Consumerism

What Is Marketing and Why Is It Important?

Marketing is a business practice that involves identifying, predicting and meeting customer needs. Effective marketing strategies help businesses isolate how best to serve their client base, while maximizing revenue at the same time. In business-to-consumer (B2C) marketing, marketing efforts are directed toward consumers. In business-to-business (B2B) marketing, marketing efforts are directed toward other businesses.

In both B2C and B2B efforts, there are several important factors to consider when developing a marketing strategy. More specifically, savvy marketers will evaluate:

•     Orientation — Marketing orientation refers to the guiding principles of the business itself, often referred to as business philosophy or corporate culture. Typically, organizations will decide to orient around product, sales, production or marketing.
•     Mix — The marketing mix functions as a decision-making guide for a company’s marketing efforts. A modern marketing mix will usually focus on the four Cs: client/customer, cost, convenience and communication.
•     Environment — The marketing environment refers to every factor that could impact a company in the execution of marketing strategy or decision-making. In this vein, companies should consider the internal environment within their organization. External factors—such as macro and micro environments—are also important to consider.
•     Market — The target market refers to the characteristics of a company’s ideal client case. Research and segmentation efforts can help isolate the geographic and demographic factors that will help a company market and sell its products or services.

After a careful evaluation of the orientation, mix, environment and market, it is possible to assess the costs and benefits of various marketing methods and strategies.