Marketing Management

1. Marketing: Introduction
The activities of a company associated with buying and selling a product or service. It includes
advertising, selling and delivering products to people. People who work in marketing departments of
companies try to get the attention of target audiences by using slogans, packaging design, celebrity
endorsements and general media exposure. The four 'Ps' of marketing are product, place, price and
promotion.
MEANING
Marketing is the activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and
exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large.
DEFINITION
Marketing, more than any other business activities deals with customers. Although there are a number of
detailed definitions of marketing perhaps the simplest definition of marketing is managing profitable
customer relationship.
We can distinguish between a social and a managerial definition for marketing. According to a social
definition, marketing is a societal process by which individuals and groups obtain what they need and
want through creating, offering, and exchanging products and services of value freely with others. As a
managerial definition, marketing has often been described as “the art of selling products.” But Peter
Drucker, a leading management theorist, says that “the aim of marketing is to make selling superfluous.
The aim of marketing is to know and understand the customer so well that the product or service fits him
and sells itself.
Marketing is the management process that identifies, anticipates and satisfies customer requirements
profitably - The Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM).
The American Marketing Association (offers this managerial definition):

2. Marketing (management) is the process of planning and executing the
conception, pricing, promotion, and distribution of ideas, goods, and
services to create exchanges that satisfy individual and organizational
goals.
Marketing Management:
Marketing Management is the process of choosing target markets and
getting, keeping and growing customers through creating, delivering and
communicating superior customer value and satisfaction.
Nature of Marketing Management
It Combines the Fields of Marketing and Management
As the name implies, marketing management combines the fields of marketing and management.
Marketing consists of discovering consumer needs and wants, creating the goods and services
that meet those needs and wants; and pricing, promoting, and delivering those goods and
services. Doing so requires attention to six major areas - markets, products, prices, places,
promotion, and people.
Management is getting things done through other people. Managers engage in five key activities
- planning, organising, staffing, directing, and controlling. Marketing management implies the
integration of these concepts.
Marketing Management is a Business Process
Marketing management is a business process, to manage marketing activities in profit seeking
and non profit organizations at different levels of management, i.e. supervisory, middle-
management, and executive levels. Marketing management decisions are based on strong
knowledge of marketing functions and clear understanding and application of supervisory and
managerial techniques. Marketing managers and product managers are there to execute the
processes of marketing management. We, as customers, see the results of such process in the
form of products, prices, advertisements, promotions, etc.
Marketing Management is Both Science and Art
“Marketing management is art and science of choosing target markets and getting, keeping and
growing customers through creating, delivering and communicating superior customervalue.”
(Kotler, 2006). Marketing management is a science because it follows generalprinciples that
guides the marketing managers in decision making. The Art of Marketingmanagement consists
in tackling every situation in an creative and effective manner.Marketing Management is thus
a science as well as an art.

3. Difference between Selling and Marketing
The old sense of making a sale is telling and selling, but in new sense it is satisfying customer needs.
Selling occurs only after a product is produced. By contrast, marketing starts long before a company has a
product. Marketing is the homework that managers undertake to assess needs, measure their extent and
intensity, and determine whether a profitable opportunity exists. Marketing continues throughout the
product’s life, trying to find new customers and keep current customers by improving product appeal and
performance, learning from product sales results,and managing repeat performance. Thus selling and
advertising are only part of a larger marketing mix-a set of marketing tools that work together to affect
the marketplace.
Scope of marketing
Now a day, marketing offers are not confined into products and services. The scope of marketing is now
becoming larger. Marketing people are involved in marketing several types of entities:
Goods: Physical goods constitute the bulk of most countries’ production and marketing effort. Most of the
country produces and markets various types of physical goods, from eggs to steel to hair dryers. In
developing nations, goods— particularly food, commodities, clothing, and housing—are the mainstay of
the economy.
Services: As economies advance, a growing proportion of their activities are focused on the production of
services. The U.S. economy today consists of a 70–30 services-to-goods mix. Services include airlines,
hotels, and maintenance and repair people, as well as professionals such as accountants, lawyers,
engineers, and doctors. Many market offerings consist of a variable mix of goods and services.
Experiences: By orchestrate several services and goods, one can create, stage, and market experiences.
Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom is an experience

