Many must have noticed in some or the other parties some guys turning into quarrelsome jerks when they are drunk, while some other guys get all blubbery, saying things like “I love you, I missed you, you are such wonderful person man” to everyone. Such drunken guys and girls are sometimes pain; some burst out crying and sometimes there are guys who spill out secrets of others. Does the personality of people who get intoxicated reflect their true disposition? Does their real personality get unmasked because the alcohol makes it impossible to keep up the façade? Or does alcohol just do weird things to our brain, with mottled but not significant results?

Some people get very serious and philosophical when intoxicated. They sit in a corner looking at ceiling with a very serious face. Rarely people behave the same as their natural self when they get intoxicated. Does the behavior vary depending on the drink? Let’s say if they drink beer, wine or hard liquor? I have observed some of my friends become really happy when they have beer; some get into a lousy mood when they consume rum; and there are two friends of mine who start singing and dancing loud and glad to be alive when they mix drinks. I think generally, the person that comes out with the application of alcohol is that person’s “real” personality. It’s because alcohol lowers a person’s inhibitions, so whatever facades of their personality they would normally bottle up for fear of social unacceptability are just dropped due to intoxication. it’s usually the ugly opinions that people keep bottled up that tend to pop out when alcohol is consumed……everyone has a child hidden deep down, the child pops up and we get those expressions like “I love you, man” and those hugs and kisses.

Alcohol has been a part of the human diet for at least 10,000 years. In the U.S., over 65% of adults regularly have at least one alcoholic beverage a year. Typically, a low-to moderate amount of alcohol is defined as no more than one drinks a day for women and older adults, and two for men. One drink is usually one 1/2 ounce or 15 grams of alcohol, which equals approximately 12 ounces of beer, 5 ounces of wine or 1.5 ounces of 80-proof liquor. However, these guidelines are tailored by each individual.

However, alcohol tends to make your inhibitions go away. It makes a normally quiet person feel quite gritty and talkative. And, sometimes makes a decently normal person angry and asshole. One evident fact is that inhibitions are part of our genes, part of our personality, and also part of our learned behavior. We have read and sometimes seen famous personalities get into brawls after consuming alcohol.  Shahrukh and Salman (both Khans) had a huge fight at Katrina Kaif’s birthday. Both Sallu and SRK have worked professionally together and even been friends off screen. Both had moderate drinks at the party; SRK apparently said a few things out of line that did not go too well with Salman. It turned out to be an ugly fight. Some famous industrialists have has ugly fights in public after drinks.

After certain amount of alcohol is consumed by a person, his/her brain starts to release dopamine, the more alcohol the more dopamine. Dopamine is the chemical your brain creates to make you feel good.  It makes the body want to do things that is healthy for it. When a person consumes little more than normal drinks it will release so much dopamine that your brain can’t tell the difference between a good decision and a bad decision.

It is said drunken man’s words are a sober man’s thoughts. Alcohol makes people do stuff they wouldn’t normally do. So you will see people driving at higher speed, picking up fights, singing, dancing, hugging others, passing unwanted remarks at others, doing all sorts of unusual things. Some purposely get drunk to do wrong things and say ‘sorry’ the next day with an excuse that they did all those ‘wrongs’ under the influence of alcohol.

Do you know corporate use drinking as trick? When a person gets drunk in a party, his/her boss observes the behavior. Many of his personality facets are observed by the boss, which were nicely under wrap till then. Few drinks make a person more confident, they gather more courage to express them better, and feel less accountability for their actions. Intoxicated communication is sometimes used in order to meet up certain targets or make plans in a group. A lot of confession is made under the influence of alcohol which is trickily used by the bosses.

According to Bruce Bartholow, author of “Alcohol Effects on Performance Monitoring and Adjustment: Affect Modulation and Impairment of Evaluative Cognitive Control”, alcohol doesn’t make you behave badly; it just makes you care less. For all of you trying to apologies or put right some unwanted words, the excuse, “I was drunk, I didn’t mean it” stop using this lame excuse at once. Bartholow, an associate professor of psychology at the University of Missouri College of Arts and Science, concludes that alcohol dulls the brain’s “alarm signal” that warns you when you are making a mistake. These dulled warnings are what lead to the loss of self-control we often regret after one too many.

So the next time when you are in a party, at a bar with friends, or at home taking drinks take a pause, when your brain signals that your body cannot take more drinks. Because that’s what drinking is all about: it is not a whirling, plummeting gamble of life. Don’t just throw away all your inhibitions and deliberately drown yourselves in a liquid.

 Today e-commerce is become part of our life. The arrival of e-commerce and m-commerce (mobile) has transformed the entire retail sector.  Retailers are tapping multiple channels for selling their merchandise; from traditional stores, using catalogue, through the internet and more and more via smart phones and tablets, no stone is left unturned. Technological advancement means that the store is omnipresent! It’s now everywhere, in consumers’ pockets, at their homes and at the mall too. For surviving the competition in the e-commerce world distribution has become key component of the business. Supply chain and logistics experts have become key players and the other important element being real estate – strategic locations for Distribution Centres (DC).

While retailers are developing their multichannel strategy multichannel marketing which refers to the practice by which companies interact with customers via multiple channels, both direct and indirect, distribution strategies also need to be worked at a faster pace especially when the bar has been raised with delivery models like same-day and next-day delivery at the customer’s doorstep.

