In companies who unknowingly adopt the Production Concept, they tend to focus more on their ability to produce many products without really understanding what the customer really wants. In the pharmaceutical industry, they may bombard the marketing and sales team with lots of products without understanding their limitation in delivering the products to the market.
In a company where the salespeople have more influence, the profitability suffers. Why? It’s because for salespeople, the higher the marketing support, the higher will be the sales. Or that’s what they claim they will produce if the management gives them more money to buy the demand. If a Sales guy runs the company, he may want more products to offer the market in order to drive sales. The success is short term because there is no brand focus. In the end, he may run out of new products to offer.
Companies who started the business with sub-distributors (Trading Concept) have a tendency to minimize expenses in order to maximize profitability. They don’t care about marketing or product development. They are happy and contented with buying a little, selling a little and making a little.
In an accounting-controlled company, the finance guys are in charge. The accountants are in control of the marketing and selling process, even though many of them have no actual field experience. They are more interested in numbers and not the product. If the activity does not immediately help the bottom line then it is not worth doing.
Many experts say that the previous four business orientation is inferior to the Marketing Concept. Identifying customer needs and satisfying those needs through product development is the focus of a marketing-oriented company. The buying process is thoroughly analyzed to identify the best course of action in delivering the product to customers more efficiently and effectively.
Multinational companies, having long years in the business, understand this, and so are few emerging Filipino companies. They have been able to balance all aspects to be able to support their marketing efforts and they have transcended from being a mediocre company into a great one. The problem with some start-ups is that too many opposing forces wanted to be in control.
So, the take away here is for you to find a company that has been in the industry long enough that it has found balance in its operation. Chances are, management is stable, they already have a great relationship with customers, and the brands are trusted. If you finally found one and you got accepted, it will be much easier to promote your products to doctors compared to companies who are just starting out.
