Essay on Marketing in Simple and Easy Words!
Collection of essays on ‘Marketing’ for students & teachers! Find essays and paragraphs on: 1. Marketing 2. Direct Marketing 3. Relationship Marketing 4. Green Marketing 5. International Marketing 6. Global Marketing 7. Rural Marketing 8. Services Marketing 9. Digital Marketing 10. Event Marketing. Also learn out: 1. Essay On Marketing 1000 Words 2. Marketing Essay Introduction 3. Marketing Essay Writing 4. Essay On Marketing In India 5. What Is Marketing 6. Marketing Business Essay. Further this article will help you to write an incredible essay on marketing.
Top 10 Essays on Marketing
Essay Contents:
- Essay on Marketing
- Essay on Direct Marketing
- Essay on Relationship Marketing
- Essay on Green Marketing
- Essay on International Marketing
- Essay on Global Marketing
- Essay on Rural Marketing
- Essay on Services Marketing
- Essay on Digital Marketing
- Essay on Event Marketing
1. Essay
on Marketing: (500 words)
Marketing is everywhere. Everything from presenting yourself for a job interview to selling your products includes marketing. Main objective of any company is to gain profits which can be achieved only through marketing of the products. Marketing enables the companies to create demand and earn profits. If these two aspects are not taken care of, then the company will not survive in the market.
The history of marketing dates back to the beginning of civilisation. It started with the barter system and when the volume of business grew up; traders came into existence. With the industrial revolution happening in the late 18th and early 19th century, the business expanded manifold. Again with the subsequent progress in transportation and communication system, the business grew across the borders of a country.
In the Indian context, the Kautilya’s famous book Arthashastra’ talked about the relationship between the sellers and buyers. It also dealt with the earnings of the traders marketing as a topic first appeared in the first half of the 20th century, with reference to distribution. The process of distribution and the determination of price through the demand and supply paved the way for studies in marketing.
That’s why economics is known as the mother of marketing. In the early stage, marketing was also known for selling and advertising only. But subsequently with the development of marketing as a management study, it got the right place it deserved through the various principles and theories.
Marketing affects our day to day life in a significant manner. It is embedded in everything we do—from the clothes we wear, to the Websites we click on to the advertisements we see. Marketing is about identifying and meeting human and social needs profitably. It is customer-centric and seeks to deliver value and satisfaction to customers wherever they are. Good marketing is the essence of business success. In an economic jungle only customer maniac organisations survive in the long run.
Marketing is the business function that identifies current unfulfilled needs and wants, defines and measures their magnitude, determines which target markets the organisation can best serve, and decides the appropriate products, services and programmes to serve these markets.
Marketing serves as the link between society needs and its pattern of industrial response. The basic objective of all economic activities is the satisfaction of human wants. Marketing makes goods useful to the society by getting them where they are wanted, when they are wanted and by transferring them to those people who want them.
It is in this sense that marketing has been defined as, “all the activities involved in the creation of place, time and possession utilities.” Marketing is thus concerned with handling and transportation of goods from the point of production to the point of consumption. In this journey of goods from the manufacturers to ultimate consumers several difficulties have to be removed.
Firstly, goods are to be removed from the place of their origin to the place or places where their need is felt. This is creation of place utility. Secondly, goods are to be made available at a time when they are needed. It means they must be stored or protected against fire, rain, pests, thieves etc. till that time.
This is creation of time utility. Finally, the ownership and ultimately the possessing of these goods are to be transferred from the producer to the consumer. This has been referred as the creation of possession utility. Thus marketing is the economic process by means of which goods and services are exchanged and their values determined in terms of money prices.
Marketing is a process of getting the right products to the right people at the right price and at the right place and time with the right promotion. Marketing can also be defined as process of planning and executing the conception, pricing, promotion, and distribution of ideas, goods, and services to create exchanges that satisfy individual and organizational objectives.
Creating customer value and satisfaction are at the very heart of modern marketing thinking and practice. A very simple definition of marketing is that it is the delivery of customer satisfaction at a profit. Sound marketing is critical to the success of every organization.
The utility of marketing lies in its ability to deliver what the customer wants— delivering outstanding value at an affordable price. It helps the producer to take the products and services to the street and get noticed.
2. Essay on
Direct Marketing: (1000 words)
Under general marketing, marketer depends upon advertising, sales promotion, and personal selling to promote their products and use some channel of distribution to bring about mass distribution. Advertising is used for awareness, interest and to build the brand image. Sales promotion is required for impulse buying or offering USP to buy now.
Personal selling is employed to convince the prospect and close the sale. Under direct marketing all the three means of promotion are compressed to induce direct sale without the help of any middleman traders. Direct marketing is selling product and services to customers without the use of channel members.
A direct marketer is an organisation that uses personal selling, advertising, sales promotion, electronic media, vending machines, etc. to promote and sell products directly to consumers/ users. Telemarketing i.e., marketing by telephone has assumed greater importance than even mail-order sale in all developed countries; very soon televised shopping also will grow in importance.
Major Direct Marketing (Non-Store Retailing) Methods:
1. In-Home Selling:
Marketer can use door-to-door selling through trained sales force. In India Eureka Forbes is marketing its consumer durables, vacuum cleaners and electronic water filters through in-home or direct selling. Initial contact may be made by phone or mailed-in-coupon. This method is costly but effective. We may have a party plan approach.
A host invites friends to a party, a salesman makes a sales presentation at the party. The invitees can shop in a friendly and social environment. In India, manufacturer of Nutrela (Soyabean product) decided to go to the consumers directly, and teach them how to use the product. Demonstrators were housewives who would approach a ladies’ Kitty group, a mahila mandal.