Retail supply chain executives go for locating fulfilment facilities closer to their customer base in order to meet service commitment goals such as aggressive delivery schedules.

Retail chains are therefore finding online logistics more cost-effective. They rather opt for this than open more traditional stores that require an entirely different kind of distribution model. Therefore, retailers are evolving their regional distribution networks with the addition of e-commerce distribution centres. Traditional warehouses which act as stores require lesser investment and machinery and fewer staff.  The new e-commerce distribution centres, which involve direct order fulfilment, can cost three times as much and involve three times as many employees.

Retailers need to consider points such as proximity to key customers, tax incentives, sales tax and the availability of local labour which are vital for business when searching for the right location for their e-commerce distribution centres. Also, the global spread of technology into multichannel retailing has also opened up new markets in both developed and developing countries. While online sales are growing in the United States and UK, China and Hong Kong are following the trend. China’s consumers are fast embracing e- and m-commerce and are spending most of their money online. And as technology and commerce is expanding faster, retailers are finding it difficult to keep pace with logistics and infrastructure because these two fields are still emerging with newer software and newer gadgets.

In most cases domestic logistics service providers are unable to provide services to fulfil high volumes of customer parcel shipping at low costs and within a realistic delivery time frame, this noticeably impacts the direct-to-customer channel. Retailers have to thus establish their own distribution networks or rely on outsourced express shippers.  This leads to an opportunistic gap in the market for third-party (3PL) and forth-party (4PL) logistics companies and investment in industrial real estate infrastructure.

In the US for the past two decades, U.S. companies have been shifting production to markets with lower labour costs. However, as energy costs rise and labor becomes more expensive in Asian markets, companies are increasing near-shoring and on-shoring. Firms which opt for all-water options but cannot tolerate the lengthy shipping times from Asia are shifting some operations to near-shoring destinations such as Mexico or Central and South America and even back to the United States.  With production and demand closer to home, retailers can respond more quickly to trends and changes in buying patterns.

Nearly 80 percent of retailers say that online sales have increased in the past five years with some reporting increase of 25 percent or more. This has forced retailers to change the traditional distribution network for their e-commerce model. 3PL and 4 PL providers have gained a huge role to play in the e-commerce business model.

Generally, 3PL provider’s main business is to provide logistical services as its core activities. The logistics services offered are based on the range of its logistics’ function. They include freight forwarders, courier companies and other companies integrating & offering subcontracted logistics and transportation services. 4 PL differs from third party logistics in some of these ways: 4PL organization is often a separate entity established as a joint venture or long-term contract between a primary client and one or more partners; 4PL organization acts as a single interface between the client and multiple logistics service providers; ideally all aspects of the client’s supply chain are managed by the 4PL organization; and it is possible for a major third-party logistics provider to form a 4PL organization within its existing structure.

4PL was originally defined by Accenture as a trademark in 1996 and defined as “A supply chain integrator that assembles and manages the resources, capabilities, and technology of its own organization with those of complementary service providers to deliver a comprehensive supply chain solution.” but the concept has almost changed at present.

4PLs have also been referred to as “Lead Logistics Providers”. In the present scenario, new crop of companies have emerged who are actual transportation companies too. While a 4PL is sometimes described as non-asset-owning service provider, their role is to provide broader scope managing of the entire supply chain. The 4PL model offers a platform to get companies thinking about long-term strategy; developing an idea of what they want their future supply chain scene to look like.

If you look closer, the 4PL model actually drives 3PL outsourcing. The difference between the two activities ultimately comes down to scope. In a traditional transactional role, the 3PL will hold on to scope—managing a warehouse, for example. With a 4PL model, the scope recedes and flows. The service provider scales resources depending on different skill set requirements that turn upwards.

If e-commerce brings the logistics industry closer to the point of consumption, it has boosted the demand in the logistics industry. Would it be wrong if we call Amazon and Wal-Mart logistics companies? At heart, these companies are retailers; but, actually on the basis of the economics of these two companies, Amazon and Wal-Mart are far, far better at handling the logistics of their trade than their competitors and hence they are the leaders. Distribution is their core competence.

If you read the case of Amazon.com one understands how important firm’s logistics is in e-commerce. Amazon.com has come a long way since its founder and chief executive officer, Jeff Bezos, stopped imagining the company as a virtual bookstore. It has evolved into an online retail giant that generated US $74.45 billion in revenues in 2013. It is worth mentioning that much of that came from its support of more than two million companies that used Amazon to sell their products online and distribute them to customers. Under the company’s various programs, Amazon not only provides its customers with a means of advertising and selling their products, but also offers to store those products in its fulfilment centres; pick, pack, and ship them; and provide customer service which includes handling returns.

In the process of developing its network to support those services, Amazon has built out an infrastructure which by recent account includes 145 warehouses around the world! 84 in the United States, four in Canada, 29 in Europe, 15 in China, 10 in Japan, and seven in India. This collectively accounts for more than 40 million square feet of space. Amazon has also made substantial investments in material handling systems, including the acquisition of Kiva Systems for $775 million in 2012.  Kiva is now a wholly owned subsidiary of Amazon, which designs robots, software, workstations, and other hardware that has been used in the distribution facilities of companies such as Staples, Office Depot, and The Gap. The systems produced by Kiva are expected to be an integral part of the distribution network now being developed by Amazon. Amazon has also made major investments in cloud computing. At the same time, the company has been developing transportation capabilities to support its Amazon Fresh same-day grocery business. That’s called might of an e-commerce company!