4. Event: Marketers promote time-based events, such as the Olympics, trade shows, sports events, and
artistic performances.
Persons: Celebrity marketing has become a major business. Artists, musicians, CEOs, physicians, high
profile lawyers and financiers, and other professionals draw help from celebrity marketers.
Place: Cities, states, regions, and nations compete to attract tourists, factories, company headquarters, and
new residents. Place marketers include economic development specialists, real estate agents, commercial
banks, local business associations, and advertising and public relations agencies.
Properties: Properties are intangible rights of ownership of either real property (real estate) or financial
property (stocks and bonds). Properties are bought and sold, and this occasions a marketing effort by real
estate agents (for real estate) and investment companies and banks (for securities).
Organizations: Organizations actively work to build a strong, favorable image in the mind of their
publics. Philips, the Dutch electronics company, advertises with the tag line, “Let’s Make Things Better.”
The Body Shop and Ben & Jerry’s also gain attention by promoting social causes. Universities,
museums, and performing arts organizations boost their public images to compete more successfully for
audiences and funds.
Information: The production, packaging, and distribution of information is one of society’smajor
industries. Among the marketers of information are schools and universities; publishers of encyclopedias,
nonfiction books, and specialized magazines; makers of CDs; and Internet Web sites.
Ideas: Every market offering has a basic idea at its core. In essence, products and services are platforms
for delivering some idea or benefit to satisfy a core need.
Needs, Wants and Demand
 Needs are basic human requirement
 Wants are needs directed to a product
 Demand is a want accompanied by buyers ability to pay.
Today the challenge for the marketer is that of converting needs to wants to demands.
 Marketers don't create needs: Needs preexist markets. Marketers along with other societal
factors, influence wants.
Five type of needs
1.Stated need(the customer wants an inexpensive car)
2.Real needs(the customer wants a car whose operating cost is low)
3.Unstated needs(the customer expects good service from dealer)
4.Delight needs
5.Secret need (the customer wants friends to see him as a savvy consumer)
Types of Demand:
1. Negative demand- customer dislike the product and may even pay price to avoid it.
2. Non existence demand- consumers may be unaware of or uninterested in the product.
3. Latent demand- consumer may share a strong need that cannot be satisfied by existing product.
4. Declining demand- consumer begin to buy the product less frequently or not at all.
5. Irregular demand- Consumer purchases vary on a seasonal, monthly, weekly, daily, or even
hourly basis.
6. Full demand- consumers are adequately buying all the products put into market place.

5. 7. Overfull demand- More consumer would like to buy the product that can be satisfied.
8. Unwholesome Demand- Consumers may be attracted to products that have undesirable social
consequences.
Evolution of Marketing Concepts
The various concepts of marketing adopted over the years are asfollows:
1. The Exchange Concept:
According to this traditional concept of marketing the central idea of marketing is the exchange of a
product between the seller and the buyer. This concept holds the view that customer will accept whatever
design quality etc. of products offered to them to fulfill their needs.

6. 2. The Production Concept:
According to this concept firms concentrate on finding more efficient ways to produce and distribute
products. This concept hold the view that customer will prefer those products that are widely available and
are of low price.
3. The Product Concept:
Under this concept there is a shift from marketing of low cost products to marketing of highcosts
products. This concept holds the view that consumer will prefer those product that offers best quality and
performance.
4. The Selling Concept;
The concept emphasises on selling efforts such as advertising, salemanship etc. This concept holds the
view that consumer will buy products only when they are induced to buy through aggressive selling and
promotion effort on the part of the seller.
5. The Marketing Concept:
Under this concept the target customer becomes the focus of all marketing decision. This concept holds the
view that the key to organisational success consist identifying and satisfying customers requirement more
effectively than competitors. The marketing concept is also referred to as customer oriented concept.
6. The Societal Concept: (April 2011)
a) This concept emerged in 1980's and 1990's. This concept hold the view that the tasks of
an organisation is to determine the needs, wants and interest of target markets and deliver the desired
satisfaction more efficiently and effectively than competitors.
b) It further emphasizes on to enhance and preserve the consumer and the society well
being. The societal concept thus calls upon markets to build social and ethical values into their market
practices.
c) The societal marketing stresses the need for an organisation to balance three factors while
taking marketing decisions. They are as follows :
i) Consumer Satisfaction ii) Company's Profit iii) Society's Well-Being
7. Relationship Marketing Concept:

