Market research as warfare

The parallels between Marketing and War are provocative. Just as in modern Warfare where we see shifts to unconventional, low visibility, covert guerrilla operations, so there has been a shift in Marketing to below-the-line, viral communications, and one-to-one relationships.

Market Research As Warfare

Peter CooperCRAM International

Introduction

Marketing language 'strategy', 'tactics', 'targeting', 'campaigns', 'conquest', etc. all testify that we are at War even if we are hesitant to accept it. We are at War with ourselves, our Clients, our Respondents, and our competitors like management consultants. Our Clients too are at War, with their Competitors, within themselves, and arguably with their Consumers. By taking this view market research becomes more vital and relevant, it rethinks its role.

We start with a brief review of classical and modern Warfare Sun Tzu, Thucydides, von Clauswitz, Napoleon, Mao Tse-Tung,...

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