What is Marketing ?

Marketing is the performance of Business Activities that direct the flow of goods and Services
from the flow of goods and services from the producer to the Consumer or Organisation ? AMA
1960

The question is which Business Activities will help guide this uninterrupted flow from the
Organisation to the consumer /user .Examples Brittania vs Sunfeast .Is it safe to assume that
the first company which identifies an unmet need and fulfills it will actually be able to get the
goods to flow from the organisation to the consumer ?The initial demand you could actually
nurture ,but what if the competitors come up with a better proposition which appeals to the
consumer the breakthrough created by you is taken advantage of by some one else .Study for
example the Low Calorie Sugar Market or the Premium Car Market .In both the one who first
identified is the loser ? Do we thus say Markets are never static but always dynamic so then
what then is the role of the Marketing Manager in an established category .Are we suggesting
thus we need to constantly take feedback form actual and potential users to make course
corrections ( Product modifications ,price changes ,ways of communicating and engaging with
the consumer ) Is this definition tenable .?

Marketing is not a departmental function but all departments should work in tandem with the
"Targeted Customer in Focus"Example MRF ,KFC and add your own examples as you go along

Marketing is a Organisational function and se t of processes for Creating ,Communicating and

Delivering Value to the Customer ( Targeted Customer) and managing customer relationship
in ways that benefit the organisation and its stake holder AMA 2004

The key words " Creating Value,Communicating Value and Delivering Value to Targeted
Customers "Managing Relationships so that all parties are benefited which is the Company ,the
Customers ,the Channel Members ,the Supply Chain Members ,the Financial Institutions( King
Fisher and SBI) .In the Markets for Ready to Eat Foods ( HLL) launches the Chapati .Take a
sample of the Chapati .Who is the Target Market ,Buy one Chapati and use it after reading what
the Packaging says ,use it and then decide if you were satisfied .What went right or wrong ? A
few months later a store brand of Chapati is launched and the demand swells .Apply the
definition after visiting the retail outlets and share your learning

Lets look at the meaning of the term Value "

Value is the sum total of all what you( Consumer) gets in return for what he gives ( time ,effort
,money) .If what he gets is better that what he gets then he will buy as you have created Value
.Thus if you buy an Audi you are getting performance,safety ,comfort ,finance,warranty
,prestige in return for the money time and effort made in comparing other car including your
existing one.Value is individual or target market specific .Consumer dont buy products and
services but value ( defines as to what it will do for them ) What the customer thinks he is
buying is important not what the Supplier is supplying ? Value is contextual example
moped,lassi,hair dye ,tractor .We need to know how the customer uses the product .Value is
"Key" in Marketing as we speak of Creating Value ,then Communicating Value and Delivering
Value to the Targeted Customers.Value has to be understood in the correct sense of the term

a) Value is defined by the Customer - What the business thinks they are producing is not
"Value" ,what the Customer thinks he or she is buying is "Value" eg Lipstick,AC ,Milk etc .A
company said that they didnt make cement but helped people construct their homes/Offices .In
the plant they make cement but in the customers mind they help you build your homes thus
they help you get plumbers,electricians ,arrange home loans ,and thus provide value which help
consumers firm up a relationship with the company

b) Value cannot be easily articulated by customers but if you were to observe them in their
natural surroundings you may learn a lot Example quoted in the class of " Coatings of ICI " and
how the product was modified to enhance the value perceived by the customer thus making
them buy the product at the highest price

c) Value is Customer and Application Specific - A child may want a different shoe than a senior
citizen .A mother may want a different camera to capture her childs growing up years than a
professional camera person.

d) Value is relative - Consumers evaluate your value against other available alternatives

In sum to create value you should know the consumer well enough which means how he or she
perceives a product/service is based on his or her definition,based on the use and relative to
competition

What is the Process of Marketing?

The five step process comprises of Research,STP, Marketing Mix ,Implementation and Control
.Apply this in the format discussed ,by selecting a Product category ,the various companies
making it ,who their target markets are and why, and the marketing mix .If you can take a
sample of actual consumers and check why they buy a particular brand ( Value according to
them ) where do they buy from ( Place) ,why do they like to brand ( Communication to position
the brand in their mind) ,you will learn how the company has managed to differentiate their
brand .Which Communication tools were used ( Advertising was it TV which channel ,which
programme ,how frequently ) Print ads which news paper ,which page and how big and how
frequently ,sales people and their roles ,internet ,Publicity etc you will be familiar with the
communication tools and which one to use .According to you which communication tool was
most effective according to sample of consumers you spoke to .Develop a Matrix as is being
done in Cat vs Komatsu and compare the 4 ps which led to the decision .Is it possible to look at
the top line ( sales ) and bottom line ( profit ) of these companies for the least three years as to
assess who is winning and who is losing.
What are the core concepts of Marketing ?

Need ,Wants and Demand ,STP ,Value and Satisfaction ,Marketing Channels Supply Chain and
Competition
Marketing Environment .Take a small local company ( making say peanuts or small holiday
resort ) and apply the core concepts again in two pages .Avoid field work but you can use
telephone ,visit to the net ,articles or publications

What are the various orientations a company adopts towards the Market place?

The goal of every company is to make sure they reach a certain predefined objective ( Revenue
,time frame ) .Revenues can accrue from current customers and new customers .The recipe
followed by the company could fall under Production,Product,Selling ,Marketing and holistic
.There is a atable given to you pls read thru and fit your own example for each business
orientation so that revenue goals in the specified time frame is achieved

Approaches to formulating a Marketing Strategy ?

Any approach to attain a result ( objective) begins from the outer to the inner sphere

External Environment - What is output we get from studying the Environment

Company and Competitors - What do we wish to know ,how we will know and how do we get
an advantage ?
Marketing Mix Deployed
Targeted Customer

The other approach begs to answer the question is it really a must to follow the approach
specified above the ensure that to get a desired result from a Targeted Market we need to
study the Environment ( which is the population divided by age ,income,gender ,occupation etc
,followed by Political, Social Technological and Economic Enviornment impacting the Compamy
,the competitors ,the suppliers ,the channels and then only can we decide what value if
created,communicated and delivered will reach us to the result ) then how come ,Sony came up
with the Walkman,and there are other breakthrough products like Smart Phones ,Robotics, all
of which was never researched and the ideas never came from the sample of customers to
identify any unmet or undermet needs .This leads us to understand that there are two ways to
formulate a marketing strategy one is called Market Driven and the other is Market Driving