7. This concept emerged in 1990's. According to this concept relationship marketing in broader sense
involves creating. maintaining and enhancing profitable and long term relationship with valued customers,
distributors, dealers and suppliers. This concept holds the view that customers, distributors, dealers and
suppliers will favour those companies that are concerned with building and maintaining long term
relationship.
FUNCTIONS OF MARKETING
It refers to those specialize activities that you as a marketer must perform in order to achieve your set
marketing objectives.
The functions of marketing are;
 Researching
 Buying
 Product development and management
 Production
 Promotion
 Standardization and grading
 Pricing
 Distribution
 Risk bearing
 Financing
 After sales-service
(1) Research function: the research function of marketing is that function of marketing that enables
you to generate adequate information regarding your particular market of target. You must carry out
adequate research to identify the size, behavior, culture, believe, genders etc. of your target market segment,
their needs and want, and then develop effective product that can meet and satisfy these market needs and
want.
(2) Buying function: the function of buying is performed in order to acquire quality materials for
production. When you design a good product concept, you should also ensure you're buying the essential
materials for the product. This function is carried out by the purchase and supply department, but your
specifications of materials goes a long way in assisting the purchasing department to acquire the necessary
materials needed for production.

8. (3) Product development and management: product development is an essential function of
marketing since it was the duties of the marketing department to identify what the market need or want and
then design effective product based on the identified need and want of the market. Product development
passes through some basic stages carried out by the marketers to developa targeted market specified
product. And you can also manage your product by evaluatingit performance and changing them to fit
the current market trend.
(4) Production function: production is the function performs by the production department. Though,
this is interrelated to the department of marketing, because your product must possess the essential
characteristics that can meet the target market needs and want as identified during your market research,
such characteristics as in your product Test, Form, Packaging etc.
(5) Promotion function: promotion is one of the core functions of marketing since your finish
product must not remain in the place of production, hence, you as a marketer must design effective
communication strategies to informing the availability of your product to your target market.
You must be able to design effective strategies to communicate your product availability and features to
your target market, such strategies as in; advertisement, personal selling, public relation etc.
(6) Standardization and grading: the function of standardization is to establish specified
characteristics that your product must conform to, such standard as in having a specify test, ingredient etc.
That makes your product brand so unique. Grading comes in when you sort and classify your product into
deferent sizes or quantities for different market segment while maintaining your product standard.
(7) Pricing function: you perform the function of pricing on your product offerings by designing
effective pricing systems base on your product stage and performance in the product life cycle. Price is the
actual value consumers perceive on your product, so you as a marketer should ensure that your value of your
product is not too high or too low to that of your costumers.
(8) Distribution function: the function of distribution is to ensure that your product is easily and
effectively moved from the point of production to the target market, the kind of transportation system to
employ e.g. Road, rail, water or air, and ensures that the product can be easily accessed by customers. You
as a Marketer should also design the kind of middlemen to engage in the channel of distribution, their
incentives and motivations etc.
(9) Risk bearing function: the process of moving a finished product from the point of production
to the point of consumptions is characterized with lots of risks, such risks as in product

9. damaging, pilferage and defaults etc. So you must provide effective packaging system to protect your
product, good warehouse for the storage of your product until they are needed, effective transportation
system to speedily deliver your product on time.
(10) Financing function: financing deals with the part of marketing to providing incomes for your
business. It refers to how you can raise capital to start operation and remain in business. It refers to your
modes of payment for the goods and services transferred to your costumers.
(11) After sales-service:In a more complex and technical product, you as a marketer should make
provision in order to assist your customers after they have purchased your product. In terms of machines
or heavy equipment product that requires installation or maintenance, most marketing organization renders
such services like installing the machine or maintaining it for stipulated periods on time for free or by a little
service charge.
Importance of Marketing
1) Customer Satisfaction: Marketing is customer oriented. The essence of marketing is to
understand the need and wants of consumers. It starts with consumers and ends only after satisfying their
needs.
2) Helps to face competition: Effective marketing helps to face competition in Market through pro-
active decision making.
3) Corporate Image: Effective marketing helps the firms to develop and enhance its
corporate
4) Brand loyalty: Effective marketing helps to develop brand loyalty of customers. Loyal
customers does repeat purchases and gives recommendations to friends, relatives etc.
5) Brand Equity : Effective marketing develops brand equity as customers are willing to pay premium
price for effectively marketed brands.
6) Generates Employment : Marketing generates job opportunities directly or indirectly in
distribution, advertising, promotion etc.
7) Improves Standard of living : Marketing helps consumers to enjoy new and better varieties of
products and services at reasonable prices. It is marketing which has converted "yesterdays luxuries into
todays necessaries".
8) Price Control : Marketing brings a proper balance between demand and supply and provides price
stability.

