MKIS

2018-19

UNIVERSITY OF PETROLEUM & ENE RGY STUDIES

College of Legal Studies

MARKETING MANAGEMENT-I

Role of Marketing Information System in enhancing sales.

Submitted By:
Manshika Mittal

BBA LLB CL

1|Page
MKIS

ROLE OF MARKETING INFORMATION SYSTEM

IN ENHANCING SALES

A marketing information system (MKIS) is a management information

system (MIS) designed to support marketing decision making.

Jobber (2007) defines it as a "system in which marketing data is formally

gathered, stored, analyzed and distributed to managers in accordance with their
informational needs on a regular basis." In addition, the online business dictionary
defines Marketing Information System (MKIS) as "a system that analyzes and
assesses marketing information, gathered continuously from sources inside and
outside an organization or a store."

Showing contrasting characteristic of MR and MKIS

Marketing Research Marketing Information System

1.Emphasis is on handling external 1. It handles both internal and external

information data.

2. It is concerned with preventing as well

2. It is concerned with solving problems.
as solving problems.

3. It operates in a fragmented fashion –

3. It operates continuously as a system.
on a project-to-project basis.

4. It tends to focus on past information. 4. It tends to be future oriented.

2|Page
MKIS

5. It is a source of input for marketing 5.It includes other subsystems besides

information system. marketing research.

Components of Marketing Information System

Components of a marketing information system

A marketing information system (MIS) is intended to bring together disparate
items of data into a coherent body of information. An MIS is, as will shortly be
seen, more than raw data or information suitable for the purposes of decision
making. An MIS also provides methods for interpreting the information the MIS
provides. Moreover, as Kotler's1 definition says, an MIS is more than a system of
data collection or a set of information technologies:
"A marketing information system is a continuing and interacting structure of
people, equipment and procedures to gather, sort, analyse, evaluate, and distribute
pertinent, timely and accurate information for use by marketing decision makers to
improve their marketing planning, implementation, and control".
Figure illustrates the major components of an MIS, the environmental factors
monitored by the system and the types of marketing decision which the MIS seeks
to underpin.

The marketing information systems and its subsystems:

3|Page
MKIS

The explanation of this model of an MIS begins with a description of each of its
four main constituent parts: the internal reporting systems, marketing research
system, marketing intelligence system and marketing models. It is suggested that
whilst the MIS varies in its degree of sophistication - with many in the
industrialized countries being computerized and few in the developing countries
being so - a fully fledged MIS should have these components, the methods (and
technologies) of collection, storing, retrieving and processing data notwithstanding.
Internal reporting systems: All enterprises which have been in operation for any
period of time nave a wealth of information. However, this information often
remains under-utilized because it is compartmentalized, either in the form of an
individual entrepreneur or in the functional departments of larger businesses. That
is, information is usually categorized according to its nature so that there are, for
example, financial, production, manpower, marketing, stockholding and logistical
data. Often the entrepreneur, or various personnel working in the functional
departments holding these pieces of data, does not see how it could help decision
makers in other functional areas. Similarly, decision makers can fail to appreciate
how information from other functional areas might help them and therefore do not
request it.

The internal records that are of immediate value to marketing decisions are: orders
received, stockholdings and sales invoices. These are but a few of the internal
records that can be used by marketing managers, but even this small set of records
is capable of generating a great deal of information. Below, is a list of some of the
information that can be derived from sales invoices?

· Product type, size and pack type by territory

· Product type, size and pack type by type of account
· Product type, size and pack type by industry
· Product type, size and pack type by customer
· Average value and/or volume of sale by territory
· Average value and/or volume of sale by type of account
· Average value and/or volume of sale by industry
· Average value and/or volume of sale by sales person

By comparing orders received with invoices an enterprise can establish the extent
to which it is providing an acceptable level of customer service. In the same way,
comparing stockholding records with orders received helps an enterprise ascertain
whether its stocks are in line with current demand patterns.

4|Page
MKIS

Marketing research systems: 

The general topic of marketing research has been the prime ' subject of the
textbook and only a little more needs to be added here. Marketing research is a
proactive search for information. That is, the enterprise which commissions these
studies does so to solve a perceived marketing problem. In many cases, data is
collected in a purposeful way to address a well-defined problem (or a problem
which can be defined and solved within the course of the study). The other form of
marketing research centres not around a specific marketing problem but is an
attempt to continuously monitor the marketing environment. These monitoring or
tracking exercises are continuous marketing research studies, often involving
panels of farmers, consumers or distributors from which the same data is collected
at regular intervals. Whilst the ad hoc study and continuous marketing research
differs in the orientation, yet they are both proactive.

Marketing intelligence systems:

 Whereas marketing research is focused, market intelligence is not. A marketing
intelligence system is a set of procedures and data sources used by marketing
managers to sift information from the environment that they can use in their
decision making. This scanning of the economic and business environment can be
undertaken in a variety of ways, including

Unfocused The manager, by virtue of what he/she reads, hears and watches
scanning exposes him/herself to information that may prove useful. Whilst the
behavior is unfocused and the manager has no specific purpose in
mind, it is not unintentional
Semi- Again, the manager is not in search of particular pieces of
focused information that he/she is actively searching but does narrow the
scanning range of media that is scanned. For instance, the manager may focus
more on economic and business publications, broadcasts etc. and pay
less attention to political, scientific or technological media.
Informal This describes the situation where a fairly limited and unstructured
search attempt is made to obtain information for a specific purpose. For
example, the marketing manager of a firm considering entering the
business of importing frozen fish from a neighbouring country may

