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Founded in 1999 in the Boston area, Sentient Jet had become a leading private aviation company in the United States. Its success was built on the introduction of a groundbreaking membership program that offered business travelers the flexibility and convenience of flying on private aircraft for their personal and business needs at an outstanding and unparalleled value. Sentient functioned differently and more efficiently than traditional charter companies; it used an open fleet model, renting jets from a pool of certified charter companies. Thanks to its innovative business model and proprietary technology platform, the firm was providing its clients with all the benefits of owning a fleet of aircraft with none of the associated costs and commitments. Its fares were typically 20% to 30% lower than those of its competitors. In a nutshell, Sentient Jet had invented the Uber of private jets before Uber even existed. With over 15 years of experience, the company was serving more than 5,000 cardholders, and Andrew Collins, president of Sentient Jet, was considering various strategies to double the company's size in the next few years.

In 2015, COFCO, China's state-owned agribusiness giant, was working to protect China's food security (a key national security priority) by extending its control of the global food system through overseas acquisitions. At the same time, COFCO sought to grow its market share in China's fiercely competitive branded foods market. To help achieve these goals, COFCO Chairman Frank Ning was driving internal reforms to make COFCO's management more competitive, innovative, and globally experienced. This case allows for a discussion of the Chinese marketplace and the evolving approach to business structures taken by the Chinese government. COFCO is the leading food company in China, and we can see through the case the hurdles faced in transitioning a company from pursuing mostly social objectives to mostly profit making. Finally, the case is a useful vehicle for discussing the question of whether and how China can feed itself. Efficient and reliable sourcing of food from abroad is evidently an increasing, and urgent, priority.

ThinkAlike, a fictitious marketing consulting firm, was asked by TiVo to segment the market for its new digital video recorder (DVR) product. Students are asked to analyze realistic data and generate segments that will be useful for TiVo's marketing strategy.

Maxim, headquartered at San Jose in California, was founded in 1983 by Jack Gifford and other professionals with experience in semiconductor design and sales. The company posted $2.47 billion in sales in 2011, with 9,300 employees, and 35,000 customers worldwide. Maxim had developed expertise in designing and manufacturing highly integrated analog and mixed-signal semiconductors. Maxim set up a technology design center in Bangalore in 2006. The Bangalore center had grown over the years and moved up the value chain in terms of contributing to technology design at Maxim. Gopal Krishna, Head of India Operations, had joined Maxim in 2009. In mid-2011, Gopal Krishna was contemplating the new context that Maxim faced in India. India had been a location that contributed to design in Maxim while now India as a market appeared increasingly attractive. As a first step towards exploring this opportunity, Gopal decided to engage with the marketing faculty at Indian Institute of Management Bangalore who decided to examine the medical diagnostics space in India for value exchange opportunities. Interviews were conducted with healthcare professionals. The management team had to identify attractive market opportunities and develop a strategic plan to enter the Indian medical diagnostics market.

The case focuses on the dilemma faced by Dipak Mane, Bühler's President, South Asia as he pursues opportunities for sustainable growth in India's rapidly growing but competitive food processing industry. Buhler's corporate objectives, innovative technologies, superior quality, positioning as a premium global brand, competition and value chain requirements, determined its product - market strategies in India. Bühler was traditionally focused on the top-level market in several geographies that it served around the world. However, the company had experienced rapid growth during the last decade after it entered the mid-level market with new offerings and a value proposition tailored to the needs of the mill owners. Dipak's dilemma revolved around growing the business in India by consolidating in the mid-level market and/or targeting a new segment, namely the entry-level segment. The key issues relate to - Should Bühler target the entry-level segment? If yes, what adaptations will be needed to target customers in the entry-level segment? What will be the potential cannibalization in the mid-level segment where Bühler enjoyed a sizeable presence and reputation? What should be the differentiation strategy in the entry-level segment? What would be the go-to-market strategy for the entry level?

Flipkart, the poster child of Indian e-commerce, was an early entrant in the nascent Indian e-commerce market and quickly established itself as the leading company in this space. Flipkart has grown into an online retail giant, valued at over USD 15.2 billion as of 2015. Flipkart has been selling over 30 million products from more than 50,000 sellers in 70+ categories as well as has 30 exclusive brand associations with an in-a-day guarantee in 50 cities and a same-day guarantee in 13 cities. Flipkart was 33,000 people strong and had over 50 million registered users with over 10 million daily visits and 8 million shipments per month. Flipkart has been putting in much effort and emphasis on the use of Analytics in every aspect of decision making. Headed by Ravi Vijayaraghavan, the analytics team had over 100 data scientists in 2015. Customer churn is a major concern for Flipkart since it has direct impact on Customer Lifetime Value (CLV). CLV is an important measure to differentiate customers, which can further help the organization manage them effectively. The main challenge in calculating the lifetime value of customers of e-commerce companies such as Flipkart is that the exact life of the customer is unknown owing to data truncation, that is, the actual point in time of customer churn, which may not be identified in e-commerce since there would be no prior communication from the customer about the churn. Hence, traditional models of CLV calculation may not be appropriate for e-commerce companies such as Flipkart.

