Foreword

The concept of the marketing mix has been a foundation stone in most academics' perception of the delivery of marketing knowledge. What this conceptualization of the elements of marketing fails to provide is directions on mixing. Practitioners, on the other hand, pay little heed to formal theories, if application does not flow from the theoretical statement. Many practitioners would agree that having the "right product at the right place at the right time" is a good formula for success. But how is what is "right"determined? Does one kind of right product demand a particular kind of right distribution?

Action research with a number of companies during the past eight years has forced me to confront the essence of, and differences between, practice and theory in marketing management. It is said that there is "nowt as practical as a good theory" but, in action, managers utilise heuristic devices to guide them through the decision process, rather than being able to develop the notion of the marketing mix as a decision tool. This particular series of cases is based on secondary research and a study of the literature and data in the public domain. In gathering the data for the cases, the effort and support of students in the fields of international business and international marketing at the Manchester Metropolitan University Business School are gratefully acknowledged.

Each case is supported by a "theoretical" analysis of how companies can adopt the marketing matrix approach in their decision making. The cases do not illustrate effective or ineffective management, but rather present a guide as to what putting a particular approach into practice can possibly contribute.

C. VignaliPrincipal Lecturer, Department of Food and Consumer Technology,Manchester Metropolitan University