渠道销售的外文翻译---营销渠道和价值网络

毕业设计（论文）外文参考文献译文

原文出处：Marketing Management

设计（论文）题目：对我国汽车行业营销渠道的研究

姓名

学号 070808206

院（系）经济与管理学院

专业市场营销

指导老师

二〇一〇年十二月九日

Marketing Channels and Value Networks

Most producers do not sell their goods directly to the final users; between them stands aset of intermediaries performing a variety of functions. These intermediaries constitute a marketing channel (also called a trade channel or distribution channel). Formally, marketing channels are sets of interdependent organizations involved in the process of making a product or service available for use or consumption. They are the set of pathways a product or service follows after production, culminating in purchase and use by the final end user.

Some intermediaries-such as wholesalers and retailers-buy, take title to, and resell the merchandise; they are called merchants. Others-brokers, manufacturers' representatives, sales agents-search for customers and may negotiate on the producer's behalf but do not take title to the goods; they are called agents. Still others-transportation companies, independent warehouses, banks, advertising agencies-assist in the distribution process but neither take title to goods nor negotiate purchases or sales; they are called facilitators.

The Importance of Channels

A marketing channel system is the particular set of marketing channels a firm employs, and decisions about it are among the most critical ones management faces. In the United States, channel members collectively have earned margins that account for 30% to 50% of the ultimate selling price. In contrast, advertising typically has accounted for less than 5% to 7% of the final price.Marketing channels also represent a substantial opportunity cost. One ofthe chief roles

of marketing channels is to convert potential buyers into profitable customers. Marketing channels must not just serve markets, they must also make markets.

The channels chosen affect all other marketing decisions. The company's pricing depends on whether it uses mass merchandisers or high-quality boutiques. The firm's sale force and advertising decisions depend on how much training and motivation dealers need. In addition, channel decisions include relatively long-term commitments with other finns as well as a set of policies and procedures. When an automaker signs up independent dealers to sell its automobiles, the automaker cannot buy them out the next day and replace them with company-owned outlets. But at the same time,

channel choices themselves depend on the company's marketing strategy with respect to segmentation, targeting, and positioning. Holistic marketers ensure that marketing decisions in all these different areas are made to collectively maximize value.

In managing its intermediaries, the firm must decide how much effort to devote to push versus pull marketing. A push strategy uses the manufacturer's sales force, trade promotion money, or other means to induce intermediaries to carry, promote, and sell the product to end users. Push strategy is appropriate where there is low brand loyalty in a category, brand choice is made in the store, the product is an impulse item, and product benefits are well understood. In a pull strategy the manufacturer uses advertising, promotion, and other forms of communication to persuade consumers to demand the product from intermediaries, thus inducing the intermediaries to order it. Pull strategy is appropriate when there is high brand loyalty and high involvement in the category, when consumers are able to perceive differences between brands, and when they choose the brand before they go to the store. For years, drug companies aimed ads solely at doctors and hospitals, but in 1997 the FDA issued guidelines for TV ads that opened the way for pharmaceuticals to reach consumers

directly. This is particularly evident in the burgeoning business of prescription sleep aids.

SEPRACOR INC.

The increased use of prescription sleep aids is due not so much to an increase in the number of insomniacs, as to the billions of dollars the drug companies re spending on print and TV advertising. Consider Sepracor's ads for Lunesta, featuring a pale green Luna moth flitting around the head of a peaceful sleeper. Sepracor spent $2.98 million in consumer advertising in 2006, and its stock and sales have jumped due to its successful campaign. The drug industry as a whole spent more than $4 billion on consumer ads in 2005, more than a fivefold increase in 10 years. Its aggressive pUll marketing strategy has, however, prompted intense debate and scrutiny from Congress. After all, while aggressive advertising of Merck's Vioxx generated huge profits, it exposed housands of U.S. adults to heart attack risks. Critics of the new drug ads say the drugs they tout treat symptoms rather than spurring consumers to discover

the reason they can't sleep (which can range from simple stress to serious illness). Proponents of such ads say that in an era of managed care and shortened doctor visits, ads educate patients and spark important conversations with doctors. Although the

pharmaceutical industry is unlikely to pUll back, Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. has won some kudos for voluntarily banning ads during the first year new drugs are on the markets.

Top marketing companies such as Coca-Cola, Intel, and Nike skillfully employ both push and pull strategies. Marketing activities directed towards the channel as part of a push strategy are more effective when accompanied by a well-designed and well-executed pull strategy that activates consumer demand. On the other hand, without at least some consumer interest, it can be very difficult to gain much channel acceptance and support.