10. 9) Economic grow in : Marketing brings industrial and economic growth. It facilitatesfull
utilization of available natural resources.
10) Creates Social awareness : Marketing helps non-profit organisation that createssocial -
awareness on public issues.
11) Expansion of other sectors : Marketing helps in expansion of supporting sectors likebanking,
communication, transport etc.
12) Market Expansion : Effective marketing helps business firms to expand its business fromlocal
to national and international level.
Introduction to Marketing Mix
Marketing is the process of identifying, anticipating, and satisfying customers' requirements with the purpose to make
profits. In this process marketing managers and marketing representatives have to take various marketing decisions to make
the operations profitable.They have to decide what combination of marketing policies and procedures be adopted to
bring about desired behavior of trade and consumers at minimum cost. They have to decide how can advertising, personal
selling, pricing, packaging, channels, warehousing, and the other elements of marketing be manipulated and mixed to
make marketing operations profitable. More specifically, they have to decide a marketing mix - a decision making
method in relation with the product, price, promotion, and distribution.
The term Marketing Mix was introduced by Neil H. Borden in his article - "The Concept of Marketing Mix". He learned
about it in a research bulletin on the management of marketing costs, written by his associate, Prof. James Culliton. in
1948. In this study of manufacturers' marketing costs he described the business executive as a "decider," an "artist" - a
"mixer of ingredients," who sometimes follows a recipe prepared by others, sometimes prepares hisown recipe as he
goes along, sometimes adapts a recipe to the ingredients immediately available, and sometimes experiments with or invents
ingredients no one else has tried.
Definition of Marketing Mix
According to Philip Kotler - "Marketing Mix is the combination of four elements, called the 4P's (product, Price,
Promotion, and Place), that every company has the option of adding, subtracting, or modifying in order to create a desired
marketing strategy"
According to Principles of Marketing, 14e, Kotler and Armstrong, 2012 - "The Marketing Mix is the set of tactical
marketing tools - Product, Price, Promotion, and Place - that the firm blends to produce the response it wants in the target
market."
ELEMENTS OF THE MARKETING MIX
The ―Four P‗s‖ of marketing: product, price, placement, and promotion are all affected as a company
moves through the five evolutionary phases to become a global company. Ultimately, at the global
marketing level, a company trying to speak with one voice is faced with many challenges when creating a
worldwide marketing plan. Unless a company holds the same position

11. against its competition in all markets (market leader, low cost, etc.) it is impossible to launch identical
marketing plans worldwide.
Product
A global company is one that can create a single product and only have to tweak elements for different
markets. For example, Coca-Cola uses two formulas (one with sugar, one with corn syrup) for all markets.
The product packaging in every country incorporates the contour bottle design and the dynamic ribbon in
some way, shape, or form. However, the bottle or can also includes the country‗s native language and is
the same size as other beverage bottles or cans in thatsame country.
Price
Price will always vary from market to market. Price is affected by many variables: cost of product
development (produced locally or imported), cost of ingredients, cost of delivery (transportation, tariffs,
etc.), and much more. Additionally, the product‗s position in relation to the competition influences the
ultimate profit margin.
Whether this product is considered the high-end, expensive choice, the economical, low-costchoice, or
something in-between helps determine the price point.
Place
How the product is distributed is also a country-by-country decision influenced by how the competition is
being offered to the target market. Using Coca-Cola as an example again, not all cultures use vending
machines. In the United States, beverages are sold by the pallet via warehousestores. In India, this is not an
option. Placement decisions must also consider the product‗s positionin the market place. For example,
a high-end product would not want to be distributed via a ―dollar store‖ in the United States.
Conversely, a product promoted as the low-cost option in France would find limited success in a pricey
boutique.

