Marketing: Providing Value to Customer - Article Example

To implement the marketing concept, the target market is identified first and segmentation is carried out based on psychographics, geography, behavior and finally, the product mix is applied to satisfy and build long-term customer relationships. The product mix is comprised of four P’s of marketing namely product, pricing, placement, and promotion. A product could be any physical product or service that meets the demands of the customers. Pricing is carried out on the techniques of marketing skimming or penetration so that market share is grabbed by the company by setting initially higher and lower prices respectively.

Distribution of products to the customers involves a supply chain of activities where the raw materials are provided by the supplier, assembled at the manufacturer’s plant, stored in the warehousing, and then sent to the retailer for making available for customer’s purchase. To create awareness among the customers about the product/service the company offers, techniques of advertising, personal selling, and maintaining public relations are regarded as significant. Customer relationship management is considered vital for any organization’s success because satisfied customers yield more profits.

Every product has to go through a cycle where is it first introduced in the market, then it sees a phase of growth where the focus is on generating sales, then the product stabilizes or becomes mature in the market and generates good profits. Lastly, when competition becomes intense or the marketing efforts to maintain the product’s image fail, it goes through the declining stage. Read More