marketing, competition and the customer

• Marketing


  The all-embracing functions that links the business with customer needs and wants in order to get the right product to the right place at the right time
• Marketing


  The achievement of corporate goals through meeting and exceeding customer needs better than the competition
• Role of marketing


  • Identify unsatisfied customer needs
  • Keep customers loyal
  • Gather information about customers
  • Recognize how customer needs are changing
• Marketing is perhaps the most important activity in a business because it has a direct effect on profitability and sales
• Marketing cannot be carried out in isolation from the rest of the business
• Marketing goals


  • Develop products that meet customer needs and wants
  • Promote products to customers
  • Increase sales
  • Target a new market
  • Build brand awareness
  • Grow market
  • Improve stakeholder relations
  • Enhance customer relationships
• Reasons for market changes

  • Changes in consumer tastes and fashion
  • New technology development
  • Changes in consumer income
  • Aging population
• If a business doesn't produce and sell what customers want, customers will buy a competitor's product and the firm will fail to survive
• Reasons for increased market competition

  • Globalization of products
  • Improvements in transportation and infrastructure
  • Internet and e-commerce
• How businesses can respond to increased competition

  • Develop and maintain customer loyalty
  • Keep costs low to remain competitive
  • Step up marketing and improve positioning
  • Expand product offerings
• Mass marketing


  Advertising or promotion of products, goods or services to a wide variety of audience with the expectation of appealing to as many as possible
• Advantages of mass marketing

  • High sales and demand
  • Benefit from economies of scale
  • Cheaper per person
  • Reach a wider audience
• Disadvantages of mass marketing

  • Higher competition
  • Product is aimed at the whole market, so specific customer needs are not met
• Niche marketing


  A business targets a small segment of a larger market where customers have specific needs and wants
• Advantages of niche marketing

  • Product meets specific customer needs
  • Less competition
  • Clear focus
  • Customers tend to be more loyal
• Disadvantages of niche marketing

  • Smaller base of consumers
  • Risk not spread
  • Likely to attract competition if successful
• Market segmentation


  The process of defining a market of potential customers into groups or segments based on different characteristics
• Ways businesses can segment a market

  • Gender
  • Age
  • Income
  • Location
  • Lifestyle
  • Product usage
• Advantages of market segmentation

  • Marketing becomes more effective
  • Leads to higher sales and profitability
  • Increases awareness to the right audience
  • Identifies new profitable segments
• Disadvantages of market segmentation

  • Business may only focus on one segment
  • Increased costs for promotion and distribution