Marketing information system

1. Start with the accounting system

A good place to start is the business system that every business has – the Accounting system. What information do businesses get from their accounting system that is useful to marketers?

1. Sales
2. Costs/Expenses
3. Profits

If the accounting software is well designed and flexible, this information can be sorted in a variety of ways including by (1) Sales person, (2) Product, (3) SKU (stock-keeping-unit), (4) Division or Region,  (5) Distribution channel, (6) Reseller, and (7) Season.

The information obtained from the accounting system is typically enterprise-wide and at a macro level. It usually does not give marketers, or their bosses, the information necessary to (1) determine the effectiveness of the organization’s marketing efforts; (2) enable it to react quickly to real-time crises and opportunities; or (3) respond rapidly to competitive threats. Some of the information that marketers need from an effective marketing information system includes the following:

1. Marketing strategy feedback (or how well marketing strategies are working)
2. Complaints
3. Compliments (testimonials)
4. New Product ideas
5. Competition information
6. Marketplace changes

To capture and properly respond to this information, most marketers need to create a Marketing Information System that augments the macro information provided by their accounting systems.

2. Market Information Form

To minimize paperwork, marketers can collect a lot of the information from the above list on a Market Information Form (or its electronic equivalent). The information collected and how this information is used is summarized below.

1. Complaints. Once collected, complaints are distributed to those that can solve the problem quickly. The objective is to turn the negative into a positive and build a stronger relationship with the offended party. The way companies handle complaints can mean the difference between success and failure in an increasingly competitive marketplace.
2. Compliments. After obtaining permission,marketers use compliments in their marketing communications. Nothing is more effective than bona fide testimonials from customers. Copies are also given to sales people so they can put them in their sales notebooks and use them to impress prospects and close business.
3. New Product ideas. These are fed into the company’s new product development system.
4. Competition Information. This is given to sales people to put in their sales notebooks so they can use the data to answer objections and close business (with the caveat of not disparaging competitors) and is fed into the company’s new product development system so that new products can be designed to beat competitors.
5. Strategy feedback. This information is organized by the marketing building blocks (1) corporate image, (2) positioning, (3) product, (4) pricing, (5) distribution, (6) promotion, and (6) marketing information system (yes we need to collect information as to how well our MIS strategies are working). Based on feedback, strategies are adjusted as necessary.

A pad of these forms (or an electronic version) is provided to all the contact points including (1) Receptionists and secretaries that answer the phone, (2) Sales people, (3) Customer service people, (4) Repair people, (5) Personnel that respond to inquiries and complaints online and on social media, and (6) accounts receivable (since they often hear about complaints when they try to collect on late invoices).

3. Lead Card

Leads are captured on a lead card or its electronic equivalent. Sales people use the lead card to follow up on a prospect’s interest with the objective of closing the sale. In addition to notes of all contacts, there are four main pieces of information that should be captured on the lead card.

1. Identification of the prospect. If you are selling to a business, most of the information you need is on your contact’s business card. For additional information you need, your lead card should be designed so you can add it with minimal effort.
2. Product interest. The products you typically sell should be pre-listed on the lead card so sales people can quickly check them off.
3. Degree of interest. This is your sales person's guestimate of how likely the prospect is to buy your product in the current period, which is usually this month. Because the degree of interest is also called “buying temperature” the metaphor for degree of interest that is often is used is Hot for the most interested leads, Warm for the next most interested leads, and Cool for the least interested. The “Hot” leads should automatically update another MIS report called the Hot List. 
4. Lead source. All promotion that you do should have a unique code so that when the lead is captured, you know what marketing activity generated the lead. This lead source should automatically update another MIS report called the Promotion Effectiveness report.by Abdallah Rebecca