Contents :
- Meaning & Definition of Marketing Management.
- Objectives of Marketing Management.
- Process of Marketing Management.
- Functions of Marketing Management.
What is Marketing Management ?
Marketing management is a composition of two terms 'Marketing' and 'Management'. Where, the term 'marketing' is a set of actions and processes of a company associated with buying and selling of goods or services. "Management" is a function of coordinating the integrated efforts of people towards a common goal by effective utilization of available resources.
Marketing management is an organizational approach which focuses towards the accomplishment of marketing objectives of the organization such as achieving customer satisfaction, securing high sales and profit, etc.
Therefore, it includes various techniques and processes aimed at fulfilling all the inter-related marketing objectives.
Definition of Marketing Management
According to the American Marketing Association :
"Marketing Management is the process of planning and executing the conception, pricing promotion and distribution of ideas, goods and service to create exchanges that satisfy individual and organizational objectives".
Consequently, marketing management is the most practical aspect of business management which deals with needs and wants of consumers, determines the promotion and pricing strategies to generate demand for goods and services or new product development, then distribute these products or services to final consumers, and lastly to collect customer feedback and other information regarding the customer satisfaction.
Objectives of Marketing Management
The main objective of all enterprises is to satisfy the customer needs and attain maximum profit. In the similar way, marketing management aims to accomplish these business objectives effectively. Some of the basic objectives of marketing management are as follows:
1) Creating New Customers :
The prime objective of marketing manager is to build new customers for the company's product. Managers Use different techniques like advertisement, sales promotion, etc., to attract new customers. This objective helps in increasing sales of the organization.
2) Satisfying Customer's Needs and Wants :
Marketing managers should carefully determine the needs and demands of the customers in order to satisfy them with its products and services. The process of marketing management is customer-oriented and all its marketing activities revolve around customers.
3) Increasing the Business Profitability :
Marketing department is the main source of income for the organization. The productivity and profitability of marketing department ensures long-term survival and success of the organization. Hence, profit-making is one of the major aims of marketing management which can be guaranteed through high sales volume.
4) Enhancing the Standard of Living :
Another key objective of marketing management is to enhance the living standards of people. Therefore, marketing involves various innovative techniques and marketing research to introduce wide range of goods and services to the consumers.
5) Managing the Marketing Mix :
Marketing mix refers to the association of four basic elements of marketing i.e., product, price, place and promotion (4 Ps). Marketing management helps to effectively plan and implement these elements in the most appropriate manner to meet the customer demands.
Important Topics in Marketing Management :
Process of Marketing Management
Following are the steps involved in the process of marketing management :
Step 1 : Setting Marketing Objectives :
The first step of marketing management process is setting marketing objectives. While setting objectives, the organizational mission must be considered. The mission helps the marketer to conduct the proper environmental scanning and search for new opportunities.
Step 2 : Analyzing Marketing Opportunities :
In the next step, different marketing opportunities are analyzed in accordance with the strengths and weaknesses of the organization, which can be internal or external. The availability of further opportunities can be examined on the basis of the project or work assigned.
A consistent market information system is needed for the effective analysis of the opportunities. This enables the marketers to have information regarding choices and preferences of target customers, their geographical locations, buying behavior, social behavior, etc.
Step 3 : Researching and Selecting Target Markets :
After analyzing the opportunities, the research and selection of target market is carried out. For selecting a target market, it is very essential to understand that how the attractiveness of a particular market can be measured. There are various techniques which are used to measure the market potential and forecast the future demand. Under modern marketing concept, the whole market is divided into several small segments. These segments are evaluated to select the target markets, and then different positioning strategies are applied to each market.
Step 4 : Designing Marketing Strategies :
This is the most crucial step of marketing management process. In this, the marketing strategy of an organization is designed for the target markets. The strategy reflects the overall plan of the organization for achieving marketing or business objectives.
Marketing strategy states the major approaches through which an organization can achieve its business goals in a target market. It also comprises of basic decisions related to marketing mix, marketing expenditure and marketing distribution.