Flipkart, the poster child of Indian e-commerce, was an early entrant in the nascent Indian e-commerce market and quickly established itself as the leading company in this space. Flipkart has grown into an online retail giant, valued at over USD 15.2 billion as of 2015. Flipkart has been selling over 30 million products from more than 50,000 sellers in 70+ categories as well as has 30 exclusive brand associations with in-a-day guarantee in 50 cities and same-day guarantee in 13 cities. Flipkart was 33,000 people strong and had over 50 million registered users with over 10 million daily visits and 8 million shipments per month. Flipkart has been putting in much effort and emphasis on the use of Analytics in every aspect of decision making. Headed by Ravi Vijayaraghavan, the analytics team had over 100 data scientists in 2015. Customer churn is a major concern for Flipkart since it has direct impact on Customer Lifetime Value (CLV). CLV is an important measure to differentiate customers, which can further help the organization to manage them effectively. The main challenge in calculating the lifetime value of customers of e-commerce companies such as Flipkart is that the exact life of the customer is unknown owing to data truncation, that is, the actual point in time of customer churn, which may not be identified in e-commerce, since there would be no prior communication from the customer about the churn. Hence, traditional models of CLV calculation may not be appropriate for e-commerce companies such as Flipkart.

The differences between traditional and referral marketing programs are so great that the two share little overlap in terms of appropriate target markets, marketing objectives, marketing organization, and overall planning and implementation strategies. Traditional marketing programs seek advocates among current employees to spread word of mouth, aim marketing efforts at high lifetime-value customers, focus on customer satisfaction, and use promotional programs that heavily rely on social media. In contrast, referral marketing relies on motivating satisfied/delighted customers as a referral base, seeking current customers that can provide referrals with a high lifetime value, using referral-based marketing programs to augment traditional promotions, and developing a compensation system for referrals based on either direct payment or increased visibility. Major advantages of referral marketing programs as compared with traditional marketing programs include greater credibility of friend/family member recommendations over paid advertisements, access to new customers that traditional marketing programs may not reach, and better matching of referred customers' needs to a good or service. This article presents an eight-step process to develop, implement, and evaluate the success of a referral program. In addition, it discusses academic research findings and presents examples of successful referral program strategies from--among others--Dropbox, Roku, PayPal, Digitalis, and Omaha Steaks.

Managers are frequently tasked with increasing the engagement levels of key stakeholders, such as customers and employees. Gamification--defined as the application of game design principles to change behavior in non-gaming contexts--is a tool that, if crafted and implemented properly, can increase engagement. In this article we discuss how gamification can aid customer and employee engagement, and delineate between four different types of customers and employees who act as 'players' in gamified experiences. We include illustrative examples of gamification and conclude by presenting five lessons for managers who wish to utilize gamification.

Marketing strategy, part of the marketing planning process, flows directly from a company's goals and helps define how the marketing organization will help the firm achieve its objectives. Marketing strategy is guided by the goals and objectives of the organization, the business unit, or the particular product or service for which the plan is developed. The choice of which marketing strategy (or strategies) to pursue then guides the marketing mix decisions, which, taken together, become the value proposition offered to the target market segment(s). Marketing strategy involves four steps, and this note addresses the first three.

Student spreadsheet for product W16048.

Started in 2000, GiveIndia is a web-based donation platform headquartered in Mumbai, India. It uses online tools and social media to engage with donors and encourage donations to be made to various non-governmental organizations. GiveIndia's chief executive officer wants to develop a strategic approach for social media communication, which is gaining greater acceptance in India. As part of its online initiatives, GiveIndia has been running a search engine marketing program with Google Grants. The chief executive officer wants to optimize the program by using the right metrics. He is also interested in applying the concept of customer lifetime value to manage the donations. GiveIndia is already present on popular social media websites such as Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn, and Twitter, but how can the company hone its strategic focus on each of these websites?

