Explain the concept of marketing strategies

 A goal is an objective you plan to fulfill  Determine where your firm needs to be by a particular date and agree upon goals ◦ A family-style restaurant wants to increase sales ◦ Agree to increase annual sales by 10% over last years sales ◦ Goal is specific and can be evaluated for success or failure at the end of a given time frame.

 A strategy is a plan of action for achieving your goals and objectives.  Create the plan of action (route) believed to be most efficient.  Example: ◦ Strategy #1: add a kids’ menu in order to increase sales to young parents in the area

 Tactics are specific actions used to carry out strategies  Marketers carefully choose the short-term actions, or tactics, they use to carry out their strategy.  Tactics must line up with where they plan to go –their goal-and how they plan to get there  They pay attention to every detail – their strategy

 Example: To introduce the new kids’ menu, the family style restaurant might decide to use the following tactics:  1. Introduce kid-tested meals ◦ A)spaghetti & meatballsC) hot dog w/chips ◦ B) macaroni & cheeseD) hamburger w/fries  2. Offer a free ice cream cone to each child  Each of these actions leads the restaurant to its desired destination

 No one knows for sure exactly how a plan will play out  Planning needs to be as complete as possible-but easily adaptable  Marketers plan for success and are ready to adjust at any given moment

 A firm’s strategy is important because it shows how its goal will be reached ◦ Its strategy may not be the only option ◦ There can be many appropriate marketing strategies  To choose the best strategy for reaching their goal, marketers consider: ◦ How the marketing concept applies to their situation ◦ When they want to reach their goal ◦ Which resources are on hand  After selecting, marketers set aside funds to make it happen.

 Business situations change, so marketers must look for obstacles they can turn into opportunities  Situations which might invite a change of plan include: ◦ Hearing about a new product w/better features ◦ Figuring out that the price is slightly high for customers ◦ Seeing the firm’s ad in the back of the newspaper, instead of the section in which it was expected ◦ Learning of new government regulations that impact the business ◦ Watching the economy improve or worsen

 Not in today’s world  Each situation requires a customized approach  Marketers often adjust, or even combine, their strategies to fit their purposes  Marketers combine marketing elements differently to product strategies appropriate for reaching assorted marketing goals

 A combination of the four elements of marketing – product, price, place, promotion

 Product: the goods, services, or ideas a business will offer its customers.  Marketers conduct research and use their creativity to figure out what customers need and how they will meet those needs

 Marketers as themselves questions such as: ◦ Should we offer one product-or more than one? ◦ Is the product a good, service, or idea? ◦ Does the product have special features? ◦ Does the product have multiple uses? ◦ What resources are necessary to research and develop the product? ◦ What level of quality should be produced or provided? ◦ Which brands should be used? ◦ How should the product be packaged? ◦ How might the product affect the firm’s image? ◦ How might customers view this product in relation to others? ◦ Should we offer a warranty, maintenance contract, or other support services?

 Price is the amount of money a firm asks in exchange for its products.  To be successful, a good balance between customer value and satisfaction, as well as company cost and profit must be found.

 Determine pricing objectives: ◦ Getting their product into more customers’ hands. ◦ Helping customers view their firm as distinct from competitors ◦ Bringing in the amount of income they need or want. ◦ Raising the product’s value in the customer’s eyes ◦ Matching the product’s value with what customers expect to receive

 Determine how to accept payment: ◦ Cash, debit, credit, check, or combination

 The place element can make or break the buying experience. Getting a product in the right place at the right time is all about creating convenience for the customer.

 Consider the following: ◦ Which firms to buy the product from ◦ When to buy the product ◦ How much of the product to order ◦ Where to make the product available ◦ How to process customer orders ◦ Which firms to involve in the process ◦ How to answer customer questions ◦ How to coordinate all of the steps involved

 Promotion refers to the various types of communication that marketers use to inform, persuade, or remind customers about their products. ◦ Advertising ◦ Personal selling ◦ Publicity ◦ Public relations ◦ Sales promotion

 Consider the following: ◦ Which messages to send ◦ Which media to use ◦ When they want messages delivered ◦ How often they want messages delivered ◦ How to coordinate communication efforts ◦ How to evaluate results The ultimate goal of promotion is to generate a positive response from customers.

 Marketers must adapt their marketing mix to suit each unique set of circumstances (iPod playlist)  A change in one marketing element affects the others. ◦ If product features are improved, price goes up ◦ When the place element is simplified, the price goes up

 4 P's Marketing Song 4 P's Marketing Song

 The group of all potential customers who have similar needs and wants and have the ability to buy the product  Consumer Market  Industrial Market

 Every customer belongs to a number of markets  Customers are targeted in the consumer market, and businesses are targeted in the industrial market  The same customer or business can be included in more than one target market  Markets usually change over time

 The percentage of the total sales revenue acquired by a business within a market  For example: Running Shoes

 Mass marketing: A single marketing plan used to reach all consumers  For example: Light Bulbs  Advantages: communicates a broad message to as many customers as possible ◦ More cost-effective  Disadvantages: ◦ The diversity of the audience ◦ Only a small percentage of the mass market is likely to purchase the product

 Niche marketing: Narrowing markets, by identifying very specific characteristics, into a more specific group of people  For example: Aquatic Pet Stores

 Dividing the entire market into smaller groups who share similar characteristics.  For example: Coca-Cola  Advantages: meets the needs of customers, more precise than mass marketing, more effective communication ◦ Provides an efficient way for smaller firms to compete with larger businesses  Disadvantages: takes more resources to be successful, more difficult to reproduce, requires more creativity and money

 Dividing the market based on personal characteristics such as age, gender, income, ethnic background, education, and occupation  For example, Teen Vogue is marketed to…

 Dividing a market based on where a person lives (local, regional, state, national, or global markets).  For example, swimwear and body boards sell best…

 Dividing the market based on values (ethics, morals, standards), attitudes (personality), and lifestyles (how people spend their time)  For example: Schwinn Bicycle

 Dividing the market into groups based on what they are looking for in a product and why they buy the product  For example: Crest whitening toothpaste

 The moving of or transferring the ownership of goods and services from the producer to the consumer

 The path (channel) a product travels from the producer (manufacturer) to the ultimate consumer

 Channel members who assist the producer in getting the goods and services to the final user

 Wholesalers  Rack jobber  Drop shipper  Retailers  Brick-and-mortar  Non-store  Agents

◦ Brick-and-mortar retail: A physical store that sells their products directly to customers. For example, Dillard’s, Lowe’s, and Ingles. ◦ Non-store retail: A way to reach customers through vending machines, direct mail, catalog retailing, TV home shopping, and e-tailing (online retailing). For example, Lance snack machines, Land’s End catalogs, and QVC.

 Agents: An individual or business that connects the buyers and sellers. Agents do not own the products they sell. For example, a real estate agent links the homebuyer to the home seller

 Distribution that occurs directly from the producer to the consumer  For example: A consumer buys apples from an apple farmer

 Distribution that occurs through one or more intermediaries before reaching the final user  For example: The apple farmer sells his apples to Harris Teeter and Harris Teeter sells them to the consumer