Marketing Supply Chain

Marketing supply chains are primarily governed by a process or "flow" that typically involves:

Creation – identifying and developing marketing materials to meet customer need and/or to support sales initiatives

Production – getting materials in their final form either through sourcing, printing or Web development

Warehousing – technology, storage strategy, planning

Fulfillment – order management, service standards, shipping & tracking Use/Consumption – how materials are used & displayed in the field and stored based on seasonality or product/ service availability

Feedback – collecting information for continuous refinement; from inventory reporting, management metrics, field/ customer feedback

Each of these functions requires high levels of coordination and support to ensure that they are managed effectively and also seamlessly integrated into the larger supply chain.

Over time, most supply chains can grow cumbersome and unwieldy as new partners, new products and new technologies are added, resulting in increased cost, decreased service levels and an overall loss of control. Some of the world’s largest consulting firms estimate that up to 60% of marketing costs are related to non-product ancillary areas (distribution, people, freight, storage, obsolescence, technology, inventory management, etc.).