While Nestle India the big food maker is battling its biggest crisis in India, it has asked its employees and all their families and friends to become “valued brand ambassadors” for the company in midst of the company’s battle regarding discussions in the public domain on monosodium glutamate (MSG) in Maggi. In an email to employees, chairman and managing director Etienne Benet, a Swiss-French national who is hardly seen in public, said their role “at times like this is more important than ever……”

The point is why only in crisis, even in peaceful times a company can rely strongly on their loyal and engaged employees instead of hiring expensive brand ambassadors for image building. If a company wants to get extraordinary loyalty from its employees, it needs to take initiative in creating a mutual sense of that relationship. After all, engaged employees build stronger brands. No two thoughts on it.

Though, most companies focus all their branding efforts on marketing activities such as advertising campaigns, corporate communication, attractive packaging etc, yet one of the most powerful assets a company has is – its people. This is regardless of which industry the company is in, for building a strong brand requires that all employees feel connected to the corporate brand and understand their role in turning brand aspirations into reality. The earlier this is understood, it is better for the company. It should aspire to motivate its talent pool into turning brand ambassadors for its business health because employees rank higher in public trust than a firm’s PR department, CEO, board of directors or Founder. Employees are the most credible source of information regarding the organization. The frontline staffs give a glimpse of the organization’s culture and integrity. When a customer interacts with one of the frontline employees, or with the work produced by behind-the-scenes employees, everything the company’s PR and marketing departments have done will be put to the test immediately.

To build a strong corporate brand, the company must invest in its employees who are thoroughly engaged, connected and committed. Scarlett Surveys is the global provider of the best-practice AER Employee Engagement Survey System used by hundreds of organizations to intelligently manage employee engagement.

Scarlett Surveys International defines Employee Engagement as “a measurable degree of an employee’s positive or negative emotional attachment to their job, colleagues and organization that profoundly influences their willingness to learn and perform at work.”

This is where leadership comes into picture. The leaders must lead by stetting examples and embody promises made. When customers deal with an organization, they deal with a mix of employees from various ranks and cadre. A customer anticipates doing business with a company only when the employees look confident, happy and positive.

Attrition is not good for any company’s health. If a high number of employees are leaving then something is wrong; the question is what, and what can be done to improve it. Organizations must foster good work atmosphere because employees who genuinely love, enjoy, and feel connected to their jobs are the ones who best represent the company they work for.  I hope this makes sense, doesn’t it? You will see those employees are the most engaged, the ones who like coming into work every day and are the most likely to say positive things about your company on social media. This is why it’s important to leverage these engaged employees as ambassadors for a company’s brand.

However, in the age of social media, nothing is hidden; hence, it’s not uncommon to see employees badmouthing their organizations – sometimes subtly and sometimes openly. So why do loyal and engaged employees make the very best brand ambassadors? Quite simply, the visibility that engaged employees offer when talking publicly about the brand they represent is something that can’t be imitated emotionally and genuinely by best of the hired models or any outside source. Consumers can tell when employees are being sincere about their passion for what they do and for their company.

Engaged employees sincerely love the company they work for so they are more likely to spread that love on social media. They can organically increase brand awareness on social by sharing news and updates with their friends, fans, and family. They love their company brands so much that they can easily answer customer questions and comments on social, acting as your first line of communication. They provide a relevant, human face for the company they work for, and hence, they can create authentic, compelling content that drives traffic and increases social engagement.

At Starbucks at a point in time, some of their executives visited their coffee shops and noticed that good employees were losing their poise when faced with agitated customers. Instead of coming down on the individual employees, they developed new training material that eliminated the stress of these situations. The executives at Starbucks found that when they empowered their employees with tools they needed to serve customers happily, their employees gained their smiles back.

Do you know friends that Eastman Kodak is one such company in world which has the longest average tenure for employees at 20 years?  This Centurion old company gives the excitement of a strong core business and brand that is recognized and respected in virtually every country around the world. It enables its employees an effective organization, with strong leaders, engaged employees and winning culture.

The key to employee engagement lies in providing growth opportunities, varied roles and empowerment. In India, ITC is one such organization, in which, its senior executives hardly ever quit. Attrition at senior levels is less than five per cent and for frontline staff around 10 per cent. Naturally, ITC and its Agro Tech rarely hire from outside, preferring to promote insiders. ITC also backs employee initiatives. The company allows people to incubate businesses. The team in charge of the paper business suggested getting into greeting cards. A few years later they realised they were not getting anywhere and came back with a proposal to enter office stationery. The company placed a second bet on them. This time it hit the jackpot. In four years, office stationery has grown into Rs 500-crore business for ITC.

A great company culture breeds happy people. Those happy people who connect with their roles and the company become engaged employees. Let us not underestimate role of each employee in an organization from the sweeper to the CEO each one has a big role to play.

