Multivariate credibility with application to cross-selling financial services products

In this thesis, methods that are capable of improving the revenue and profitability of a financial services company are presented. Of particular interest is the use of customer specific information for pricing insurance products and segmenting a customer population based on the expected profitability of the customers. A prerequisite is the possibility for customers to have many different financial services products from the same provider. The thesis presents multivariate credibility models for how customer specific information from one (or many) financial services products is related to customer specific information from another financial services product. The models are foremost applied to the context of cross-selling (selling additional products to existing customers) where customer specific information from the offered cross-sale product is not available before the sale. As products are related, it is reasonable to use an appropriate (credible) amount of customer specific information from another product (or products), for estimating the profitability expected to emerge from the offered cross-sale product. In four separate but related articles, it is shown that having appropriate models for pricing and customer segmentation is of great importance for a financial services company aiming at running a profitable and growing business

Optimal customer customer selection for cross-selling of financial services products

A new methodology, for optimal customer selection in cross-selling of financial services products, such as mortgage loans and non life insurance contracts, is presented. The optimal cross-sales selection of prospects is such that the expected profit is maximized, while at the same time the risk of suffering future losses is minimized. Expected profit maximization and mean–variance optimization are considered as alternative optimality criteria. In order to solve these optimality problems a stochastic model of the profit, expected to emerge from a single cross-sales prospect and from a selection of prospects, is developed. The related probability distributions of the profit are derived, both for small and large portfolio sizes and in the latter case, asymptotic normality is established. The proposed, profit optimization methodology is thoroughly tested, based on a real data set from a large Swedish insurance company and is shown to achieve considerable profit gains, compared to traditional cross-selling methods, which use only the estimated sales probabilities

International Market Segmentation across Consumption and Communication Categories: Identity, Demographics, and Consumer Decisions and Online Habits

In this chapter we will discuss the different approaches to market segmentation and selection and explore how the selection process influences the company’s culture, its brand positioning, and how it is impacted upon by the overall marketing and communication strategy and vice versa. Some questions this chapter considers and discusses are: Which segments should firms’ international marketing activities (including financial, human resources, and the firm’s capabilities) focus on? How do multinationals decide if segmentation efforts are effective? Finally, we will explore how organizations1 can monitor and control the various activities and outcomes, in order to ensure sustainable competitive advantage(s) in a highly competitive marketplace and online marketspace

Marketing and Entrepreneurship: Relationship between Marketing Strategies, Entrepreneurial Development, Sale Growth and Corporate Profitability

Marketing, Entrepreneurship and innovation are considered among the main characteristics of strategic thinking in business organizations today because of their complicated effects on designing and executing the different activities of such organizations, especially the marketing activities which constitute the core of all other activities. The aim of this study was examined the effects of Marketing Strategies on Entrepreneurial Development. It also attempts to determine the extent to which promotion increases sales growth. Survey research method that used in a cross sectional design through the use of comprehensive questionnaires which were distributed to selected business enterprises. In the analysis of data collected, it was found that marketing strategy such as promotion has a significant impact on the sales growth of any company. It was also noted that the use of direct distribution channel has a positive effect on the overall profitability of the firm. From these analytical findings, it is therefore recommended that entrepreneurs should be able to understand the need for customer satisfaction and create niche for the product they sell.  Entrepreneurs should engage in more marketing promotions by making use of the internet, radio, TV, billboards, and ensure their customers are reached wherever they are found. The research makes clear the importance of Marketing Strategy to all organizations, as it has been confirmed that marketing strategy does have effects on entrepreneurial development. Keywords: Marketing, Entrepreneurship, Promotion, sales growth, direct distribution channe

Effects of Marketing strategies on Entrepreneurial Development

This study examined the effects of Marketing Strategies on Entrepreneurial Development. It also attempts to determine the extent to which promotion increases sales growth. Survey research method was used in a cross sectional design through the use of comprehensive questionnaires which were distributed to selected business enterprises in Ikeja area of Lagos State, Nigeria. In the analysis of data collected, it was found that marketing strategy such as promotion has a significant impact on the sales growth of any company. It was also noted that the use of direct distribution channel has a positive effect on the overall profitability of the firm. From these analytical findings, it is therefore recommended that entrepreneurs should be able to understand the need for customer satisfaction and create niche for the product they sell. Entrepreneurs should engage in more marketing promotions by making use of the internet, radio, TV, billboards, and ensure their customers are reached wherever they are found. The research makes clear the importance of Marketing Strategy to all organizations, as it has been confirmed that marketing strategy does have effects on entrepreneurial development

Evaluating whether a change in organisational structure would improve its competitive advantage