In 2013, the founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of a lingerie business in India has recently moved his business from offline to online in order to reach a wider customer base. The company is one of the very few online lingerie stores in India that also has its own brand. Although the online business is profitable, the CEO cannot ignore the fact that offline stores still dominate the lingerie market in India. Since its key product is only available online, the company may be missing out on an opportunity. Because the shift from an offline business to an online one occurred in 2012, an immediate investment in actual stores will have financial consequences. Should the CEO continue to operate his online business and consider relaunching retail stores at a later time, or should he relaunch now and manage both business models at once?

The director of marketing for Lawrence & Mayo (L&M) was reviewing the company’s results for the past financial year. Far from encouraging, the results were a reflection of an addition to the company’s existing product portfolio: accessories. L&M was an established name in the field of ophthalmic and optical instruments. The prestigious brand had maintained an exclusive positioning for over 100 years. When L&M launched premium watches under its existing brand, it took a bold step. The product was, no doubt, world class in quality and design. However, the company’s detractors wrote it off, calling it an attempt to ride two horses at the same time. Did the recent financial results vindicate these critics? The director of marketing wanted to comprehend the impact of the new product line, the reasons behind the poor performance and the way forward for L&M.

The director of marketing for Lawrence & Mayo (L&M) was reviewing the company's results for the past financial year. Far from encouraging, the results were a reflection of an addition to the company's existing product portfolio: accessories. L&M was an established name in the field of ophthalmic and optical instruments. The prestigious brand had maintained an exclusive positioning for over 100 years. When L&M launched premium watches under its existing brand, it took a bold step. The product was, no doubt, world class in quality and design. However, the company's detractors wrote it off, calling it an attempt to ride two horses at the same time. Did the recent financial results vindicate these critics? The director of marketing wanted to comprehend the impact of the new product line, the reasons behind the poor performance and the way forward for L&M.

In 2015, BRF's new leadership team is transforming several aspects of the Brazilian protein giant, which had grown sluggish after the 2011 merger that created it. Underlying their reforms are the common goals of reducing bureaucracy, streamlining decision making, and, most importantly, creating a unified culture that, to date, the company has been missing. CEO Pedro Faria believes a strong culture, in which both BRF employees and its thousands of supply partners feel a sense of pride and ownership in working with BRF, will be critical to enabling BRF's global ambitions.

Mahindra First Choice Services Limited, a multi-brand car-servicing business in India, needs to create a unique customer value proposition to differentiate its brand in a highly competitive landscape. In India, the aftermarket services market comprises original equipment manufacturers, independent garages and few organized players. The marketing head and his team need to position their company’s brand to capture customers that have previously relied on local garages and original equipment manufacturers.

Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. (MSIL), a subsidiary of Suzuki Motor Corporation Japan, is considering a new product introduction to defend its pre-eminent position and retain its competitive advantage in the Indian car market. Three different choices have emerged, out of which only one can be pursued. There is a need to reassess MSIL’s potential growth opportunities and strategy for competing in the A-segment. Which product should MSIL invest in to successfully defend its position?

Atmel Corporation is a manufacturer of semiconductors (chips). It is an engineering-driven business-to-business company, and prior to 2012 its marketing was largely limited to preparation of specifications, launching new products, and trade shows. In 2012, it hired Sander Arts as Vice President of Marketing. Arts was not an engineer, and had very different ideas about how marketing could add value to the company. For instance, he believed that social media could be used to create active user communities for a company that makes commodity products. He also believed that the company was missing important opportunities in long-tail markets, and the Maker movement. He wanted to humanize the brand and create imaginative marketing solutions. This "case" is a series of videos - one to prepare students for the class session, and two to be shown after the class discussion. The 15-minute preparation video is a series of interviews in which the perspectives of different stakeholders (engineering, marketing, customer, etc.) are presented prior to the arrival of Arts. The challenges facing Arts are clearly demonstrated. Following class discussion, a nine-minute video interview with Arts can be used to show how he approached the challenges. The third video was prepared by Atmel, and shows the company's view of its success in developing marketing as an important part of the organization.

In 2015, U.K.-based Ocado was the world's largest pure player in the online home-delivery grocery business and was gaining a growing share of the highly competitive U.K. grocery market. Ocado had made heavy investments in technology, including a highly automated warehouse operation, intelligent software for efficient order delivery, and a customer-friendly online interface. Ocado's customer base had expanded beyond the wealthy to include middle-income consumers; even with a delivery charge, grocery shopping through Ocado was, in many cases, as affordable as shopping in a retail stores. In 2015 the company was developing a strategy for its Smart Platform, a model in which Ocado would lease its software, hardware, and integration services to brick-and-mortar grocery retailers seeking to build online businesses. Ocado's management believed the Smart Platform, which they planned to market internationally, had the potential to disrupt the global grocery retail market.