12. Promotion
After product research, development and creation, promotion (specifically advertising) is generallythe
largest line item in a global company‗s marketing budget. At this stage of a company‗s development,
integrated marketing is the goal. The global corporation seeks to reduce costs,minimize redundancies in
personnel and work, maximize speed of implementation, and to speak with one voice. If the goal of a
global company is to send the same message worldwide, then delivering that message in a relevant,
engaging, and cost-effective way is the challenge.THE MARKETING ENVIRONMENT
Micro environment ( Internal )
The company
 Suppliers
 Marketing intermediaries
 Customer markets
 Competitors &
 The public.
Macro environment ( External)
 Demographic environment
 Economic environment
 Natural environment
 Technological environment
 Political environment

13. A) Micro Environment: The micro environment consists of the forces close to the company that
affects its ability to serve its customers. The Micro Environment consists of some forces. That are,
1. Company: Company is the important element of micro Environment. Company drives their function
successfully by many departments. Such as purchase department, finance, research, operation, accounting,
management and other department.
2. Supplies: Supplies are important link in the companies. Overall customers value delivery system.
They provide the resource needed by the company to produce its goods and services.
3. Marketing Intermediaries: Marketing intermediaries are firms that help the company to promote, sell
and distribute its goods to final buyers. There are four types of Marketing Intermediaries, i. Reseller
,ii. Physical Distribution iii. Marketing Service Agencies, iv. Financial Agencies
4. Customer: Customer is the very important element of the Micro Environment. The company needs
to study five types of customers market closely. They are: i. Customer Market ii. Business market iii.
Reseller Market iv. Government Market v. International Market

14. 5. Competitors: The Marketing concept states that to be successful, a company must provide greater
customer value and Satisfaction than its competitors do. Any single company cannot provide best service.
So, they must have competitors.
6. Publics: Publics is any groups that have an actual or potential interest in or impact on an organizational
ability to achieve its objective. We can identify seven types of publics, i. Financialpublics ii. Media
publics iii. Government publics iv. Citizen-action publics v. Local publics vi. General publics vii.
Internal publics
However, this forces impact on organization directly. So, this forces used appropriately.
B) Macro Environment: Company and all of the other actors
operate in surrounded by the MacroEnvironment. There are many factors which in
affected by the Macro Environment. They are givenbellow,
1. Demographic Environment: Demography is the study of human
Population, in terms of age, size,Density, location, gender, race, Occupation and other
statistics. The demographic environment is ofmajor interest to marketers because it
involves people and people make up markets.
2. Economic Environment: Economic environment consist of
factors that affect purchasing power and spending patterns. It is one of the most
important factors. The economic environment affects some issue. Such as, i. Changes
in Income ii. Changing consumer spending patterns
3. Natural Environment: Natural environment involves the natural
resources that are needed as inputs by marketers are affected by marketing activities.
Marketers should be aware of several trends in the natural environment. That are,
i. Shortage of natural Resources ii. Increasing population iii.
Increasing govt. intervention in natural resource management
4. Technological Environment: Technological environment is
forces that create new technology, product, and market opportunities. This
environment is blessing for our market. For this environment, we get TV, automobile,
credit card etc. Moreover, this environment also damages ourlife. Nuclear weapon,
assault rifles are the rust of this environment.
5. Political environment: Political environment is consists of laws,
govt. agencies, and pressure groups that influence and limit various organization and
individuals in a given society. It is very important environment for markets. Markets
considered two ways in political Environment.
i. Legislation Regulating Business ii. Emphasis on ethics and social
responsibility action
6. Cultural Environment: Cultural environment is an institution and
other forces that affect society basic value, perception and behaviors. The following

