International Marketing Conference

The first edition of International Marketing Conference seeks to cover a host of issues which are not only relevant to the present day but also hold promise for the times to come.  On one hand, it will try to track emerging patterns and innovations; while on the other, it will seek to emphasize the role played by some classic theories and practices in areas such as communicating value, distribution networks, nature and means of gathering consumer insights, brand building.

Internet and Mobile technology has arguably been the most influential one in our lives in the past decade. They have redefined the way people carry out their day to day activities. There is an information boom which has both helped and confused people. This has opened up a lot of channels for marketers to exploit but like any new technology, it has its own skeptics. Marketers approach it with cautious and measured steps, with not everyone ready to jump onto the online/mobile advertisement band wagon. It has also given birth to the phenomena called ‘Viral Marketing’. With collapsing distances, word of mouth has gained new significance.

Beside opening portals of information for consumers, these technologies have brought into existence other such streams flowing in the reverse direction. Today, internet is one of the most accurate and quickest means of collecting consumer insights. Online surveys are poised to replace door to door, at least in some specific domains, if not in all.

These technologies have had a telling effect on distribution networks too. Online retailing has made many a brick and mortar stores redundant. Centralized inventory management for multi-store retail outlets has become more and more commonplace. 

The world, especially FMCG, is looking for newer markets. With urban markets reaching saturation, global FMCG giants have turned their focus on third world countries where there is a huge untapped rural population. Solving the rural riddle has become the new mantra of every FMCG major. It has brought to fore a lot of ground breaking revolutions in distribution like Hub-and-Spoke model, teaming up with rural focused NGOs etc.