Meaning of Marketing Definition of Marketing Comparison/Difference Between Sales and Marketing Features or Nature of Marketing Importance of Marketing

 

Table of Content Meaning of Marketing Definition of Marketing Comparison/Difference Between Sales and Marketing Features or Nature of Marketing Importance of Marketing

 

Meaning of Marketing

Definition of Marketing

(1) According to Cundiff, Still & Govoni , “Marketing is the business process by which products are matched with markets and through which transfers of ownership are affected." -: Basic Marketing,

(2) According to Philip Kotler, "Marketing is the set of human activities directed at facilitating and consummating exchanges."

Comparison/Difference Between Sales and Marketing

	Basis	Sales	Marketing
1.	Meaning	Sales refers to the process of selling, whereby product is offered for sale to the customer at a certain price and at a given period of time.	Marketing is understanding the requirements of the customers in such a way that whenever any new product is introduced, it sells itself.
2.	Related to	Related to flow of goods to customers.	Related to all the activities which facilitate flow of goods to customers.
3.	Objective	To instigate shoppers in such a way that they turn out as buyers.	To identify the needs of customers and create products to satisfy those needs.
4.	Duration	Short-term	Long-term
5.	Scope	Selling of the product.	Advertisement, Sales, Research, Customer satisfaction, After sales services etc.
6.	Relationship	One-to-One	One-to-Many
7.	Target	Individual or small group	General Public
8.	Aims at	Profit maximization through sales maximization.	Profit maximization through increased consumer satisfaction and market share.
9.	Orientation	Product-oriented	Customer-oriented
10	Approach	Fragmented approach	Integrated approach
11	Skills	required Selling and Conversational skills	required analytical skills
12	Technique	Price promotion, Discounts and Special offers.	Customer relationship through integration of organization with the needs of customers.
13	Strategy used	Push Strategy	Pull Strategy
14	Activity	Customer driven	Media driven
15	Focus	Company needs	Market needs

 

 

Features or Nature of Marketing

1.    Customer focus:

The marketing function of a business is customer-centered. It makes an attempt to study the customer needs, and goods are produced accordingly. The business existence depends on human needs. In a competitive market, the goods that are best suited to the customer are the ones that are well-accepted. Hence, every activity of a business is customer-oriented.

2.    Customer satisfaction:

A customer expects some services or benefits from the product for which payment is made. If this benefit is more than the amount paid, then the customer is satisfied. In the long run, customer satisfaction helps to retain market demand. It helps achieve organizational objectives. Customer satisfaction can be enhanced by providing value-added services, which includes providing additional facilities at little or no extra cost.

3.    Consumer-oriented:

A business exists to satisfy human needs. The activities of Marketing must be directed and focused at the customer. It involves the interaction of several business activities whose ultimate objective is the gratification of customer needs and desires. By satisfying the existing needs of the consumers and creating new needs and wants for better and improved products, marketing sets the pattern of consumption and improves the living standards of the people.

4.    Objective-oriented:

All marketing activities are objective-oriented. Different objectives are fixed at different levels, but the main objective is to earn profit from business along with the satisfac­tion of human wants. Marketing activities undertaken by sellers make an attempt to find out the weaknesses in the existing system, and measures are taken to improve the shortfalls so that the objectives are achieved.

5.    Starts and Ends with the Consumer:

Traditional Marketing is concerned only with the flow of goods and services from the producer to the consumer. Under consumer-oriented marketing, it is essential to know what the consumers really want. It is possible only when information is collected from the consumers. So that, marketing research and marketing information system have emerged as a full fledged function of marketing.

6.    Marketing is a Part of total Environment:

The firm's environment defines its threats and opportunities. Marketing system is directly related to the production and distribution of goods, services, ideas, places and persons for the satisfaction of human needs. However, it is better to look at remote and immediate environment of any marketing organisation.

7.    Marketing is a System:

Marketing is a system consisting of several inter-dependent and sub-systems. It is true that a system might vary according to the changes in the concept. Therefore, in a sense, Marketing System may be referred to as a socio-economic process. The broader views, the marketing as a system that correlates the firm and the society.

