Test Your Marketing

Marketing 'out of the stomach' is of no value if you strive to
'conquer' markets/market segments really. In order to test YOUR approach, the
following 'basic' questions should be answered in abt. 2 - 3 hours. This
should give you an idea whether you really are aware and possess the
necessary data of the most important facts of YOUR market/s - worldwide

Company in General 

Which targets – referring to the turnover and the profit resp. the
personnel needed and the production means – do you intend to reach with
your company within 3 years from today ?

Broken-down into sales region/country as well as product group and
sales route – and in which steps – e. g. massive marketing investment and
then switching to a permanent business or step-by-step-increase ?


Present resp. Last years’ turnover structure 

- Which turnover is generated by each sales region/country/sales route
– with reference to the individual products ?
- Which contribution margin/profit is generated for each sales region/
country/sales route referring to each product ?
- Which sales routes should be envisaged/are necessary to reach the
targets as per 1. above ?


Client structure 

- Which client groups/market segments do you supply today ?
Do you have an analysis of the existing/potential clients per field of
activity/product ?
- Which client groups/marketsegments (for each sales region/country)
are missing then (e. g. compared to your presently ‚strongest/most
successful’ market ?
- Are you aware of the total number of potential clients for each sales
region/country/market segment ?
- Is/Would ‘key-accounting’ be important for you and which information
is available about such potential clients ?
- Which is your market portion/coverage (as percentage of all clients
available in the respective sales region/country/market segment ?


Competition 

- Who is your competition – listed from ‚most important’ to ‚nearly
negligible’ ?
- Where are they better/worse compared to you (with reference to
products and sales routes) – and why ?
- Would it be advisable to adapt possibly any of the procedures of the
competition for you without becoming untrustworthy to your clients ?


Products 

- Which are the most successful products – as well in your own
portfolio as compared to the competition - and why ?
- Which new products are requested by the clients already today,
respectively which tendencies are shown in the market with regard to HIS new
developments, i. e. is known which market segment is going to develop
how and do you think you will remain the suppliers to this market (even
if the final products are changed) ?
- Is there any kind of replacement/substitution of your products
already available and – if so – would it be advisable to produce these
yourself or cooperate with others ?
- With whom and would possibily some kind of exclusivity be available –
especially e. g. for foreign markets … or any other … ?
- Which new products do you intend to produce and why ?
- Which products are so small in turnover/quantity that they could
possibly be eliminated from your range – or are there any good reasons to
go on to produce them ?


Pricing/profit 

- Which contribution margins/product per client group/market segment
are reached by you and could they/how possibly be increased ?
- Which contribution margin/profit generates each of the products
checked on which sales route - Internet, direct sales, project orders, via
representatives, … ?
- Could possibly the ‚most successful’ sales route/product be adapted
for other sales regions or how could this be solved ‘at the lowest
possible cost’ ?


Sales department 

- Do you know which cost per sales region/representative are spent in
total and have you elaborated a comparison regarding the profitabiltiy
of the sales regions/sales routes with reference to the total profit,
the products sold there and the total cost spent ?
- Which new sales regions/countries - with reference to the client
groups/markets segments should be developed in addition umtil when – based
on which sales projections ?
- How have the necessary sales regions to be structured – and why this
way ?
Sales through own personnel, subsidiaries, representatives,
synergy-partners/alliances, Internet ?
- Which additional contribution margin/profit can be expected by them
and which investment would be necessary to develop such new sales
regions/market segments ?
- Which sales areas have to be re-structured due to the potential
available in order to reach a better/optimum coverage of the market ?
- Are all representatives well informed regarding their present
clientele, i. e. not only to know the decisive people of the client but also
their future plans - with regard to products, sales regions, etc. ?
- How is their success in winning new clients and who is responsible
for the respective data ?

Michael Richter - International Marketing- and sales consultant -
concentrates for more than 35 years on marketing and selling of investment
goods and long-lasting consumer goods to/in all 5 continents - since
1991 he works as an independent marketing consultant, especially for SMEs
worldwide.

He offers practical 'hand-on' assistance to his worldwide clientele.

Michael Richter - International marketing and sales consultant
Hauptstrasse 27
88422 Seekirch/Germany
http://www.marketing-und-vertrieb-international.com/en/
http://www.internationales-marketingkonzept.de/en/