Emphasis on customer value. Chapter 1 presents an enhanced emphasis on customer value, the role of brands and how they make firms accountable consumers, new products, the breadth of marketing and how it is used by many types of organisations, and examples from recent Australasian movies.

The role of the Internet and technology in marketing today. We recognise that the Internet and other digital technologies provide us with powerful new tools that can greatly enhance communication and commerce. From cover to cover, all chapters integrate coverage of e-commerce topics such as e-marketplaces, dynamic pricing, viral marketing, personalisation, multichannel retailing, eCRM, collaborative commerce, file sharing and peer-to-peer communication, cyberservices, Internet appliances, interactive television, online secondary data sources and virtual advertising.

Creating an effective marketing plan. Larrikin Kitchen’s marketing plan follows Chapter 2 in Appendix A, to provide context for the student through an early example of a marketing plan.

Overview of the marketing environment. Chapter 3 provides an extended discussion of the dramatic demographic and lifestyle trends developing in Australia, New Zealand and other countries, and the consequences for marketers. It also provides an introduction to current electronic business technologies and highlights the challenge of global warming for marketers.

Ethics in marketing. Chapter 4 is devoted to the topic of ethics and social responsibility in marketing. In addition, most chapters also integrate ethics coverage in the Ethics and Social Responsibility Alert boxes.

Consumer behaviour. Chapter 5 begins with current examples related to the stages of, and influences on, the consumer-decision process; it provides discussions of customer satisfaction and retention, and looks at marketing strategies for high- and low-involvement products.

Organisational buying. Chapter 5 concludes with a discussion of buyer behaviour within a business-to-business context and includes sections on online buying in organisational markets, e-marketplaces and online auctions.

Global coverage. Chapter 6 features discussions regarding the emergence of a networked global marketspace and the influence of the World Trade Organization on the global rules of trade between nations. In addition, the chapter highlights challenges that global firms face and provides strategic pathways for successful global marketing practices.

Market research technology. Chapter 7 includes discussions of current research techniques, such as identifying important cultural trends, and coverage of Internet survey practices, data mining, and the impact of research on marketing actions.

Australasian approaches to segmentation. In addition to providing a range of examples of firms that students will be familiar with, Chapter 8 illustrates a range of approaches to segmentation that have been developed in Australia and New Zealand for local businesses such as Needscope, NEOs, Experience Seekers and Roy Morgan Values segmentation.

New Product Development. Chapter 9 looks at the role that marketing plays in each of the stages of the product development process, and examines what leads to eventual product develop ment success and failure.

Brand equity. Chapter 10 includes the customerbased brand equity pyramid, which helps explain the relationship between brand awareness and how consumers think and feel about a brand. This helps students understand how the added value of a brand name gives a product a competitive and price advantage.

Channels coverage. Chapter 11 includes examples related to multiple channels of distribution, strategic alliances, vertical marketing, exclusive distribution, and satisfying buyer requirements. Current examples, such as ‘Dell Computer Corporation: A Responsive Supply Chain’, and ‘Woolworths: An Efficient Supply Chain’, are used to explain the role of supply chains and logistics management in marketing, and how a firm balances distribution costs against the need for effective customer service.

Retailing and wholesaling coverage. Chapter 12 discusses the trend toward house brands, popular retail formats such as franchising, and important new technologies, such as cashless vending systems.

Interactive and multichannel marketing. Chapter 13 provides a framework for thinking about and implementing marketing strategy in an Internet/Web-enabled marketspace. Emphasis is placed on interactive marketing practice and the growing application of multichannel marketing. Students will also find this chapter interesting because they will see how important it is for companies to forge collaborative channel relationships to improve their global market competitiveness.

Integrated marketing communication. Chapter 14 looks behind current highly visible communication campaigns to understand the process by which these campaigns are developed and how they form part of a multifaceted, integrated communication strategy.

Advertising coverage. Chapter 15 discusses virtual advertising, interactive television, satellite radio and Internet advertising. Up-to-date examples of the latest forms of promotion, including sweepstakes, product placement and online coupons, are also provided.