New Media and New Trends in Marketing - Coursework Example

of the of the Number New Media & New Trends in Marketing Table of Contents Table of Contents 2 Introduction3 Discussion 3 Findings and Analysis of the Primary Research 6 Responses of the Consumers 7 9 10 Responses of the Marketers 11 11 13 Conclusion 14 Appendix 15 Appendix I – Questionnaire for Consumers 15 Appendix II - Questionnaire for Marketers 16 Works Cited 17 Bibliography 18 18 Introduction It is hard to believe that the notion of marketing has been relatively new, when compared with productions, operations, accounting, economics and other business areas. The concept of marketing emerged in the early 1900s, but prior to that most of areas which is now a part of marketing, were allied with economics (product pricing, supply and demand issue) (Sheth and Parvatiyar 403). Even some of the concepts such as consumer behaviour, branding was unexplored. However, from the late 1950s, the idea of marketing experienced radical shift as several new dimensions and concepts emerged. In this era, companies around the world also sensed the significance of marketing and regarded it as one of the central business activities for sustaining in the market place. With the course of time, the subject of marketing gained further attention and ultimately went on to become one of the strong pillars of business. This report seeks to investigate difference between marketing concepts in the past and present and along with that the report will also shed light on the importance of e-marketing for the businesses. However, the main thrust of the report will be on the effect of the new media and new trends of marketing on businesses. Therefore the research question for this study: are new media channels for marketing as effective as old methods? This area will be uncovered by identifying the extent to which new media and trends impacts or influences the consumers. In order to address this area, the report will carry out a quantitative study amongst consumers and marketing professionals looking at a range of attributes related to effectiveness. Discussion Marketing is understood as a process responsible for creating demand and awareness of a product or service. In addition, the subject of marketing also encompasses the supply chain management, in order to ensure the manufactured product reaches the end customer effectively. However, traditionally the range of marketing was limited to a certain extent (M. Tehran and R. Tehran 13). The only common factor between the traditional and modern form of marketing is that the concept of manufacturers and customers have remained the same, but the middleman or the intermediary have witnessed drastic changes. In the meantime, there have been large conceptual shifts as well. Traditionally, marketing has always put more emphasis and thrust on the selling of products and service. However, presently marketing refers to the process of making products available for the customers. In addition, presently marketing is also concerned with the satisfaction of customers and build relationships with them in order to increase customer loyalty (Choo 13). Understanding the purchase behaviour of consumers is also another major area of marketing which was hardly recognized before. With further developments, the concept of push and pull marketing also came into light. In simple words the way of making the products or services available to the customers is one of the differentiators of the past and present marketing system. One of the most evident changes is the direct marketing. Nowadays, several companies are pursuing direct marketing where they are trying to directly reach the target audience. This not only minimizes the cost of the company, but has also allowed companies to offer products at a low price. There are different ways by which a company can make its products or services available directly to the customer. One such form is operating through a company owned store, where there is no involvement of middleman. Apart from the way of product distribution, there have been drastic changes in the promotional technique. Earlier, promotions were done tools such as signboards, hoardings, wall paintings, flyers and radio advertisements to some extent. In contrast to that, these promotional techniques are hardly used nowadays. The modification in the promotional techniques has been largely due to the advancement in technology. The development of technology has opened new dimensions for the marketers to promote their products and services. This has allowed companies to carry out marketing with the help digital platforms. Some of the common ones are social media marketing, SMS marketing, e-mail marketing, blogging, and online retailing among others. Hence, from the above discussion it is apparent that there are large differences between the past and present forms of marketing. The factor which made this difference is the development of technology. However, the perception of companies about the importance of marketing has witnessed drastic shifts. This has led practitioners and scholars to think about the importance of technology in business. Internet marketing is one of the buzzwords of the modern day marketing. A number of companies nowadays focus heavily on the internet marketing in order to carryout marketing activities at a low cost. According to renowned author such as Karakaya and Charlton, Electronic Commerce (E-commerce), Internet marketing and online shopping are now common terms used by business executives and common citizens around the world (Karakaya and Charlton 42). The encouraging factor is that not only companies, but users also think e-marketing as trendy. In addition, some of the authors also put emphasis on the fact that e-business played a major role in taking businesses to a truly global scale. Although there are several businesses that operates physically in the overseas market, but with the development of technology several of them are considering e-business. Nowadays, internet marketing has become one of the most useful marketing channels. Some of the major advantages of using internet for the purpose of marketing are detailed below. In this age of internet, it has become imperative for the business houses to build their online presence. Some of the experts even believe online presence is a way of gaining competitive advantage. E-marketing allows business houses to reach and access mass market markets and that too at a low cost. Hence, the importance of internet marketing for a business is more for its cost effective nature and ability to reach out to mass audiences. Internet marketing is highly flexible and personalised and as a result of that it is suitable for every business, irrespective of