abhishreshthaa
Abhijeet S
Sterling Commerce, an IBM company, provides business-to-business (B2B) commerce solutions that enable the sharing of information among people, business systems, and enterprise systems. The company offers integration products and services through its Business Integration Suite,[1] that address the business problems corporations face when seeking to integrate business processes internally and externally with their customers, partners, and suppliers. Sterling Commerce also provides supply chain execution solutions through its Selling and Fulfillment Suite,[1] that streamline the commerce lifecycle. In support of its solutions, the company also supplies education, consulting, implementation, customer support services, and complete outsourcing of B2B commerce solutions. Clients include companies and organizations in retail, healthcare, banking, distribution, financial services, logistics, manufacturing, local and federal governments, and communications and media sectors. Headquartered in the American city of Dublin, Ohio, Sterling Commerce has offices throughout North America, Europe, and Asia. On August 28, 2010, IBM closes $1.4B acquisition of Sterling from AT&T On May 24, 2010, IBM agreed to acquire Sterling Commerce from AT&T for $1.4 Billion USD.
The firm attempts to generate a positive response in the target market by blending these four marketing mix variables in an optimal manner.
Product
The product is the physical product or service offered to the consumer. In the case of physical products, it also refers to any services or conveniences that are part of the offering.
Product decisions include aspects such as function, appearance, packaging, service, warranty, etc.
Price
Pricing decisions should take into account profit margins and the probable pricing response of competitors. Pricing includes not only the list price, but also discounts, financing, and other options such as leasing.
Place
Place (or placement) decisions are those associated with channels of distribution that serve as the means for getting the product to the target customers. The distribution system performs transactional, logistical, and facilitating functions.
Distribution decisions include market coverage, channel member selection, logistics, and levels of service.
Promotion
Promotion decisions are those related to communicating and selling to potential consumers. Since these costs can be large in proportion to the product price, a break-even analysis should be performed when making promotion decisions. It is useful to know the value of a customer in order to determine whether additional customers are worth the cost of acquiring them.
Promotion decisions involve advertising, public relations, media types, etc.
The firm attempts to generate a positive response in the target market by blending these four marketing mix variables in an optimal manner.
Product
The product is the physical product or service offered to the consumer. In the case of physical products, it also refers to any services or conveniences that are part of the offering.
Product decisions include aspects such as function, appearance, packaging, service, warranty, etc.
Price
Pricing decisions should take into account profit margins and the probable pricing response of competitors. Pricing includes not only the list price, but also discounts, financing, and other options such as leasing.
Place
Place (or placement) decisions are those associated with channels of distribution that serve as the means for getting the product to the target customers. The distribution system performs transactional, logistical, and facilitating functions.
Distribution decisions include market coverage, channel member selection, logistics, and levels of service.
Promotion
Promotion decisions are those related to communicating and selling to potential consumers. Since these costs can be large in proportion to the product price, a break-even analysis should be performed when making promotion decisions. It is useful to know the value of a customer in order to determine whether additional customers are worth the cost of acquiring them.
Promotion decisions involve advertising, public relations, media types, etc.