Text/Zhang Nianchao
Original title | Market upgrade, minister promoted
Author｜Zhang Nianchao
Last week, the "Basan Student Federation" held a symposium. More than 40 market leaders from different companies broke the boundaries of brands to offer advice and suggestions. It is really valuable. The development of the industry also requires such in-depth " "Ministerial" meeting to seek common ground while reserving differences and growing together. I participated in half of the event as an observer. While feeling gratified, I also felt the hardship and confusion of current market people.
There has been a long-standing debate about the status, benefits, and responsibilities of the corporate market. Especially during periods of declining corporate performance, the marketing department may be designated as "spending money." "Department" lambs have no way to break through except to be slaughtered. How should the marketing department be positioned in the enterprise? What role should it play? This is not only confusing for the boss, but also for the person in charge of the marketing department. After all, most of the glory of the industry for more than 30 years is defined as the contribution of sales. This is true for both brand and non-brand companies. The marketing department seems a bit embarrassed. The positioning is too high and cannot meet expectations, and the positioning is low. It feels like it’s not in line with the brand direction.
Today, sales are encountering difficulties, which is not a problem of sales itself, but the result of changes in consumption and environment. Consumption has changed, and the requirements for sales work themselves have also increased. Traditional methods have failed, channels have been blocked, and models have become outdated. The results of market changes cannot be compensated by sales methods. Only through the re-engineering of corporate market systems can we break through, perceive changes in consumption, and stay at the forefront of competition.
Just like the current "hot" slate product, it is now in the early stages of development. The public's understanding of slate is not yet comprehensive, and competition is still at the manufacturing level.The basic methods are: I have what you have, but you don’t, you are smaller than me, your price is lower than mine, my craftsmanship is superior, etc. These are competitions in the dimension of time and space. It is said that more than 70 slate kilns will be constructed by the end of the year. Once these kilns are completed, the time difference will become negligible, and competition will shift to space differences. Once rock slabs enter competition in space, the test will no longer be the product itself, but the operational capabilities of the slabs. The operation model of slate is very different from that of ceramics, and the requirements for the company's operating system are also different, including product development ideas, design directions, processing methods, logistics models, terminal display forms, and sales targets and methods. Therefore, The real competition of slate is not the competition of the products themselves, but the competition of the operation system and service process. Changing the operating system is not something that the current sales department can accomplish, but is a matter for the company's marketing department or higher-level departments. No matter which department takes the lead, the specific work will be implemented by the marketing department.
When it comes to the functions and division of labor of the marketing department, the marketing department is mostly positioned as an auxiliary department of the business. Planning, copywriting, and design are its three core functions. Under this positioning, the marketing department naturally becomes "all you spend but no profit" "Department, you can still get understanding and support in brand companies, but in sales-oriented companies it seems to violate the purpose of management, which creates a situation where the boss has a headache and the marketing department is huge. Today, the market and the living environment of enterprises have changed, and it is necessary to expand the functions of the marketing department to include branding and public relations work. For a brand enterprise, the current marketing department must have three new core functions: brand, public relations, and marketing. Otherwise, the company's marketing department has no value and no contribution.
Brand is the external manifestation of a company's soul, and brand management is the guarantee of sales and consumer trust. Public relations is not mainly a company's external activities, but consumption and market research. For a brand to be ahead of the industry, it mainly depends on its foresight in the application of market and consumption research and the timeliness of its research results. Currently, many companies in the industry have marketing functions. Only leading companies have brand functions, and public relations functions are generally lacking. Some companies have business schools, which can be considered part of the public relations function. However, output alone is not enough. What is more important is public research and behavioral analysis.
The industry has ushered in a new turning point. In the future, if a company wants to achieve good performance, the force behind the marketing department may play a big role. However, the marketing department of the future will definitely not be today’s marketing department with the theme of “planning, copywriting, and design”.Businesses and enterprises will have more demands and expectations from this department. Can you meet the needs of the future today? The new demands are a major test for the positioning of the company's marketing department and the marketing department practitioners.
In the face of new consumption and the new normal, it is time to change the marketing department to the market content department. The market is upgraded and the director (head of the marketing department) is promoted. is the key to success.
Author: Zhang Nianchao
