Marketing Management Support Systems and Their Implications for Marketing Research

Marketing decision makers are responsible for the design and execution of marketing programs for products or brands. They operate under different names, such as product manager, brand manager, marketing manager, marketing director, or commercial director. They choose the target markets and segments for their products and services and develop and implement marketing mixes. Because of the proliferation of products and brands, the fragmentation of markets in an ever growing number of different segments, the fierceness of competition, and the overall acceleration of change, marketing decisions are becoming increasingly complex. Furthermore, decisions have to be made under increasing time pressure. Product life cycles are getting shorter, and competition occurs not only within countries but also increasingly at an international and even global level. New markets are rapidly opening up, existing markets are being deregulated, and new distribution channels such as the Internet have developed. The question now is, how can these decision makers be supported to become more effective?

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