Channel Development

A new firm typically starts as a local operation seIling in a fairly circumscribed market, using? existing intermediaries. The number of such intermediaries is apt to be limited: a few man?ufacturers' sales agents, a few wholesalers, several established reta ilers, a few trucking com?panies, and a few warehouses. Deciding on the best channels might not be a problem; the? problem is often to convince the available inter?mediaries to handle the firm's line.

If the firm is successful, it might branch into new markets and use different channels in different markets. In smaller markets, the firm might sell directly to retailers; in larger markets, it might sell through distributors. In rural areas, it might work with general-goods merchants; in urban areas, with limited-line merchants. In one part of the country, it might grant exclusive franchises; in another, it might seJJ through aJJ outlets witIing to handle the merchandise. In one country, it might use international sales agents; in another, it might partner with a local firm.

International markets pose distinct challenges. Customers' shopping habits can vary by countries, and many retailers such as Germany's Aldi, the United Kingdom's Tesco, and Spain's Zara have redefined themselves to a certain degree when entering a new market to better tailor their image to local needs and wants. Retailers that have largely stuck to the same selling formula regardless of geography, such as Eddie Bauer, Marks & Spencer, and Wal-Mart,marketing strategy for Its entrance into 1M US. market to slock different national manufacturer have sometimes encountered trouble in entering new markets.

In short, the channel system evolves as a function of local opportunities and conditions, emerging threats and opportunities, company resources and capabilities,

and other factors. Consider some of the challenges Dell has encountered in recent years.

DELL

Dell revolutionized the personal computer category by selling products directly to customers via the telephone and later the Internet, rather than through retailers or resellers. Customers could custom design the exact PC they wanted, and rigorous cost cutting allowed for low everyday prices. Sound like a winning formula? It was for almost two decades. But 2006 saw the company encounter a number of problems that led to a steep stock price decline. First, reinvigorated competitors such as HP narrowed the gap in productivity and price. Always focused more on the business market, Dell struggled to sell effectively to the consumer market. Ashift in consumer preferences to bUy in retail stores as opposed to buying direct didn't help, but self-inflicted damage from an ultraefficient supply chain model that squeezed costs-and quality-out of customer service was perhaps the most painfuL Managers evaluated calf center employees primarily on how fong they stayed on each calf-a recipe for disaster as scores of customers felt their problems were ignored or not properly handled. Alack of R&D spending that hindered new-product development and led to a lack of differentiation didn't help either. Clearly, Dell was entering a new chapter in its history that would require a fundamental rethinking of its channel strategy and its marketing approach as a whole.

Hybrid Channels

Today's successful companies are also multiplying the number of "go-to-market" or hybrid channels in anyone market area. In contrast to Dell, HP has used its sales force to sell to large accounts, outbound telemarketing to sell to medium-sized accounts, direct mail with an inbound number to sell to small accounts, retailers to sell to still smaller accounts, and the Internet to sell specialty items. Staples markets through its traditional retail channel, adirect-response Internet site, virtual malls, and thousands of links on affiliated sites.

Companies that manage hybrid channels must make sure these channels work well together and match each target customer's preferred ways of doing business. Customers expect channel integration, characterized by features such as:the ability to order a product online and pick it up at a convenient retail location；the ability to return an online-ordered product to a nearby store of the retailer；the right to receive

discounts and promotional offers based on total online and off-line purchases.

Circuit City estimated in-store pick-ups accounted for more than half its online sales in 2006. Here's a specific example of a company that has carefully managed its multiple channels.

REI（Recreation Equipment Inc.）

What's more frustrating: buying hiking boots that cripple your feet, or trying on the perfect pair only to find the store is out of stock in the size or style you want? At Recreational Equipment Inc. (REI), the largest consumer cooperative in the United States with 2.5 million active members, outdoor enthusiasts can easily avoid both problems. In 90 REI stores across the country, customers are lighting up gas stoves, pitching tents, and snuggling deep into sleeping bags. REI stores are designed to give an experience, not just sell goods. If an item is out of stock, all customers need do is tap into the store's Internet kiosk to order it from REI's Web site. Less Internet-savvy customers can even get clerks to place the order for them at the checkout counters. REI has been lauded by industry analysts for the seamless integration of its retail store, Web site, Internet kiosks, mailorder catalogs, value-priced outlets, and toll-free order number. And REI not only generates store-to-Internet traffic, it also sends Internet shoppers into its stores. If a customer browses REI's site and stops to read an REI "Learn and Share" article on backpacking, the site might highlight an in-store promotion on hiking boots. Like many retailers, REI has found that dual-channel shoppers spend significantly more than single-channel shoppers, and that tri-channel shoppers spend even more.

