Marketing Management

QUESTION 1

Identify the principal benefits to customers which derive from mobile phone. What differences are likely to exist between market segments?

As the world spins into vast information technology, mobile phone become essential needs for customers and people. Mobile phones have changed today’s information and technology landscape.

Principle benefits of mobile phone to customers describe as follows;

CONNECTIVITY Fairbourne, J. S., Gibson, S. W., & Dyer, W. G. (2007)

Mobiles save people living in rural areas whereby financial costs and time involved with travel. Customers in that particular area had a greater contact and improved relationship with families and friends as a results of mobile phones. It is supported based on research and study done by Centre for Economic Policy in 2005 that 85% of people leave in Tanzania and 79% in South Africa have enhanced their affiliation by having mobile phone.

FLEXIBILITY Wajcman, J. (2007) 

Mobile devices increase the scope for work and family suppleness and mobility by enabling the micro-coordination of time, tasks, and schedules. Nowadays, people are working at times and places outside of the traditional workday and place. Mobile phone blurring boundaries between personal life and the workplace. As an example, based on our real life, most of using mobile applications such as Whatsapp as medium of communications to coordinate meeting with our colleagues, friends and even family.

ECONOMIC GROWTH Fairbourne, J. S., Gibson, S. W., & Dyer, W. G. (2007)

Indirectly, developing country with high mobile phone penetration increase the rates of economy growth. Developing country that has an average of ten more mobile phones per 100 people (between 1996 and 2003) would enjoyed per capita GDP growth that was 0.59% higher than an otherwise identical country. Looking at this research, based on economic view, increase in real GDP means there is an increase in the value of national output / national expenditure. The benefits of economic growth include: Higher average incomes. This enables consumers to enjoy more goods and services and enjoy better standards of living.

EXTENDING COMMUNITIES Ballard, B. (2007)

Mobile phone gives continuous instance to the communities which extend the time and interactions by adding the ability to post text from the mobile. For instance, applications such as Twitter, WeChat, and Facebook that installed in mobile phone enable user to spread their communities widely.

With regards to what differences are likely to exist between market segments, in hypercompetitive markets, mobile companies need to have excellent segmenters to survive and thrives. Having superior product or services are no longer sufficient. Mobile companies must satisfy consumers’ needs by delivering multitude of product and services. Marketers must aggressively attack target markets and niches that exhibit unique needs and wants.