The basic definition of marketing is “The practice of promoting a product or service for which financial reward is gained by consumers in the market”. Marketing takes into consideration not only the creation of a product or service but also the dissemination of information about the product or service to make it readily available to the market. Marketing is also a process by which organizations attract new customers and retain current customers. In this competitive world, marketing has become very essential as one should not allow his competitors to overshadow the potential customers.
A clear example of marketing myopia is when a firm decides to launch a product concept rather than focusing on the market demand. Marketing should be considered as a tool that provides direction to organizations. Marketing should be used to identify a product concept, develop marketing strategies, make the concept attainable to the targeted consumers, measure results and improve upon the marketing strategies. Although there is no universal marketing concept or marketing strategy that can work everywhere, marketers have developed specific concepts that may be useful in local markets. Below is a list of such marketing concepts:
Social Marketing: Social marketing refers to the act of selling to a large group of people at a social event or in an environment that is controlled by the sellers. This concept refers to buying into and spreading a message to a large community rather than advertising or marketing directly to an individual consumer. This type of marketing management has evolved through the use of mass media like television, radio, newspapers etc. and the internet. It also involves participation in various social activities like clubs, workshops, fairs, etc.
Corporate Sales: Selling to corporations is different from selling to individuals. This is because corporations have larger budget and specialized knowledge in comparison to individual consumers. Corporate sales concept focuses on the selling of a product or service through marketing a corporation to the corporate network of buyers who represent many organizations. Here, the marketing concept revolves around four Ps that determine whether the marketer’s concept will be a success or not. The four Ps are customer retention, loyalty, perception, and performance.
Marketing Research: Marketers conduct market research before deciding upon a selling concept. There are many types of market research and among them include qualitative, quantitative, decision-analytical, and web survey. These four Ps can help marketers to better understand what type of selling they should carry out. Marketers conduct market research to decide upon a selling concept and develop marketing strategies according to it. One example of a selling concept is Pay per Click, another is SEO, another is viral marketing, and the last is Internet advertising.
Outsourcing: This concept is one of the most common methods used by companies to cut their marketing costs. It is a good way to develop a particular marketing plan that is cost effective and at the same time meets all the marketing needs of a company. Outsourcing includes developing marketing plans for small and medium-sized businesses as well as training them on how to make their products stand apart in the market. Companies that outsource their marketing plan may also decide to change their products or services if they feel that there is enough demand in the market.
