MARKETING CHANNELS AND THE SUPPLY CHAIN

The nature and importance of marketing channels:

 * Marketing channel or distribution channel – a set of interdependent organizations that help make a product or service available for use or consumption by the consumer or business user How channel members add value:

 * Producers use intermediaries b/c they create greater efficiency in making goods available to target markets thru contacts, experience, specialization. * Having a distributor deduces the number of contacts the manufacturer needs * Functions preformed by marketing channels:

* Information Promotion

* Contact Matching

* NegotiationPsychical distribution

* Financing Risk taking

Channel Levels

* Channel levels: a layer of intermediaries that performs some work in bringing the product and its ownership closer to the final buyer * The number of intermediary levels indicates the length of channel * Direct marketing channel: a marketing channel that has no intermediary levels * Indirect