This step also involves extensive marketing research for the development of firm-market system. Based on the system, four Ps of marketing management, viz., product, price, place, and promotion are determined and applied on the consumers. The organization should also decide the total expenditure to be used for marketing mix.
Step 5 : Planning Marketing Programs :
The broad marketing strategies alone are not enough to meet the organizational goals. In order to achieve the business goals and implement marketing strategies, the organization requires effective marketing programs.
These marketing programs include decisions regarding the product characteristics, packaging, policies related to services, branding, pricing (retail as well as wholesale), credits, discounts and allowances, recruitment, selection and integration of different marketing intermediaries for effective distribution, advertisement, sales promotion, personal selling, direct marketing, etc.
Step 6 : Organizing, Implementing and Controlling the Marketing Effort :
The concluding step in marketing management process involves organization of resources and implementation and control of the marketing plan.
A marketing organization is designed to apply the marketing plan into action, that is for the implementation of marketing plan.
Once the plan is executed, activities concerned with customer feedback and sales forecast are organized. This is done to evaluate the effectiveness of marketing plan.
In marketing plan, control is very essential component through which alternations or modifications can be done. Controlling in marketing is responsible for determining performance standards, analyzing actual performance and minimizing the difference between actual and desired performance.
It involves three main elements, i.e., measuring, analyzing, and monitoring. The marketing manager compares the actual performance with the standard performance and takes corrective measures, if required. In case of applying corrective measures, the reason for the deviation is identified by conducting market research.
Functions of Marketing Management
Functions of marketing management are as follows :
1) Defining Marketing Objectives :
The major function of marketing management is to define the marketing objectives. The marketing objective should be unambiguous and in accordance with the organizational objectives. These objectives can be short-term or long-term.
2) Planning :
After deciding the short-term or long- term objectives of the organization, the next function of a marketing manager is to plan different ways to accomplish the objectives. Different approaches like marketing strategies, formulation of marketing programs and sales forecasting etc., are utilized for effective planning
3) Organizing :
After designing the the plan, implementation of plan is important. But before implementation, many things need to be gathered and organized in order to achieve the defined objectives. It involves several functions at different levels of the organization such as defining structure of the organization, outlining the power, duties and responsibilities of different organizational members, etc.
4) Staffing :
The survival and success of an organization largely depends upon its employees. Therefore, it is very important to hire right candidate at right place to attain business objectives. The marketing department coordinates with the HR department to employ only those candidates who possess the desired capability.
5) Directing :
Direction can be understood as creating new markets, providing guidance, inspiration, leadership, motivation and supervision to the employees in order to achieve organizational objectives. Marketing manager is responsible for directing all interrelated marketing activities. They also synchronize these activities with other departments in the
organization.
6) Coordinating :
For a marketing head, the main task is to keep a check on the coordination between different departments and various activities associated with the marketing, warehousing, production, transportation, product planning and customer satisfaction.
7) Motivation :
Every individual's effort is countable in the modern marketing approach. A successful team leader is the one who is able to motivate all its employees and keep their morale high. Motivation helps the employees to work efficiently towards the attainment of business objectives viz., high volume sales and profit with customer satisfaction.
8) Controlling :
Sometimes, a good marketing plan flops. This happens due to the poor implementation of marketing activities. Therefore, it is crucial for marketing managers to maintain a proper control over the marketing activities. The control process mainly involves establishment of standards, performance evaluation and taking corrective actions. It also helps the marketers to maintain the operational cost and budget of the organization.
9) Analysis and Evaluation :
In marketing management, it is necessary to analyze and evaluate the performance and productivity of the employees. This helps the organization to identify the ability of an employee to achieve the business objectives.
10) Promotion :
Promotion is the key role of marketing managers. The manager should introduce various promotional methods to increase the sales of the product. He should also introduce new and innovative methods and strategies for promotion.
11) Research and Development :
With the changing tastes and preferences of the consumers, marketers must keep a track on the prevailing trends of the market. Therefore, it is the responsibility of marketing managers to conduct research and development in order to define the benefits and limitations of a particular product.