Reverse marketing: a synergy of purchasing and relationship marketing.

During the last few decades many technology- and sales-oriented companies have transformed themselves into competitive customer-driven organizations. Many others need to follow their example as we approach the twenty-first century. Rapid technological developments, growing globalization of markets, and higher customer requirements have resulted in cutthroat competition in many consumer and industrial markets:

* Integration of the European market, tumbling trade barriers in countries such as Mexico and China, and democratization of eastern European countries and the former Soviet Union result in increasing investments by Japanese and American firms.

* For years now, American giants such as IBM, Gillette, Dow Chemical, Hewlett-Packard and Xerox have generated a major share of their sales from outside the United States.

* In industries like telecommunications, new technologies and deregulation eliminate traditional monopolies and create global markets.

* Emergent global markets are populated by stateless companies that try to position themselves as local firms by emphasizing local content.