Marketing Management: Core Concepts

• Marketing management involves planning, implementing, and controlling marketing activities to achieve organizational goals.
• It requires understanding the market, identifying target customers, developing strategies, and managing resources.

Core Concepts

• Marketing involves creating, communicating, and delivering value to customers.
• Marketing management focuses on applying marketing techniques within organizations and managing resources.
• A target market represents a specific group of consumers for whom a company designs its products/services.
• The marketing mix (4Ps) consists of Product, Price, Place (Distribution), and Promotion, which are controllable variables used to influence the target market.
• A value proposition summarizes why a consumer should buy a product or use a service, demonstrating its superior problem-solving ability.
• Customer Relationship Management (CRM) involves strategies, technologies, and practices to manage customer interactions and data throughout the customer lifecycle.
• Market segmentation is dividing a broad market into subgroups based on shared characteristics.
• Branding involves creating a unique name and image for a product through consistent advertising campaigns.
• A marketing plan is a comprehensive document outlining a company's overall strategy, including objectives and target market.
• The marketing environment includes internal and external factors affecting a company's ability to serve customers, such as competitive, economic, social, and technological elements.
• Marketing research is systematically gathering, recording, and analyzing data related to marketing products and services.

The Marketing Process

• Situation Analysis involves analyzing the current market, including SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats).
• Setting Marketing Objectives means defining SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, time-bound) goals.
• Developing Marketing Strategies includes creating a plan to achieve objectives by selecting target markets, value propositions, and the marketing mix.
• Implementation means putting the plan into action, which includes executing campaigns, managing sales, and providing customer service.
• Control and Evaluation involves monitoring results and making necessary adjustments.
• Customer feedback is crucial to this process.

Key Areas of Marketing Management

• Market Analysis involves studying market size, trends, and customer behavior to identify opportunities and threats.
• Consumer behavior involves understanding how consumers make purchasing decisions, including their needs and motivations.
• Product development involves creating new products or improving existing ones to meet customer needs.
• Pricing strategies involve determining optimal prices based on costs, competition, and customer value.
• Distribution channels involve managing the flow of products from manufacturer to consumer, including wholesalers and retailers.
• Promotion and advertising involves communicating the value of products to target customers through various channels.
• Sales management involves managing the sales team to achieve targets and build relationships.
• Digital marketing involves using online channels like social media and email to engage with customers.
• Marketing communication involves messages and media deployed to communicate with the market.
• Competitive analysis involves identifying and evaluating competitors to develop an advantage.
• Marketing ethics involves ensuring ethical conduct in marketing activities.

Marketing Philosophies

• Production Concept focuses on mass production and assumes customers prioritize availability and low prices.
• Product Concept focuses on quality and innovation, assuming customers will choose the best product.
• Selling Concept focuses on aggressive tactics, assuming customers must be persuaded to buy.
• Marketing Concept focuses on understanding customer needs, assuming satisfaction is key to long-term success.
• Societal Marketing Concept considers societal welfare in addition to customer needs and company profits.

Marketing Mix (4Ps expanded)

• Product includes the goods or services offered, considering features, brand, packaging, service, and warranty.
• Price involves the amount customers pay, including pricing strategies, discounts, credit terms, and payment methods.
• Place (Distribution) covers product distribution, including distribution channels, logistics, and inventory management.
• Promotion covers communication activities to inform and persuade customers, including advertising and public relations.

Market Segmentation

• Geographic segmentation divides the market based on location.
• Demographic segmentation divides the market based on variables like age and income.
• Psychographic segmentation divides the market based on lifestyle and values.
• Behavioral segmentation divides the market based on purchase history and brand loyalty.

Branding Strategies

• Brand positioning creates a distinct image for a brand in consumers' minds.
• Brand equity is the value of a brand based on perceptions and loyalty.
• Brand extension uses an existing name to launch a product in a different category.
• Brand licensing allows another company to use a brand name for a fee.
• Rebranding changes an image to reflect new market conditions.

Digital Marketing Strategies

• Search Engine Optimization (SEO) optimizes website content to rank higher in search results.
• Search Engine Marketing (SEM) uses paid advertising to increase search engine visibility.
• Social Media Marketing (SMM) uses social media platforms to engage with customers and build awareness.
• Email Marketing sends targeted emails to promote products and build relationships.
• Content Marketing creates valuable content to attract and engage the target audience.
• Affiliate Marketing partners with businesses to promote products for a commission.
• Influencer Marketing collaborates with influencers to promote products.

Customer Relationship Management (CRM)

• Data collection gathers data from sales transactions and website interactions
• Data analysis analyzes data to identify patterns and insights.
• Customer segmentation groups customers to tailor marketing efforts.
• Personalized marketing delivers customized messages to individual customers.
• Customer service provides excellent service to build loyalty.
• Customer feedback actively solicits and responds to feedback to improve products.

Marketing Research Methods

• Surveys collect data through questionnaires or interviews.
• Focus groups gather people to discuss a topic or product.
• Experiments test marketing strategies in a controlled environment.
• Observational studies observe behavior in a natural setting.
• Secondary data analysis analyzes existing data from reports and publications.

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) in Marketing

• Website traffic is the number of visitors to a website.
• Conversion rate is the percentage of visitors who complete a desired action.
• Customer acquisition cost (CAC) is the cost of acquiring a new customer.
• Customer lifetime value (CLTV) is the total revenue a customer is expected to generate.
• Return on investment (ROI) is the profitability of a marketing campaign.
• Brand awareness is the extent to which customers are familiar with a brand.
• Customer satisfaction is the degree to which customers are happy with a product or service.

Ethical Considerations in Marketing

• Honesty and transparency ensure truthful marketing communications.
• Privacy protects customer data and respects privacy rights.
• Responsibility means being accountable for the impact of marketing activities.
• Fairness involves treating customers fairly and avoiding discrimination.
• Sustainability promotes sustainable products and practices.

Understand marketing management, involving planning and executing strategies to meet organizational goals. Learn about the marketing mix (4Ps), target markets, and value proposition. Discover core concepts in marketing.