Understanding Customer Needs

Consumers may choose the channels they prefer based on a number of factors: the price, product assortment, and convenience of a channel option, as well as their own particular ,hopping goals (economic, social, or experiential).As with products, segmentation exists, and marketers employing different types of channels must be aware that different con;umers have different needs during the purchase process.

Researchers Nunes and Cespedes argue that, in many markets, buyers fall into one offour categories.

1.Habitual shoppers purchase from the same places in the same manner over time.

2.High-value deal seekers know their needs and "channel surf" a great deal

before buying at the lowest possible price.

3.Variety-loving shoppers gather information in many channels, take advantage of hightouch services, and then buy in their favorite channel, regardless of price.

4.High-involvement shoppers gather information in all channels, make their purchase in a low-cost channel, but take advantage ofcustomer support from a high-touch channel.

One study of 40 grocery and clothing retailers in France, Germany, and the United Kingdom found that retailers in those countries served three types of shoppers: (1) Service/quality customers who cared most about the variety and performance of products in stores as well as the service provided; (2) Price/value customers who were most concerned about spending their money wisely; and (3) Affinity customers who primarily sought stores that suited people like themselves or the members ofgroups they aspired to join. As Figure 15.1 shows, customer profiles for these types of retailers differed across the three markets: In France, shoppers placed more importance on service and quality, in the United Kingdom, affinity, and in Germany, price and value.

Even the same consumer, though, may choose to use different channels for different functions in making a purchase. For instance, someone may choose to browse through a catalog before visiting a store or take a test-drive at a dealer before ordering a car online. Consumers may also seek different types of channels depending on the particular types of goods involved. Some consumers are willing to "trade up" to retailers offering higher-end goods such as TAG Heuer watches or Callaway golf clubs; these same consumers are also willing to "trade down" to discount retailers to buy private-label paper towels, detergent, or vitamins.

Value Networks

A supply chain view of a firm sees markets as destination points and amounts to a linear view of the flow. The company should first think of the target market, however, and then design the supply chain backward from that point. This view has been called demand chain planning. Northwestern's Don Schultz says: "A demand chain management approach doesn't just push things through the system. It emphasizes what solutions consumers are looking for, not what products we are trying to sell them." Schultz has suggested that the traditional marketing "four Ps" be replaced by a new acronym, SIV A, which stands for solutions, information, value, and

access。

An even broader view sees a company at the center of a value network-a system of partnerships and alliances that a firm creates to source, augment, and deliver its offerings. A value network includes a firm's suppliers and its suppliers' suppliers, and its immediate customers and their end customers. The value network includes valued relations with others such as university researchers and government approval agencies.

A company needs to orchestrate these parties in order to deliver superior value to the target market. Palm, the leading manufacturer of handheld devices, consists of a whole community of suppliers and assemblers of semiconductor components, plastic cases, LCD displays, and accessories; of off-line and online resellers; of275,OOO developers in the Palm Developer Network who have created over 21,000 software programs and 100 hardware add-ons for the Palm operating systems for handheld computers and smartphones.

Demand chain planning yields several insights. First, the company can estimate whether more money is made upstream or downstream, in case it might want to integrate backward or forward. Second, the company is more aware of disturbances anywhere in the supply chain that might cause costs, prices, or supplies to change suddenly. Third, companies can go online with their business partners to carryon faster and more accurate communications, transactions, and payments to reduce costs, speed up information, and increase accuracy. For example, Ford not only manages numerous supply chains but also sponsors or transacts on many B2B Web sites and exchanges as needs arise.

Managing this value network has required companies to make increasing investments in information technology (IT) and software. Firms have introduced supply chain management (SCM) software and invited such software firms as SAP and Oracle to design comprehensive enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems to manage cash flow, manufacturing, human resources, purchasing, and other major functions within a unified framework. They hope to break up department silos and carry out core business processes more seamless!y. In most cases, however, companies are still a long way from truly comprehensive ERP systems.

Marketers, for their part, have traditionally focused on the side of the value network that looks toward the customer, adopting customer relationship management (CRM) software and practices. In the future, they will increasingly participate in and

influence their companies' upstream activities and become network managers, not just product and customer managers.