5|Page
MKIS

make informal inquiries as to prices and demand levels of frozen and

fresh fish. There would be little structure to this search with the
manager making inquiries with traders he/she happens to encounter
as well as with other ad hoc contacts in ministries, international aid
agencies, with trade associations, importers/exporters etc.
Formal This is a purposeful search after information in some systematic way.
search The information will be required to address a specific issue. Whilst
this sort of activity may seem to share the characteristics of
marketing research it is carried out by the manager him/herself rather
than a professional researcher. Moreover, the scope of the search is
likely to be narrow in scope and far less intensive than marketing
research

Marketing intelligence is the province of entrepreneurs and senior managers within

an agribusiness. It involves them in scanning newspaper trade magazines, business
journals and reports, economic forecasts and other media. In addition it involves
management in talking to producers, suppliers and customers, as well as to
competitors. Nonetheless, it is a largely informal process of observing and
conversing.
Some enterprises will approach marketing intelligence gathering in a more
deliberate fashion and will train its sales force, after-sales personnel and
district/area managers to take cognizance of competitors' actions, customer
complaints and requests and distributor problems. Enterprises with vision will also
encourage intermediaries, such as collectors, retailers, traders and other middlemen
to be proactive in conveying market intelligence back to them.

Marketing models: 
Within the MIS there has to be the means of interpreting information in order to
give direction to decision. These models may be computerized or may not. Typical
tools are:
· Time series sales modes
· Brand switching models
· Linear programming
· Elasticity models (price, incomes, demand, supply, etc.)
· Regression and correlation models
· Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) models
· Sensitivity analysis

6|Page
MKIS

· Discounted cash flow

· Spreadsheet 'what if models
These and similar mathematical, statistical, econometric and financial models are
the analytical subsystem of the MIS. A relatively modest investment in a desktop
computer is enough to allow an enterprise to automate the analysis of its data.
Some of the models used are stochastic, i.e. those containing a probabilistic
element whereas others are deterministic models where chance plays no part.
Brand switching models are stochastic since these express brand choices in
probabilities whereas linear programming is deterministic in that the relationships
between variables are expressed in exact mathematical terms.

Kotler's Model
According to Philip Kotler, the four components that comprise the MkIS system
are
 Internal Reports (Records) System,
 Marketing Research System,
 Marketing Intelligence System, and
 Marketing Decision Support System.

1. Internal Reports System: It records various data from different department of a

company, which is regarded as a major source of information.

2. Marketing Intelligence System: It is a main source used by managers for

gaining daily information of the external environment, hence assists the managers
to react to the changing rapidly.

3. Marketing Research System: It is used to collect primary and secondary data,

and displays the results in forms of reports.

4. Marketing Decision Support System: Compared to the supply of the data by

the three previous systems, it focuses more on processing the data.[

7|Page
MKIS

Advantages of MKIS

. There are several advantages of Marketing information systems

 Organized Data collection – MkIS can help the managers to organize loads
of data collected from the market, thus results in an increment in the
productivity.

 A broad perspective – With a proper MkIS in place, the organization can

be tracked which can be used to analyze independent processes. This helps in
establishing a broader perspective which helps us know which steps can be
taken to facilitate improvement.

 Storage of Important Data – The storage of important data is essential in

execution and thus proves again that MkIS is not important only for
information but also for execution.

 Avoidance of Crisis – The best way to analyze a stock (share market) is to

see its past performance. Top websites like money control thrive on MIS.
Similarly MIS helps you keep tracks of margins and profits.

 Co-ordination – Consumer durables and FMCG companies have huge

number of processes which needs to be co-ordinate. These companies depend
completely on MIS for the proper running of the organization.

 Analysis and Planning – MkIS plays a crucial role in the planning process,
considering the planning procedure requires information. For planning, the first
thing which is needed is the organizations capabilities, then the business

8|Page
MKIS

environment and finally competitor analysis. In a proper MkIS, all these are
present by default and are continuously updated. Therefore, MkIS is very
important for planning and analysis.

 Control – Just like MkIS can help in a crisis, in normal times it provides
control as you have information of the various processes going on and what is
happening across the company.

Possible risks

 Opportunities may be missed.

 There may be a lack of awareness of environmental changes and
competitors' actions.
 Data collection may be difficult to analyze over several time periods.
 Marketing plans and decisions may not be properly reviewed.
 Data collection may be disjointed.
 Previous studies may not be stored in an easy to use format.
 Time lags may result if a new study is required.
 Actions may be reactionary rather than anticipatory.

9|Page
MKIS

Marketing Information System by performing the various functions helps in

enhancing sales:

The various functions of Marketing Information System are:

1. The marketing identification function: The determination of potential buyers

and their characteristics is vital in order to satisfy their needs and desires. This
enables the marketer to know:                                                           

· Where the buyers are located

· When do they buy?

· How frequently do they buy?

· What quantity do they buy? 

2. The purchase motivation function:  An assessment of various social,

economic and psychological forces which influence the purchase behavior of the
market is made.

3. The product adjustment function: This function includes all such activities

which are necessary to match the product/services offerings with the market.

4.  The physical distribution function:  The actual movement of goods from the

points of production to the points of consumption is considered in this function.

5. The communication function: This function includes decisions on advertising,

personal selling, sales promotion, publicity, packaging issues etc.

10 | P a g e
MKIS

6. The transaction function: It includes all such activities which are needed to
facilitate the transfer of title of ownership of goods/services between the parties in
a transaction.

7. The post transaction function: In this function, feedback about the

performance of the product/service is obtained from the customer, so that customer
satisfaction can be ensured.

11 | P a g e