Role of Motivation in Effective Marketing Activities - Essay Example

Motivation in marketing Role of Motivation in Effective Marketing Activities Introduction Business has only two functions - marketing and innovation.” (Milan Kundera , 1929) Marketing is one of the core elements of manufacturing or service industry. Whatever the product or service offered by the manufacturer or service provider can reach the consumers only through effective marketing techniques. Without having a proper marketing team and marketing technique even the better quality products or services may fail in the market while cheap quality products may be successful through effective marketing alone. “Marketing is an organizational function and a set of processes for creating, communicating and delivering value to customers and for managing customer relationships in ways that benefit the organization and its stakeholders. It is a management process of anticipating, identifying and satisfying customer requirements profitably. Without motivation programs and understanding of the need of marketing by internal stakeholders, marketing will not work” (Gundars Berzins) Marketing process The marketing process consists of so many techniques. The data collected through marketing research is classified into primary data and secondary data. Also based on the nature of the data collected it is again classified as quantitative and Motivation in marketing 2 qualitative data. Based on such marketing research studies, the proper marketing techniques are designed and implemented. The parameters like motivation, self concept and memory can help you for effective marketing. In an effective marketing campaign identification of consumer motivating factors is as important as that of the marketing people. In this article, I would like to emphasize on the motivation factors of consumers and that of the marketing people as well. The role of motivation in marketing By the word ‘motive’ we mean something that lead a living organism into some kind of action. Qualitative research will help marketing people in identifying the consumer’s subconscious and discover deeply rooted motives for purchasing a product. “If you want to make things happen the ability to motivate yourself and others is a crucial skill. At work, home, and everywhere in between, people use motivation to get results. Motivation requires a delicate balance of communication, structure, and incentives” (John Wesley, 2007). Motivation can be of two types; intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. In intrinsic motivation, the activity carries its own reward. Playing cricket, solving mathematical problems etc. are examples of intrinsic motivation. In extrinsic motivation, the activity carries an external reward. Working for a better grade, learning a skill for livelihood etc are examples of extrinsic motivation. Motivation in marketing 3 Motivating factors of consumers Intrinsic and Extrinsic motivation Both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation can be used as a weapon in effective marketing. Most of the youths are passionate towards mobile phones with added facilities. In fact mobile companies offering exchange facilities to exploit such people. The use of cell phones being redefined by the youths. Though most of the old people using mobile phones communication alone, youths using it as camera, video recorder, music player, and also for surfing internet. A new mobile phone, with a new facility, always captures their attention. At any cost, they will try to own it. Here the added facility motivates the consumer towards that product. The apple’s touch phone is an example. Nowadays, owing a touch phone is considered as a big thing among youths. In order to exploit such intrinsic motivations of consumers, product manufacturers always develop new products or will incorporate new facilities to their existing products. “The product that I recently bought was the Mac Book, the Apple laptop. At the time I bought it, I have such a high level of drive that arouses me to satisfy the needs. I finally decide to reduce the tension, occurs from the discrepancy between my present state (of not having it) and my goal (owns a notebook), by buying it. The motivation I had then resulted from my needs, both utilarian and hedonic. On the one hand, utilarian need implies my attention towards to objective and tangible attributes of the products. My utilarian need was the Motivation in marketing 4 necessity of using the laptop to do homework, paperwork and presentations. On the other hand, there also existed a hedonic need, which was due to my subjective and emotional responses to the product and to the brand. I always like Apple laptop and I somehow can link the particular product to the Legally Blond movie” (Sizzlinggenie , 2008) We are living in a consumer world which offers discounts and prizes for every purchase we made. We can see so many advertisings like ‘buy one get one free’ or ‘for every purchase worth $ 100, you will get a jackpot coupon. In all such marketing campaigns, the marketing people make use of the extrinsic motivation factors of the consumer. I have a habit of visiting shopping malls or hyper markets just to see the new products. In most of the times I visit such shops without having any intension of any kind of purchasing. But majority of my visits ended in a big shopping. I am too much passionate towards the offers, and I cannot resist my temptation in most of the times. I know very well that such offers are just to motivate people like me towards that product. “Research used to investigate the psychological reasons why individuals buy specific types of merchandise, or why they respond to specific advertising appeals, to determine the base of brand choices and product preferences”. (Laura Lake, 2003) We know that some people are passionate towards certain brands, though they have some reported problems. Recently the cell phone giant ‘Nokia’ has announced problems for some of their cell phone batteries. Lot of incidents were also reported, about accidents Motivation in marketing 5 by the battery burst while using the phone. But still Nokia has not reported any slum in their sales because of this incident. On the other hand I wonder, if the same thing happened with another manufacturer, what would have been the responses of the consumers? “Marketing Motivation runs everything! Understand that it is both desires to improve the status quo as well as fear of loss of the status quo that propel people to act. Studies have shown that fear can have a short term effect on motivation to act positively, but, positive