They would make a few dishes with Nutrela granules. While cooking, they would comment on the goodness of soya and its economy. The consumers would test and also learn what all could be done. 8,000 good demonstrations were held in five years. This method was very successful in creating market for that novel product.
2. Telebuying/Teleselling:
The dial-n-order, i.e., Telephone-buying and direct phone contact with the prospects to persuade and secure orders on phone is now a popular device in the West and spreading in big cities in India. Telephone-shopping and getting free home delivery is very convenient and also cheaper method for double-income families.
In-store sale is supplemented by telephone selling by a marketer as it is cheaper than in-home sale through salesforce. The growing satellite networks can create brand awareness and facilitate phone buying and selling.
3. E-Marketing:
IT and Internet are extensively used for buying rail, bus and air tickets and booking hotel accommodation.
4. Mail-Order Sale:
Standardisation, grading, branding, and packaging brought about the growth of mail order sale, i.e., selling or shopping by post, described as ‘arm-chair shopping’. The seller approaches the prospects by mail publicity, i.e., sending circulars, price-list, catalogue, booklets, pamphlets, samples, etc., through the post office. Up-to-date mailing list is maintained.
All selling is done invariably through regular advertisements and direct mail publicity. Sometimes, local agents are also employed for order collection, execution as well as collection of dues, when sale is by instalments. However, usually orders are collected as well as executed through the mail by V.P.P. Marketer may receive orders on phone also.
Examples of Goods Sold by Mail-Order are- Books, Toys, Cutlery, Watches, Fountain pens, Clothes, Footwear, Small appliances, Common drugs and cosmetics, Ready-made Foods, Household furnishing, etc.
Follow-up method is usually followed in mail-order by sending a series of letters to persuade and gain action. Readers Digest, Time and many such magazines have perfected the mail-order method for securing renewals or new subscriptions. Anjali mills of Bangalore is selling Anjali sarees in the price range of Rs.500 to Rs.1,200 and upwards.
It sends coloured picture catalogues providing adequate information. Many mail order sellers regularly send catalogues to consumers on their mailing list. Direct marketing through mail order method is firmly established in all markets. Even industrial goods are also sold by this method. Lakme has also adopted the direct marketing route. Women consumers who have shopped at its exclusive counters are being sent personalised letters with an invitation for a free make-up session with trained beauticians.
5. Direct Response Marketing (Using TV, Radio and Press Media):
Magazines, newspapers, radio, and television are used to present direct response offers to customers. The advertisement includes the company’s toll-free telephone number. The customer is requested to secure further information and place an order directly using that toll-free number.
Television is a growing medium for direct marketing both through network and cable channels. The customer gives his credit card number while placing an order. Direct response advertisements frequently appear on television and radio. In U.S.A. they have Home Shopping Network (cable network), a retail TV media for 24 hours per day.
6. Permission Marketing:
Permission marketing is a form of direct marketing wherein promotional information is sent only to those consumers who give permission to do so. It can be offered on Internet, mobile or direct mail. Those who agree are given incentive for volunteering. The information pertains to company’s products or services.
7. Automatic Vending Machines:
Well-known pre-sold brands with good turnover are sold by vending machines. Cold drinks, coffee, candy, snacks, magazines are suitable products sold by vending machines. They are usually kept at work places, schools, and public places.
Integrated Direct Marketing (Use Of Multiple Media):
It has the following sequence- (1) Paid Advertisement with a response mechanism creates awareness and interest. (2) The marketer then sends direct mail to those who inquired. (3) The marketer follows-up the mail within two to four days by phone, seeking an order. (4) Face to face sales call may be arranged if customer so desires. Follow-up on phone is continued to secure an order.
Direct marketing has several advantages when compared with in-store retailing-
(1) Direct marketing can focus marketing efforts effectively in terms of selling to the selected target markets.
(2) Marketer can contact prospects directly rather than wait for them to appear in the store.
(3) It gives great convenience to customers for making purchases.
(4) It is a lower-cost way of doing business than through a retail store.
(5) It needs less capital to be invested in business.
(6) It can be a side activity.
Disadvantages of Direct Marketing:
There are a few disadvantages as well-
(1) Conventional retailers are not looked with suspicion by prospects. But they do have suspicion towards direct marketers and their claims. The marketer must be well-known and established to remove this fear.
(2) Direct marketing, e.g., in-home selling, telemarketing, affects consumer privacy.
(3) Except for direct-to-home marketing, goods cannot be inspected prior to purchase.
(4) In absence of personal inspection, marketer has to offer liberal return facilities.
(5) In-home selling through sales force is costly.
Principles Governing Success in Advertising and Direct Marketing:
(1) Advertising is the core of direct marketing. Advertising works best if you promise people something they want and your advertisement is not clever, and shocking. It must be something relevant to consumer needs.
(2) People are attracted by quality and performance of a product than what it is.
(3) Advertisement must give facts, boldly, firmly, unflinchingly. Say directly what it is, what it has done, what it will do?
(4) Much advertisement copy ignores the facts, does not tell what the product is, what it does, how it has performed. Much copy over claims, boasts, denigrates rival products — a waste of time as the reader ends up believing nobody. In short, advertisement in direct marketing particularly must be entirely based on truth. They say, honesty is the best policy. It will make you pleasantly conspicuous in direct marketing. Direct marketing demands customer-oriented salesmanship in advertisement.
3. Essay on Relationship Marketing:
Managing customer relationships is the second key element of the new definition of marketing as ‘creating, communicating and delivering value … for managing customer relationships’. Relationship marketing is a field that has grown rapidly during the last decade (for an excellent overview of this development).
Therefore, it is only correct that the concept of customer relationships is considered. However, as the literature on relationship marketing demonstrates, research into this field and studies of relationship marketing in practice show a variety of different views on the subject.
