There is no single standard definition for any category. A category may be narrowly defined or very broadly defined, depending on many factors. For example, the category of chocolates may be as narrowly defined as to include only milk chocolates, or it may be broadly defined to include all types of chocolates toffees and chewy’s. The outcome of the category definition process is to decide what is included in... Read more

There are six components that are key to the functioning of category management. Two of these are considered essential, without which category management cannot be started and these are therefore called core components. The other four are needed to enable the process, without this category management can be started but not institutionalized on an on-going basis. The two core components are strategy and business processes. The enabling factors are performance measurement,... Read more

Preferred / Routine category: Here, the retailer decides that he wishes to be the preferred provider of these products to the target consumer. Typically, this category may comprise of products that the consumer purchases as a matter of routine and would include things such as toothpaste, toilet soap, juice, milk, cereal, detergent and pet food etc. The retailer has to ensure that he delivers consistent, competitive value to the target... Read more

In this, the current performance of the category is evaluated with respect to turnover profits, and return on assets in the category. It involves an assessment of the consumers, the market, the retailer and the suppliers, Category assessment uses a variety of analytical tools designed to determine the category’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. The process of category assessment can help a retailer identify the opportunities in the category. Different categories will... Read more

Category strategy development is the step in the category business planning process when strategies are developed to deliver the category role and the category performance targets. The purpose of this step is for the retailer and supplier to develop strategies that capitalize on category opportunities through creative and efficient use of the resources that are available to the category. Strategies may relate to marketing and product supply strategies. The marketing strategies... Read more

A study using this concept measures the relative influence of Belgian husbands and wives in purchase decisions for twenty-five representative products. Similar research on decision making by US husbands and wives was recently conducted for businesses selling a wide variety of products. Figure positions these decisions according to the four marital decision making categories of autonomic husband dominant, and joint. Each decision is positioned in this figure according to two axes. The... Read more

While creating the Category Management Business Process, it is necessary to identify the measures of performance. The development of category performance measures involves setting measurable targets in terms of sales, margins and Gross Margin return on Investment (GMROI). Category performance measures need to be established for measuring category performance. Category performance measures determine the target objectives that will be set by the retailer and supplier for achievement from implementation of the... Read more

If, after seeking all reasonable secondary data sources, research questions are still not adequately answered, the market researcher must collect primary data – that is, collected specifically for the particular research project at hand. The researcher may question the firm’s sales representatives, distributors, middlemen, and/or customers to get appropriate market information. In most primary data collection, the researcher questions respondents to determine what they think about some topic or how they might behave... Read more

Comparability of available data is a short coming faced by foreign marketers. In the United States, current sources of reliable and valid estimates of socioeconomic factors and business indicators are readily available. In other countries especially those less developed, data can be many years out of date as well as having collected on an infrequent and unpredictable schedule. Naturally, the rapid change in socioeconomic feature being experienced in many of these... Read more

The US government provides comprehensive statistics for the United States; periodic censuses of US population, housing, business, and agriculture are conducted in some cases have been taken for over 100 years. Commercial sources, trade associations, management groups, and state and local governments provide the researcher with additional sources of detailed US market information. Often the problem for American marketing researchers is sorting through too much... Read more