营销渠道和价值网络

大多数生产者并不是将其产品出售个最终顾客，在生产者和最终顾客之间有一系列的营销中间机构执行着不同的功能。这些中介机构组成了营销渠道。一般来说，营销渠道是促使产品和服务顺利的被使用和消费的一整套相互依存的组织。他们是一个产品或服务在生产以后经过的一系列途径，从而使产品或服务经过销售到达最终使用者手中。

有的中间机构（如批发商和零售商）买进产品、缺的产品所有权，然后再出售，它们被称为买卖中间商。其他一些中介机构（如经纪人、制造商代理人和销售代理人）则寻找顾客，有时也代表生产厂商同顾客谈判，但是不去的产品所有权，它们被称为代理商。还有一些中间机构（如运输公司、独立仓库、银行和广告代理商）则支持分销活动，但他们既不取得产品所有权，也不参与买卖谈判，他们被称为辅助机构。

渠道的重要性

营销渠道系统是公司分销渠道中的一个特别组成部分，对于营销渠道系统的决策是管理者面临的最重要的问题之一。在美国，分销商们赚取了最终售价的30%-50%的毛利，对比一下，广告费用通常只占到最终售价的5%-7%。营销渠道实际上也是一项重要的机会成本。主要作用之一是将潜在的顾客转换成有利润的订单。营销渠道不仅仅是服务于市场，他们更要创造市场。

渠道选择会影响其他所有的营销决策。公司的定价取决于它是使用大商场还是高档的专卖店。公司的销售力量和广告决策也取决于分销商需要公司提供多少培训和激励。此外，渠道决策包括对其他公司所做的相对长期的承诺以及一系列政策和程序。当一个汽车制造商授权独立的经销商笑傲后其汽车的时候，制造商不能第二天就买回其景小区而代之以自己的经销点。但同时，渠道选择本身取决于公司基于市场细分、目标市场和定位考虑而制定的营销战略。全面营销者们确保这些所有不同领域的营销决策综合起来创造出最大的价值。

在管理中间商的时候，公司必须决定将多上精力分别用于推进和拉动战略。推动战略使用制造商销售队伍、促销资金或其他方法推动中间商购进、促销以及

销售给最终使用者。使用推进战略的情况包括在品类中品牌忠诚度较低，品牌选择在商店现场进行，出于冲动才会购买的品牌，以及商品的好处是众所周知的。在拉动战略中，制造商适用广告、促销和其他沟通渠道方式来吸引消费者向中间商购买产品，以激励中间商订货。拉动战略适用的情况包括高品牌忠诚度、搞产品摄入，即人们能够认知不同品牌间的差异以及人们在去商店之前就选好购买哪个品牌。多年以来，制药公司仅仅针对医生和医院做广告，但在1997年，美国食品及药物管理局办不了电视广告指导方针，开辟了医药品知己到达消费者的道路。这在处于萌芽阶段的处方安眠药行业尤为明显。

Sepracor公司

治疗失眠的处方药的增多很大程度上源于失眠症患者的增多，只是制药公司在印刷品和广告上花费数十亿美元。看看sepracor公司为助眠药lunesta所做的广告：一个灰绿色的月亮小精灵在一个宁静的睡眠者的头周围飘舞。Sepracor2006年在消费者广告上花了298万美元，它的股份和销售额也因成功的战略而大增。2005年制药行业在消费者广告上花费超过40亿美元，10年增长超过5倍。但是，其激进的拉动战略引发了激烈的争论和国会的注意。毕竟，在激进的广告带来的巨额利润的同时，它也使数以千计的美国成年人面临心脏病的危险。批评认为新药广告导致了关注治疗症状本身而不是激发消费者去发现他们不能入眠的原因（从简单的压力到严重的疾病）。广告的拥护者则声称在看护受到管理和医生治疗时间缩短的时代，广告教育了病人并且激发了他们与医生的重要对话。尽管制药行业不能回到原点，但Bristol Myers Squibb公司却通过自愿在新药上市一年内不做广告而赢得了声誉。

顶级营销公司，如可口可乐、因特尔和耐克，能够技巧性的使用推进和拉动战略。作为推进战略一部分的面向顾客的营销活动，当被辅以用于刺激消费者需求的经过精心设计和正确实施的拉动战略时，会更为有效。另一方面，没有一定数量的消费者感兴趣，要获得渠道的接受和支持也会十分困难。