There is not even a commonly accepted definition of what a relationship is in a commercial context, and of what relationship marketing is. The literature demonstrates a scale of notions of what ‘managing customer relationships’ consists of, ranging from creating a mutual commitment and understanding of the supplier and the customer and a win-win situation as a basis for marketing to having customers who show a repetitive buying behaviour to managing relationship marketing instruments such as loyalty programmes and direct mailings and relationship marketing tactics to seeing relationships as yet another variable in the marketing mix toolbox used to manipulate customers.
Moreover, as Ryals indicates, a relationship marketing approach with the goal to increase customer retention may not always be a profitable strategy, because the costs of retaining customers may be higher than the benefits to be gained from such a strategy.
In marketing and management jargon the term ‘customer relationship’ is also used in a multitude of ways. For some it means customers with whom a behavioural and emotional connection has been developed. Repeat purchasing behaviour and a larger share of the customer’s wallet is not enough for a relationship to have been established with a customer (a behavioural component); in addition a larger share of their heart and mind is also required (an emotional or attitudinal component). For others every customer, who has shown up at least twice or even every customer – regardless of their purchasing behaviour – is called a customer relationship.
The phrase ‘managing customer relationships’ implies that customer relationships exist. However, only customers can decide whether they have, or want to have, a relationship with a firm, in other words, whether a customer relationship exists or not. It seems quite obvious that not all customers want to be in a relationship with firms whose products they are using. Customers can be in transactional modes as well as in relational modes, and the same customer may probably shift from one mode to another, depending on the type of products, or firm, or even the situation.
There is no research yet that would demonstrate when a customer recognizes a relationship exists, wants a relationship to exist or shifts from a transactional to a relational mode. In fact, relationship marketing and customer relationships have mostly been studied from a management perspective based on the assumption that marketers decide whether relationships exist or not. There is not much knowledge about customers’ interests in relational behaviour and about their reactions to relationship marketing approaches.
The only thing we definitely appear to know is that unless the most simple and meaningless definition of customer relationships is applied, in other words, a customer that buys two or three times, constitutes a customer relationship or any customer makes a customer relationship, not all customers can be managed as relationships.
In addition, the research on contemporary marketing practices that has been published demonstrates that firms across cultures use a variety of marketing approaches, some of which can be described as relational, some of which can’t. The new marketing definition does not provide any indications as to how the phrase managing customer relationships should be understood, other than that they should be managed ‘in ways that benefit the organization and its stakeholders’.
Regardless of how important the issue of understanding customer relationships and managing relationships with customers is in some or perhaps even most situations, unless it is clearly demonstrated that customers always want to see themselves in relationships with suppliers of goods, services, ideas, information and other types of solutions, it is not advisable, and may even be counterproductive to the development of marketing to include the phrase managing customer relationships in a generic marketing definition.
Attempting to force all customers into relationships will lead to inefficient and ineffective marketing behaviour, where inappropriate marketing activities are used and customer behaviour that customers do not want to adhere to is strived for by marketers.
However, the research into relationship marketing has other aspects of marketing to offer marketing in general: for example, the notion that marketing is a set of processes for identifying and establishing contacts with customers and further maintaining and enhancing, or cultivating, and when needed, terminating these contacts.
This notion of marketing as processes is included in the new marketing definition, albeit in an unspecified way and apparently without including the customer in the processes. Moreover, relationship marketing as well as service marketing has pointed out that interactions between customers and various resources of the supplier – people, physical resources, systems, IT, infrastructures, etc. – form a key concept in marketing.
The primary aim of relationship marketing is to build and maintain a base of committed customers who are profitable for the organisation. To achieve this aim, the firm will focus on the attraction, retention, and enhancement of customer relationships. First, the firm will seek to attract customers who are likely to become long-term relationship customers.
Through market segmentation, the company can come to understand the best target markets for building lasting customer relationships. As the number of these relationships grows, the loyal customers themselves will frequently help to attract (through word of mouth) new customers with similar relationship potential.
Once they are attracted to begin a relationship with the company, customers will be more likely to stay in the relationship when they are consistently provided with quality products and services and good value over time. They are less likely to be pulled away by competitors if they feel that the company understands their changing needs and seems willing to invest in the relationship by constantly improving and evolving its product and service mix.
Finally, the goal of customer enhancement suggests that loyal customers can be even better customers if they buy more products and services from the company over time. Loyal customers not only provide a solid base for the organisation, they may represent growth potential. This is certainly true for USA, whose officer members’ need for insurance increase over their lifetimes as well as the lifetimes of their children.
Other examples abound. A bank checking account customer becomes a better customer when he/she sets up a savings account, takes out a loan, and/or uses the financial advising services of the bank. And a corporate account becomes a better customer when it chooses to do 75 percent of its business with a particular supplier rather than splitting the business equally among three suppliers. In recent years, in fact, many companies have aspired to be the “exclusive supplier” of a particular product or service for their customers. Over a period of time these enhanced relationships can increase market share and profits for the organisation.
4. Essay on Green Marketing:
Green is the new buzzword in the marketing. The world is going Green and so are the companies and the governments. Now going green has become the new success mantra in marketing to differentiate the products and services from their competition. It has also become a platform for innovation.
Now, more and more organisations are trying to follow the green path either directly or indirectly. The harmony among the three P’s – People, Planet and Profit is taking the centre stage for the companies as well as for the governments.
Whether it is the case of Panasonic with the ‘Eco-Ideas’ implemented in their production facilities or the case of ICICI Bank with the ‘E-statements’ saving hundreds of trees every month; marketers all across the world are trying to relate their products and services to the ‘Green’ to be more marketing savvy and innovative. Now, Interbrand not only ranks the Best Global Brands every year, it also ranks the best global green brands across the world.