Organization must deliver the promise to employees. “When employees feel that the company takes their interest to heart, and then the employees will take company interests to heart,” says Dr. Nelson, a clinical psychologist, bestselling author and business trial consultant. She mentions in her book an example: in 2011 after wrapping up a record-setting year, new Apple Inc. CEO Tim Cook rewarded employees by giving them paid vacation through the week of Thanksgiving. In a memo to employees Cook wrote, “In recognition of the hard work you’ve put in this year, we’re going to take some extra time off for Thanksgiving. We will shut down with pay on November 21, 22 and 23 so our teams can spend the entire week with their families and friends.” This act of Cook motivated the employees to no limit.

Similarly, Proctor & Gamble also pays back company success to employees through extra paid days off. “It ate a little bit of their bottom line, a little bit from the stockholders, but oh my God what it bought them in employee loyalty and productivity,” says Dr. Nelson. She writes “If you’re doing well, share. And for God sake, don’t let your executives walk out with a bonus if the company is not doing well. People don’t mind that execs make money, they mind if it’s exorbitant if the company is not doing well.” She says in her book that even when the company is not doing well the information should be shared with its employees. Employees accept realities than being kept in dark.

Make your employees your brand ambassadors.

Innovation stimulates growth of a business. The ability to keep on generating winning ideas for new products and services is one of the keys to business success. Entrepreneurs value innovations; they have a natural instinct regarding innovations, because they know that innovations in products, service, or a business process make their business unique, allowing the business to acquire core competence.

Innovations in business need to be diffused in society. When new products are introduced in markets they do not get adopted by consumers very easily. People are generally averse to adopting new ideas, new products, new theories, and new concepts because for fear of failure. Lot of research has been conducted in social science on the topic of adoption of newness and it is found that people who adopt an innovation easily and relatively early have different characteristics than people who adopt an innovation later.  Therefore, marketers study the target markets before launching their products. It is important to understand the characteristics of the target population because they might help or hold back adoption of the new product.

‘Diffusion’ as a concept was first introduced by a French sociologist Gabriel Tarde in late 19th century. Later it was elucidated by German and Austrian anthropologists Friedrich Ratzel and Leo Leo Frobenius.

In early 1920s and 1930s agricultural technology was advancing at a faster pace. Farmers had started adopting hybrid seeds, fertilizers, agricultural equipments and technologies for augmenting their produce. In 1943, in Lowa, Ryan and Gross, both social scientists made concrete observation and finding on the topic of diffusion of innovation; they researched the pattern of adoption of hybrid corn seeds by farmers. Thus first time diffusion of innovation was studied in rural context. It first made its mark in rural sociology. Diffusion of Innovation has been applied to numerous contexts since then; marketing, city development, medical sociology, health science, health promotion, research, knowledge management, and many complex areas.  Diffusion of Innovation has particularly been used to large extent in the field of medical sciences, medical technique and health communication.

In 1962, Everett Rogers, a professor of Communication Studies, published his seminal work: Diffusion of Innovations. Rogers produced his research from over 508 diffusion studies across the fields that initially influenced the theory. Among the topic were anthropology, sociology, rural sociology, education, and medical sociology. Everett Rogers produced a theory of the adoption of innovations among individuals and organizations. Later, he published in his first edition of book in the same year.

Rogers recommended that four main elements influence the spread of a new idea: the innovation itself, communication channels, occasion (time), and a social system. This process relies heavily on psychologies of people. The innovation must be widely adopted in order to get accepted and self-sustain. Within the rate of adoption, there is a point at which an innovation reaches critical mass. The expansion of the car industry is well described and is a classical example to describe the diffusion of innovation theory. The modern communication is infusing more and more innovation in the cars. The car industry is approaching a dramatic shift entering into a new phase of communication driven by modern communication technology and environmental concerns. The new car models will sooner or later have smart phones on wheels.

The categories of adopters are: innovators, early adaptors, early majority, late majority, and laggards. Diffusion manifests itself in different ways in various cultures and fields and is highly subject to the type of adopters and innovation-decision process.

Innovators: These are enthusiastic customers who want to be the first ones to try the innovation. They are adventurous and interested in trying out new ideas, services and products. These people are risk takers, and do not shy from trying out and sometimes getting bad results in trying new products. They are the ones to be tapped to reach out and market new products.

Early Adopters: These are opinion leaders in the markets. They enjoy leadership roles and are relatively flexible to adopt changed opportunities. They are already aware of the need to change; they are always on lookout for more progressive changes in the society. Strategies to appeal to this population include detailed ‘how-to’ manuals and information sheets on implementation. They don’t need to be perused too much to buy new products. They are more than eager themselves for change. Early adopters are typically described as curious, exploratory consumers who buy first, talk fast and spread the word to others about the pros and cons of what they have purchased.

Early Majority: These people are rarely leaders, but they do adopt new ideas before the average person. They are observant and patient by nature. They like to satisfy themselves by seeing others comfortably using the new product, idea or theory. They look out for evidence that the innovation works before they buy and adopt it. Strategies to appeal to this population include success stories and verification of the innovation’s effectiveness. They rely a lot on evidences.

Late Majority: These people are skeptical of change; they will adopt an innovation only after it has been tried by the majority. They like to go by statistical proof on how many people have tried and are happy with new product. Strategies to appeal to this population include information on how many other people have tried the innovation and have adopted it successfully. They need statistical sheets for studying.

