The Rudiments of Marketing

Forms

Monopoly: This is a situation where there is just one seller and many buyers on the platform. Here, the seller has no competition and so decides the price at which the product is sold to the buyer.

Monopsony: In monopsony, there are many sellers but one buyer. In this situation, the buyer has an edge over the sellers in deciding the cost at which the products will be sold.

Definition of Marketing

Marketing can be said to be a “philosophy” that aims towards satisfying customers. This means that whatever form marketing takes, it should be a way of meeting the customer’s needs.

It is important to, however, bear in mind that marketing involves an exchange between the producer and the consumer.

So, In as much as it aims towards satisfying customers, the producers on their own end, should not be rubbed of profit.

According to the American Marketing Association(A.M.A), Marketing is the activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large. (Approved 2017)
This definition shares a clearer perspective on marketing.

With the explanations above, it can be said that the act of marketing, the institution under which the services are rendered, the production, communication, and publicity of products or services and proper exchange are all in the interest of satisfying the customers by meeting their needs.

There are basically five concepts of marketing. They are :
Production Concept, Product Concept, Selling Concept, Marketing Concept, Societal Marketing Concept, Production Concept.

This concept is very ancient though still in Vogue. It possesses the tendency of shortsighted marketing because the management only works towards production improvement and effectiveness in distribution.

That is, they lose sight of the major aim and focus on their own activities which are rather shallow.
In the production concept, sellers are guided by their knowledge of Consumers always going for products that are “available and highly affordable”

Product Concept

The product concept asserts that consumers will favor products that are of standard quality and innovatory characteristics.

The marketing strategies in this concept focuses on steady improvement and upgrade of the product. This is usually the most relevant (if not the only) part of marketing strategies.

Focusing only on the products of the company could also lead to shortsighted marketing.
For instance, A company makes the best “Candycane lollipop” and their customers need a variety of lollipop for a party.

The customer will not be satisfied because there will be no variety; it’s just candy cane lollipop.
So, instead of the company focusing on making the best candy cane lollipops, they should try out other flavors. That way, the customers’ needs are met.

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Selling Concept

“consumers will only purchase a large number of the firm’s products if it puts in efforts in a large-scale sales and promotion”- This is the view of the selling concept.

Here, the management is not overly interested in building a long term, reproductive customer relationship; It focuses more on creating sales transactions.

In essence, What is being sold is the product of the company, not what the market wants. This method of making sales could result in the setback of the company.

The marketer believes that the customer will be convinced to buy the product. And if he doesn’t buy it initially, the customer could let go of his disappointments and still come back for the product. This assumption is rather too shallow for a marketer who wants to satisfy customers.

Originally, the selling concept is practiced with goods that are not usually required by customers such as insurance or blood donations.

Marketing Concept

The marketing concept opines that “achieving organizational goals depends on knowing the needs and wants of target markets and delivering the desired satisfactions better than competitors do”.

In this situation, the marketing concept produces according to the needs of the customer.

Under the marketing concept, customer interest and quality are considered great in order to achieve sales and profits.
In other words, it is customer minded and not company minded.

Societal marketing concept

It asks the question “does the pure marketing concept sideline conflicts between consumer short-run wants and consumer long-run welfare?”

The societal marketing concept is of the view that marketing strategy should provide the customers with quality products, having in mind the purpose of maintaining and improving both the consumer’s and society’s well-being.

Its mission is to sustain marketing socially and environmentally; attending to the current needs of customers and businesses and in the process, protect and develop the ability of the generations to come in meeting their basic needs.

The Societal Marketing Concept puts Human welfare on top before profits and satisfying the wants.

Companies are gradually tilting towards the societal marketing concept because there is a check in the way our resources are used today due to global warming.