Abstract
The paper discusses about IBM, which is one of the popular companies in the service industry, operating various types of businesses, such as technology, IT services, consulting services, outsourcing services, infrastructure services and many others. Headquartered in the United States, IBM operates in over 160 countries worldwide. The paper also focuses on four major countries, namely, the United States, Canada, India and China, which carry out a major part of IBM’s business operations. The paper describes four marketing strategies, namely, product, price, promotion and place. The paper also makes a mention of IBM as a global organization and the company’s efforts to achieve growth, profitability and long-term sustainability in the international market. IBM gathers information from various resources and analyzes the same in order to design strategic policies to sustain competition in the international market. Finally, the paper gives an account of IBM’s strategy of e-marketing, which enables the company to carry out the marketing operations electronically.
Individual Project
International Business Machines (IBM) is one of the famous companies of the world in the service industry, which stands at the 23rd position in the global fortune 500 list released in the year 2014 . IBM is a multinational company headquartered in New York, United States. The company serves the technology and IT service industry. IBM is the fourth largest company in the technology industry and stands second as the most valuable brand next to Coca-Cola. IBM’s history dates back to the 19th century. The company manufactures and sells hardware and software related to computers. IBM offers consulting services, such as enterprise applications, analytics, application innovation, strategy and maintenance . IBM also provides hosting services and infrastructure services ranging from nanotechnology to mainframe computers . IBM is famous worldwide for it is the largest systems integrator. The company also serves the market of cloud computing and outsourcing.
IBM operates in over 160 countries worldwide. The paper discusses four countries namely, United States, Canada, China and United Kingdom in which IBM operates its business. The United States is the home country for IBM. Founded in the year 1911, IBM stands second in terms of the number of employees . The company owns greater number of patents than any other technology company in the United States. IBM in Canada has been playing a crucial role for over a century. IBM stands at the top position in Canada in terms of research and development investments and information technology exports. The company develops highly-skilled professionals from Canada and engages them in roles of priority, which not only benefit the country, but also the world. IBM invested $165 billion in the Canadian market in the expansion of data centers.
Established in the year 1992 in India, IBM spans major industries, namely, financial services, telecommunications, health care, education, automotive and many others. IBM has relations with over 200 cities and towns of India, either directly or through the partners. In India, IBM holds several awards for following the best employment policies and practices. China is one of the most important countries to IBM in terms of growth and expansion of its operations. IBM’s hardware, software and service businesses extend to over 320 cities in China. IBM has a partnership with over 60 leading universities of China. There are several laboratories that focus on research and development of information technology related products. China has IBM’s one of the largest middleware and industry solutions lab in China. Lenovo became famous in China after adopting IBM’s new series of laptop called Thinkpad in the year 2005.
The marketing strategies include product, price, promotion and place . For IBM, the product strategy is one of the most important strategies when compared to other strategies. IBM considers the capabilities of engineering, production, sales and marketing in terms of present as well as future requirements. The company analyzes the requirements of the customers at the time of delivery. IBM forecasts the competition and strategy to enter the markets, in which the competitors already have a good hold. Technology is another factor that influences IBM’s product strategy. In regards to pricing, IBM believes that the positioning and targeting of products depends on the pricing strategy. Pricing is one such factor, which influences other three marketing strategies . There is no single criterion that finalizes the pricing of a product; however, IBM considers market completion, cost and demand as the determining factors of price. IBM also reexamines the products from time to time to ensure that the price of the product is appropriate to the market price.
The promotion strategy involves the circulation of the products, brand and the company to the customers . IBM’s promotion strategy is a mix of several strategies experimented by the company over time. The major classifications of promotion followed by IBM are “above the line” and “below the line” promotions. While “above the line” promoting strategy includes advertising in the newspapers, media, TV, internet and smartphones, “below the line” promoting strategy includes sponsorship, brand endorsements, public relations, personal selling and sales promotions. The last marketing strategy, also called as place refers to the channel or distribution of products . Place refers to the path followed by IBM in transporting its services or products from the manufacturer’s location to the end customer. The place strategy involves several mediators in between, such as the suppliers, dealers and retailers. IBM takes the support of its partner companies to sell its products and services. A minor change in the strategy of place leads to an increase in the number of sales.
IBM’s principal goal is to focus on growth, profitability and long-term stability. With a good reputation, brand name and quality products, IBM is popular worldwide. However, IBM’s marketing strategies differ from one country to another. Since the products and services of IBM are flexible, it gives scope for rebalance. With a vast variety of segments produced by IBM, the company stands at the top in the home country U.S. In terms of international markets, there is always a threat from competitors . IBM employs strategic planning by collecting and analyzing information regarding the business operations. The company has several departments, which collect business information, both from internal and external sources. The information acts as a source to prepare the marketing strategies. Marketing managers involve in the decision making process to frame strategies using the gathered information . IBM also collects feedback from the customers to serve them accordingly. This is the main reason for the success of IBM in various markets, where IBM was the first company to step its foot.
The concept of international marketing enables IBM to hold its position in the international markets. The policies and practices implemented in the domestic market do not always suit the international market as there are competitors who look for an opportunity to grab . Since IBM operates in more than 160 countries, it is crucial for the company to make sure that it does not lose its position. IBM employs the e-marketing strategy, which enables the company to communicate electronically with its partners and customers worldwide. IBM majorly focuses on the financial aspect of the e-business strategy so that the company can define the marketing strategy based on the assessment of the net value . Furthermore, IBM designs new strategies from time to time depending upon the market situation. Thus, the company stands at the top in the international market amidst several competitors.
References
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Lamb, C., Hair, J., & McDaniel, C. (2008). Marketing. Cengage Learning.
Madrigal, A. C. (2011, 06 16). IBM's First 100 Years: A Heavily Illustrated Timeline. Retrieved 11 05, 2014, from The Atlantic: http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2011/06/ibms-first-100-years-a-heavily-illustrated-timeline/240502/
Richter, T. (2012). International Marketing Mix Management: Theoretical Framework, Contingency Factors and Empirical Findings from World-Markets. Logos Verlag Berlin GmbH.