Laggards: These people are bound by tradition and are very conservative. They are very skeptical of change and are the hardest group to please. They are averse to change. Strategies to appeal to this population include statistics, fear appeals, and pressure from people in the other adopter groups.

This example might be apt in expressing how diffusion of innovation worked in case of smart phone in America. The 2.5% Innovators were tapped in February 2007; one month after the iPhone was announced. They were all BlackBerry users. The Early Adopters (the 13.5% which followed the innovators) were all using smart phones by the beginning of 2010. They were served mainly by iPhone 3GS and Blackberries. The Early Majority (34%) were on board by October 2012, just in time for iPhone 4, Android, Galaxy. We see now the Late majority (34%) which will run out by November 2015 and Laggards (16%) would get anyways dragged to buy smart phones only when they go in to replace their old phones. The iPhone 5S came out about one third of the way through this period. So, Americans need more innovative smart phones as more than 50% market is already penetrated.

People are not born as particular a particular category of adaptors:

If a person in early adopter in case of buying a car or a smart phone, he might be late majority or laggard while considering a Post Graduation degree program. A person who might be innovator in watching any new movie might be laggard when it comes to investing in mutual fund. So it is not a hard and fast rule that people are born as innovators, early adaptors, early majority, late majority and laggards.

Factors which influence adoption:

While buying any product customers do look out for less complex products. Product description should be short and in simple language. People like compatibility with the product they buy. Compatibility refers to the offering’s philosophy, culture and values. In short, how easily can the customers integrate the product’s offering in their lives is important. Customers also look out for relative advantage of the product. This means how much improvement the new product is offering. Clearly, communication has a big role to play here. The product must be easy to try out. How easy the offering is to experiment with will have a big impact on adoption rates.  And last, but not the least peer influence matters a lot in adoption of new product and service even in case of early adaptors; built-in social networking such as face book, WhatsApp, Linkedin apps that update your timeline show friends using the product or services that prompt you to buy with a post or a tweet of theirs.

About two decades back when manufacturing dominated almost all progressive countries such as the UK, the US, France and Germany, the physical layout of production units such as factories was not very important to the end consumer because they never went inside the factory. However, today’s consumers are keen to know how goods are processed, what goes into it, how safe is the product for usage, the package, aesthetics etc besides the price of course. Today customers are becoming very demanding because of the dominance of e-commerce and retail chains in supply chain, and ever increasing substitution of products available to them.

The entire value chain is stressed to offer various facets in the product and that too for a multiple segments. Today’s customer seeks high level of presentation in the retail outlets; the retail business literally depends on visual merchandise for a perfect presentation, customers want to easily find their way around the store, and want an enjoyable shopping experience.

The importance of quality physical layout is important in a range of service providers, including: students going to college or university have far higher expectations about the quality of their accommodation, mentoring, and learning environment than in the past. As a result colleges and universities are forced pay far more attention to creating attractive learning environments, student accommodation, shops, libraries, playgrounds, bars and other facilities; which is of course good.

Air passengers expect attractive and stimulating environments, such as plush departure lounges, with activities for young children, good food on flight and efficient flight attendants.

Hair dressing and beauty salons are expected to provide pleasant waiting areas, with attractive reading materials, access to coffee for customers, good music and of course good beauty products and efficient beauticians.

While the fact is nobody likes to go to hospitals; but when they need to go patients these days expect services of five star hotels, good lounges, restaurants, helping and positive attitudes of healthcare workers, cleanliness and all under one roof services. If organizations ignore marketing, they find themselves lagging behind.

The man behind the four Ps was Jerome McCarthy. He suggested the 4 Ps classifications in 1960. McCarthy emphasized on product, price, place and promotion as the main four elements and just few about years back, Philip Kotler talked about shift from the four Ps to four Cs.  He expressed in one of his interview that the 4Ps have become 4 Cs because of the customer imperative, the value challenge, and the increasing value of mega distribution. The skills and talents of the marketing manager recline in making the offer to customers in the most attractive manner.  The Marketing Manager is no less than an artist; he has to proportionately add, subtract, replace, and centralize the elements of the mix – The Product; The Price; The Place and The Promotion. Hence, the marketing mix is a value-delivering tool of the marketing function.

One of the glaring challenges that most brands across the world face today is of lowering brand loyalty from the consumers.  The brands are ‘commoditized’ no sooner they enter markets.  At the consumer level, on one hand we are seeing an increasingly more globalised consumer – one who is tuned in almost real time to trends and aspirations across the globe.  Increased access to electronic and traditional media, the Internet, and more frequently (and more adventurous) travel outside the home frontiers are some of the factors that have led to the globalization of the average consumer. At the business level, the most challenging development is consolidation across all kinds of industries – be it travel, education, health, transportation, telecommunication, banking, consumer durables, or retail. The consolidation is not limited within the traditional geographical boundaries but is increasingly becoming cross-national and cross-continent; as a result, local and national brands are struggling literally to retain their identities in the consumer’s mind share. Many brands are living a very short shelf life.

The evolution has been brought in fundamental changes to the basic Marketing mix. Where once there were 4 P’s to explain the mix, nowadays 3 more Ps have added to layer of depth.