Although green marketing came into prominence in the late 1980s and early 1990s, it was first discussed in the workshop titled “Ecological Marketing” in 1975, undertaken by American Marketing Association (AMA). The proceedings of this workshop resulted in one of the first books on green marketing entitled ‘Ecological Marketing’ by Henion and Kinnear in 1976. Since that time a number of books on this topic have been published by different authors like Charter in 1992, Coddington in 1993 and by Ottman in 1993.
In the last fifteen years, concern for the environment has been steadily increasing, due to increased media coverage, greater awareness of environmental problems, the impact of major industry disasters and the rise of activist groups on the environment.
Thus the first wave of Green Marketing occurred in the 1980s and 1990s, when the products were designed and developed by causing less damage to the environment; while in the late 1990s and early 2000, the focus was on sustainable green marketing. The same has been discussed by Peattie in 2001, where he has talked about the evolution of green marketing into three phases.
These phases are as the following:
1. Ecological’ green marketing- To help solve environment problems through remedies.
2. ‘Environmental’ green marketing- With focus on clean technology that involved designing of innovative new products, which take care of pollution and waste issues.
3. ‘Sustainable’ green marketing- To produce and market environment friendly products, as a number of customers started demanding eco-friendly products and technologies. It gained prominence in the late 1990s and early 2000.
Green marketing is also known as environmental marketing, ecological marketing, green marketing, sustainable marketing and greener marketing. A majority of people believe that green marketing refers solely to the promotion or advertising of products with environmental characteristics. Consumers often associate green marketing with terms like phosphate free, recyclable, refillable, ozone friendly, and environmentally friendly. While these terms are green marketing claims, in general green marketing is a much broader concept, which is applied to goods as well as services.
The AMA workshop in 1975 was the first attempt to bring together academics, practitioners, and public policy makers to examine marketing’s impact on the natural environment. At that point of time, the term ecological marketing was used for green marketing. Based on the proceedings of the workshop,
Henion and Kinnear defined ecological marketing as- ‘the study of the positive and negative aspects of marketing activities on pollution, energy depletion and non-energy resource depletion.’
According to American Marketing Association (AMA), ‘Green marketing is the marketing of products that are presumed to be environmentally safe.’
Although green marketing incorporates a broad range of activities; yet it puts a special emphasis on the 1st and the 4th P of the marketing mix i.e. product and promotions. Primarily it means changes in the production process, as in the case of Panasonic or it may just be product modification like Toyota Prius, the hybrid car. There might be changes in the packaging as well as in the advertising.
From time to time, green marketing has also been defined by several authors like Jain and Kaur, Pride and Ferrell, Grant and Kangis. On the whole they defined green marketing as an activity, which involves designing, promoting, pricing and distributing products and services according to the customers’ want and need, with minimal detrimental impact on the natural environment.
Thus green marketing incorporates a broad range of activities, including product design, product modification, changes to the production process, packaging changes, as well as modifying advertising and promotions.
5. Essay on International Marketing:
International marketing refers to the marketing activities carried on by a marketer in more than one nation or country. It is marketing across national boundaries. It is the performance of business activities that direct the flow of goods and services to the consumers or users in more than one nation.
Thus, we can state that international marketing involves the performance of marketing functions of buying, selling, transportation, storage, warehousing, financing, risk bearing, pricing, standardising, advertising, and sales promotion in foreign markets across the national borders.
The ultimate aim and objective of international marketing is the exporting of products and services to foreign markets. In this sense, the scope of international marketing covers a wide spectrum of marketing-related actions and programmes and extends to the performance of various activities on the part of an exporter.
The scope of international marketing activities may be outlined as below:
1. Setting up a Branch in a Foreign Market:
This requires establishment of a branch in a foreign country for the purpose of processing, packaging, or assembling the goods according to the needs of the markets. Sometimes, a firm undertakes complete manufacturing activities by its own branch through direct investments or by its own subsidiaries.
2. Setting up Joint Ventures and Collaborations:
This involves establishment of joint ventures and collaborations in foreign countries with some foreign firms for marketing the products and/or occasional manufacturing. A joint venture in an international market is created when a foreign company joins hands with the local company having a local interest in that country and together they own some type of business operation.
It may include sharing of ownership and control in an economic enterprise, licensing agreements, contract manufacturing and management contracts. Under these arrangements, the company works in collaboration with the foreign firm in order to exploit the foreign markets.
3. Licensing Arrangements:
These involve agreements with the foreign firm, with or without financial investments, whereby the foreign firm is granted the right to use the exporting firm’s technical know-how, viz., patents, processes, and trademarks, etc.
4. Project and Consultancy Services:
These include exports of services such as : turn-key projects requiring supply and commissioning of plants, engineering services, civil construction contracts, and consultancy services like feasibility studies, design preparation, etc. Here, the exporting firm sends its consultants and experts who guide and direct the activities on the spot in foreign countries.
5. Technology Transfer:
Under this arrangement, the exporting firm guides and trains the technicians and managers of the importing firm in all aspects of technology relating to projects and manufacture, etc.
The importance of international marketing can be understood from two broad perspectives:
(i) National economy, and
(ii) Individual firm.
