Katharine Becks-Week 4 DB Marketing Management

Link:

: https://www.ifpri.org/blog/covid-19s-impact-chinas-small-and-medium-sized-businesses (Links to an external site.)

Synopsis:

The COVID-19 pandemic that started in Hubei province in China has greatly impacted the small and medium enterprises (SMEs). The SMEs in the country generates about 90% of employment and about 80% of the exports. A survey done by the ESIEC showed that the SMEs are unable to run and sustain business operations mainly due to the barriers experienced by the service sector. Actually, a majority of the firms surveyed indicated that they will be unable to sustain their cash flows in a month’s time. Barriers to performance include factors such as labor shortages following the nationwide lockdown meaning the supply chain is impacted. Also, the targeted consumers are afraid to go out and purchase products, especially foods. More so, activities, such as travels have been cancelled, leading to a major business performance issue. The impact varies as the manufacturing sector seems to do better than the service sector. The service sector will fully recover and run businesses normally after the conditions have normalized, which presents a significant problem for the struggling businesses.

Relationship to Course Material:

The article provides content that relates to the course materials. There are unforeseen factors and conditions that may impact business functions, such as marketing and management of cash flows. A marketer must be able to plan and prepare for conditions and factors that may hinder effective business performance.

Question:

In the modern business world, there are developments and events that may hinder business performance, such as the pandemics and the wildfires. A marketer may sometimes be unable to predict such occurrences. Is the marketer responsible for studying the marketing environment and make predictions that will help a business lower the impact of an unanticipated development? Also, following the occurrences, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, what measures or approaches can a marketer take to help a business survive?