In the late 70’s it was widely acknowledged by marketers that the Marketing Mix should be updated. This led to the creation of the Extended Marketing Mix in 1981 by Booms & Bitner which added 3 new elements to the 4 P’s. The older 4Ps and 3 more new Ps of marketing mix are extended to both tangible and intangible products.

The extended 3 Ps are as follows:

People: Organizations are reliant on the people right from shop floor to the Managing Director. Having the right people is crucial because they are as much a part of business offering as the products/services offered by the organization. The three main tasks for employee engagement are: culture, managing style, and hiring. The performance and attitude of people can result in the success or failure of a business.

Processes: The delivery of a product or service is usually done with the best of management practice. The thumb rule for success of any product is that when the customer pays for the product/service he should feel satisfied. Most competitive organizations use 6 SIGMA tool for optimizing best product output. Continuous efforts to achieve stable and predictable process results by reducing process variation. Manufacturing and business processes have characteristics that can be measured, analyzed, controlled and improved. Achieving sustained quality improvement requires commitment from the entire organization. This happens particularly from top-level management. Six Sigma project helps a clear focus on achieving measurable and quantifiable financial returns. 6 Sigma works efficiently when an increased emphasis is laid on strong and passionate management. It doesn’t give room for assumptions and guess work.

Physical Evidence:  This refers to the way a product, service, and everything about the company, appears from the outside, or is perceived by the customer. The physical evidence is about packaging. It is about the presentation of an organization, person or thing in an advantageous way. In physical packaging the size, shape, color, material, UPC bar code, and label of the packaging matters as much as its aesthetics. This should be customer tested and updated when needed.  It should fall in line with organization’s other product offerings as well.  Packaging involves the visual layout, practical setup, and when needed for products, clear and precise installation instructions. Product liability insurance is needed in case anybody suffers any harm from the product. Engineering tests are also needed to make sure that the package can stand any break.  There may also be regulatory issues to consider. Visual packaging of a tangible product can make or break a purchase.  Small improvements in the packaging or external appearance of the product or service can lead to completely different responses from customers.

Is there place for 8^thP?  Some marketing experts are of opinion that the extended marketing mix should evolve of Productivity. It is about how well people combine resources to produce goods and services. It is about creating more from available resources, such as raw materials, labour, skills, capital equipment, land, intellectual property, managerial potential and finance. With the right combination, higher production, higher value and higher incomes can be achieved for every hour worked. Productivity helps in managing costs.

In conclusion, even after 54 years the original marketing mix cannot be ignored. It is applicable for every business every day. Jerome McCarthy’s well thought 4 Ps – Product, Price, Place and Promotion and additional 3 Ps added in 1981 by Booms & Bitner’s People, Process and Physical Evidence are the core of any business.  In my opinion, the 8^th P – Productivity should also be added to the extended marketing mix. And, a good marketer is the one who adapts the Ps  suitably to his offering.

Joseph Luft and Harrington Inghm – both American psychologists shaped a technique in 1955; this technique is famously called Johari Window. It helps people understand their relationship   with self and others. Please understand it is very important to have a good relationship with self; when we are at peace with self we can take precise decisions in life. It is the foundation of everything in our life. Having a good relationship with self helps us to improve our relationships with others. A good self-relationship enhances our capability to value our self as a person, which helps us to embrace our strengths and weaknesses easily. Johari Window helps people first to understand them better, and then improvising their vital relations in life.

Luft and Ingham called their technique/model Johari Window model ‘Johari’ after merging their first names, Joe and Harry. The Johari Window soon became a widely used model for understanding and training self-awareness, personal development, improving communications, interpersonal relationships, group dynamics, team development and inter-group relationships. This model is used primarily in groups especially in corporate settings as a heuristic exercise. ‘Heuristic’ means enabling a person to discover or learn something for himself/herself. In corporate culture and societies group dynamics matters for success of business or scheme; because group dynamics  can be useful in understanding decision-making behavior, tracking the spread of diseases, wrong information in society, creating effective therapy techniques, and following the emergence and popularity of new ideas and technologies.

When performing this exercise, subject (group member) is given a list of 57 adjectives and they are supposed to pick five or six that they feel illustrate their own individuality. Peers of the subject are also allowed pick five or six adjectives each that describe the subject. These adjectives are then mapped on a grid (framework). There are four Johari Window perspectives; they are called ‘regions’ or ‘areas’ or ‘quadrants’. Each of these quadrant or region contains and represents the information, knowledge, feelings, motivation, etc known about the person, in terms of whether the information is known or unknown by the person and others in the group.  It is observed that the exercise helps in understanding some inherent, instinctive potential of a person which the person himself or the group was not aware of.

Charles Handy, an Irish philosopher specialized in Organizational Behavior calls this model as Johari House with four rooms.

Room 1 is the part of ourselves that we see and others see. It is also called Open Area or Arena. Adjectives that are selected by both the participant and his or her peers are placed into the Open Area quadrant. In short, this quadrant represents information what you know about yourself and others also know about you. There are some character traits about us which are apparent, and even if we decide we can’t veil them. We work better when there is nothing to hide.

