8002MMGT-Marketing Management

1.The phrase ‘exchange relationship’ in the context of marketing is the synthesis of two different marketing concepts. Therefore, understanding the meaning of the term requires understanding the two concepts that are hinted in the term. Exchange is the basic process of marketing, where the company offers the customers what they need or want in exchange of money. When the company provides goods or service to the customers to satisfy their needs and wants, it expects that the customers would in return satisfy its needs of profit too. On the other hand, relationship in marketing points to the relationship that the company builds with the customers through various actions of marketing. The company puts efforts into building trusted relationships with the customers in order to turn them from one-time customers to loyal customers (Kaynak, Wong & Leung, 2013). In business, it is crucial to create loyal customer base as it provides fixed customers. Turning the one-time customers into long-term customers depends on the actions that the company takes in the process of exchange. Therefore, the term ‘exchange relationship’ means creating and sustaining a trusted relationship between the company and the customer through the process of marketing in order to make the business profitable for both the parties (Christopher, Payne & Ballantyne, 2013).

 The aim of exchange relationship is to create a relationship with customers and retain that customer. In order to do that it has to turn a customer making a simple marketing exchange into a buyer repetitively purchasing from the same company (Hennig-Thurau & Hansen, 2013). This could be done in multiple ways but the primary focus always should be on the customer satisfaction. Providing products that benefit the customers and are within their budget would make that company reliable to them. Showing concerns for the customers would make them value the company even more and create a personal bond. Customer satisfaction depends on the quality of the products and service (Orel & Kara, 2014). When the customers are satisfied they will return to the shop again to purchase, and in addition, will refer to other people such as family members, friends and acquaintances. In this way, a company could not only hold a loyal customer base, but also increase the number of customers through them. Therefore, a company can create valued relationships with the customers in exchange for quality products and attentive service.

2.Started in 1946, Tupperware has grown into a successful business extending in more than 80 countries (tupperwarebrands.com, 2018). The success of the company is not only its products but also its unique business model. The company believes in women empowerment and hence, gives opportunities to women to strengthen themselves economically by joining the Tupperware company (Tandon & Sharma, 2018). The company’s business model is to rely on women running their own businesses as agents of Tupperware (Nielsen & Lund, 2015). China and India, both countries re expanding economically and that is why every multinational company is eyeing the market of these two countries. Following that, Tupperware is seeing potential markets in India and china, and exporting successfully to these countries. However, there are more reasons for which the company finds the markets of these two countries attractive.

Firstly, the markets of both these countries are growing fast on a global scale and have the structures to provide sustainable business opportunities for global brands. The developing markets are more focused on the food products, clothes and personal care items, which perfectly fits the company productline. Secondly, both these markets have potential consumer base to sell the company products as the people in these countries have been using metal and glass containers that have their own disadvantages. Tupperware changed the habit of food storage in many countries before entering to China and India. Therefore, it saw a business opportunity in the growing market of these countries. China and India are the two most populated countries in the world, and most of that are middle class. Therefore, the people, particularly the women of these countries can be highlighted as the third factor as the business model of Tupperware focuses on women. The women only business model of the company was accepted easily in the societies of these countries as it offers women business opportunities in a safe setting and with flexibility of time and place. On the other hand, the women also wanted recognition and to contribute in the family financially. Fourth point is that the popular Tupperware parties (Henderson, 2017) effortlessly became popular among the homemakers where they can share and advise on cooking recipes and discuss health tips.

3.In this age of growing environmental issues, several companies as well as people are recognising the significance of a sustainable environment. Therefore, the paradigm of business is shifting from only profit making to an environmentally sustainable business building (Nadanyiova & Kliestikova, 2017). This growing concern has given birth to the concept of green marketing. In order to satisfy the consumer demand for eco-friendly products, packaging and business, many companies are modifying the design of the products and services, changing the process of production and packaging, and modifying the advertisements. This growing demand of ‘green’ products also created the concept of greenwashing. When a company deceptively promotes its products and services, policies and aims are environmentally sustainable, it is called greenwashing.

The basic difference between two concepts is in their approach – while one honestly tries to change, the other only present itself as changed. Green marketing is a kind of marketing approach of not only refocusing and adjusting existing marketing practices, but also of challenging those approaches in order to figure out a significantly novel perspective (Charter, 2017). On the other hand, companies often change the name of a product into a name that evokes the idea that the product is ‘green’ or ‘organic’, even though the product contains harmful ingredients and chemicals. Companies that create substantial amount of pollution even spend more amount of money on advertisement campaigns to promote itself as environmentally friendly companies. These techniques of greenwashing are causing mistrust in the consumers, as they doubt any company that is claiming to be ‘green’ or ‘eco-friendly’.

However, the differences that would help differentiating between green marketing and greenwashing are –

• In greenwashing the information are vague and can even be false, but in green marketing the information are clear and accurate.
• The information provided by the company may be true but irrelevant in green washing, but in green marketing the information are always relevant.
• While claiming to be ‘green’, green marketing provides facts related to environmental protection but greenwashing does not.
• Greenwashing claims eco-friendly properties that are not proven, green marketing provide proven descriptions.

References

Charter, M. (2017). Greener marketing: A responsible approach to business. Routledge.

Christopher, M., Payne, A., & Ballantyne, D. (2013). Relationship marketing. Routledge.

Henderson, E. (2017). How Tupperware’s fate was sealed. Retrieved from https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/how-tupperware-s-fate-was-sealed-a7899771.html

Hennig-Thurau, T., & Hansen, U. (Eds.). (2013). Relationship marketing: Gaining competitive advantage through customer satisfaction and customer retention. Springer Science & Business Media.

Kaynak, E., Wong, Y. H., & Leung, T. (2013). Guanxi: Relationship marketing in a Chinese context. Routledge.

Nadanyiova, M., & Kliestikova, J. (2017). Green Marketing vs. Greenwashing. How to protect against Negative Impact of Greenwashing? (No. jmmr128). Global Academy of Training and Research (GATR) Enterprise.

Nielsen, C., & Lund, M. (2015). The concept of business model scalability.

Orel, F. D., & Kara, A. (2014). Supermarket self-checkout service quality, customer satisfaction, and loyalty: Empirical evidence from an emerging market. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 21(2), 118-129.

Tandon, R., & Sharma, N. P. (2018). Empowering women through direct marketing: a case of tupperware. International Journal For Technological Research In Engineering, 140-144.

Tupperware - Heritage - About Us. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.tupperwarebrands.com/company/heritag