Basics of Marketing Overview

Study Notes

Marketing defined by Dr. Philip Kotler: "The science and art of exploring, creating, and delivering value to satisfy the needs of a target market at a profit."
Marketing identifies unfulfilled needs, measures market size, quantifies profit potential, and selects optimal segments for service.

The American Marketing Association describes marketing as planning and executing the processing of ideas, goods, and services to create exchanges satisfying individual and organizational goals.
Marjorie Clayman states marketing is about brand building, customer relationship protection, and successful execution of opportunity identification, product development, customer attraction, loyalty building, and order fulfillment.

Types of marketing orientations:
- Production orientation
- Product orientation
- Sales orientation
- Societal orientation
- Market orientation
Understanding each orientation's definition, advantages, and disadvantages is crucial for effective strategy formulation.

Market segmentation subdivides the market into groups with similar needs but distinct preferences.
Types of segmentation include:
- Benefit Segmentation: Based on the benefits consumers seek from a product.
- Usage Segmentation: Categorizes consumers by their frequency of product use.
- Behavioral Segmentation: Based on consumers' personality traits and behaviors.

The marketing mix traditionally consists of the 4 Ps:
- Product: Fundamental aspect that encompasses demand, customer needs, market trends, competition, adaptability, branding, and packaging considerations.
- Price: Influenced by product value perception, consumer choice, experiences, and economic conditions. It’s not solely determined by the product cost.
- Place: Involves distribution channels and logistics that ensure product availability to consumers.
- Promotion: Encompasses advertising, public relations, and promotional strategies to inform and attract customers.

Products and Services: Differentiated by types, components, and their life cycle stages.
Price Determination: Balancing perceived value and actual costs is critical for attracting consumers.
Distribution Channels: Categorized by types and the logistic roles necessary for efficient delivery.
Advertising and Promotion: Essential for communication between a brand and its audience, requiring strategic planning and execution.
Creating a Marketing Plan: Involves comprehensive analysis and resource allocation to achieve defined marketing objectives.
Brand Development: Focuses on positioning and assessing brand value in relation to competition and market dynamics.