8.    Marketing is a Social Function:

Marketing is a social function, because it requires interaction with the various segment of society. It involves the interaction of several business activities whose ultimate objective is the satisfaction of customer needs and desires. By satisfying the existing needs of the consumers and creating new needs and wants for better and improved products marketing sets the pattern of consumption and improves the living standards of the people.

9.    Exchange process is the Essence of Marketing:

All marketing activities revolve around exchange process. Exchange implies transactions between buyer and seller. The seller hands over a product or service to the buyers who in turn give money. There is also exchange of information between buyers and seller.

10.Marketing creates Mutually-beneficial Relationships:

The customer is the focus of all marketing activities. But during the last decade, the focus has shifted to the way of doing business, i.e., the strategic aspects of marketing. Here the means of marketers are their knowledge and experience, and the end result is in the form of mutual beneficial relationship. Thus, marketing is everything that results in the mutually beneficial relationships with the customer.

 

IMPORTANCE OF MARKETING

(I) Importance of Marketing to Consumers

(1) Promotes product awareness

Through different marketing activities, companies promote their products and services. This helps consumers to know about different products and services available in the market. It helps the consumer in making a buying decision. It also creates awareness among the consumers about different brands and features of the product available in the market.

(2) Provides variety of products

Marketing creates awareness among the consumers about the product. At the same time, it attracts consumers to buy the same. With the customer population and preferences becoming wider, and the competitive options becoming more available, market segmentation has become critical in any business or marketing plan.

(3) Provides quality of products

There is increasing competition in the market. Consumers are getting easy access to information about the products and services available in the market. It creates moral pressure on the businesses to provide quality goods to the consumers. Supplying defective products may create a negative image of the business which affects the consumer's loyalty.

(4) Regular supply of goods

Through efficient distribution channels of marketing regular supply of goods is possible. It helps to maintain the balance between demand and supply. It results in stable prices.

(II) Importance of Marketing to the Manufactures

(1)  Helpful in Planning and Decisions

For a manufacturer, the study of marketing is helpful in business planning and decision making.  Nowadays, decisions regarding production are not made considering how much we can produce but rather considering what type of product the consumer wants, in what quantity and at what price.  On the basis of all these things, the manufacturer decides which item to produce and in what quantity.  The same thing can be said in this way that decisions in business are taken according to the interests and needs of the consumers.

(2) Helpful in Income Creation

Study of marketing is helpful in increasing income.  The marketing department is responsible for earning income in a business.  All other departments of the business depend on this department.  If any wrong decision is taken by the marketing department then such decision affects the entire business.

(3) Helpful in Distribution

The study of marketing tells a manufacturer how to provide goods to consumers at the minimum cost and from the most convenient centers.  In today's competitive era, only that manufacturer can be successful whose marketing costs are minimum.

(4) Helpful in Exchanging Information

It is through marketing that information about various types of changing circumstances reaches the marketing manager.  If this information is not given, no business can run efficiently.  Nowadays both producers and consumers are thousands of kilometers away from each other, hence the work of connecting these two is done only by marketing.

(III) Importance of Marketing to the Society

 (1) Facility of Employment:

Employment facilities are provided through marketing. As marketing activities increase, the number of people getting employment also increases.  In India, in 1951, 78 lakh people were engaged in distribution activities, whose number increased to about 3 crore 30 lakh in the year 2000.  It is estimated that if 5 people are engaged in manufacturing the product than 4 people are engaged in its marketing.  According to an estimate, about 35 percent of the total labor force of the country is directly or indirectly engaged in marketing.

(2) Provides Standard of Living: Marketing provides quality product and services to the people in the society according to their needs. Marketing creates, maintains and increases the demand of existing product and new product and upgrades the standard of living of the society. In this connection Paul Mazur has said, "Marketing is the delivery of standard of living to society."

(3)  Saves the Economy from Depression

Marketing protects the economy from recession.  If the goods are not marketed or are sold in small quantities or are not purchased by customers, then there will be a recession in the country, the consequences of which will be rapid.  Stock will accumulate in factories, prices will fall, unemployment will spread and government income will reduce.  Thus, modern marketing protects a country's economy from these consequences by producing goods as per the needs of the customers.

(4) Increase in National Income

When goods are manufactured according to the needs of different types of customers, the total goods and services of the country increase resulting in increase in national income.  If fewer types of goods and services are produced then national income remains low.

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