15. Characteristics can afford making marketing decision. Such as i. Persistence of
cultural value
ii. Shifts in secondary cultural value
Marketing Strategy
Marketing strategy is the comprehensive plan formulated particularly for achieving the marketing
objectives of the organization. It provides a blueprint for attaining these marketing objectives. It is the
building block of a marketing plan. It is designed after detailed marketing research. A marketing strategy
helps an organization to concentrate it’s scarce resources on the best possible opportunities so as to increase
the sales.
A marketing strategy is designed by:
Choosing the target market: By target market we mean to whom the organization wants to sell its products.
Not all the market segments are fruitful to an organization. There are certain market segments which
guarantee quick profits, there are certain segments which may be having great potential but there may be
high barriers to entry.A careful choice has to be made by the organization. An in-depth marketing research

16. has to be done of the traits of the buyers and the particular needs of the buyers in the target market.
Gathering the marketing mix: By marketing mix we mean how the organization proposes to sell its products.
The organization has to gather the four P’s of marketing in appropriate combination. Gathering the
marketing mix is a crucial part of marketing task. Various decisions have to be made such as -
 What is the most appropriate mix of the four P’s in a given situation
 What distribution channels are available and which one should be used
 What developmental strategy should be used in the target market
 How should the price structure be designed
Importance of Marketing Strategy
 Marketing strategy provides an organization an edge over its competitors.
 Strategy helps in developing goods and services with best profit-making potential.
 Marketing strategy helps in discovering the areas affected by organizational growthand thereby helps
in creating an organizational plan to cater to the customer needs.
 It helps in fixing the right price for organization’s goods and services based oninformation collected by
market research.
 Strategy ensures effective departmental co-ordination.
 It helps an organization to make optimum utilization of its resources so as to provide a sales message to
its target market.
 A marketing strategy helps to fix the advertising budget in advance, and it also develops a method which
determines the scope of the plan, i.e., it determines the revenue generated by the advertising plan.
 In short, a marketing strategy clearly explains how an organization reaches its predetermined objectives.
Market Targeting, Evaluating Market Segments, Selecting Market Segments – Differentiation Market
targeting is a process of selecting the target market from the entire market. Target market consists of
group/groups of buyers to whom the company wants to satisfy or for whom product is manufactured, price is
set, promotion efforts are made, and distribution network is prepared.
 Introduction:
 A company cannot concentrate on all the segments of the market. The company can satisfy only limited
segments. The segments the company wants to serve are called the target market, and the process of selecting
the target market is referred as market targeting. Market segmentation results into dividing total market into
various segments or parts.

17.  Such segments may be on the basis of consumer characteristics or product characteristics or both. Once
the market is divided into various segments, the company has to evaluate various segments and decide how
many and which ones to target. It is simply an act or process of selecting a target market.
 Definitions:
 Market is segmented using certain bases, like income, place, education, age, and life cycle,and so
on. Out of them, a few segments are selected to serve them. Thus, evaluating and selecting some market
segments can be said as market targeting. The quoted definitions arenot available
 However, we can define the term as:
 We can define the term as: Market targeting is a process of selecting the target market from the entire
market. Target market consists of group/groups of buyers to whom the companywants to satisfy or for
whom product is manufactured, price is set, promotion efforts aremade, and distribution network is prepared.
 It involves basically two actions – evaluation of segments and selection of the appropriate market
segments. In this relation, market targeting can be defined as: Market targeting is an act of evaluating and
selecting market segments.
 Finally, we define market targeting as: Market targeting consists of dividing the total market into
segments, evaluating these segments, and selecting the appropriate segments as the target market.
 Procedure of Market Targeting:
 Market targeting procedure consists of two steps:
 Evaluating Market Segments:
 Evaluation of market segments calls for measuring suitability of segments. The segments are evaluated
with certain relevant criteria to determine their feasibility.
 To determine overall attractiveness/suitability of the segment, two factors are used:
 Attractiveness of Segment:
 In order to determine attractiveness of the segment, the company must think on characteristics/conditions
which reflect its attractiveness, such as size, profitability, measurability, accessibility, actionable, potential
for growth, scale of economy, differentiability, etc. These characteristics help decide whether the segment
is attractive.
 Objectives and Resources of Company:
 The firm must consider whether the segment suit the marketing objectives. Similarly, the firm must
consider its resource capacity. The material, technological, and human resources aretaken into account.
The segment must be within resource capacity of the firm.
 Selecting Market Segments:
 When the evaluation of segments is over, the company has to decide in which market segments
to enter. That is, the company decides on which and how many segments to enter. This task is related with
selecting the target market. Target market consists of various groupsof buyers to whom company wants to
sell the product; each tends to be similar in needs or characteristics. Philip Kotler describes five alternative
patterns to select the target market. Selection of a suitable option depends on situations prevailing inside and
outside the company.
 Alternative Strategies (Methods) for Market Targeting:
 Basically five alternative patterns/strategies are available.
 Company may opt for any one of the following strategies for market targeting based onthe situations:
 Single Segment Concentration:
 It is the simplest case. The company selects only a single segment as target market and offersa single
product. Here, product is one; segment is one. For example, a company may select

