"Work smarter, not harder"

What challenges do you see as forthcoming in the field of marketing management?

I think the forthcoming challenge to the marketing profession is to learn from change that is always recurring. If you think that the things will always remain the same as in the past, then you are mistaken. Consumers change their ideas, competitor’s change, and technology changes. We have to be alert all the time to change.

What particulars types of change?

For example, consumers today are always looking for new products. In the past they would buy the same product as they bought in earlier days. But today they often become tired of the same old products. Competitors are often coming up with lower priced products. For example, computer softwares, that were once very expensive are now very low priced. We see these kinds of changes even in services. Bank charges have become much less today than in the past.

Based on your observations so far, how do you evaluate the current marketing practices in Nepal?

I think, Nepal, in many respects, is doing a good job. But in order to really stay 100% competitive, I think changes will be very useful. For one, the use of marketing research will be of great value in finding out what consumers want. One of Nepal’s major industries is tourism. And I think, research needs to be done to find out what tourists want, and also to know how to promote, how to advertise, how to reach them. Many other countries advertise extensively to consumers. It is necessary to convey the image that Nepal is something different. Many people believe, I think, Nepal is a place to trek. Well, that’s right. But there are many other things here besides trekking – there is the beauty of the earth, the scenery, the people and too many things. People have to get the message that when they come to Nepal, they can do lots of things, not just walk to the mountains.

Nepali business targeted at foreign markets are facing the constraint of marketing budget. What you suggest them as the alternative strategy?

There are various good ways to do this. And I have told a number of my students and also some business people, that money is not the whole thing. Some companies spend large amounts of money on marketing and promotion, but lot of it is wasted because it is not done well. It is better to spend a small amount of money and do it smart. Work smarter, not harder. If you are creative and make your message different from others’ messages, you don’t have to spend a lot.

How can that be done, for example?

Certainly, it is being done by many firms today. You have to look at some of the firms that were very small when they started out. They spent little money on marketing and were able to become successful. When Bill Gates founded Microsoft, he hardly spent anything on marketing. But he was very smart, he did the right kind of marketing. He spent money on media that was not expensive. You don’t need to buy TV and expensive magazines. You can advertise on the Internet, on the radio. You can use personal sales people. But the key is not to think that you have to spend more. Because, if you have good advertisement, and you repeat it once, that can be better than a bad advertisement repeated a thousand times. That’s very important.

Would you please shed light on the green marketing that you have been talking about and how it is going to be relevant to Nepal?

Green marketing is the idea that consumers want to buy products that are environmentally sound. They don’t want to buy products that pollute, that destroy the landscape etc. More and more consumers believe that green marketing is important, and they’ll buy products that are green. So, if you have a product that is causing pollution, some consumers will not buy that product for that particular reason. In Nepal, you have such a beautiful country, and avoiding environmental problem is very important here.

Given that the level of environmental consciousness is very low here in Nepal...

I think the consumers should be informed about how important green marketing is. And this is something that the business can certainly do. Sometimes, the business people get so carried away by returns and profits that they don’t think about the heritage, the people and the country. But they have to remember that though profits are important, they are not everything.

Marketing in Nepal is sometimes blamed of encroaching upon the traditional cultural values. How do you see these blames?

I believe, only some marketers do that. Most of them don’t, because smart marketers find out what consumers want, and then they give them what they want. If consumers want food that is not good for them, marketers will provide it. On the other hand if consumers want healthy food, they will provide it too. The marketers can’t change the values of the people. What they mainly do is to supply goods that always satisfy the values that they already have.

It is also seen that those who encroach upon cultural values are more successful.

This is a difficult thing. Some people say that marketers should encroach. For example, when you sell healthy food, you may need to convince the consumer to buy it. May be, you should also convince the consumer to not hurt the environment. I’m not sure, but may be the marketer should ‘encroach’ under certain circumstances. But I think, marketers have to be careful and not to regard themselves as the boss. If you want to eat unhealthy food, you should have the right to do so. If you feel that you should do things that may not be in the interest of the society, I think, to some extent, you should be allowed to do so. But, other people say, "no, you should not". This is a question on which you find different opinions. But what is sure is that in order to succeed in marketing, you should satisfy the consumers.

With growing globalization, marketers in developing countries like Nepal are finding it more difficult to face the competition from developed countries. What you suggest them?

I think the countries like Nepal have to find the specific markets that they can satisfy the best. It would probably not be in Nepal’s best interest right now to try to start competing with computer companies like IBM, because that’s not where her strength lies. You’ve to find out where your strengths lies, what things you can do better than any other country. And there are some things that Nepal can do better than any other country. We talked about tourism before. Another area I think Nepal can do best is the tea. The tea in Nepal is delicious. I think you can sell it all over the world in large quantities.

What do you suggest Nepali managers and business owners?

They should not get carried away by computer technology at this point. Yes, computer technology is important. But if you put all of your resources into computer technologies and you put no resources in how to run business, you end up like the dot coms in united states where some technology people are running everything and they really don’t know anything about what they are doing.

Sometimes patriotism is found being used as a marketing platform, for example the Swadeshi movement is India. How do you see that?

Those countries that are doing it are almost forced into it. But the important thing here, though, is that India is much larger than Nepal. So, if the people here buy Nepali products and don’t buy Indian products it will not hurt India. So, I would say, "Consume Nepal Products".

But when we are targeting to sell the products also abroad, how logical would it be?

You can do it if they are doing it. A lot of countries are doing it. I don’t think that other countries will necessarily see it as anything bad.

What is ethical and what is not ethical in marketing?

If you are trying to satisfy your customers, and trying to do what is right for the society, it is ethical. If you don’t do those things, eventually the customers will find out that you’re dishonest. Then you’ll have trouble attracting good employees. The government may try to regulate you. With bad ethics, you may get by for short time, but after a while it catches up with you, and at the end you start suffering.

What major recent trends do you observe as going on in marketing?

The changes are coming big and faster. They are coming from every source. We can’t sit back and assume the past to be continued in the future. All the time, you have to look at the trends - what is developing, what new ideas the consumers are thinking about. We’ve to keep our eyes on what’s happening and try to predict the future.

In view of the present situation following the recent terrorist attacks in USA which is sending the world economy into recession, how should the marketers work?

They need to lay back a little bit, not worry too much, may be not spend quite as much money, and wait for this to blow over. Then, when it is as usual, go back to the business as usual. But right now, I say, don’t do lot of hurrying, just kind of take it easy for a while.

Or it may also depend on the kind of product.

Yes, this morning I heard in the news that some people in USA and in London are buying gas masks! So, if you are selling gas masks, may be it is a good market. Similarly, somewhere in Japan, I think, a person was reported selling space in a bomb shelter from the cold war period. But such products are in minority.

How do you see the possibility of similar prolonged recession as that of 1930’s being repeated now as a result of the recent terrorist attacks in the US?

No, this wouldn’t happen. This will be a minor recession, I predict, and this will be over, at the most, in six months, because too many forces are already stabilized – interest rates have been cut, some of the cut backs in production are apparently turning around, some factory orders are increasing, and certainly there is going to be military expenditure too.

Sectorwise, are there some products in which marketing will be easier now?