the size and type. In this environment of cut throat competition, it is an obligation for the companies to reach at the right time and right place, failing which may disrupt their sustainability in the market. Internet marketing has a solution to this issue as well. E-marketing allows 24*7 business and thus providing flexibility to both company as well as the customers. Nowadays, a handful of companies are either operating through online channel or have added online channel as an additional sales channel along with the physical channels. Most of the companies designs online retail shops to sell their products as well as create awareness and increase visibility of the company. Another important factor is that e-marketing greatly increases the interactivity among the customers and the company. Moreover, it promotes two way communications through interactive games, quizzes and hence e-marketing has greater ability to engage customers and offer them better shopping experience. Traditionally, marketers were hardly aware of the outcome of a promotional campaign. They never thought of the results of the campaign. However, nowadays marketers remain highly concerned about the results of marketing campaigns. They try to measure the impact of their promotional campaigns through various calculations. Their main motive in underpin the extent to which a particular advertisement campaign has been able to influence the purchase decision of the consumers. Apart from that, marketers also have the tendency to measure or gauge how the advertisement increased the overall sales. Again in this context, e-marketing has the ability to track results and makes it easier for the marketers to measure the effectiveness of the promotional campaign. Therefore, it is evident that e-marketing is imperative for the business houses. It is not only beneficial for companies with domestic operation, but also for the companies which has global operation. Besides, the aforementioned advantages or benefits offered by e-marketing to the business, there are another set of benefits provided by e-marketing which is applicable for the companies who intend to take their business into international arena. Internet marketing has greater scope than the traditional forms of marketing. For example, e-marketing has the ability to encompass public relations, customer service, and information management as well as drive sales. From the perspective of a business, internet marketing helps them to find and tap new market segments. Moreover, internet marketing also helps companies to draw a lot of wavering traffic to the company’s online sales channel and has the potential to pragmatically convert them into clients. Finally, it is also necessary to mention that e-marketing also help companies avoid the regulations and guidelines of the host country that are imposed on physical marketing. With the growth and development of technology, new media and new trends of marketing on businesses came into light. The main focus for the marketers has always been identifying the needs and wants of consumers, and how to deliver those expectations at the lowest possible cost. If a company continually delivered the satisfaction to the customers with its products and services, a brand image for the company is developed which speaks about the commitment of the company towards the clients, public as well as the society. Marketing have always experienced shift in trends, whether in the process of product promotion or service delivery. The reason behind this is the dynamic nature of customers. For example, only a few years back celebrity endorsement used to be considered as one of the vital and influential forms of product promotion. However, customers these days do not rely or get influenced by the celebrity endorsements, which clearly reflect a change in the taste of the consumers. As a result of that companies are also compelled to make amendments in the marketing activities. In the similar way, earlier customers have the tendency to buy products having low price, but customers now does not mind paying high price for a quality product. One of latest trends in the field of market is the arrival of different marketing channels and most of which are digital platforms. Moreover, marketers are also effectively using these new media channels. Most of the new media channels offer both promotion and online selling opportunities to the companies. The latest buzz is the use of social media for carrying out marketing activities (Chaffey and Smith 112). Nowadays, social networking platforms play imperative roles in promoting the products of a company. A number of authors have argued on the fact that a well manufactured product also fails in the market if not promoted properly. Hence, the promotion has equal importance as the quality of the product (Pride and Ferrell 528). Social media in this context greatly help companies to promote the offerings at a low cost. Another driving factor for using social media for marketing activities is that, it has mass reach. Moreover, studies suggest that there are millions of active social media users around the world, which greatly supports the social media activities of the company. However, there is always a question: whether social media has the ability to influence customers of every age group? One of the causes behind this question is that most of social media users are of the age group 15-45 and as a result of that this channel is failing to reach customers who are not on that group (Nayar 138). Hence, the research findings have made it evident that new media channels mostly influence young consumers. However, some of the other digital platforms such as blogging and e-mail marketing are also having more impact on the young consumers. Findings and Analysis of the Primary Research This section of the study will now present the survey findings about the extent to which new media and trends impacts or influences the consumers. In order to address this area, the report will carry out a quantitative study amongst consumers and marketing professionals looking at a range of attributes related to effectiveness. Responses of the Consumers Around 77% of the respondents stated that they use internet to get information about a product or service. Around 15% mentioned that they consider television and newspaper advertisements and the remaining 8% like directly collecting information by visiting the stores. Figure 1 – Information Gathering Medium Therefore it is evident that internet is playing a crucial role in providing information about products and can possibly be influencing customers to buy products. Figure 2 - Mode of Shopping 42% of the chosen respondents consider online shopping is more convenient than physical