18.  only higher income segment to serve from various segments based on income, such as poor, middleclass,
elite class, etc. All the product items produced by the company are meant foronly a single segment.
 Single segment offers some merits like:
 Company can gain strong knowledge of segment’s needs and can achieve a strong marketposition in
the segment.
 Company can specialize its production, distribution, and promotion.
 Company, by capturing leadership in the segment, can earn higher return on itsinvestment.
 It suffers from following demerits like:
 Competitor may invade the segment and can shake company’s position.
 Company has to pay high costs for change in fashion, habit, and attitude. Company maynot survive
as risk cannot be diversified.
 Mostly, company prefers to operate in more segments. Serving more segments minimizes thedegree
of risk.
 Selective Specialization:
 In this option, the company selects a number of segments. A company selects several segments and
sells different products to each of the segments. Here, company selects many segments to serve them with
many products. All such segments are attractive and appropriate with firm’s objectives and resources.
 There may be little or no synergy among the segments. Every segment is capable to promisethe profits.
This multi-segment coverage strategy has the advantage of diversifying the firm’s risk. Firm can earn money
from other segments if one or two segments seem unattractive. For example, a company may concentrate on
all the income groups to serve.
 Product Specialization:
 In this alternative, a company makes a specific product, which can be sold to several segments. Here,
product is one, but segments are many. Company offers different models and varieties to meet needs of
different segments. The major benefit is that the company can builda strong reputation in the specific product
area. But, the risk is that product may be replaced by an entirely new technology. Many ready-made garment
companies prefer this strategy.
 Market Specialization:
 This strategy consists of serving many needs of a particular segment. Here, products are many but the
segment is one. The firm can gain a strong reputation by specializing in serving the specific segment.
Company provides all new products that the group can feasibly use. But, reduced size of market, reduced
purchase capacity of the segment, or the entry of competitors with superior products range may affect the
company’s position.
 Full Market Coverage:
 In this strategy, a company attempts to serve all the customer groups with all the products they need.
Here, all the needs of all the segments are served. Only very large firm with overall capacity can undertake
a full market coverage strategy.
 Methods of Full Market Coverage:
 Philip Kotler identifies two broad ways for full market coverage strategy as under: Undifferentiated
Marketing:
 Company sells the same products to all the customer groups. It does not consider difference among
buyers. Product and marketing programme remain common for all the segments. The firm relies on mass
production, mass distribution, and mass advertising. So, it can considerably reduce production, distribution,
and promotional costs. Similarly, reduced costs result into low price and the price-sensitive consumers can be
attracted. This method is followed by pharmaceutical companies.