渠道发展

新成立公司最典型的做法就是在当地有限的市场使用现有的中间商进行销售。这些中间商的数量是有限的：少数制造商代理人、少数批发商、几个零售商、少数运输公司和仓库，选择最好的渠道可能不是问题，问题是如何说服现有中间商为公司服务，

如果公司成功了，他可能会进入新的市场并在其他市场内各种使用不同的渠道。在较小的市场上，公司可能直接将产品卖给零售商：在较大的市场上，则可能会通过经销商。在农村市场上，公司可能使用特许经营；在另外一些市场中，

则可能通过其他的代理商来销售。在一个国家里，公司可能使用国际代理商；在另外一个国家，则可能与当地公司合伙。

国际市场会产生独特的挑战。消费者的购物习惯随国家不同而有差异，很多零售商，比如德国的Aldi、英国的Tesco和西班牙的Zara在进入一个新市场时，都在一定程度上对自身进行重新定义以使自身形象更适合当地需要和需求。那些不顾地理差异而固守同样销售模式的零售商，如Eddie Bauer、玛莎百货和沃尔玛在进入新市场时，有时遇到了困难。

总之，渠道系统的发展应视当地机会和条件、潜在威胁和机会、公司资源和能力以及其他因素而定。思考戴尔公司近些年来遇到的一些挑战。

戴尔（Dell）

戴尔公司通过电话和互联网而不是零售商直接向消费者销售产品，改革了个人电脑类别。消费者可以定制他们想要的电脑，而且因为成本被大大降低使其可以每天低价。这听起来是个成功的模式，从他诞生到现在经历了近20年。但是2006年公司遇到了一系列问题导致了股价的快速下跌。首先，渐渐复苏的竞争者，例如惠普，已经缩小了他们与戴尔在生产效率和价格上的差距。其次，由于一直更关注企业市场，戴尔不得不艰难的试图更有效的向消费市场销售。消费者的购买方式从直接购买转向在零售店购买对戴尔是个不小的打击，但更致命的伤害来自于其内部，过分强调效率的供应链模式积压了顾客服务的成本和质量。经理们评估呼叫中心的雇员接每个电话所用的时间，以解决消费者感到他们的问题被忽视或者没有被适当处理的问题。再者，研发支出不足使新产品开发之后并且导致产品差异化也行不通。很明显，因为这些问题，戴尔来到一个岔路口，需要从本质上综合重新思考其渠道战略和营销方式。

混合渠道

现今成功的公司也在增加市场的渠道数量或在一个市场中建立混合渠道。与戴尔相反，惠普使用销售人员向大客户销售，使用电话销售向中等客户销售，使用直邮的方式向小客户销售，零售商也向小客户销售，同时使用互联网出售专门产品。通过传统零售渠道、集市反应的互联网站、虚拟购物商场和数以千计的会员站点对市场进行分类。

那些经营混合渠道的公司必须确保这些渠道可以很好的结合在一起，并且与每一个目标顾客群最为匹配。顾客期望渠道整合能有以下特点：

在线订购产品在附近的连锁店拿货的能力；

在附近的零售商店退回在线订购产品的能力；

获得全部线上线下购买的折扣和促销优惠的权利。

根据环路城（circuit city）计算，2006年店内取货占在线销售量的一半以上。以下是一家公司谨慎的管理多种渠道的案例。

REI（Recreation Equipment Inc.）

还有比这更令人沮丧的吗：买来的徒步旅行靴伤了你的的脚，或者是当你在商店看到中意的鞋时却没有你穿的尺码？在REI，这个拥有250万活跃成员的美国最大的消费者协会，热衷户外运动的人们可以避免以上这两种情况。在全美90家REI的商店里，顾客正点起瓦斯炉，扎起帐篷，美美的睡在睡袋里。REI 商店提供一种体验，而不仅是销售产品。如果一种产品没有存货，顾客只需要进入其网站订购就可以了。对互联网不熟练的顾客可以到前台去叫店员来为他们下订单。REI的零售商店、网站、互联网购物区、邮购目录、价值定价售货点和免费订单号码被天衣无缝的整合在一起，令行业研究者称颂。而且REI不仅在互联网上开设商店，它也将网上购买者带到它的实体商店里。如果一个顾客浏览REI的网页并停下来阅读一篇名为“学习与分享”的文章，网站就会突出显示徒步旅行鞋的店内促销宣传。像许多零售商一样，REI发现通过两个渠道购物的消费者明显比通过单渠道购物的消费者消费得多，而通过三个渠道消费的消费者则消费的更多。

