Definition of Marketing
Marketing is the process of educating consumers about the reasons why they should choose your product or service over your competitors, and it is a form of persuasive communication. It encompasses every process that involves transferring the product or service from your business to the consumer. Marketing includes the creation of the product or service idea, identifying who the likely buyers are, promoting it, and delivering it through appropriate sales channels. There are three main objectives of marketing:
1. Attract the attention of the target audience.
2. Convince the consumer to purchase your product.
3. Provide a specific and low-risk action for the customer that is easy to take.
Four Stages of Marketing
Companies must go through several stages of marketing to ensure their products or services are ready to sell:
1. Idea: Marketing begins when you develop an idea for a product or service. Before launching a product or service, you must define what you are selling, how many options are available, and how to package and present it to consumers.
2. Research and Testing: Before you can present your idea to the public, you must conduct marketing research and testing. Marketing departments typically test new product concepts with focus groups and surveys to measure consumer interest, improve product ideas, determine optimal pricing, and generate ideas for positioning the brand in the current market. Researching your competitors can help you set optimal pricing and generate ideas for positioning the brand in an existing market.
3. Advertising: The information you gather from your research will help you define your marketing strategy and create an advertising campaign. Campaigns can include various forms of media, events, direct advertising, paid partnerships, public relations, and more. Before launching an advertising campaign, establish concrete criteria that you can use to measure the effectiveness of that advertising campaign.
4. Selling: Determine where and how to sell your products to customers. Consumer product companies, for example, sell to wholesalers who then sell them to retailers. In the industrial market, the purchasing process is longer and involves more decision-makers. You may sell locally, nationally, or even internationally, and some companies sell their products or services online only. Your distribution and sales channels influence who buys your products, when they buy them, and how they buy them.
Model of the Four P’s of Marketing
The four stages of marketing can also be linked to another popular marketing model known as the Four P’s of Marketing. The four types in this model are Product, Price, Promotion, and Place.
1. Product: The actions you take to ensure your products are ready for sale. Your product (or service) should fill a gap in the market, meet customer needs, and stand out from the competition.
2. Price: The cost of purchase, including the sticker price as well as the measurable trade-offs the customer has to be willing to make when buying your products.
3. Promotion: The information you provide to consumers through targeted advertising to generate interest in your products. Advertising campaigns typically have one of two goals: to generate leads or to initiate actual purchases.
4. Place: Refers to how and where products are sold. All distribution decisions are considered part of the overall marketing process.
Types of Advertising
There are many types of advertising you can use to promote your business, educate customers about your products, and generate sales. Print, radio, and television campaigns are types of advertising, as well as direct mail, email, and online marketing. If you have a website, it should be optimized for search to help customers find it through search engines like Google, Yahoo, and Bing. Newsletters, press releases, and articles are also forms of marketing used to attract customers and generate sales. Some companies also use referral marketing, where satisfied customers refer others (often in exchange for a reward) to increase business.
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Social media platforms have increased the importance of social media marketing, including engaging with customers on social media by convincing them to follow your business, partnering with social media influencers through product placement or paid sponsorships, and paying for advertising on platforms like Facebook or Instagram. The types of advertising you choose will depend on your budget, the type of business you have, and the preferences of your ideal customers.
Marketing Lifecycle
Advertising, or promotion, is just one component of your marketing plan. The marketing process starts with the idea of your product and continues until that product is in the hands of the customer who purchased it. Even after a customer buys the product, your marketing shouldn’t end – part of your promotional efforts should be targeted at current customers to ensure they remain customers and increase loyalty.
Conclusion
Marketing is a critical process for the success of any business. It helps you attract customers, increase sales, and build your brand. By understanding the concept of marketing, its stages, and types of advertising, you can develop an effective marketing strategy that helps you achieve your business goals.
Source: https://www.thebalancemoney.com/what-is-marketing-2296057
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