19.  However, many experts and practicing managers have expressed strong doubts about the strategy. It is
erroneous to believe that all the segments have similar needs. It is a rare case.Such strategy may invite
competition to serve larger groups of buyers, and smaller groups are neglected. People, in different segments,
differ significantly in terms of needs, preference,and advertising appeal.
 Differentiated Marketing:
 Here, company operates in several segments and designs different marketing programmes for each of the
segments. Various groups of customers are targeted by several types of productsand marketing strategies. It
is based on the notion that each group needs different products.This strategy is used by the most of
automobile companies. This strategy creates more total sales, but costs of doing business also on increase.
 Following costs are likely to be higher in differentiated marketing strategy:
 Marketing research cost
 Administrative costs
 Manufacturing costs
 Inventory costs
 Promotional costs
 Product modification costs
 Here, costs and sales both increase. So, profitability is doubtful. However, it is less risky. Loss in one
segment can be offset against profitable segments. Most of companies prefer this option. Thus, market
targeting is an essential aspect of marketing programme. A manager needs a lot of experience, knowledge,
and expertise to take decision on target market. The alternative to be used depends upon a large number of
internal and external variables. Careful and objective analysis of these variables can assist in selecting target
market.
 Product Positioning, Positioning Strategies.
 Positioning strategy can be conceived and developed in a variety of ways. It can be derived from the
object attributes, competition, application, the types of consumers involved, or the characteristics of the
product class. All these attributes represent a different approach in developing positioning strategy, even
though all of them have the common objective of projecting a favorable image in the minds of the consumers
or audience. There are seven approaches to positioning strategy:
 Using Product characteristics or Buyer Benefits as a positioning
 This strategy basically focuses upon the characteristics of the product or customer benefits. For example
if I say Imported items it basically tell or illustrate a variety of product characteristics such as durability,
economy or reliability etc. Lets take an example of motorbikes some are emphasizing on fuel economy,
some on power, looks and others stresson their durability. Hero Cycles Ltd. positions first, emphasizing
durability and style for its cycle.
 At time even you would have noticed that a product is positioned along two or more product
characteristics at the same time. You would have seen this in the case of toothpaste market, most toothpaste
insists on ‘freshness’ and ‘cavity fighter’ as the product characteristics. It is always tempting to try to position
along several product characteristics, as it is frustrating to have some good characteristics that are not
communicated.
 Pricing as a positioning

21.  Quality Approach or Positioning by Price-Quality – Lets take an example and understand this
approach just suppose you have to go and buy a pair of jeans, as soon as you enter in the shop you will find
different price rage jeans in the showroom say price ranging from 350 rupees to 2000 rupees. As soon as look
at the jeans of 350 Rupees you say that it is not good in quality.
 Why? Basically because of perception, as most of us perceive that if a product is expensive will be a
quality product where as product that is cheap is lower in quality. If we look at this Price – quality approach
it is important and is largely used in product positioning strategy. In many product categories, there are brands
that deliberately attempt to offer more in terms of service, features or performance. They charge more, partly
to cover higher costs and partly to let the consumers believe that the product is, certainly of higher quality.
 Positioning based on Use or Application
 Lets understand this with the help of an example like Nescafe Coffee for many years positioned it self
as a winter product and advertised mainly in winter but the introduction ofcold coffee has developed a
positioning strategy for the summer months also.
 Basically this type of positioning-by-use represents a second or third position for the brand, such type of
positioning is done deliberately to expand the brand’s market. If you are introducing new uses of the product
that will automatically expand the brand’s market.
 Positioning strategy based on Product Process
 Another positioning approach is to associate the product with its users or a class of users. Makes of
casual clothing like jeans have introduced ‘designer labels’ to develop a fashion image. In this case the
expectation is that the model or personality will influence the product’s image by reflecting the
characteristics and image of the model or personality communicated as a product user.
 Lets not forget that Johnson and Johnson repositioned its shampoo from one used for babiesto one
used by people who wash their hair frequently and therefore need a mild people who wash their hair frequently
and therefore need a mild shampoo. This repositioning resulted in a market share.
 Positioning based on Product Class
 In some product class we have to make sure critical positioning decisions For example, freeze dried coffee
needed to positions itself with respect to regular and instant coffee and similarly in case of dried milk makers
came out with instant breakfast positioned as a breakfast substitute and virtually identical product positioned
as a dietary meal substitute.
 Positioning based on Cultural Symbols
 In today’s world many advertisers are using deeply entrenched cultural symbols todifferentiate their
brands from that of competitors. The essential task is to identify something that is very meaningful to people
that other competitors are not using and associate this brand with that symbol.
 Air India uses maharaja as its logo, by this they are trying to show that we welcome guest and give them
royal treatment with lot of respect and it also highlights Indian tradition. Using and popularizing trademarks
generally follow this type of positioning.

22.  Positioning based on Competitor
In this type of positioning strategy, an implicit or explicit frame of reference is one or more competitors. In
some cases, reference competitor(s) can be the dominant aspect of the positioning strategy of the firm, the
firm either uses the same of similar positioning strategy as used by the competitors or the advertiser uses a
new strategy taking the competitors’positioning strategy as the base.