From the point of view of national economy, international marketing is important on the following considerations:
(a) The developing countries need imports of capital equipment’s, raw materials of crucial nature and technical know-how for rapid industrialisation;
(b) An expanding export trade is a dynamic factor in a country’s development process and the economic development of a country has a direct relation with exports;
(c) A high rate of economic growth, when contemplated by a country, is usually associated with a higher rate of export development;
(d) For all developing countries including India, sufficient export earnings are essential to cover both imports, and debt servicing that is, there should be an arrangement of foreign exchange earnings every year to equalise the instalments and interests on the external aids received in terms of the aid or loan;
(e) Natural resources are valuable assets of a country and their economic exploitation necessitates imports of foreign plants and machineries for the establishment of industrial units on the one hand, and calls for export marketing to earn valuable foreign exchange necessary for judicious allocation thereof over the imports;
(f) The national income of a country can be increased to a considerable extent through organised export marketing, which is evident from the proportion of export income to the national income of same countries like Hungary (43%), Netherlands (42%), etc.; and
(g) The standard of living of the people of a country is improved via consumption of imported items, more purchasing power, quality products and use of improved technology, etc.
From the point of view of an individual firm, international marketing assumes importance on the following grounds:
(a) A firm having an unutilised installed capacity after meeting the domestic market has to enter the international market for the economical utilisation of the capacity;
(b) A firm having a production system on a mass scale and facing severe fall in domestic demand has no alternative but to tap foreign markets for boosting up sales;
(c) A firm whose product life cycle is at the declining stage in the domestic market should have to find ways and means for survival and for this, export trade has to be resorted to in developing and underdeveloped countries;
(d) A firm desirous to introduce new products likes to enter foreign markets with latest technology? and
(e) An exporting firm, which faces sharp fluctuations in the business activities, can seek exports as measures of diversification and partly counterbalance the lop-sided position in the markets.
International marketing is also necessary and important from the other points of view such as:
(i) It leads to international co-operation and collaboration among the countries in the matter of exports and imports;
(ii) It fosters closer cultural relations among the countries as the government and non-government trade commissions visit from time to time to understand the habits and customs of the people; and
(iii) It improves political relations and prompts political peace among the countries as they exchange their commodities for their mutual well-being and economic development.
6. Essay on Global Marketing:
According to S. Carter Global marketing is, “The process of building lasting relationships through planning, executing and controlling the conception, pricing, promotion and distribution of ideas, goods and services to create mutual exchange that satisfy individual and organizational needs and objectives”.
Whether an organization markets its goods and services domestically or globally, the definition of marketing still applies. However, the scope of marketing is broadened when the organization decides to sell across global boundaries, this being primarily due to the numerous other dimensions which the organization has to account for.
The long held tenants of marketing are “customer value”, “competitive advantage”, and “focus”. This means that organizations have to study the market, develop products or services that satisfy customer needs and wants, develop the “correct” marketing mix and satisfy its own objectives as well as giving customer satisfaction on a continuing basis.
However, nowadays the orientation of marketing has shifted towards Strategic Marketing. The focus has been shifted from knowing everything about the customer, to knowing the customer in a context which includes the competition, government policy and regulations, and the broader economic, social and political macro forces that shape the evolution of markets.
In global marketing terms this means forging alliances or developing networks, working closely with home country government officials and industry competitors to gain access to a target market. Also the marketing objective has changed from one of satisfying organizational objectives to one of “stakeholder” benefits – including employees, society, and government and so on.
According to Wensley strategic marketing has been defined as, “Initiating, negotiating and managing acceptable exchange relationships with key interest groups or constituencies, in the pursuit of sustainable competitive advantage within specific markets, on the basis of long run consumer, channel and other stakeholder franchise”.
There are several factors which influence global marketing, so it is essential to consider these factors before making decisions about global marketing. Firms must select global markets carefully because it involves huge investment. Entry to a number of markets may be impossible or very difficult due to the tariff or non-tariff barriers imposed by various countries to protect their domestic market. Moreover there may be markets, which are not profitable or which are very risky due to political or other reasons.
Market selection is based on a thorough evaluation of the different markets with reference to certain well-defined criteria, given the company resources and objectives. Marketing research is an important tool to obtain the data required for evaluating the markets.
Following are the factors which can influence global marketing:
i. Global Marketing Objectives:
Objectives of global firm should match with the global marketing strategy, the market selected to achieve a particular global marketing objective need not necessarily be the best suited to achieve some other global marketing objective. It is necessary to clearly lay down the parameters and criteria for evaluation, for proper evaluation and selection of the markets.
ii. Economic Factors:
These include factors like economic stability, nature of and trends in foreign trade, Balance of payment, GDP growth trends, income distribution, indebtedness, per capita income, sectoral distribution of GDP and trends etc.
iii. Economic Policy of Country:
This includes industrial policy, foreign investment policy, commercial policy, monetary policy, fiscal policy and other economic policies.
iv. Business Laws and Regulations:
Regulations of business like industrial licensing, restrictions on growth, takeovers, mergers etc; restrictions on foreign remittances, repatriations etc., tax laws-import restrictions and local content stipulations- export obligations and so on.
v. Currency Stability:
Stability of the national currency is another very important consideration in the market selection, there should not be undue fluctuations in currency value.
vi. Political Factors:
For industrial growth political stability is must. Political parties direct the industrial and foreign policy. Political factors include the character of the political system, portfolio of political parties and opposition party/parties, the government system, political stability and nature of political system in a country.
vii. Infrastructure:
Infrastructure facilities seriously affect business. It includes power supply, transportation facilities, telecommunication facilities, shipping and availability of fundamental resources.
viii. Bureaucracy and Procedures:
The nature and behaviour of the bureaucracy and the procedural system or styles are also important factors to be considered.
ix. Completion:
The number of firms and market competition also influence on the market share and profitability therefore it must be considered before entering in a new market.
The Key Decision in Global Marketing:
i. Promotion:
Promotion strategy for global marketing may change from one country to other, companies may run the same advertising and promotion campaigns used in the home market or change them for each local market, a process called communication adaptation.
If it adapts both the product and the communication, the company engages in dual adaptation. Consider the message the company can change its message at four different levels. The company can use one message everywhere, varying only the language, name, and colours.
