The object of business is to create a customer.

  “The object of business is to create a customer.“ – Peter Drucker Economic development is a complex and multidimensional process that invo...

 

“The object of business is to create a customer.“ – Peter Drucker Economic development is a complex and multidimensional process that involves changes in the social culture, value system and national public and private institutions, but is primarily determined by economic growth and efficient allocation of resources. For years now, the common denominator of the ten most competitive economies in the world are good institutions, sound macroeconomic policies, accompanied by superb educational system, and focus on technology development and spur innovation through the development of the business sector. Republic of Macedonia is not isolated from the globalization changes and despite the fact that as a small economy it cannot have a huge impact on their total flow, at the same time it doesn’t mean that it should occupy the role of a passive observer. The so-called Information era justifiably considers that the greatest success in development will have those with the best strategy, strategy built on quality information,

 that creates the path for active involvement and monitoring of the current flows of globalization. The recession, although it seems that way, is not the time for deceleration and reduction of marketing activities, on the contrary, it is the time to increase and accelerate them. Those who are prepared to quickly and effectively carry out the plans, are those that will win on the long run. If we look upon the basics of the marketing concept, which requires the organization to be set in a way that will insure the satisfaction of the consumer, rather than it will increase the profits, then we can assume that the best way to discover the real desires, preferences and needs of the consumer is to simply ask, i.e. explore. Marketing as a business philosophy is actually a process which is presumed to be found to satisfy and retain customers, and in another parallel to make profits from the operations, in which the central focus is on the consumer and his relationship with the product, i.e. his opinion whether the product / service can meet the need or desire. Market research is an imperative for any company that wants to find out more about its current and potential customers, their desires, needs and wants and where, how and when do they express them. Well-conducted market research can show the current problems with the product or service, find areas for expansion of current products, the trends that can affect the level of sales and profits, and allows the firm to create a detailed marketing plan or to measure the performance of an existing one.

 Confectionery companies are constantly struggling to catch the attention of consumers, with improvements of the quality of products, making the package more attractive, promoting it in a more interesting way etc. Many companies in Macedonia identify their competitors from industrial point of view, but instead of this narrow view, the company should identify its competitors from a market perspective, where the focus is shifted from companies that offer products that are near each other on companies that strive to meet the same consumer group.

 It is often the case that companies have a false idea about current market conditions, such as believing that they are producing the best quality in the industry, supporting the general opinion that customers prefer companies with full product lines, that sale force is the only worthy marketing tool or that price is the key factor for purchase and building a strong brand is not an imperative. Such understanding of the market must be revised, because only through meeting the real needs and desires of the consumer the company can eventually become the market leader. The experience of the countries with a long market tradition guarantees the significance of market research, especially in fast moving consumer goods such as food products, or chocolate in particular, as a key element for achieving business success. METHODOLOGY This paper is designed to assist chocolate sales and marketing staff of companies in tailoring a marketing strategy for repositioning or entering the Macedonian chocolate market. The information contained in this report was obtained from both primary and secondary research. Primary research entailed research and follow up consultation with 40 both domestic and foreign companies from the industryi through telephone interview and electronic questionnaires sent via e-mail and on-site examination of the retail milieu. The consumer research with the technique of personally distributed structured questionnaires. Regarding consumer, the statistical sample used in the research was intentional sample of 300 units. The questionnaire was designed in a way to provide both quantitative and qualitative information about consumer preferences, needs, attitudes and feelings toward chocolate as a product and the chocolate market and industry in general. Secondary research entailed data gathering from relevant trade, business, and government sources, including company literature and corporate annual reports. The analysis of the data was executed with the help of Microsoft Office Excel.