such kind of heavy expenditure prove costly for the business firm. Company’s like
Dell and HP are working in the most of nations of the world. It is very costly for the business firm
to spend huge amount of money for use of analytics on the data that is related to the each and every
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nation in which firm is currently operating its business.
As per views of San Lim and et.al., (2016) with passage of time use of internet in order to
deal with the customers will increase at rapid pace. This is because in current time period most of
the business firms are focusing on digitalization or automation of the business operations. By doing
digitalization of the business operations firms are trying to reduce their workforce. Company’s
instead of setting their branches in different nations of the world are handling customer queries
through online platform. By doing so firm is abstaining from keeping 1000 employees as customer
support representative. There are large number of business firms that successfully reduce their
workforce by commencing dealing with the customers through internet and websites. Hence, this is
the major factor that indicate that in future time period also this new approach that is followed to
deal with customers in the international market will increase.
In contrary to this Reed, (2016) claims that there is no doubt on the fact that in upcoming
years use of online platform to deal with the customers will increase. On one hand firms are getting
huge benefits by dealing with customers through online platform in terms of cost cutting. On other
hand, it is paying its cost. It can be observed that customers many times do not receive proper
response from the firm representatives. Hence, they get dissatisfied from the firm and do negative
word of mouth of marketing of the business firms among those with whom they communicate on
daily basis. Thus, negative image of the firm is created in the general public in the specific nation.
Hence, it can be said that use of online platform is benefiting and proving costly for the business
firm. On one hand, companies are reducing their employee cost by performing all operations online
but at same time they failed to deal with customers in systematic way which tarnishes its image in
the international market. Hence, it is very important for the business firms to make effective use of
internet to deal with customers in proper way.
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REFERENCES
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