Three questions to define the market

When I taught Principles of Marketing many years ago, I used to draw on Abell’s framework to define the market that a business was operating in. The reference is Defining the business: the starting point of strategic planning written by Derek F. Abell and published by Prentice Hall in  1980. Abell’s framework states that … Continue reading Three questions to define the market

Sharing the good news: Best Paper Award

A lovely surprise, following my presentation at the Management Learning conference.

Presenting my research on developing customer profiles

I am at Lancaster University, for the Management Learning conference. First impressions so far are great: a friendly group, and I even met another marketer 😉 I am presenting tomorrow morning on my research into how organisations develop profiles of their customers. My experience is that different employees presented with the same data set about a … Continue reading Presenting my research on developing customer profiles

PhD topics that I am supervising at Oxford Brookes University

The institution where I work, the Faculty of Business at Oxford Brookes University, has a thriving doctoral programme, including studentship opportunities. If you are considering a doctoral degree, do take a look at the research topics available. I can supervise 1-2 doctoral students who wish to research any of the topics below. Bad customer behaviour … Continue reading PhD topics that I am supervising at Oxford Brookes University

The female consumer – Marketers still missing a trick

As it's International Women's Day, I thought I would share with you excerpts from a poster of the Girls' Day School Trust. It highlights how a girl's life, opportunities and expectations have changed in the last 125 years: In addition to making great strides in education and public life, women have also emerged as powerful … Continue reading The female consumer – Marketers still missing a trick

Budgeting for Marketers

I am told that there were times when marketers could simply tell the CEO 'Trust me. This marketing programme will deliver great results". I don't know whether this time did exist... but I am pretty sure that this is not the case, now. Marketers need to justify their marketing investment and need to produce various … Continue reading Budgeting for Marketers

On Harlem Shake and memes

Here we go again... You survived the Gangnam Style craze. You actually saw the video and some of its spin-offs. Maybe you even learned some of the movements. When someone mentioned Psy, or the song, or whistled the tune, you could nod knowingly. As the phenomenon started fading away, you breathed a big sigh of … Continue reading On Harlem Shake and memes

Valentine’s is a lovely day… for marketing

It is Valentine’s day. A day for showing your loved ones that you care… right? This is a date that has been heavily commercialised, and where consumers’ behaviours (including boycotting rituals) are filled with meaning. The key meaning from this date seems to be showing that you care. But how you do it varies widely. … Continue reading Valentine’s is a lovely day… for marketing

The flawed decision maker

Noticing that I haven’t been to the gym in a (very) long time, my other half has tentatively suggested that I cancel my membership (and save some money too). This should be an easy decision. You see, even though I like some of the classes on offer at my health club, I much prefer going … Continue reading The flawed decision maker