INTERNET EXERCISES

Chapter 2: The Environment for Marketing Decisions

Exercise 1 – Environmental Factors Affect Marketing Decisions
Exercise 2 – Small Businesses Can See the Opportunity

Exercise 1 – Environmental Factors Affect Marketing Decisions

Vignette: Vision problems are becoming more common because the Canadian population is aging. As more seniors use computers, technology vendors must work to keep their products accessible to this growing group of customers.

Featured URL: www.microsoft.com/enable/

An Opportunity Worth Looking At
Bess Lokach experienced sudden vision loss due to a relatively rare condition that strikes people over 40. Unfortunately, she is one of many Canadians experiencing vision problems as they age. Fortunately, technology to help overcome such problems is proliferating. It includes products such as software that enlarges the print on a computer screen or reads the contents of a computer screen aloud. Technology vendors recognize that our aging population is a growing market and thus a business opportunity.

Activity

1. Tour the featured Web site for Microsoft Accessibility. Note that it is seeking to serve people with a variety of impairments: visual, hearing, mobility, cognitive, and language. Go to the information section on visual impairments and note the large number of products listed that are compatible with Microsoft® Windows®.
   
2. Go the section marked “Microsoft’s Commitment” and read about Microsoft’s policies and history with regard to serving people with disabilities. Note also the research projects it is funding for future products. Microsoft’s interest in this market began in 1988. What prompted the company to recognize this business opportunity? What change in the political–legal environment in the U.S. in 1998 undoubtedly encouraged the company to continue its commitment?
   
3. It is likely that all five components of the marketing environment influenced Microsoft’s decision to serve disabled people. Based on the tone and nature of the Web site, as well as the specific information it contains, consider how each of the five components (the competitive environment, the technological environment, the sociocultural environment, the economic environment, and the political–legal environment) contributed to this decision. Remember to think in historical terms, particularly with regard to how differently people with disabilities are viewed now than they were even twenty years ago.

Resources

Agencies for the blind:

CNIB (Canadian Institute for the Blind)
This site includes a list of adaptive technology products available to make computers more accessible for the visually impaired.

NFB (National Federation for the Blind, the U.S. equivalent of the CNIB)
This site has a list of large-print software vendors in the U.S.

Other major companies serving the visually impaired market:

Chapters.Indigo.com
Large-print materials are available through the Web site

Amazon.com
Includes a section on large-print materials available through the Web site

Large Print Books.Com
An e-tailer of large-print books of all types for all ages

Exercise 2 – Small Businesses Can See the Opportunity

Featured URL: www.aroga.com

Smart Companies of All Sizes Take Advantage of Changes in the Marketing Environment
The Aroga Group is headquartered in North Vancouver and has been serving the needs of Canadians with disabilities since 1987. The company markets assistive technology products to people coping with vision loss, communication disorders, physical disabilities, and cognitive/learning issues. The company’s marketing strategies include state-of-the-art products, competitive pricing, and lifetime technical support via a toll-free telephone number.

Activity

1. Visit the featured Web site for the Aroga Group. Look at the section called “Corporate Information.” Which components of the marketing environment are of greatest concern to this organization?
   
2. Look at the most recent edition of Aroga’s newsletter. Which environmental components does it appear that this firm keeps track of and informs its customers about? What other components should Aroga also be monitoring on behalf of its customers?
   

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