SALES MANAGEMENT

Assignment#2

SUBMITTED BY: MUHAMMAD BILAL

ENROLLMENT NO: 01-111081-082
CLASS: BBA 7

SUBMITTED TO: SIR Atif

DATED: 23-4-2011
Case 1-1

Scripto, Inc.

Question#1: Does the announced new marketing orientation represent any real change from the
company’s historical orientation?

New market orientation brought significant change, in the past Scripto had placed greatest emphasis on
sales. This often resulted in the overall marketing plan being formed around the sales plan with
marketing relegated to a position of less significance than sales. The company eliminated market
research and the advertising program was greatly curtailed. Since there was something of a
preoccupation with sales at the expanse of marketing, there was no market orientation and thinking
uniting the various element of the marketing mix into a coordinated program. After Scripto was acquired
by Tokai seiki the management orientation shifted from sales to marketing. Due to this change in market
orientation the company had writing instrument and lighter’s sales of $170 million in 1984. In 1980 it
had only 8 percent of that market but by 1985 it sold 24 percent of the 500 million lighters sold
nationally. Before the advent of Electra Lighter Company did not spent that much amount on
advertising but after the announced new market orientation company introduced new Electra lighter
with an advertising budget of $ 5 million it’s more than had been spent on lighter advertising.

Question#2: To what extent the historical boom and bust performance of Scripto in its markets been
the result of managerial mistakes or is it characteristic of the industries involved?

Managerial performance had huge impact on boom and bust performance of Scripto. Until the late
1950s Scripto was successful and profitable in the writing instrument industry however due to
managerial deficiencies and ill advised decision on capital expenditures and new product at time when
competition made such decisions crucial, the company began to slide downward. Due to these
managerial deficiencies by 1964 Scripto’s share of the writing -instrument market had declined to 10
percent from high of 16 percent few year earlier and at the same time Scripto dropped from second to
fifth place in sales volume. After 1964 under new management Scripto spent heavily to improve
production facilities, diversified its investments, reorganized management personnel and positions and
gave new emphasis to the marketing program. The result was a reversal of Scripto’s slide with sales
increasing by 40 percent in two years. All this shows that managerial expertise and managerial
deficiencies result in the boom and bust performance of scripto.