Summary principles of marketing
, INTRODUCTION
This type of training leads to four types of employment:
o sales or sales-oriented professions;
o marketing-oriented professions;
o professions focused on marketing communication;
o entrepreneurship as a profession.
Marketers look at how organisations are able to achieve goals. In doing so, they take into account the market
in which they operate, the competitors, and the wishes and desires of customers. So, what exactly do
marketers do?
Broadly, you can say that marketers have the following tasks:
o they provide marketing knowledge and customer insight;
o they give direction to the marketing strategies of the company;
o they develop the so-called customer proposition;
o they manage and carry out marketing communications;
o they develop and use marketing and market information;
o they carry out marketing programmes;
o they draw up marketing plans.
All this is done by marketers in collaboration with both internal and external parties. For example, marketers
often work closely with internal business experts, financial experts and HR (human resources) staff. External
parties often include market researchers and advertising agencies.
What does internal collaboration look like? Marketers and business experts often work on product
development, while any cooperation with financial experts relates to the financial support of campaigns and
product development, and, at a later stage, the checking of the associated expenses. HR staff ensure that
there are enough people within the organisation to keep the marketing department functioning properly.
External cooperation usually involves outsourcing activities. For example, marketers hire agencies for market
research or to make video advertising. In the case of external cooperation, they therefore often fulfil the role
of the client.
Marketers thinks about:
o the product;
o pricing;
o how to put the product on the market;
o which communication to use; and
o how to ensure that the product reaches the customer.
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,What is marketing?
The four Ps and the four Cs
KEY QUESTIONS WITHIN MARKETING THE FOUR PS THE FOUR CS
WHAT DOES A CUSTOMER NEED? Product Customer /td>
HOW DOES A CUSTOMER OBTAIN IT? Place Convenience
HOW MUCH IS IT WORTH THE CUSTOMER? Price Cost
HOW DOES THE CUSTOMER KNOW THAT WE CAN Promotion Communication
FULFIL THE NEED?
Marketing is creating, communicating, delivering and exchanging things that have value for customers,
clients, partners and society in general.
From a marketing perspective, we can distinguish five types of company
1. Production orientation: a company that assumes that customers are looking for available and
affordable products. (focus: delivery)
2. Product orientation: a company assumes customers are looking for the highest quality product.
(focus: best product)
3. Sales orientation: a company that emphasises the promotion of products and services.
(focus: selling)
4. Marketing orientation: a company that identifies the needs and desires of its customers and then
develops a suitable product. (focus: customer)
5. Social marketing orientation: a company that tries to find a balance between short-term desires and
long-term consequences for a customer or society. (focus: short- and long- term)
The marketing processes
Philip Kotler, one of the most famous marketing authors, states that a company that puts the customer at
the centre, will have a marketing process that consists of:
o exploring the market and identifying the needs and
desires of customers;
o developing a marketing strategy in which value for
the customer is central;
o design a marketing programme that integrates the
four Ps (or Cs) to deliver superior value for the
customer;
o building profitable customer relationships and
creating customer satisfaction;
o the accumulation of customer value in order to gain
profit.
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, STRATEGY: COMMERCIAL POLICY MAKING
Creating a strategy: a company puts together plans to achieve predetermined objectives. Such plans are
established at three different levels within the organisation.
Strategy: a plan for success?
Strategy: (classical Greek) meaning of ‘strategos’ is ‘commander-in-chief’ or general. That is why we often use
the word strategy to characterise decisions made by top-level management. A strategy is something that is
conceived, decided and communicated by upper management.
The three levels of strategy
o At operational level (the functional strategy, functional departments
that make plans to achieve certain objectives).
o At business unit or product level (the business unit strategy, business
units that make plans to achieve certain objectives).
o At top level (the corporate organisational strategy: plans made at top-
management level for the entire company).
At all three levels plans are made to achieve certain objectives, and each level
has its own specific objectives. But, they all have one thing in common: obtaining a favourable market
position with the available resources
Plans – at whatever level – can be laid out in detail or with broad strokes. In a strategic plan, the broad
outlines are the long-term objectives. When we look more closely at the details and at the medium-term, we
are talking about a tactical plan. The short-term development of plans is called operational plans and relates
to the short-term activities of employees executing the tactical plan.
Managements
1. Top-level management is focused on which markets the company will serve in the future.
2. Business unit management is focused on which products and services are offered, according to the
plans provided by top management.
3. Functional management is focused on how products or services are offered based on the plans
provided by business unit management.
4. Executive staff are focused on carrying out the plans of the functional management.
In smaller organisations some of the above management layers will be combined. The (top) management
then makes choices about the markets (strategy), the products and services (tactics) and the way in which the
products and services are offered (operations).
Marketing as a department is therefore not separate from the rest of the organisation. Marketing is part of a
relationship among people who create a product or service, people who purchase the necessary
materials/services for production, and people who sell the product or service or provide the service. HR staff,
administrative staff, security personnel and all kinds of other supporting roles are also active. All their
activities are interrelated and driven by the organisational/corporate strategy.
The overarching strategy of a company determines the direction of the marketing strategy. Top
management sets out the policy for the future; the history and structure of the company, and also the culture
help to determine the direction the company will take.
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