Marketing Information System Essay

INTRODUCTION: Marketing was the first functional area to exhibit an interest in MIS. Shortly after the MIS concept originated, marketers tailored it to their area and called it the MKIS (MARKETING INFORMATION SYSTEM). Early graphic models of MKISs provide a basis for organizing all functional information systems. The MKIS consists of three input subsystems: AIS, marketing research, and marketing intelligence. The output subsystems address the information needs of the four ingredients of the marketing mix (product, place promotion, and price), plus an integration of the four. SUMMARY: FUNCTIONAL ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE The term organizational structure refers to how the people in an organization are grouped and to whom they report. One traditional way of organizing people is by function. Some common functions within an organization include production, marketing, human resources and accounting. FUNCTIONAL INFORMATION SYSTEMS FIS also known as functional information system may be described as a computer program system which processes the daily information’s such as TPS (Transaction Processing Systems). MARKETING PRINCIPLES One definition states that marketing â€Å"consists of individual and organizational activities that facilitate and expedite satisfying exchange relationships in a dynamic environment through the creation, distribution, promotion, and pricing of goods, services and ideas.† THE MARKETING MIX The objective is to develop strategies that apply these resources to marketing the firm’s goods, services, and ideas. The marketing strategies consist of a mixture of ingredients called the Marketing Mix: product, promotion, place, and price. They are known as the four Ps. Product – is what the customer buys to satisfy a perceived want or need. A product can be a physical good, some type of service, or an idea. Promotion – is concerned with all the means of encouraging the sale of the product, including advertising and personal selling. Place – deals with the means of physically distributing the product to the customer through a channel of distribution. Price – consists of all the elements relating to what the customer pays for the product. EVOLUTION OF THE MARKETING INFORMATION SYSTEMS CONCEPT In 1996 Professor Philip Kotler of Northwestern University used the term marketing nerve center to describe a new unit within marketing to gather and process marketing information. He identified the three types of marketing information. These are the following: Marketing Intelligence – information that flows into the firm from the environment. Internal Marketing Information – information that is gathered within the firm. Marketing Communications – information that flows from the firm outward to the environment. EARLY MARKETING MODELS Brien and Stafford were among the first modelers. Basing their design on the four Ps and emphasizing the development of strategic marketing programs. King and Celand stressed strategic planning; whereas Kotler, Montgomery, and urban, and Crissy and Mossman emphasized decision support. These modeling efforts began in the 1960s and continued into the 1970s. MARKETING INFORMATION SYSTEM MODEL It consists of a combination of input and output subsystems connected by a database. Output Subsystems Each output subsystems provides information about its part of the mix. * Product Subsystems provides information about the firm’s products. * Place Subsystems provides information about the firm’s distribution network. * Promotion Subsystems provides information about the firm’s advertising and personal selling activities. * Price Subsystems helps the manager make pricing decisions. * Integrated-Mix Subsystems which enables the manager to develop strategies that considers the combined effects of the ingredients. Database A structured collection of data. The data that is used by the output subsystems comes from the database. Input Subsystems * Accounting Information System gathers data describing the firm’s marketing transactions. * Marketing Intelligence Subsystems gathers information from the firm’s environment that has a bearing on marketing operations. * Marketing Research Subsystems conducts special studies of marketing operations for the purpose of learning customer needs and improving marketing efficiency. ACCOUNTING INFORMATION SYSTEM The collection, storage and processing of financial and accounting data that is used by decision makers. An accounting information system is generally a computer-based method for tracking accounting activity in conjunction with information technology resources. The resulting statistical reports can be used internally by management or externally by other interested parties including investors, creditors and tax authorities. Data for Preparation of Periodic Reports A classic example of how marketing information can be provided by the AIS (Accounting Information System) is sales analysis. Sales Analysis is the study of the firm’s sales activity in terms of which products are being sold, which customer are buying the products, and which sales representatives are selling them. Data for Preparation of Special Reports The vast majority of data that is used to respond to managers’ database queries likely comes from the AIS, e.g. to prepare a sales analysis using 4GL. Data for Mathematical Models and Knowledge-Based Systems A mathematical model is a description of a system using mathematical concepts and language. The process of developing a mathematical model is termed mathematical modeling.