The use of media also requires international adaptation because media availability varies from country to country. India, Belgium, and France do not allow cigarettes and alcohol to be advertised on television. Saudi Arabia does not want advertisers to use women in ads. Marketers must also adapt sales-promotion techniques to different markets. Sales promotion techniques also depend on business law regulation authorities in that country.
ii. Price:
Pricing is a difficult task for multinationals as it is influenced by several factors like taxation, cost of production, size of market etc. Multinationals face several pricing problems when selling abroad. They must deal with price escalation, transfer prices, dumping charges, and gray markets. When companies sell their goods abroad, they face a price escalation problem. Companies have three choices- Setting a uniform price everywhere setting a market-based price in each country and setting a cost-based price in each country.
iii. Place (Distribution Channels):
Setting of network of distribution and channel members is a difficult task especially in case of FMCG products. Seller’s international marketing headquarters, the export department or international division makes decisions on channels and other marketing-mix elements. The second link, channels between nations, gets the products to the borders of the foreign nation.
The decisions made in this link include the types of intermediaries distributors, agents, trading companies that will be used, the type of transportation and the financing and risk arrangements. The third link, channels within foreign nations, gets the products from their entry point to final buyers and users.
Another difference lies in the size and character of retail units abroad. Large-scale retail chains dominate the U.S. market but in developing and underdeveloped countries retailing is in the hands of small independent retailers. Like in India, millions of retailers operate tiny shops or sell in open markets.
iv. Products:
In selecting products for global markets the firms should know that high profits can be earned by economies of scale. The local culture is under attack from external influences resulting in a more homogenous global culture. Some products which are popular in Europe and US may not accept in other countries like beef burger in India is not acceptable by Indian customer as majority of customers belongs to Hindu religion. Cultural factors must be considered while launching a new product in new market.
7. Essay on Rural Marketing:
Rural marketing by its very nature is marketing in “bits and pieces” compared with the international, global and omnibus marketing. Trade between India and Nepal is “international” but not “global” which means trading with all continents and countries without restrictions.
Omnibus marketing is:
(i) Introductory marketing,
(ii) Promotional marketing,
(iii) Protective (of the existing position) and competitive marketing.
Marketing is socio-cultural centric, ethno-centric, geographical regions-centric, climate-and-time-centric, and effective demand-centric.
Rural marketing is more “monochronic (slow) than polychronic. In monochronic (easy-paced also known as M-time) marketing the challenges are a few only. In polychronic (T-time or fast-paced marketing) there will have to be dynamic and constant adjustments for multi-sided marketing.
Things produced in rural areas are generally processed in towns and cities. The same come back to rural areas. Things produced in rural areas can be exported (as they are ofcourse) but before that the urban operators have to process, produce and package them. Operations in rural areas cannot assume gigantic proportions.
Goods from international marketing can be sold in rural areas also e.g., the new tube-light batteries which combine the radio and tape-recording/playing functions also. Franchised marketing seldom reaches the rural areas; it remains concentrated to areas with very high income or purchasing power.
Rural marketing is regular as well as irregular (seasonal) or sporadic. Initiative marketing is to get a foothold in rural areas. Then comes accelerating, developmental or stimulating marketing of selling more and more. Seasonal marketing is essentially reshuffled marketing………..one type of marketing taking over where the other type ends. All rural areas have synchronised peaking of marketing when it is not possible to sell more there. De-marketing is to discontinue marketing due to losses.
Now a day’s rural marketing is not only of essential goods but of goods of comforts, minor luxuries, capital goods, white goods (household goods of higher order) also. There is marketing of rural commodities/services in rural areas also.
Marketing is maximisation of use values for the buyers and of the exchange values for the seller. It is a process of indirectly equating demand and supply. Right commodities, goods and services reach the right persons at right prices and at right time.
The increased purchasing power of rural customers has attracted the attention of urban marketers. After green revolution, the rural market started consuming a significant quantity of products manufactured in urban and industrial areas. Thus, the marketers have made special marketing strategies to enter the rural market by offering the product in smaller quantities and promoting it in regional languages. Further, these strategies emerged as a concept of rural marketing, which is different from agricultural marketing.
Rural marketing involves the process of delivering products that are manufactured in urban areas to rural customers. However, agricultural marketing involves delivering agricultural products manufactured in rural areas to urban customers. For example, electronic gadgets are manufactured in urban areas and also delivered to rural areas. On the other hand, crops are manufactured in rural areas and delivered to urban areas.
In rural areas, the products are distributed through wholesalers, retailers, and unconventional distribution channels. For example, Hindustan Unilever used an unconventional channel, such as Shakti to widen the scope of distribution in rural areas. Marketers need different strategies to enter the rural market.
The strategies include the following considerations:
i. Client and Location Specific Promotion – It refers to the strategy designed to suit a particular location and clients.
ii. Joint or Cooperative Promotion – It implies that strategy involves participation between marketers and rural clients.
iii. Bundling of Inputs – It includes the sale of various related items to rural customers or clients by the marketers. It also includes after sale and credit arrangement services.
iv. Management of Demand – It includes continuous market research of needs and problems of buyers for continuous improvement and innovation to sustain in the market.
v. Developmental Marketing – It refers to the improvement of marketing programs to achieve the organizational objectives. It involves managerial inputs to develop the market size of the organization.
vi. Unique Selling Proposition (USP) – It presents a unique feature of product to attract rural customers to buy the product.
vii. Extension Services – It refers to provide additional services, such as providing training to rural customers to use the products.
viii. Partnership for Sustainability – It refers to utilize the relationship for long and continuous business with rural customers.
8. Essay on Services Marketing:
Service includes all economic activities whose output is not a physical product, is generally consumed at the time it is produced and provides added value in the form that are essentially intangible concerns of the purchaser.
