Marketing

Marketing is a term usually misunderstood by most people as just an exchangeable term for advertising or selling. It is sometimes even thought about as persuading people to buy things they do not need (Marcouse, 2011). However, Marketing is the management process in charge of identifying, anticipating and satisfying the customer’s needs with the aim of making profit (Chartered Institute of Marketing, 2012). Marketing can be divided into two main branches: Market-Orientated and Production-Orientated Marketing. In market- orientated marketing, managers take into account the needs of the consumers before making any decision (Marcouse, 2011) whereas in contrast, a production-orientated firm has its key focus on its product and on the skills, knowledge and systems that support that product (businesscasestudies.co.uk, 2013).

In addition, there are five major forms of marketing. These include: Digital Marketing - purely electronic means to advertise their products and services; Internet Marketing - makes use of email, banner advertisements; Affiliate Marketing - online advertisers and merchants share revenue with online salespeople or website owners; Multi-Level Marketing - products are generally sold by individuals either in consumer's homes or in a designated area of meeting and Global Marketing - international business allies form relationships and develop networks on a global scale (sophisticatededge.com, 2013).

All of these forms of marketing take into account the ‘marketing mix’, which is the balance between the four elements needed to carry out marketing strategies. These are popularly known as the 7 P's in Marketing, but the four main P’s we focus on are: Product: focuses on what you have to offer and how it benefits the customer; Price: you are looking at what it costs the consumer; Place: where people can buy what is offered or how it can be delivered to the consumer as efficiently as possible and Promotion: how you will inform people of what you have to offer e.g. public relations, advertising etc. (mediatrust.org, 2013). Below is a diagram that illustrates the 7 P’s.

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