It is common within the CRC and more broadly throughout the seafood industry, that producers talk about marketing, while most of them having in mind a limited range of marketing actions (such as advertising). In many cases, seafood industry players are more product-oriented, not knowing on which plates their product will end up. In other words, they don't know very much about the end users of their products, nor their needs. As mentioned in a several occasions and reports, there is a need for the industry to be more market-oriented, to better understand its market in order to deliver greater value to the end-users. In brief, there is a need for industry participants to better understand how consumers and markets’ expectations can be turned into strategic marketing actions for their company.
However, equally there is a need at the organization level for seafood industry members to improve their marketing skills, so they can better serve their market(s). There is also a need at the industry level to improve seafood industry participants marketing skills so they can better understand and use outcomes of the various marketing-based projects that are planned as well as better express their needs for market and marketing research for the next few years.
Final report
The Seafood Marketing Master Class series was developed when the Seafood CRC identified that its industry participants did not have a basic core understanding of the fundamentals of marketing. It was also identified that CRC industry participants demonstrated a lack commitment of towards marketing research projects.
In response to this, the Ehrenberg Bass Institute of Marketing Science via University of South Australia were engaged to run a series of Master Classes in the basic principles of marketing with a seafood focus.
110 people were trained in the basics of marketing principles over 8 locations during 2009 and 2010. The course was very well received by all participants and a number of recommendations were made to improve the session. It is not anticipated that the CRC will run this master class again..