了解消费者需要

消费者可能基于以下一系列因素来选择偏好的渠道：价格、产品分类和渠道便利性以及他们特殊的购物目标（经济、社会或者体验）。与产品存在细分市场一样，使用多种不同类型的渠道的营销者必须意识到，在购买过程中，不同的消费者有着不同的需要。

努涅斯（Nunes）和塞斯普斯特（Cespedes）认为，在许多市场中，购买者不外乎以下四类：

1.习惯性购买者。总是在相同的地方用相同的方式进行购买。

2.高价值交易搜寻者。知道自己的需要，并在未取得最低可能价格以前进行“渠道冲浪”。

3.多样性喜好购买者。在许多渠道收集信息，利用高接触渠道的服务，然后在最喜欢的渠道购买，而不在乎价格。

4.高涉入型购买者。在所有渠道收集信息，在低成本渠道购买，但也会利用高接触渠道的顾客支持。

一项针对法国、德国和英国40家食品和衣服零售商的研究发现，这些国家的零售商服务于三种购买者：（1）服务/质量型消费者：最看重多样性和产品表

现以及提供的服务；（2）价格/价值型消费者：最关心怎样明智的消费；（3）关系紧密型消费者：只要寻求特别的商店，这些商店主要服务于与他们相近的人群或者那些他们想要加入的群体的成员。消费者构成在法德英三个市场的两类零售商中有所不同：在法国，消费者认为服务和质量更重要，在英国则是关系紧密型为主，而在德国是价格和价值型为主。

即使是同一消费者，在购买时对于不同的功能也可能使用不同的渠道。例如，有的消费者可能在光临一家商店以前先浏览目录或者在网上订购汽车以前在经销商处试驾。消费者也可能根据特定产品类型来选择不同类型的渠道。有的消费者愿意到提供高端产品的零售商处买更高价的东西，例如豪雅（TAG Heuer）手表或者卡拉威（Callaway）高尔夫球杆；这些消费者也为了省钱而愿意到折扣商店去买商店自有品牌的纸巾、清洁剂或维他命。

价值网络

传统的供应链观点认为，公司把市场作为目标点，并把供应链作为一个现行流程。然而，公司应该首先选好目标市场，然后再从目标市场那一点开始向后涉及供应链，这被称为需求链计划。美国西北大学的唐.舒尔茨（Don Schultz）说：“需求链管理方式并非是通过系统把产品推销出去。它强调顾客在寻找什么解决方案，而非我们能卖给他们什么产品。”舒尔茨认为传统的4P营销理论应该被新的SIVA理念代替，即解决方案、信息、价值和途径（stands forsolution，information，value和access）。

更广泛的观点是把公司看作价值网络（value network）——公司为获得原始资源、扩展自己和交付货物而建立的合伙人和联盟合作系统。价值网络包括公司的供应商和供应商的供应商以及它的下游客户和最终顾客。价值网络还包括其他有价值的关系，如与大学里的研究人员和政府机构的关系。

公司需要很好的利用这些资源来更好地为目标市场传递价值。奔迈公司（Palm Inc.）是著名的掌上电脑制造商。它拥有包含半导体、塑料盒、LCD显示屏和其他附件在内的多个供应商“团体”，同时又聚集了在线和离线的再销售商，275000个开发商为奔迈操作系统的掌上电脑和智能手机创造了多达21000钟软件程序和100个硬件附件。

需求链计划可以帮助公司认识到一些问题。首先，当公司想要前向或后向一体化时，他可以估计出向上游或下游扩展是否更有利可图。其次，公司可以了解供应链中那些随处会导致成本、价格或供应突然变化的干扰因素。第三，公司可以通过互联网与合作伙伴进行更快速、准确的沟通、交易和支付，这将有助于降低成本、加速信息流动和提高准确性。例如，福特公司不但要处理很多供应链，

而且要在许多B2B网站和交换台上作为赞助商或交易商。

管理这个价值网络需要公司在信息技术和软件上花费越来越多的投资。它们邀请软件公司，诸如SAP和甲骨文（Oracle）公司设计综合性企业资源计划，管理现金流、生产、人力资源、采购和其他处于同一个完整框架中的功能块。它们希望打破部门分割，更有效地实施其核心业务。然而在大多数长河中，公司远没有达到真正的综合性ERP系统的标准水平。

营销者往往都将注意力集中在价值网络的消费者部分，采用顾客关系管理软件和实践。未来，它们将更多的参与和影响公司更上游的活动，成为网络的管理者，而不仅仅是产品和客户的管理者。