The promotion of economic activities offered by a business to its clients may be termed as services marketing. Marketing of any act or performance that one party can offer to another party is essentially intangible.
Physical goods and services can be looked at in terms of benefits offered, as well as features and specific attributes associated with those benefits.
Service concept is based on levels relating to customer need-satisfactions, benefits and features, these levels are:
i. The Core Benefit/Service:
The core benefit must relate specifically to the customer’s need. If a person is hungry, need is food and when a person buys insurance core benefit is security. The core benefit satisfies the need/solves the problem.
ii. The Expected Service:
This relates to customer’s expectations of what kind of services are available to satisfy their need. A hungry customer may decide to visit a restaurant in order to satisfy their need for food. They will expect a certain level of service to be offered – a range of items on the menu, for example, clean and good surroundings and prompt attention from staff. Similarly, the business customer will expect professional advice, expertise and practical help from an advertising agency or financial consultant. The expected service reflects standards required or expected by customers to satisfy their needs.
iii. The Augmented Service:
Augmenting the service offering, or making it better in some way, is the means by which service providers differentiate their offering in an attempt to influence consumer choice. Extra features, over and above the expected service, can be added to make the service more attractive to prospective consumers. Good interior decoration, furniture, music and light in a restaurant are the example of augmented services. The augmented service is the way in which service providers fine-tune the marketing mix to differentiate their service and make it stand out from the competition.
Example:
The core service in a fast food business is food, expected services are hygiene environment, choice availability, prompt service, good delivery system and Augmented Services, are Exotic menu, Interior and exterior decoration, air conditioning, live music.
There are mainly four characteristics of services:
(i) Intangibility – Services cannot be touched and thus they cannot be inventoried, displayed or communicated.
(ii) Heterogeneous – Services are non-standardised, i.e., each time a service is provided the experience differs. It depends on various uncontrollable factors like mood swings of customers, climate, service executor etc.
(iii) Inseparable – Services cannot be separated from production and consumption, thus mass production is difficult in nature.
(iv) Perishable – Services cannot be returned, resold or stored, e.g., services like beauty parlours, maids, barbers, spa etc.
Service marketers face marketing challenges which revolve around issues such as:
i. Understanding customers’ needs and expectations of services;
ii. Making services tangible to customers; and
iii. Keeping and dealing with promises made to the customers.
The link between organisation and its customers is External Marketing. It represents the promises which organisations make to their customer with reference to products or services they offer.
Interactive Marketing – It is a process of keeping the promise made by the organisation to the customer along with delivery of a quality service to the customer. During interactive marketing, employees and customers meet face to face and the actions of service employees will be a major factor in influencing the customer’s expectations of the service.
Internal Marketing is the process that enables service marketers to deliver promises to customers. Through internal marketing the organisation reveals that both customers and the employees need to understand the promises made by the organisation.
Extended Marketing Mix (7Ps) for Services – Generally Marketing Mix of products talks about 4Ps viz. ‘Product, Price, Place, Promotion.’ But in Services, this marketing mix is extended to 7Ps viz. ‘People, Process and Physical evidence’ also.
i. People – People that are directly or indirectly involved in the consumption of a service are an important part of the extended marketing mix. Knowledge workers, employees, management and customers often add significant value to the total service offering.
ii. Process – Procedures, mechanisms and flow of activities by which services are consumed (Customer management process) is an essential element of the marketing strategy.
iii. Physical evidence – It is the ability and environment in which the service is delivered. It includes both tangible goods that help to communicate and perform the service, and the intangible experience of existing customers and the ability of the business to relay the customer satisfaction to potential customers.
9. Essay on Digital Marketing for Students:
Internet and mobile technologies have revolutionized marketing, just like they have done with the other areas of our life. Digital marketing is getting rapidly popular. In fact, the boundary between traditional media like Newspapers, TV, Radio etc. and newer media is getting blurred day by day With the advent of digital media, marketing communication is in a huge flux and constant innovation is the name of the game. New options, new ideas, new approaches, new solutions are coming daily, changing the existing scenario suddenly and drastically.
Digital marketing uses Internet and mobile at the core of its functioning. All marketing options or channels which use these technologies are part of digital marketing.
Some of the digital marketing channels are Internet Search Engine marketing, Search Engine Optimization, E-commerce, Display advertisements on the web, Social media marketing, Email marketing, Mobile marketing, App-based marketing, Games based marketing, Content marketing (Blogs, Video, Audio, Images etc.), SMS Marketing, Instant messaging app; etc. This list is growing. To stay relevant in the current times, we must incorporate digital marketing in our overall marketing plan. It provides some distinct advantages.
For examples:
i. Digital marketing is highly focused. It can be personalized.
ii. It is easy to track and measure.
iii. It is immensely flexible.
iv. It is cost-effective.
v. We can find marketing ROI very easily.
vi. It allows powerful targeting options.
vii. It is very fast.
viii. It allows global reach.
ix. It offers great control to the marketer.
x. It helps in building strong customer relationships.
xi. It facilitates a dialogue with the customer, allowing deeper engagement.
Guidelines for Digital Marketing:
i. Digital marketing is little technical. So, some expert help may be required in successful implementation of a digital marketing initiative. We may hire or outsource such an expert help.
ii. There are numerous channels available for digital marketing. We must choose the right channel or option which reaches our target customer and which is suitable and appropriate for our product or service. (E.g. If our target customers are teenagers, we may consider social media, image sharing and chat sites and apps. If we target businesses, we should focus on search engines, video sharing, blogs etc.)
iii. We should establish our purpose, strategy, approach and budget for our digital marketing initiatives. If we are clear about why we are doing what we are doing, our digital marketing will be more effective.
