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1.7: Keys to Marketing Success

  • Page ID
    27366
    • John Burnett
    • Global Text Project
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    A prime guideline for marketing success is to realize that establishing customer satisfaction should be the company's number-one priority. The only people who really know what customers want are the customers themselves. A company that realizes this will develop a marketing mentality that facilitates information gathering and maintains effective communication with the primary reason for the company's existence: the customer.

    A second guideline is to establish a company image that clearly reflects the values and aspirations of the company to employees, customers, intermediaries, and the general public. Philips Petroleum has done this for years with their advertising campaign that focuses on how their company benefits society.

    Third, while marketing requires work that is clearly distinct from other business activities, it should be central to the entire organization. Marketing is the aspect of the business that customers see. If they see something they do not like, they look elsewhere.

    Fourth, the business should develop a unique strategy that is consistent with the circumstances that it faces. The marketer must adapt basic marketing principles to the unique product being sold. This means that what General Foods does may not work for General Telephone & Electronics Corporation (GTE) because one is inherently a goods product and the other a service product. Neither will work for the US State of Kentucky's Parks and Recreation Department, because that is a public, nonprofit organization. In other words, imitating what other organizations do without fully understanding one's own situation is a dangerous strategy.

    Finally, technological progress dictates how marketing will be performed in the future. Because of computer technology inventiveness, both consumers and businesses are better informed. Knowledge is the most important competitive advantage. The world is one market, and information is changing at light-speed.

    Capsule 3: Review

    1. The components of marketing management are as follows:

    (a) corporate—level considerations include the organization's mission and objectives

    (b) functional—level considerations include non—marketing institutions and marketing institutions.

    (c) marketing—level considerations include the mission, the situation analysis, objectives, strategy, implementation, budget, and evaluation

    (d) the marketing mix includes the primary tools available to the marketer: product, distribution, promotion, and price

    2. The keys to marketing success are:

    (e) satisfy the customer

    (f) establish a clear company image

    (g) make marketing central to the organization

    (h) be proactive

    (i) develop a strategy consistent with the situation

    The Wall Street Journal

    wsj.com

    In practice

    Marketing plays a critical role in the success of business organizations: it helps them create a competitive advantage. By continuously collecting information about customers' needs and competitors' capabilities and by sharing this information across departments, business organizations can create a competitive advantage by increasing value for customers.

    Individuals working in marketing departments must be knowledgeable about all the elements of the business that impact the success of marketing efforts. Marketing objectives are directed by an organization's mission statement, and marketers use a set of strategies to achieve these objectives.

    Implementation is critical to a marketing plan's success; therefore, the marketing budget allocates expenditures for each of the components of the marketing mix. Marketing success depends on several factors, the most important of which is establishing customer satisfaction as the number one priority.

    Take a tour

    The Front Section of the Interactive Journal (wsj.com) is similar to the front page of the newspaper version of The Wall Street Journal. The left column displays the menu selection, with the five major sections listed at the top. These five sections are:

    1. Front Section

    2. Marketplace

    3. Money & Investing

    4. Tech Center

    5. Personal Journal

    The menu remains on the page as you navigate through the site, allowing you to return to the Front Section at any time.

    Articles related to marketing are typically found in the Marketplace section. Click on Marketplace now to view today's articles. Just below the main menu on the left side, a smaller menu titled In this Section appears, listing main header topics in Marketplace. One of the topics is Marketing/Media. Visit this section now to read today's articles.

    The chapter, “Introducing marketing”, provides and overview of the importance and functions of marketing in business organizations. Marketing takes many forms, and evolves with new technologies. Marketing on the Internet, also known as e-commerce marketing, provides challenges and opportunities for marketers. Visit Volkswagen's website, www.vw.com to see how the company has extended its marketing efforts from television and print to its website.

    Deliverable

    Search the Interactive Journal for articles about e-commerce marketing. Under Journal Atlas, click on Search to conduct a search using key words like e-commerce, Internet, and marketing. Use the Business Index feature to search for articles on specific companies. Search the Business Index now to find articles on Volkswagen.


    This page titled 1.7: Keys to Marketing Success is shared under a CC BY license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by John Burnett (Global Text Project) .

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