The purpose of this research is to study and analyse the internal and external structure of Ultimate Clean ltd, where I do work. We have put concentration on background of the company in the starting. This information is followed by aim and scope of research, which shows that what is the research question and what is scope of our research. After that Literature review is elaborated under five main subheadings. These subheading gives us deep information about the literature of organisation structure, competitive advantage. After that, Organisational context with internal and external analyse of the company is given which highlight the strengths, weaknesses, threats and opportunities of the company. Some external factors like political, economic, social and legal, are also discussed in this report. Then some information is given for method of research that why we use it, where and when it is used. Some limitations are also discussed in this report of method. After this, result section comes. In this section, we discussed deeply about the answers of customers, employees and employer. We prepare a discussion of the result and conclude it wisely. In the end, some recommendations are also given to improve organisational structure of Ultimate Clean ltd. We suggest a new structure for the organisation to develop within company to have a good competitive advantage in market place. A big list of references is also given in the end of this report

Defining marketing-as-practice and identifying marketing tools used by practitioners in the Algarve

With the exponential evolution of the corporate market and consequent increase in direct competition, companies increasingly pursue to use innovative and appropriate marketing approaches and tools. Given the importance of marketing in competitiveness corporate context, becomes crucial to analyse which are the practices used by practitioners in their daily company life, in order to compare results with the competition, check innovative and appropriate trends to it activity sector. When developing the literature review, was revealed a gap in this knowledge area: nonexistence of a specific approach capable of assess in a simple and organized way which are the practices and respective tools used by companies. However, it was possible identify an interesting model of the strategic area, denominated Strategy-as- Practice, whose attributes could be relevant for the construction of the new approach. It was also accomplished an analysis of the several concepts included in the approach, so that the Marketing-as-Practice approach held updated information. The present study proposes the development of a new approach that allows analyses the research problem, applying it to Algarve region companies. To justify the decisions taken along the dissertation, was solicited the opinion of two managers of the region. The survey, with 51 questions distribute over two sections, was applied via internet to the sample set. The results were postimously analysed, using therefore descriptive and non-parametrical statistics. Finally, are suggested ways to improve the approach and the survey created and evidenced the study limitations and the opportunities of research development in this area

Real Estate Brokerage and the Hosting Market: An Annotated Bibliography

A number of facets of real estate brokerage have been examined over time in theoretical and empirical articles appearing in the literature. This article summarizes brokerage research and suggests avenues for future inquiry. In attempting to organize brokerage research, the research is classified into eight broad topical areas: (1) brokerage firm characteristics; (2) broker commissions; (3) time on the market; (4) broker compensation; (5) the effects of brokerage on house prices; (6) regulation of the brokerage industry; (7) legal liability; and (8) international comparisons. In each area, we point out the major focus of the research by summarizing important findings.

Behavior-based personalization : strategies and Implications

Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Sloan School of Management, 2011.Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.Includes bibliographical references (p. 53-55).The personalization of services and products offered to customers is becoming crucial for the success of companies. Firms that can maintain a personalized relationship with their customers will not only gain an advantage from competitors but will also benefit from having more loyal and valuable customers. The recent advances in technology and the associated cost reduction are allowing companies to gather information about their customers and their behavior in an easy and inexpensive way. This collection and analysis of behavior-based information increases the companies' knowledge about their customers and allows a more personalized approach. This thesis studies what has been accomplished in the domain of behavior-based personalization and in more detail what are the techniques and strategies being used and how companies can take advantage of its applications. Moreover, this thesis discusses the critical role of personalization in building effective customer relationships management (CRM) strategies.by João G. Violante.S.M

Business Buyers Are People Too: Do Personal Characteristics Help to Explain the Effectiveness of Selected Marketing Activities in a B2B Setting?

Due to its role relative to company performance, the topic of sales effectiveness has been richly explored for decades. Academic researchers in the fields of sales effectiveness, organizational purchasing, purchase types, and market segmentation have identified the importance of understanding the personal characteristics of decision makers in business-to- business (B2B) environments. Most of the historic literature focuses on demographic characteristics, which has been deemed insufficient for understanding individual’s motivations. While there has been recognition of the opportunity for psychographics and lifestyle data in B2B purchasing, there has been limited empirical research. Employing a contingency framework informed by Weitz and utilizing sales and marketing activities as well as results for 2,710 dyads, this study posits that the psychographic and lifestyle nature of B2B purchase decision makers, as well as the buyclass category of the purchase decision, moderate the relationship between specific sales activities and sales effectiveness. The results from this empirical study identify that there is strong support for the moderating effect of the purchasing decision maker’s psychographic and lifestyle composition on the relationship between sales activities and sales effectiveness and partial support for the moderating effect of buyclass category on the relationship between sales activities and sales effectiveness. In addition, the results identify that the sales activities of the internal sales function, not the external “customer-facing” sales function, have greater impact on sales effectiveness. Furthermore, the results indicate that proactive sales efforts yield increases in sales effectiveness across all subgroups evaluated