Southern Baptist Hospital (SBH) had long resisted the use of marketing, believing it was not an appropriate activity for a nonprofit organization. By the mid-1980s, however, the erosion of its market share due to growing competition forced SBH to adopt an aggressive marketing strategy. Its primary initiative was a campaign of television advertisements aimed to reinforce for the general public the image of SBH as a high-quality institution. Because the organization was starting its marketing activities from scratch, ad production and airtime costs were expensive. The television commercials were professionally produced and received critical acclaim from the advertising community. Following the public’s repeated exposure to these advertisements, a hospital executive requested information about the impact of the advertisements. The idea to study the campaign’s impact had not been considered earlier, and a belated evaluation effort was mounted to determine the extent to which the campaign had achieved the desired effect. Much to the consternation of SBH administrators, the evaluation found that the ads had had virtually no impact on the public’s already high perception of the institution, and no improvement in patient volumes, revenues, or market share could be attributed to the campaign. SBH administrators, committed to an expensive initiative, rationalized that the campaign had not aired long enough to generate the desired effect and invested even more money in the initiative. After reviewing the above case, address the following points:To what extent did SBH research the needs of its audience prior to developing a marketing strategy?Does it appear that SBH has an overall marketing plan?Does it appear that SBH had a significant grasp of the nature of marketing?What are the implications of focusing marketing efforts on corporate image rather than the services the organization provides?What are the implications of marketing to the general public rather than targeting specific segments of the market?How much thought was given to measuring the effectiveness of the campaign going into the initiative?To support your work, use your course and textbook readings and also use the South University Online Library. As in all assignments, cite your sources in your work and provide references for the citations in APA format.

Assignment DetailsCompanies hire salespeople to promote various products to influence consumers’ purchasing decisions. Salespersons approach personal selling in many different ways.Think about a time when you went shopping and were approached by a salesperson.Describe your experience, and explain why that particular company decided to utilize personal selling in its marketing mix.Responses to PeersRead through your peers' posts, and respond to a minimum of 2 of your peers. You can connect to your peers in several ways, including the following:Explain how your purchasing experience was similar to or different from your peers' experiences.Based on your experience, describe how the salesperson affected your purchasing decision.In your own words, please post a response to the Discussion Board and comment on other postings. You will be graded on the quality of your postings.For assistance with your assignment, please use your text, Web resources, and all course materials.Discussion Board Reminders: Must have three posts: A Main Post and two replies to peers.First post: Either your main post or a reply to others must be posted before midnight CT (Central time) on Friday of each week.Second and third post: Must be posted on a different day from the first post.Connect to Content: At least one post must refer to course learning materials. See the Academic Resource on Discussion Boards for help with connecting to the content.Engaging in Class Discussions: For more information on making the most of your class dialog, review the Academic Resource on Discussion Boards. Grading RubricAssignment CriteriaProficient DescriptorPointsQuality of Main Post18 Points TotalStudent’s main post meets or exceeds the following requirements:Responds completely to all of parts of discussion question (5 points)Communicates content information accurately and/or logically (5 points)Delivers a thoughtful response demonstrating insights and reflections (4 points)Connects to both key content concepts and personal experiences (4 points)/18pts.Response to Peers16 PointsTotalResponds to a minimum of two peers (8 points per response)Substantive response (4 points)Furthers the conversation with peers. Examples could include (4 points):Provides additional resourcesConnects to key conceptsShares personal or professional experiencesContributes new information or perspectivePresents a competing viewpoint/16 pts.Support from Learning Resources3 PointsTotalAt least one post refers to course learning resources./3 pts.Professional Writing3 pointsResponse is well-organized, clear, and free of grammatical and mechanical errors.Posts demonstrate courtesy and respect for others./3 pts.Total40 points possible/40 pts.