Our purpose could be:
a. To establish a dialog and deeper relationship with our regular customers
b. To create a community of our customers
c. To create brand awareness in general public
d. To increase sales
iv. Each channel requires a different approach, so it should be handled with care.
For example:
a. Selection of search engine should be done based on its popularity among our target customer group.
b. How and what you should post on one social media site may be different from the other.
c. How and what to put on our video channel may be different from what should we do in our blog.
v. Digital marketing offers a lot of control to the company, but at the same time, it also exposes the company directly to the customers and general public. Digital marketing allows customers to directly interact with and react to the company. So, customer relationships should be handled very carefully and responsibly.
vi. Online brand reputation must be safeguarded closely. Any adverse interaction with a customer may damage the brand or company reputation, because all that is happening in front of the public eye. The traces of such ‘bad’ customer episodes remain in the digital world and they are very difficult to remove. So, it is very important to be very careful in managing our online reputation.
vii. Digital marketing is fast. We have to prepare our organization to be equally agile in responding and acting.
viii. A lot of activities of digital marketing can be centered on our web site. So, proper attention to managing our web site can become a part of our digital marketing efforts.
ix. Digital marketing is ever-changing and is evolving very rapidly. We must keep adapting to the changing landscape. We must allocate some dedicated manpower and resources for taking care of the same.
10. Essay on Event Marketing for Students:
Event marketing promotes products through sponsoring events, such as sports, contests, and art exhibitions. An organization adopts event marketing to establish good public relations among the members of the target market. The organization can distribute free samples of the product to develop a positive image for the product.
Event management links the organization with an event for their mutual benefits. In event management, an event gets sponsorship; whereas, the organization gets the opportunity to advertise its brand. The organization passes through various activities before taking up any event proposal.
These activities are called pre-event analysis, which is as follows:
i. Study the Brand:
It develops an idea about the suitability of the brand with events. All the events cannot match with the image of all the brands. The event, such as fresher’s party is suitable for the brands that have young and vibrant image, for example, Pepsi.
ii. Identify the Audience:
It refers to recognizing the type of audience who could attend the event. The gazal concert attracts serious audience so the brand having serious image, such as Life Insurance Corporation may attract the audience.
iii. Making the Event Concept:
It refers to selecting the theme of an event to project the brand and attract the attention of audience.
The event industry also performs post-event analysis to ensure favorable return on investment. An event manager needs to have certain skills to make the event successful.
These skills are as follows:
i. Negotiating Skills – Follow the process of communicating back and forth to reach an agreement between the sponsor and event organizer.
ii. Creative Skills – Develop through a continuous practice on any idea. These skills do not come naturally and need to be developed.
iii. Convincing Skills – Refer to the skills of bringing other parties into one’s favor
iv. Coordinating Skills – Help in the smooth functioning of programs of an event
v. Planning Skills – Help in chronologically scheduling the events to maintain the attention of the audience
vi. Executing and Implementing Skills – Refer to managing minute details to make an event successful.
Following are the objectives of event marketing management:
i. Increasing Awareness about the Brand – It refers to brand recognition and brand recall by the audience. For example, Frito-Lay, an associate organization of PepsiCo, used balloon festivals to increase brand awareness of its vegetable crisps.
ii. Reinforcing Brand Image Association – It refers to match the brand image with the events. For example, MRF Tyres sponsor car racing events to increase brand association of its products with vehicles.
iii. Enhancing Corporate Image – It refers to make an organization prestigious and improve brand perception among the customers. For example, Heinz ketchup and Murphy’s oil soap enhance their corporate image through family serials.
iv. Evoking Feelings – It refers to arousing the emotional buying behaviour of customers. For example, sports car advertisement in Formula one race evokes the feeling of purchasing the car.
v. Expressing Commitment to Social Issues – It refers to making customers feel that the organization is associated with social causes.
vi. Creating Opportunity for Promotion – It makes scope for the promotion of a brand. For example, Idea cellular sponsored Idea Star Singers program on television and claimed a huge success in increasing the sale of its products.
The types of events that help an organization to market its product are:
1. Business Events:
a. Fundraising events
b. Live performances
c. Seminars
d. Sporting events
2. Corporate Events:
a. Exhibitions
b. Festive events
c. Workshops
d. Marketing events
3. Cause-Related Events:
a. Trade fairs
b. Government events
c. Conferences
d. Promotional events
4. Coordinating Skills:
a. Entertainment events
b. Meetings
c. Conventions
d. Brand and product launches.
The organization can select one or more events to promote its products through sponsorships. Now, let us discuss the opportunities that the organization can gain from event marketing in the next section.
Opportunities in Event Marketing:
Event management has seen tremendous growth over the last few years and provided great opportunities in the field of event marketing. Nowadays, the events are organized at both small and large scales. The small-scale events include business meetings, conferences, and seminars. On the other hand, large-scale events involve product launches, film festivals, and national and international sports events.
The growth in number of festivals has increased the scope of marketing events. The event industry requires managers with convincing, negotiating, coordinating, and planning skills to successfully carryout the event. The managers with these qualities can grow fast in this industry.
Sponsorship:
An organization sponsors an event by providing resources to get publicity through advertising products in the event.
Sponsorship can be done through various ways, which are as follows:
i. Television and Radio Program Sponsorship – It includes providing money to broadcasting channels to advertise in movies, serials, matches, and other events on TV or radio. For example, Cadbury sponsors Coronation Street.
ii. Sports Sponsorship – It refers to organize events to attract significant media coverage. Sports events, such as cricket, football, and hockey are famous among audience. Sponsoring these events can create brand awareness among customers.
iii. Arts Sponsorship –It refers to provide money to the event managers for organizing an art event.
iv. Educational Sponsorship – It spreads awareness among students providing books and computers.