The four main distinguishing features of marketing are,
1. Customer Orientation
The Marketing concept focuses on customer which states that business process begins with identifying the needs and wants of the customers and ends with satisfying them. Business is seen from the customers perspective in marketing concept. All business activities are designed as per the needs and wants of the customer. Customers are placed at the center point and the entire business is constructed around them.
2. Integrated Management
In order to ensure customer orientation and customer satisfaction every activity of the business should be integrated with one another and should be linked with marketing activities. For achieving this type of integration, many companies recruit product and marketing managers.
3. Satisfaction of Customer
If company is successful in satisfying customers needs, the company efforts will result in customer satisfaction. The company following marketing concept must make sure that customer-orientation results in customer satisfaction. Achieving customer satisfaction is considered as essential in the marketing concept.
4. Achievement of Organizational Objectives Comprising Profits
Eventhough, the marketing concept focuses on achieving customer satisfaction, it never ignored the significance of generating profits. Actually, customers satisfaction will automatically increase the profit levels of the organization. The simplest definition of marketing is an act of profitably meeting the customer needs.
Functions of Marketing
The functions of marketing can be broadly classified into,
- Merchandising functions
- Distribution functions and
- Supporting functions.
1. Merchandising Functions
The various activities which come into the category of merchandising functions are,
(i) Purchasing Activity
The marketing process staffs with purchasing activity. A manufacturer purchases inputs to manufacture goods. A wholesaler purchases goods from manufacturer and sells to retailer. A retailer purchases goods from wholesaler and sells to final consumer.
(ii) Assembling Activity
Assembling is nothing but gathering goods and maintaining stock of goods. Usually, marketing intermediaries buy goods from two or more sellers and in this situations they need to gather and stock all the bought goods at one particular place.
(iii) Selling Activity
Selling involves transfer of title of goods from seller to buyer. Sales generate profits to the company. Selling activity includes various other activities like – creating demand, marketing research, choosing the distribution channel and so on.
2. Distribution Functions
Transportation, storage and warehousing activities come into the category of distribution functions.
(i) Transportation
Transportation adds value to the product and creates place utility. Introduction of new markets, extension of existing markets, ongoing supply of products at reasonable prices, and providing enhanced services to customers are only possible through better transportation and communication facilities.
(ii) Storage
The raw materials purchased by the manufacturer are stored in one particular place till the time of production.
(iii) Warehousing
Warehouse is usually located at places from where goods can be distributed to the customers easily as per their needs and requirements.
3. Supporting Functions
Supporting functions facilitate the marketing activities of the company. Standardization, pricing, financing, sales promotion, market information, advertising, risk bearing and so on come under supporting functions of marketing.
Scope of Marketing
The scope of marketing includes the aspects that focus on customer satisfaction. They are,
1. Goods
Any physical product constitutes the goods of an organization. Indian companies undertake the marketing of cars, trucks, televisions, machines, toys, cosmetics etc.
2. Services
Intangible products are called Services. In the modem economic scenario, more and more people require services for the fulfillment of their needs. Services include the functioning of airlines, hotels, hospitals, barber shops, beauticians, accountants, software programmers, lawyers, engineers and management consultants etc.
3. Events
Marketers promote events that assist the firm in marketing their products and services. Job fairs, trade shows, artistic performances and company anniversaries are some of the examples of such events.
4. Persons
Celebrity marketing has become the trend of modem business. CEOs, physicians, financiers and other professionals have adopted celebrity marketing to market their products and services. Celebrities market themselves and become brand ambassadors of various companies.
5. Organizations
Active involvement of the organizations in creating and building a strong, favorable and unique image in the minds of the target segment, is the ultimate goal of successful marketing. This can be done by effectively formulating the mission statement of a company.
6. Information
Information refers to the market awareness basically provided by books, schools, universities which needs to be processed, marketed and distributed.
7. Ideas
A market offering constitutes a basic idea on which marketing activities are built. The basic idea refers to the core basis behind the offerings. Ideas of marketers reach customers in the form of products.
8. Marketers and Prospects
A Marketer is a person who receives attention, a vote, or a donation by other party, called as a prospect. An individual with whom products, services are exchanged by ‘marketers’. A prospect becomes a customer after buying production is called a prospect.
9. Marketing in Practice
In practice, the marketing aspect is not performed by the marketing department alone. Marketers must consider the various customer contact points such as, store layouts, package designs, product functions, employee training, shipping and logistics methods.