shopping. However, the remaining 57% consider that physical shopping is more enjoyable and relaxing. Although majority of the customers are with physical store shopping but a large portion is considering online shopping which again points out to the shift in consumer preferences. Figure 3 – Frequency of Visiting Social Media The above graph mentions that 62% or the overall respondents are regular visitors of social media platform and hence marketers have a great opportunity of getting benefitted for the use of social media for promotion. Figure 4 – Website Visiting Another encouraging factor for the marketers is that 48 % people consider vesting company website to know about product offerings. Hence, it is evident that the new media platforms have been highly accepted by the consumers. Figure 5 – Influence of Media Channels Figure 6 – Frequency of Online Purchase Figure 7 – Instant Purchase by the influence of advertisement The above graphs further points out that social media and digital advertisements are strongly influencing customers. Moreover, the study also suggested that 41% consumers often but products from online retail outlets. The conversion rate in through new media forms is also high. The study found 44% of the total consumers make instant purchase of the products or service they come to know through digital platforms. This proves that the new forms of media are more influential for the customers in comparison with traditional; marketing forms. Responses of the Marketers The survey done on the marketers reflected that 36% of the companies’ uses broadcasting media and 33% use social media. Interestingly, 31% company use both social media and broadcasting media for promotion. Although, broadcasting media is still leading, social media or digital platforms are not far behind. Therefore it can be stated that digital media promotion is gradually becoming one of the most popular promotional media. Moreover, it is also considered as the most cost effective forms of promotion. Figure 8 – Promotional Technique Figure 9 – Cost Effective Media Platform Figure 10 –Effectiveness of Digital Platforms Presently, the companies are also considering digital platforms as the most effective promotional media. 68% people think that social media is highly effective. Figure 11 – Better Results of Promotional Media Figure 12 – Reduced Marketing Budget 56% of the people believe that social media offer better results than any other forms. On the other hand 39% still believe that broadcasting and print media still offer superior results. However, one of the major reasons behind the colossal growth and popularity of social media is due to its cost effective nature. The above graph therefore clearly points out that social media is also favoured among the marketers and they consider as one of the most effective promotion media. Conclusion The study was meant to examine the impact of new media and new trends in marketing. In order to address this area and identifying the extent to which new media and trends impacts or influences the consumers the study has relied on both primary as well as secondary date. The study revealed that there have been large differences between the traditional and modern form of marketing. The dissimilarities can be observed in the way of product promotion and distribution channels. Nowadays, companies mostly use cost effective marketing channels such as social media, company websites and other digital platforms. The distribution channels have also witnessed sensible shifts as companies nowadays mostly tries to sell products directly to the end customer, which increases the profit margin. However, all these have been possible due to the colossal development of technology. The development of technology also made e-marketing possible for the business house, which allowed companies to carry out promotional activities at a low cost and also allowed mass targeting. Hence, e-marketing is imperative for the promotional activity is the only conclusion. In the context of the influence and impact of new media on customers, the study exposed that the new media channels most influences young customers. However, the effect is far more when compared with traditional marketing forms. The primary research made it clear that the impact of influence is more. Hence, it is concluded that new media channels for marketing are more effective than old methods in terms of influencing customers. Appendix Appendix I – Questionnaire for Consumers 1. Through which medium you gather information for a product? a. Internet b. Television and News Paper Advertisements c. Directly Visiting Retail outlets 2. Which one is more convenient form of shopping according to you? a. Online Shopping b. Traditional Shopping c. Can’t Say 3. How often do you visit social networking Platforms? a. Every day b. once or twice in a week c. Rarely 4. Have you visited the company websites before making a purchase from them? a. Yes b. No c. Not Aware of this 5. Which source of information influence you more? a. Television and radio advertisements b. social media or Advertisements over digital platforms c. Other Traditional forms 6. How often you buy products from online stores? a. Very often b. rarely c. Never 7. Have you ever instantly purchased a product by noticing its advertisement on the digital platforms? a. Yes b. No C. Can’t Say Appendix II - Questionnaire for Marketers 1. What is the promotional media used by your company? a. Broadcasting Media b. Social Media and Digital Platforms c. All of these 2. Which one of the media platforms mentioned below is more cost effective? a. Broadcasting Media b. Social Media c. Print Media and Other Traditional Forms 3. Do you think digital platforms are more effective promotional tools? a. Yes b. No c. Can’t Say 4. Which promotional media has provided better results in targeting as well as influencing consumers? a. Social media or Digital platforms b. Broadcasting and Print Media c. Traditional Forms 5. Do you think new media platforms have reduced marketing budget and helped company target mass customers? a. Yes b. No C. Can’t Say Works Cited Chaffey, Dave. and P. R. Smith. E-marketing Excellence: Planning and Optimizing your Digital Marketing. 4th ed. London: Routledge, 2013. Print. Choo, Meng Kong. Relationship Marketing in a Globalised World. Kuala Lumpur: Utusan Publications, 2006. Print. Karakaya, Fahri. and T. E. Charlton. “Electronic Commerce: Current and Future Prac-tices.” Managerial Finance, 27.7 (2001): 42-53. Print. Nayar, Usha S. Child and Adolescent Mental Health. California: SAGE, 2012. Print. Pride, William M. and O. C. Ferrell. Pride & Ferrell Marketing. 16th ed. Connecticut: Cengage Learning, 2011. Print. 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