【正文】 Chapter 3: Gathering Information and Scanning the EnvironmentGATHERING INFORMATION AND SCANNING THE ENVIRONMENT3 C H A P T E R LEARNING OBJECTIVESAfter reading this chapter, students should:q Know what are the ponents of a modern marketing information systemq Know what are useful internal records q Know what is involved with a marketing intelligence systemq Know what are the key methods for tracking and identifying opportunities in the macroenvironmentq Know what are some important macroenvironment developments CHAPTER SUMMARY To carry out their analysis, planning, implementation, and control responsibilities, marketing managers need a marketing information system (MIS). The role of the MIS is to assess the manager’s information needs, develop the needed information, and distribute that information in a timely manner.An MIS has three ponents: (a) an internal records system that includes information on the ordertopayment cycle and sales reporting systems。 (b) a marketing intelligence system, a set of procedures and sources used by managers to obtain everyday information about pertinent developments in the marketing environment。 and (c) a marketing research system that allows for the systemic design, collection, analysis, and reporting of data and findings relevant to a specific marketing situation. Many opportunities are found by identifying trends (directions or sequences of events that have some momentum and durability) and megatrends (major social, economic, political, and technological changes that have longlasting influence).Within the rapidly changing global picture, marketers must monitor six major environmental forces: demographic, economic, socialcultural, natural, technological, and politicallegal. In the demographic environment, marketers must be aware of worldwide population growth。 changing mixes of age, ethnic position, and educational levels。 the rise of nontraditional families。 large geographic shifts in population。 and the move to micromarketing and away from mass marketing. In the economic arena, marketers need to focus on ine distribution and levels of savings, debt, and credit availability. In the socialcultural arena, marketers must understand people’s views of themselves, others, organizations, society, nature, and the universe. They must market products that correspond to society’s core and secondary values, and address the needs of different subcultures within a society. In the natural environment, marketers need to be aware of raw material shortages, increased energy costs and pollution levels, and the changing role of governments in environmental protection.In the technological arena, marketers should take into account the accelerating pace of technological change, opportunities for innovation, varying Ramp。D budgets, and the increased governmental regulation brought about by technological change. In the politicallegal environment, marketers must work within the many laws regulating business practices and with various specialinterest groups. OPENING THOUGHT Students new to the discipline of marketing will probably be surprised at the level of marketing information, intelligence, and arenas that marketing managers must operate within. The instructor is encouraged to stress that the marketing of products/services and the processes of making marketing decisions do not operate without careful consideration to the environments identified in this chapter. Today, marketers must be cognizant of “how” their product or service is perceived as much as “how” it functions. In many cases, the chief marketing executive of the firm can sometimes see himself/herself as a player in the game of chess. Each move must be carefully chosen for subsequent moves by petition and public scrutiny for acceptance or rejection. Products marketed must meet both the consumers’ needs as well as the publics’ acceptances of the product. The instructor’s challenge for this chapter is to municate to the students the plexity of and sometimes the conflicting forces impacting marketing managers in the 21st century. TEACHING STRATEGY AND CLASS ORGANIZATIONPROJECTS1. Semesterlong marketing plan: Competitive information and environmental scanning project(s) pleted and presented for instructor’s review 2. Commission a marketing research study on topic(s) of interest to the students at your institution. During the course of the semester (15–16 week), have the students develop the questionnaire, collection method, conduct the survey, and tabulate the results. The students can be divided into groups for this project. Suggested topics can include the school or university students’ opinions of campus issues such as the athletic program, sale of alcohol, use of and availability of technology, or students’ perceptions of their current education experiences. 3. Sonic PDA Marketing Plan Marketing information systems, marketing intelligence systems, and marketing research systems are used to gather and analyze data for various parts of the marketing plan. These systems help marketers examine changes and trends in markets, petition, customer needs, product usage, and distribution channels. Some changes and trends may turn up evidence of opportunities or threats.Sonic has developed information about the petition and petitive situation, but Jane Melody believes more information is needed in preparation for launching the first PDA. Based on the marketing plan contents discussed in Chapter 2, how can you use MIS and marketing research to support the marketing planning for the new PDA. For which sections of the plan will you need secondary data? Primary data? Why do you need information for each section? Where can you find secondary data that will be useful? Identify two Internet sources and two nonInternet sources. Describe what you plan to draw from each source, and indicate how you will use t