Top Ten PDFs on Marketing

Though nothing in life is free, reports, newsletters, dissertations and guides in PDF on the Web, available at no charge, come close. And as most "free" things are made available for a reason, you should be cautious. Having said that, for the cost of toner and paper the following 10 PDFs are an information bargain.

The last part of the series includes PDFs about marketing, with eight specific to marketing at the individual company scale and two at the global scale. The first part of the series focuses on the design process, the second part on production, and the third part on sustainability.

To download any item click the cover image. As links on this page become obsolete, VCR will add new content.

SME eBusiness Case Studies:
O'Donnell Design

This Irish e-business case study has application worldwide. Skibbereen-based contract furniture manufacturer O'Donnell Design researched and developed methods of integrating their web marketing with a shop-floor production software.

Enterprise Ireland lists other SME services, including how-to-guides and another case study of Franz Caffrey, a reproduction furniture manufacturer.

Marketing Guide

Published by an agency of the British Columbia government in 2004, this report has broad application. It clarifies how "marketing" is different from "selling" and includes detailed sections on defining target markets, marketing strategies, research, pricing, promotions, advertising budgets and sales forecasting.

Expo Ideas: (Tradeshow Marketing Manual)

This 2001 guide from the Center for Exhibition Research is made available on the Expo Displays website and is an excellent reference for manufacturers planning their first trade show event. The report covers defining goals, booth/display selection, lighting, accessories, promotions, shipping and analyzing results. Cost-tracking forms and a glossary of terms are included.

Another manual is from Select Marketing Services.

What Virtual Reality Can Offer the Furniture Industry

Written by Hyunjoo Oh, So-Yeon and Jana Hawley of the University of Missouri, this 2004 report investigates the use of virtual reality (VR) software for marketing furniture. One of their conclusions is that consumers will be better served if they can view "virtual" room settings of furniture on a computer before purchase. The VR software also allows the consumer to see all the colours, fabrics and accessories available from the manufacturer.

Doing Market Research by Talking to People

This "Bootstrap" guide is for "enterprises with extremely limited resources of time, money and technical expertise." Ms. Lawrence provides step-by-step advice on how to conduct inexpensive research by setting up and doing the required interviews yourself. Also covered is how to establish a focus group of six to twelve people, the type of questions to be asked and the important role of the moderator.

Value Added Marketing Guide

This ambitious guide from the US Forest Service and Wood Education and Resource Center provides smaller-scale wood products businesses with nine chapters of "how to" information covering general marketing concepts and promotional techniques, online marketing and sales, regional branding of wood products, forest product certification and exporting.
 

What Makes Small and Medium Enterprises Competitive

This 2005 academic study from the University of Foggia, Italy, by Morone Piergiuseppe and Testa Giuseppina, relates to the competitiveness of Italian SMEs (83 percent of micro-enterprises in Italy employ fewer than 10 employees). Based on their survey of 2,600 Italian SMEs, the authors note the importance of networking beyond the manufacturer's region and innovation developed with the aid of external organizations.

Email Marketing

Email remains the most popular online tool, and this tutorial from Australia discusses how to use it to advantage. Email newsletters (provided people have agreed to receive them) are described as "a powerful medium to develop a relationship with your target market and existing clients." Included are sections on what to write, when to send, how to send, and how to incorporate calls-to-action in your communications.

The "Scandinavian Ideal" in Design:
Two Distinct Approaches to the Marketing of an Ideal

This paper investigates two apparently very different attempts to market Scandinavian furniture worldwide. The strategies of the Danish furniture industry from 1950-70 and IKEA from the 1970s to date.
 
 

Construction of an International Brand: The Rise and Decline of Danish Design, 1930-1970

This academic paper studied the modern furniture industry in Denmark over five decades. Hansen states that Danish Design as a "brand" reached a peak in the 1960s because of a "flourishing alliance between a group of talented designers, the traditional craft of cabinetmaking, a new functionalist trend in design and an elaborated network between architects, producers, intellectuals, organizations, etc." The reasons for its decline make interesting reading. (Update: Now in MSWord .doc format.)