Target Market
3M
Questions
1. How can 3M hold on to the notion of accepting failures to achieve the winners during recessionary times and shorter product life cycles (PLC)? 2. What changes would you make in the 3M marketing strategy if it became apparent that generic competitors were consistently able to copy the innovative 3M products? 3. How well has 3M applied the marketing concepts discussed in the text chapter?
Suggested Responses 1. With its vaunted positive attitude toward accepting failure on the way to successful new products, it appears that 3M will be able to continue the remarkable stream of new product developments. Firms such as 3M operate above the day-to-day recession and shorter PLC issues, focused more on achieving product innovations and improvements than responding to economic conditions. 2. Possibly to look more toward marketing organizational and supportive improvements, along with ways to get closer to consumers and their needs. Because 3M constantly works to innovate out of and beyond its existing products (35 percent of their profits come from products introduced in the prior five years), copycats and generic competitors are assumed and of no particular consequence in the larger 3M product development picture. 3. It appears that 3M could be one of the prime examples for many of the concepts discussed in the text. They have the organizational culture, attitude of questioning and innovation, and the willingness to take risks that belie an organization that could and should succeed when others go astray while trying to take shortcuts to innovation. 3M’s culture is so deep and positive that the company likely is happy to see competitors attempt to use keep up with 3M because it spurs 3M researchers and scientists on to find even more effective products. In addition, because 3M also owns many brand names, trademarks and patents, competitors will have to engage in costly efforts to work around the 3M legal
Questions
1. How can 3M hold on to the notion of accepting failures to achieve the winners during recessionary times and shorter product life cycles (PLC)? 2. What changes would you make in the 3M marketing strategy if it became apparent that generic competitors were consistently able to copy the innovative 3M products? 3. How well has 3M applied the marketing concepts discussed in the text chapter?
Suggested Responses 1. With its vaunted positive attitude toward accepting failure on the way to successful new products, it appears that 3M will be able to continue the remarkable stream of new product developments. Firms such as 3M operate above the day-to-day recession and shorter PLC issues, focused more on achieving product innovations and improvements than responding to economic conditions. 2. Possibly to look more toward marketing organizational and supportive improvements, along with ways to get closer to consumers and their needs. Because 3M constantly works to innovate out of and beyond its existing products (35 percent of their profits come from products introduced in the prior five years), copycats and generic competitors are assumed and of no particular consequence in the larger 3M product development picture. 3. It appears that 3M could be one of the prime examples for many of the concepts discussed in the text. They have the organizational culture, attitude of questioning and innovation, and the willingness to take risks that belie an organization that could and should succeed when others go astray while trying to take shortcuts to innovation. 3M’s culture is so deep and positive that the company likely is happy to see competitors attempt to use keep up with 3M because it spurs 3M researchers and scientists on to find even more effective products. In addition, because 3M also owns many brand names, trademarks and patents, competitors will have to engage in costly efforts to work around the 3M legal