Room 2 is the characteristics that others see in the subject which he/she is not aware of. They are called Blind Spots. This quadrant uses adjectives used by the peers. The subject is not aware some of his characteristics which other see in him. This quadrant helps in making the subject aware of some of his characteristics which he has not realized, but others have seen it in him. This quadrant helps the subject to realize some of his unsighted characteristics. We often don’t see some of our traits which are “too close” to be properly seen; our ego and our self-worth covers up our deficiencies especially those that only the people closest to us can notice. There are people who keep rebuffing about their blind spots when brought to their attention. They react harshly, and do not acknowledge and correct their faults; such people eventually end up being hit with much bigger problems. Wise people accept their blind spots and try to correct them.

Room 3 is our private space; there are many things about us which we hide from others. It is called Hidden or Façade. This quadrant represents adjectives selected only by subject, but not by any of his peers. This information is private only to the subject; it is up to the subject to disclose this information or not.

Room 4 is the most mysterious or baffling room. In this quadrant the unconscious or subconscious part of the subject rests which neither he sees nor others. It is also called Unknown. Adjectives those were not selected by either subjects or by his peers remain in this quadrant; which represent the unknown characteristics of the subjects. This quadrant informs the group regarding behaviors or motives of the subject which were not recognized by anyone participating. This may be because they do not affect anybody or it can also be because of collective ignorance of the existence of those traits.

What is interesting about this quadrant is that the human potential of the subject which neither he nor his colleagues realize are veiled. It remains unknown. Human potential is limitless. It is sad that till end some people do not unleash their potential which is perhaps the biggest tragedy. When potential of some people remain underutilized it has reasons. Sometimes their ability is under-estimated, untested due to lack of opportunities, lack of encouragement, lack of confidence and training. Some lack the natural ability or aptitude to realize their potential that they possess. Some people have fear or an aversion to tap their natural instinct.  Some people repress their subconscious feelings, and some are conditioned to wrong outlook.

The aim in any group should always be to develop the ‘open area’ for every person, because when we work in this area with others we are at our most effective and productive self and the group becomes most productive too. The open free area, or ‘the arena’, can be seen as the space where good communications and cooperation occurs and is free from distraction, mistrust, confusion, conflict and misunderstanding.

When Johari Window technique is used in an organization for bringing in healthy work atmosphere, it is seen that established and mature team members tend to have larger open areas because of their experience and acumen than new team members. New team members start with relatively small open areas because comparatively new team members tend to share little knowledge. The size of the open area can be expanded horizontally into the blind space, by motivating and speaking actively by listening to feedback from other group members. This process is known as ‘feedback solicitation’. This exercise becomes effective when group members decide to use the opportunity for self help and helping other team members to expand their open area.  This they can do by offering response, perceptively of course. The size of the open area can also be expanded vertically downwards into the hidden or façade space by the person’s disclosure of information regarding his experience in life, circumstances and feelings etc. Group members can help a person expand his/her open area into the hidden area by allowing the person talk freely by pay attention to him. Team leader thus play an important role in facilitating feedback and confession among group members, and in directly giving feedback to individuals.

Don’t we all need somebody to tell us our blind spots? Johari Window will give you many “blind spot checkers.” Once these are identified, we can work out an action plan together. Organizations prosper when they promote a culture and expectation for open, honest, positive, helpful, constructive, sensitive communications, and the sharing of knowledge throughout the organization. If you look at successful organizations around or the best performing groups, departments, you will observe that they have a culture of open positive communication. So the moral of this article is to encourage individuals and organizations to work more in ‘open area’ to get best results. Open area stimulates better communication, resolves conflicts, reciprocation and gratification. And friends, healthy relationship with your colleagues can be one of the best supports in life. Good relationships strengthen our wellbeing and when relationships do not work, it drains us tremendously.

Importance of product positioning

There are a variety of definitions of product positioning, possibly the most common is: identifying and attempting to occupy a market niche for a brand, product or service utilizing accurate marketing mix strategy i.e. product, price, promotion and place (distribution).

 Positioning is an essential part of launching a product in the market. Positioning simply revolves around image of the product and its company. It creates a position for self in the minds of the customers and hence the term “positioning” is used. The fashion in which a product portrays its utility and its benefits in the minds of customers makes a difference in its standing in the market. Positioning strategy can change the perception of the product. A product stands out amongst an array of products on a shelf.

 Horlicks: it’s one of the leading malted milk drinks. Do you know that Horlicks came to India with British Army during end of World War-I; Indian soldiers of British Indian Army brought it back with them while returning home. It was given to the soldiers as a diet supplement. Punjab, Bengal and Madras Presidencies became early adopters of Horlicks and lot of well-to-do Indians adopted it as a family drink from early 1930s to 1950s. It was invented in 1873 by James Horlicks, the brand has been available in India for almost above 85 years.

 Glaxo Smithkline (GSK) has changed the positioning strategy of Horlicks as per the changing times. From being a drink taken only during convalescence the brand has repositioned itself since the seventies as a ‘great family nourished’ drink. It became a sort of status symbol in upper middle class and rich Indian families.  India, even today is by and far, the biggest market for Horlicks, here it has traditionally been marketed as ‘The Great Family Nourisher’.

The Indian formulation for Horlicks is slightly different than in most other countries; in India it is manufactured from cow milk whereas in other countries it is manufactured from buffalo milk.   Horlicks has added many new flavors in India such as vanilla, toffee, chocolate, honey, and elaichi. The current line-up of flavors includes original (malt), chocolate and elaichi and the latest offering is Kesar Badaam.

