Fusion for Profit: How Marketing and Finance can Work Together to Create Value

Citation

Shah, B. (2010), "Fusion for Profit: How Marketing and Finance can Work Together to Create Value", International Journal of Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Marketing, Vol. 4 No. 1, pp. 104-106. https://doi.org/10.1108/17506121011036051

Marketing and finance are concepts which are usually thought to exist in concordance with one another, but rarely as entities which can be collaborated in order to create a stronger business model, develop a sustainable strategy, and add immense value to an organization. Essentially, many believe that sound marketing practices will lead to profits and financial returns. While this may be true in some cases, Sharan Jagpal explores the otherwise unpopular notion that perhaps this relationship is based on reciprocity. Jagpal's book, Fusion for Profit, even goes as far as to say that if the relationship of marketing and finance is not explored as a functioning single entity, the value added to an organization will be remote, if at all. In this book, Jagpal entices the reader with real‐world examples from businesses across the globe which can be applied to almost any business situation. Japgal asserts that understanding the relationship between sound Marketing practices and their influence on the financial component of an organization, as well as vice versa, is imperative if one is own, operate, or function as an employee in today's fast paced and competitive business world. Sharan offers managers and executives a solid platform to explore a variety of business queries, which he explores through real world examples, free of jargon, and aids the reader's understanding by simplifying otherwise complex and cumbersome concepts.

The goal of Fusion for Profit is to integrate various aspects of businesses to form and operate as one cohesive entity, essentially adding to the value of the organization from a shareholder standpoint. This book can serve as an example for students in the academic world by fusing real world knowledge with textbook concepts. It can also serve as a handbook for business professionals across the globe, due to the many topics Jagpal touches on, which range from marketing policy, channels of distribution, product selection, consumer behavior, measuring productivity, brand equity, mergers and acquisitions, and international marketing. Through the real world examples Jagpal provides from companies such as Sony, Chrysler, Coca‐Cola, PepsiCo, MySpace, CitiBank, and Verizon, just to name a few, the reader can gain a broad perspective of how to apply a variety of business concepts to almost any business situation. Through Jagpal's clever use of “maxims,” which are sprinkled throughout every chapter, the reader can gain further insight into the particular topic of discussion. These maxims bring a “to the point” approach to Fusion for Profit and leave the reader longing for more. Fusion for Profit provides a sequential perspective which ranges from how a firm should select a short‐term marketing strategy, to product selection, pricing, bundling of products, methods of product distribution, advertising, and promotion, determining the budget for advertising, measuring the effects of the advertising, ways to motivate and compensate the frontline managers and sales force of a product, how to handle competitors, social marketing and its effects on consumers, marketing products through the internet, and lastly, marketing products in a global market. This book is one which would be extremely useful for product and brand managers, as it provides a step by step approach which begins with the brainstorming of a product and ranges to issues such as utilizing technology in product promotion and sales and marketing overseas. However, this book also proves to be useful for business minded individuals, entrepreneurs, students, venture capitalists, financial and/or marketing professionals, and those interested in obtaining a real world outlook of the business world.

Jagpal does an excellent job of prefacing each chapter with a broad introduction and concluding each chapter with a summary of key points and concepts one can gather from each chapter. He then responds by proposing a “food for thought” question which he presents to the reader in order to peak their interest. Questions are answered using examples and, when applicable, financial formulas as supporting entities to the real world examples he provides. Jagpal succeeds in offering a very real depiction of, literally, “the fusion” of marketing and finance and their impact on one another. The aim of his book is to demonstrate how these entities can function simultaneously to add value to any organization.

So what does this mean for other industries, such as the biotechnology or pharmaceutical industries? Jagpal's book has great implications here as well. First, pharmaceutical companies spend millions of dollars each year promoting pharmaceutical drugs and products. The concepts presented in Fusion for Profit, when applied, can yield tremendous results and add value to pharmaceutical companies by presenting them with sound marketing practices, globally and technologically, and aiding them in becoming stronger organizations overall. For example, Chapter 18 focuses on how an organization can make marketing decisions in a competitive environment. The pharmaceutical industry is an excellent example of the implications of competition and how necessary it is to provide cutting edge products in a cost effective manner due to the immensely large number of pharmaceutical competitors competing for consumer business today.

Second, the successful marketing of pharmaceutical products is necessary to ensure the survival and prosperity of a company in this industry. It is not enough for a company to present consumers with an innovative and useful over the counter drug without demonstrating how the drug can benefit their lives. It is not effective to spend millions of dollars formulating new pharmaceutical products if an organization lacks the skills to present these products to consumers. Jagpal's book offers insight into how an organization can accomplish exactly this. He explores and supports the idea that financials and marketing practices go hand in hand. When looking at the pharmaceutical industry, it is clear how this is the case. Fusion for Profit offers the reader many examples of how to improve their own businesses and add value to their organizations. The metrics that Jagpal describes in this book provides a modem platform for readers to have their questions answered by current examples, financial formulas, and just plain facts. This book is one which does require thinking and analysis on the part of the reader, however, is one which can be read cover to cover or by skimming through the chapters which are of most interest and relevance to the reader, the position in an organization, and their current circumstance.