1. Analyzing the Marketing Environment
Okunbor Peace Onyeka, Advisor: Prof. Christian Bach
Department of Technology Management, School of Engineering
University of Bridgeport, Bridgeport, CT
Introduction
Marketing Environment are the actors and forces outside marketing that affect marketing management’s ability to build and maintain successful relationships with target customers (Armstrong & Kotler 2014).
Environment marketing means opportunities and dangers. Due to this environment knowledge marketing is very important for a firm (Manea and Cetina 2014).
The marketing environment consists of a microenvironment and a macroenvironment.
Microenvironment are the actors close to the company that affect its ability to serve its customers—the company, suppliers, marketing intermediaries, customer markets, competitors, and publics. Understanding of Microenvironment force is important for planning.
Every company has to have a number of intermediaries for promoting, selling and distributing the goods and service to ultimate consumers.
Marketing Intermediaries are firms that help the company to promote, sell, and distribute its goods to final buyers.
Marketing
The Company
Suppliers
Marketing Intermediaries
Competitors
Publics
Customers
IV. Marketing Intermediaries
Microenvironment
The companies marketers must work in harmony with other company department to create customer value and relationships.
Customers are the most important actors in the company’s microenvironment.
The aim of the entire value delivery system is to serve target customers and create strong relationship with them.
Below are an in-depth explanation of the microenvironment factors for marketers:
I. The Company
Other company groups must be considered when designing marketing plans.
All departments share responsibility for understanding customer needs and creating value.
Figure Groups Influencing the Company
Top Management
Finance
R&D
Purchasing
Operations
Accounting
Figure 1 Actors in Microenvironment
II. Suppliers
Provide resources needed to produce goods and services.
The relationship between suppliers and the firm epitomizes a power equation between them.
Treated as partners to provide customer value.
III. Competitors
No company stands alone in serving and satisfying the needs of a customer market. It faces competition.
The company must position its offerings strongly against competitors’ offerings in the minds of consumers.
Firms must gain strategic advantage by positioning their offerings against competitors’ offerings.
The best way for a company to grasp the full range of its competitors is to take view point of a buyer.
Resellers
Wholesalers and retailers who buy and resell merchandise
Physical Distribution firms
They help the company to move goods from origins to destination
Marketing Services Agencies
Advertising agencies
Media firms
Marketing Consultants
Financial Intermediaries
Banks
Credit companies
Insurance companies
V. Publics
A public is defined as ‘any group that has an actual or potential interest in or impact on a company’s ability to achieve its objective.
Companies must put their primary energy into effectively managing their relationships with their customers.
Companies must always recognize the importance of community publics.
Financial Publics: Influence the company's ability to obtain funds;
Investment analysts
stockholders
Media Publics: Carries news, features, editorial opinions;
Television
Newspapers & Magazines
Blogs
Government Publics: Management must take government developments into account;
Consult with lawyers
Trust advertising
Citizen-action publics : Groups that can question a company’s marketing decisions;
Consumer organization
Environmental groups
Minority groups
Local Publics: Company’s department or programs that deals with;
Neighbourhood residents issues
Community organization issues
General Publics: Company’s concerns about general public’s attitude towards its;
Products
Activities
Internal Publics: companies use newsletters to inform and motivate this groups such as;
Workers
Managers
Volunteers
Board of directors
VI. Customers
Customers are the most important actors in the company microenvironment
The clients are natural persons organisations or companies with whom the company established commercial relations (ANDREIANA, STOICA et al. 2014).
Conclusion
References
Figure Types of Marketing Intermediaries
Armstrong, G., & Kotler, P. (2014). Marketing: An Introduction, 12th Edition. New York: Prentice Hall.
ANDREIANA, Violeta A., Calelia G. STOICA, and Cornelia D. IVAN. "Influence Of Marketing Environment On The Toy Market." SEA-Practical Application of Science 2 (2014):
Cetină, Iuliana, and Natalia Pariza Manea. "THE INFLUENCE OF MARKETING ENVIRONMENT ON INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION IN ROMANIA." Contemporary Readings in Law and Social Justice 1 (2014):
Figure Groups Interest in Organizations
Buy for personal consumption
Buy for use in production processes
Buy to resell at a profit
Buy for public purpose
Buyers in other countries
Consumer Markets
Business Markets
Resellers Market
Government Markets
International Market
Figure Groups that makes a Customer
It is companies responsibility to keep up and adapt to the constantly changing environment.
Microenvironment can be controlled by enforcing efficient marketing policies, strategies and tactics.