 According to an Economic Times Survey of 2004 Horlicks is the leading health food drink in India and as the “Most Trusted Drink Brands.” It enjoys more than half of the health food drink market. GSK has used brand rejuvenation after regular intervals by giving it a different packaging, product alteration in terms of flavors, new advertising tactics, a sturdy distribution and comparable pricing. Horlicks is going strong in India in spite of tough competition from Boost, Complan, Bournvita, Viva and Maltova.

 Horlicks jars occupy a visible position in many Indian and Bangadeshi households. The former sturdy glass jars are used to stalk grains, massalas, and sugar even today. They are so strong that they have lasted for over 2-3 decades in some households. Isn’t this one of the strengths of brand positioning? I recall this in my childhood women would buy Horlicks every month for two reasons one for nourishing their children and two for decoratively storing their shelves.    Successful segmenting, a focus on the target markets, innovating the product regularly as per changing taste of consumers, tinkering the product packaging design and shape has helped Horlicks’s positioning in the market for over eight decades. Most notably, its consistency in maintaining product quality and strengthening of essential nutrients has won over the trust of generations of mothers. The brand gives guarantee of nutrition and growth that all mothers seek in for the kids. With its superior taste and constancy in quality it has become the adorable brand among kids and mothers.

Positioning matters in how a product is defined by the marketer, what it does – its benefits, what it means and its effects in short, it must inspire the consumers. For a good positioning inventive and stimulating marketing communication is a must. Of course, the positioning involves product packaging and design aesthetics, pricing, performance, references and the media vehicles used for its promotion. Positioning therefore exists in the customer’s minds. People do not like to change a product if it matches their taste and comforts therefore, positioning must exhibit product’s relevance in terms of its usage, benefit and its credibility.

Ray Ban sunglasses have been reining the market for ages. Ray Ban had created its trade mark convincingly; its craft, its usage, its design and the price – it’s positioning is based on quality consistency and craftsmanship. It was the first brand of goggles which introduced the U.V and the post-red secure glasses in all the designs and gold plated frame in aviation segment. This added to its firm positioning. Post World War I the aviation sector saw a boom. The 1920s was a decade of remarkable advances. As a result of which air traffic grew tremendously. With the development of new airplanes that could fly higher and higher came altitude-related problems. Pilots were suffering from headaches and nausea because of glare and the great distances that they had to navigate. In 1929, General MacCready asked Ray-Ban for a new type of air force eyewear that would protect pilots from glare at high altitudes while at the same time ensuring a clear field of vision. The company took up the challenge and succeeded in developing a new pair of glasses with lenses that could block out a high proportion of visible light. This marked the birth of Ray-Ban’s first, green-lens ANTI GLARE eyewear. In 1936 the first model went on for sale to general public. They were featured in a plastic frame with the classic Aviator shape.

 The Ray Ban glasses come in various shapes and sizes; perhaps that’s why you see them protecting most eyes in the world. The product offers good quality, warranty and after sales service and hence people trust its credibility. You will see hoards of people using them while rock climbing, on beaches, while jogging or walking. Wearing Ray Ban glasses has become fashion trend. The elegant yet conventional glasses are sold all over the world. Its whole body styling defines the design and style contention into a conventional manner. Ray Ban sale comprehends the luxury and royalty; it adds to the dignity of the user. It comes in five variants of color shades. It offers feminine and elegant glasses for women. Its classic appeal with delicate frames, great colours and profiles are awesome. They are so elegant, that females can simply flaunt them. Ray Ban stands tall while giving tough fight to Maui Jim, Versace, Oakley, Persol, Tom Ford, Burberry, Prada, Revo and many more brands.

Product quality is the major aspect in positioning of a product. It consists of intensity and consistency of the quality, how it is perceived by the customers and the appeal. The features both physical and intrinsic characteristics contribute to its benefits. The design of the product adds to its appeal.

The brand name, logo, needs serious thinking by the marketer. The brand name contributes to positioning exercise. The power of the brand name cannot be underestimated.

Packaging helps handling of the product. For example in the example of Horlicks; its glass jar helped the positioning of it. People got so used to using the jar for storing household items that women would insist on buying Horlicks for collecting the jars.

Labeling incorporates the written information about the product and usually is printed on an adhesive sticker. Label is an identity of a product. It helps business promote their product and catch people’s attention. It is beneficial to consumers as it gives information about ingredients, price, manufacturing date, which help customers distinguish goods from one another.

The elements listed above add to the competitive advantages of the product; good and consistent quality, features, design, packaging, labeling and after sales service help in strategic positioning of a product. The positioning needs to be done by placing it within an obtainable category.

Before I finish, positioning idea must be clear in terms of both target market and degree of difference in advantages suitable to different segments. The target market should be clearly demarcated and identifiable in terms of demographic or geographic parameters, or a combination of both. When marketers cannot resist offering the product besides targeted market, the clarity of the communication becomes blurred; the value proposition of the products narrows down. This situation can create threat to the product’s existence in a market. Clearness, Constancy, Credibility, and Competitiveness – all 4 Cs are the inputs to successful positioning.