In this article, you’d learn that marketing is a key business function that majorly determines the street of organisation whether profit or non profit. For example, if you provide service like half out you need
marketing knowledge or if you are a manufacturer of bottled water you equally need marketing knowledge.
Marketing objective is therefore a part of the overall company’s objectives. The different functions or departments of an organisation have their own objectives. They are all put together to achieve the total corporate objectives
In this article we will discuss managerial functions of marketing roles and importance of marketing research, marketing planning process and bases for segmentation
Management Functions of Marketing
The following are the management functions of marketing: –
Setting Marketing Programme Objectives
Marketing objectives specify what the Marketing Department expects to achieve by successfully implementing its marketing strategies. In order to have a clear focus in the marketing efforts, it is important to have clearly set objectives.
The objectives will guide the organisation to success. It is therefore important that marketing objectives are clearly set. Marketing objectives are concerned with the product or services and the market.
In setting marketing programme objectives, there are some basic criteria that the objectives should meet in marketing practice, it is what is called the SMART criteria. That is, objectives must be
S = Specific
M = Measurable
A = Achievable
R = Realistic
T = Time bound
The objectives should be set out and made to be specific, simple and without complexity. It should be easy to understand by all the employees and everyone involved in pursuing or working towards the achievement of the objectives.
Therefore, marketing objectives have to be clearly defined and unambiguous. Example of a marketing objective is: Our Company is to increase its market share by 5% in 2013.
The objectives should be measurable in the sense that it should be quantified. This makes it possible and even easy for the set objectives to be evaluated.
Marketing objectives have to be achievable or attainable putting all the required effort and support behind all relevant marketing activities. Though they could be demanding, ultimately they are capable of being achieved. Marketing objectives should be realistic even when at times they may seem aspirational.
Aspirational but unrealistic objectives will be wishful thinking because they cannot be attained. Marketing objectives therefore will have to be set to align with the available organisation resources.
There has to be a timeline set for any objective. Marketing objectives should be achieved within a specific time frame. Hence, when we say marketing objectives have to be time bond we mean that the objectives must have specific schedule or timeline.
Marketing Planning
Marketing planning is a process that involves the formulation and orderly setting out of activities that are used to develop and grow a product and achieve its marketing objectives. Planning is essentially a systematic way for an organisation to attempt to control its future.
Marketing planning is that process of developing, designing and implementing the pathway to achieving success of marketing activities of an organisation. Put simply, a plan is a statement of what the organisation intends to achieve, how it wants to achieve it and when it expects to achieve it.
It provides the road map to attain marketing objectives. It entails analysing the market, competition, evaluation of available opportunities and operating environment, and then putting together the required strategies to achieve the set objectives.
This process according to Philip Kotler involves analyzing marketing opportunities, researching and selecting target markets, designing marketing strategies, planning marketing programmes and organising, implementing and controlling the marketing efforts.
The steps in marketing planning process are explained in the succeeding sections:
Situation Analysis
In carrying out situation analysis, the task is to evaluate features such as market, environment, product, consumers and competition in the market segment.
Market
Analysing the market entails identifying the key characteristics of the market and potential opportunities available in the market which could be harnessed. The marked characteristics and potentials could be the huge market size. Conducting market research will be very useful in identifying the critical characteristics and potentials of the market
Product
This involves examining the key features of the product and putting it side by side with that of other competitors. This task will guide in knowing which part of the product should be improved upon or made better than competition. This analysis will also assist in establishing the best product strategy to apply in marketing effort.
Consumers
Consumer analysis will involve establishing the consumers’ consumption and purchasing habits and their profile categorization. This will enable the organisation to design appropriate marketing communication and other marketing efforts that will create interaction of the product with the consumers.
Environment
The operating environment has to be evaluated so as to have an understanding of which of the environmental factors will provide business opportunities or become threats to the organisation. All these are important so that the company can properly align its marketing efforts with existing environmental factors.
Competition
Competitive analysis becomes very critical in marketing planning because it enables you to know the other organisation trying to satisfy the same consumers. The tasks enable you to know how best or which strategies to use to put the product across to the consumers.
Analyse Market Opportunities
The task for the marketing team putting up the plan is to use a SWOT (Strength, Weakness, Opportunity and Threat) analysis framework to establish what the potentials in the market are. Identifying strengths and weaknesses entails looking inward in the organisation.
This is to evaluate features which the organisation has as assets and it can deploy to its own advantage. A company’s strength could be its huge finance base, widespread of its territorial offices, large customers base, successful . brands or high calibre employees. At the same time, the lack of all of these assets enumerated could be its weaknesses.
Researching and Selecting Target Markets
This task in the process of marketing planning is common with new organisations that are entering the market segment for the very first time. It will carry out some basic researches to identify and establish the potential viable market segments and their profiles.
The outcome of such a research will assist in selecting the most viable appropriate target market. As this is done, the marketing objectives are set with the plans while strategies will be developed and programmes implemented to achieve the objectives.
Developing Marketing Strategies
Developing strategies is a function of the stage of the product in its life cycle. That is to say that, the strategies applied in marketing a product at the introductory stage, growth stage, maturity stage or decline stage will be all different from one another.
However, the basic thing to do is to execute product positioning that will endear and strengthen the product in the minds of the consumers and customers.
Setting Marketing Programmes
This is actually the transformation of the strategies developed into realistic and actionable marketing activities. In this task of setting marketing programmes, some key decisions have to be taken about the product mix, working teams and finances to be allocated.
Prioritising the activities and expenditure for executing the programmes is a marketing task that requires excellent marketing skills and experience.
Implementing and Controlling Marketing Effort
This is the last stage in marketing planning. It is the stage that ensures that the programmes and strategies are well executed as planned. Besides, it is at this level that control on implementation is ensured so that the marketing objectives are met as planned. Where there is derailing from the plan, it is at this stage that the correction is effected immediately.
Marketing Evaluation and Control
Evaluation in marketing has to do with the assessment of the results and comparing it with the objectives. Marketing control is basically the need to ensure that the set marketing objectives are achieved as planned.
It involves a periodic re-evaluation of the strategies and marketing activities put in place to achieve the objectives. The control focuses on continuous monitoring, reviews and audits of the marketing performance.
It serves as a guide to ensure that the marketing plans do not go off track. Marketing control starts from when the objectives are set. Thereafter, it requires a check to establish what is happening, why it is happening or if it is in line with plans and finally what should be done as corrective measures. The marketing control process.