rewards have both increasing as well as longer lasting results. From a marketing perspective, inspiration can propel some parts of a potential marketplace into action. In addition to inspiring, educating the consumer as to the options available can be the justification to attract the already motivated but undirected person to come to you, now! As conditions change in the world (inflation, interest, seasons, etc.) or, as conditions change within that person, he may be inspired to act” (The Marketing of Motivation 2001) Customers may not be aware about all the products and its features. Only through marketing activities, the manufacturer can educate the consumers about the features of the product. Most of the consumers are confused with the excessive and also illogical marketing campaigns of manufacturers or service providers. It is the duty of the marketing people to convince the customers rather than confusing them. So the marketing activities should be organized logically. Motivation in marketing 6 Motivating factors of marketing people “Feeling frustrated and negative can sometimes immobilize you. One method of clearing negative thoughts is to voice what you are experiencing to a caring person. Spend a full five minutes complaining about everything thats going wrong with your marketing, making sure to say exactly how it makes you feel. Then ask your listener to reflect your feelings back to you. Knowing that someone else hears and understands you may be all you need to let go of a negative attitude and get back to work”. (C.J. Hayden) It is often difficult to find out the exact reason for your failure in marketing because of your agitated mind. In such situations explaining everything to one of your closest friends may help you in identifying the exact reason for your failure. An agitated mind can never focus on reality because of the lack of concentration. “Marketing can feel difficult and lonely when youre always slaving away by yourself in your home office. Try carrying out some of your challenging marketing tasks from a different location or with some company” (C.J. Hayden). The repetition of any activity for a prolonged period can affect your productivity. People will become mechanical in such conditions. Some of the parameters of the routine work must be changed at regular intervals in order to sustain your productivity. “When you become discouraged dont be afraid to ask for outside help to cheer up and start feeling positive again” (C.J. Hayden). Man is a social animal. He cannot Motivation in marketing 7 claim that he is self sufficient in all the aspects of life. He needs assistance from others at some point of his life. Sometimes decision making is extremely difficult. In a situation where you feel that your efforts don’t bring positives as expected, you can definitely consult an expert or one of your friends. They may be successful in analyzing and finding out the root cause of your failure. “Your marketing message must be connected to your sense of mission” (Patrick Dixon, 2009) It is important to have a message for every marketing mission. The advertisements regarding the product must stand out because of the message it provided to the consumers. The message of the marketing mission must be clear and concise and it should be decided first before going for the marketing campaign. Concentrating more on specific features of the product or service will bring dividends to the marketing campaign. “Meetings are a place to keep learning and keep the motivation going” (Anthony Masi, Erik Masi, 2001) Any kind of meetings irrespective of whether it is between the consumer or with the client, is a place where the marketing people can learn a lot. The meetings with consumers will definitely give more information regarding the product and the services offered by the company. The unknown problems of the product also can be learned in such meetings. The positive feed backs about the product from the consumers will always motivate the marketing people. Same way meetings with the Motivation in marketing 8 clients also will give new tips and advices to the marketing people. All such information learned either from the consumer or from the client can motivate the marketing people. Defects of Motivation “The problem with motivation is that motivation treats the symptom (deflation and frustration) and not the problem (your inability to make money). If you go to the dentist with a toothache, you dont want him to just prescribe toothache medicine. You want him to get to the "root" of the problem-and pull that tooth if it needs to come out” (Mike Griffith, 2008). In marketing also motivation often lead consumers towards the features of the product rather than the utility of the product. For example, most of the people attracted towards luxury cars. Most of the luxury cars have features rather than utility. Owing a Benz car is considered as a status because of its brand value and higher cost. But most of the people keep a blind eye towards other cars which offers lower prices and more facilities than the Benz. Conclusion Marketing is the core activity of any business function. Motivation plays an important role in effective marketing. Researchers have identified so many factors which can influence motivation. Both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation can be utilized in marketing. Market research is essential to identify the motivating factors of consumers.In effective marketing environment it is necessary to learn more about the motivating factors of consumers and marketing people. Motivation in marketing 9 Sources 1. Milan Kundera , 1929- Marketing Quotes Accessed on 8/1/09 2. John Wesley (August 23rd, 2007)- Increase Motivation- Accessed on 8/1/09 3. Mike Griffith, 2008- Network Marketing - Why Motivation Doesnt Work Accessed on 8/1/09 4. Laura Lake (2003) Motivation Research Accessed on 8/1/09 5. Anthony Masi, Erik Masi, (2001) Dream Achievers : 50 Powerful Stories of People Just Like You Who Became Leaders in Network Marketing (Personal Development Series) - page 156 - Publisher: Possibility Press (January 2001) Accessed on 8/1/09 6. Patrick Dixon,(2009) Building a Better Business: The Key to Future Marketing, Management and Motivation - Page 6 -Publisher: Profile Books (March 1, 2009) Motivation in marketing 10 7. Accessed on 8/1/09 8. The Marketing of Motivation( 2001) Accessed on 8/1/09 9. Sizzlinggenie (2008) - Motivation in Marketing, Accessed on 8/1/09 10. (Gundars Berzins) - Motivation for marketing in universities Accessed on 8/1/09 11. C.J. Hayden- 10 Ways to Get Your Marketing Unstuck Accessed on 8/1/09 Read More