Editor’s Letter

Mercados y Negocios is supported by the University of Guadalajara (a Public Institution) by academics and experts who support open science. For this reason, the author of the articles is not charged. Readers are also not charged for access to the content. These actions support the collective construction of a participatory and universal scientific ecosystem. We want research on marketing, international Business, and competitiveness to benefit society and be available to everyone (Redalyc-Amelica, 2023). This issue contains five research articles subjected to the peer-review process.

Maintaining Your Marketing Competitiveness Through Marketing Innovations is the first article, written by Nancy J. Church. It shows that a revolution is occurring in marketing today due to the application of artificial intelligence (AI) to various marketing tasks and functions. In addition, marketing innovations are taking place on Web 3.0, in the Metaverse, in virtual and augmented reality, in omnichannel marketing, in social media, in video marketing, in live streaming, in connected and addressable TV, in voice and visual search, in influencer marketing, in how advertising budgets are allocated, in social shopping, and additional credentials for marketing professionals in a dynamic profession. Marketing professionals and professors must prioritize pursuing continuous education in their field due to the dynamic nature and complex changes in marketing technology and media options.

The second article was written by Yelly Yamparli Pardo Rozo, Gabriela Carvajal Valderrama, and Alexandra Perdomo Carvajal. Its title is Corporate Social Responsibility as a Determinant of Competitiveness in Supermarkets. The objective was to analyze the contribution of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) to the competitiveness of supermarkets in Florencia, Caquetá in southern Colombia. In a sample of six supermarkets, a self-assessment survey of CSR and competitiveness variables was carried out for 2021 to 2022, consisting of six dimensions: values and ethical principles, responsible marketing, economy and finance, social commitment, quality of working life, and environment. The tool makes it possible to measure the commitment of the organization's CSR activities to competitiveness. The environment is the dimension with the lowest score and contribution to competitiveness in the dimensions evaluated in the supermarkets (2.0 on a scale of 0.0 - 3.0). According to the correlation analysis, there is a relationship between CSR and competitive position. Awareness-raising and training actions aimed at stakeholders are proposed.

Green Consumer's Paradox is the next article. Its author is Almeirim Isabel Acosta Bahena. The objective of the research is to analyze the contradiction between green consumers' behavior and green technology foods offered to them. An analysis of papers from different authors showed that green consumers are willing to make conscious food consumption. However, factors like price, knowledge about the green cause, consumer income, reference groups, shopping convenience, and food availability influence their final consumption. Collective intelligence is a solution for green consumers to make better decisions: it also involves challenges, ethical considerations, and avoiding political influences on shared information. In conclusion, governments and food producers must do a lot to ensure green consumers have enough tools to make informed and sustainable alimentary decisions.

Fernando Rodríguez, Martin Vivanco Vargas, and Moisés Gómez Salazar wrote Economic and Social Vulnerability Because of Covid-19: poverty and Food Security, which is the fourth article. The article's objective is to analyze food poverty and the effects in terms of vulnerability because of the COVID-19 pandemic in Mexico City from the capability approach. In the analysis stage, centrality, variability, and correlation parameters were used to identify the effects of the health crisis on food poverty.

The fifth and last article is A Proposal of a Pension Plan Design Based on Collective Pension Funds. Its authors are Denise Gómez Hernández and Humberto Banda-Ortiz. This work proposes a design of an alternative pension plan based on collectivity with the characteristics of hybrid plans. Based on actuarial methods and financial modeling of some of the variables involved, numerical modeling of collective plans is performed to achieve this objective. Then, various scenarios were carried out to simulate a pension fund based on an institution database. At the end of each period, the replacement rate value for each plan member is calculated with a target of 30% of the last salary. As the plan works collectively, surpluses and deficits are distributed uniformly among the plan members. The results are that it is possible to achieve a replacement rate of 70% in the form of a life annuity due with 30 years of service, a contribution rate of 15% of the salary, and an investment portfolio of 60% of assets invested in equities and 40% in bonds.

We thank our authors for their papers. We thank the readers for recommending and citing Mercados y Negocios, and our editorial team for not giving up in times of hard work. We want to demand more of ourselves every day and relentlessly aim to achieve more.

REFERENCE

Redalyc-Amelica. (2023). Manifesto on Science as Global Public Good: Noncommercial Open Access. In Global Summit on Diamond Open Access, Toluca, México. https://globaldiamantoa.org/manifiesto/

Enlace alternativo

http://mercadosynegocios.cucea.udg.mx/index.php/MYN/article/view/7725 (pdf)