Connecting with Customers
Atlas must consider how to best create value for its chosen target markets and develop strong, profitable,long-term relationships with customers (see Chapter). To do so,it needs to understand consumer markets (see Chapter). Who buys cameras, and why? What features and prices are they looking for, and where do they shop? Atlas also sells cameras to business markets, including large corporations,professional firms,retailers,and government agencies (see Chapter),where purchasing agents or buying committees make the decisions.Atlas needs to gain a full understanding of how organizational buyers buy.It needs a sales force well trained in presenting product benefits.Atlas will not want to market to all possible customers. It must divide the market into major market segments, evaluate each one, and target those it can best serve (see Chapter)

Building Strong Brands
Atlas must understand the strengths and weaknesses of the Zeus brand as customers see it (see Chapter). Is its 35mm film heritage a handicap in the digital camera market? Suppose Atlas decides to focus on the consumer market and develop a positioning strategy (see Chapter). Should it position itself as the “Cadillac” brand,offering superior cameras at a premium price with excel-lent service and strong advertising? Should it build a simple, low-priced camera aimed at more price-conscious consumers? Or something in between? Atlas must also pay close attention to competitors (see Chapter), anticipating their moves and knowing how to react quickly and decisively. It may want to initiate some surprise moves, in which case it needs to anticipate how its competitors will respond.

Shaping the Market Offerings
At the heart of the marketing program is the product—the firm’s tangible offering to the market,which includes the product quality, design, features, and packaging (see Chapter). To gain a competitive advantage, Atlas may provide leasing, delivery, repair, and training as part of its product offering (see Chapter). A critical marketing decision relates to price (see Chapter). Atlas must decide on wholesale and retail prices, discounts, allowances, and credit terms. Its price should match well with the offer’s perceived value; otherwise, buyers will turn to competitors’ products.

Delivering Value
Atlas must also determine how to properly deliver to the target market the value embodied in its products and services.Channel activities include those the company undertakes to make the product accessible and available to target customers (see Chapter). Atlas must identify, recruit, and link various marketing facilitators to supply its products and services efficiently to the target market. It must understand the various types of retailers, wholesalers, and physical-distribution firms and how they make their decisions (see Chapter).

Communicating Value
Atlas must also adequately communicate to the target market the value embodied by its products and services.It will need an integrated marketing communication program that maximizes the individual and collective contribution of all communication activities (see Chapter). Atlas needs to set up mass communication programs consisting of advertising,sales promotion,events,and public relations (see Chapter). It also needs to plan more personal communications, in the form of direct and interactive marketing,as well as hire,train,and motivate salespeople (see Chapter).

Creating Successful Long-Term Growth
Based on its product positioning, Atlas must initiate new-product development, testing, and launching as part of its long-term view (see Chapter). The strategy should take into account changing global opportunities and challenges (see Chapter).