The document outlines the basic functions of marketing, including exchange functions like buying and selling. It describes the buying process, noting that buying involves assessing needs, finding suppliers, placing orders, receiving and inspecting goods. It also describes the selling process, noting that selling aims to bring buyers and sellers together and is how firms generate income. The document further outlines physical supply functions like storage and transportation, and ancillary functions like standardization, branding, financing, risk bearing, and feedback information.

1. BASIC FUNCTIONS OF
MARKETING
DR. ALI AKHTAR
MS (CLINICAL PHARMACY)
PHD (CLINICAL PHARMACY)

2. The pharmaceuticals manufactured by a firm have to pass through
different operations and hands (channels) till it reaches to the ultimate
consumers. The various marketing activities can be best described within
the framework of basic marketing functions, which are outlined below:

3. Exchange Function
Among the exchange functions included:
• Buying
and
• Selling

4. BUYING
Buying is one of the fundamental functions of marketing. All the
business organizations i.e; manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers buy
the goods in one form or the other. The manufacturers buy machinery,
equipment and raw materials whereas wholesalers and retailers generally
buy finished products and goods. Success of an organization depends
on effective buying.

5. The word buying involves not only purchasing of goods, but it also comprises of a
complete procedure for purchases, which involve following steps:
1. Assessing total materials requirement
2. Deciding the maximum quantity to be purchased under one order
3. Finding out the best source of supplier and at a minimum possible cost with a
good quality
4. Calling for quotations and tenders

6. 5. Placing the order for purchase of the required quantity of materials
6. Receiving the goods and inspection thereof, both in terms of quantity
and quality
7. Sending the goods to score for storage
8. Checking the bill and making the payments

7. SELLING
Selling is the ultimate aim of a firm and a vital part of any business and
marketing. It brings buyers and sellers together. Sales are the only source of
income for all business enterprises. If there is no sale, there will be no profit
and hence, a business cannot survive. Selling is very important for future
planning and provide basis for future production strategies. The purpose of
all marketing activities is to sell the goods or services. It is a process of
finding the customers, creating demand by various promotional
activities and finally transferring the goods for value to the ultimate
consumers.

8. The demand generation is the main stage of selling and is possible only through
customers' awareness mainly, by advertisements, publicity and other sales promotion
techniques.
In pharmaceutical marketing, though, the direct advertisement is prohibited yet, it is
targeted to the medical profession to motivate them to prescribe and thereby to
enhance sales. However, over-the-counter drug products can be advertised directly to
the consumers.

10. PHYSICAL SUPPLY FUNCTION
The physical supply function in marketing consists of storage, and
transportation.

11. STORAGE
Storage is the process of keeping, holding and preserving the goods or
materials temporarily. When storage is accomplished at a large scale, it is known as
warehousing. The basic idea of storage is to keep the goods available as and when
required. Storage, furthermore, ensures a continuous and unrestricted supply of
raw materials/packing materials to the production department and finished goods in
market for the ultimate consumers. Storage is necessary for manufacturers, distributors,
wholesalers as well as retailers for regular supply to the consumers when they require.

12. TRANSPORTATION
Transportation is concerned with carrying the goods from places of
production to places of their consumption. Like other industries, pharmaceutical firms are
situated at selective places depending on the availability of raw materials, labor, easy
transportation and other favorable conditions. After the process of production, packaging
and finishing, the drugs must reach to consumer in shortest possible time. This is
of particular importance for certain drugs having very short shelf life. Thus, suitable
transport facilities are essential for distribution of drugs.

13. ANCILLARY FUNCTIONS
The ancillary marketing functions consist standardization and branding,
financing, risk bearing and feedback Information.

14. STANDARDIZATION
Standardization means that the products are identical in terms of quality and
description and conform to the predetermined standards. The standards of drugs
convey the idea of uniformity with regards to their chemical contents, size, color,
flavor, appearance and amount of trace elements, etc. All types of pharmaceutical
products eg, tablets are standardized for their shape, size, diameter, weight,
hardness, percentage of active ingredients, rate of disintegration & dissolution, etc.,
before sending them to market. Similarly, parenterals are standardized for
sterility, pyrogens, clarity, leakage and percentage of active ingredients.

15. GRADING
Grading means the classification of goods into well-defined units
possessing similar characteristics of size, color, shape, etc. Drugs and pharmaceuticals are
manufactured according to compendial standards such as British Pharmacopoeia,
United States Pharmacopoeia, and Pakistan Pharmacopoeia, etc. The drug products
are being marketed by mentioning the names of the official Pharmacopoeia on the
drug pack according to which they have been manufactured. The crude drugs of
vegetative origin are graded according to the percentage of active constituents,
size, color, flavor, etc. Chemicals are graded as commercial, laboratory, or analytical
grade, etc.

16. BRANDING
Branding may be defined as an act of giving a proprietary
name, term, symbol, or a design to a product in order to distinguish it
from the products of other sellers or competitors. Advertisement, promotion
and large-scale selling are not possible without giving brand name to a
product.

17. FINANCING
Finance or capital is the backbone of any business. Every
business enterprise must have a clear strategy for financing its
operations. It is required for the purchase of machinery, raw
materials, and carrying production operations. Finance is also required
for transportation, storage and for other operational purposes. The
distributors, wholesalers and retailers also need finance for
purchasing, storing, and giving credit to their customers and for
meeting day-to-day expenses. Therefore, financing is a significant
market function.

18. RISK BARING
A more common decision-making condition is a state of risk. Marketing
provides opportunity for risk bearing. In marketing process, many kinds
of risks are involved at every stage. Materials, from time of procurement
for production and the finished products, till the time of dispatch for actual
consumption are exposed to risks on account of unavoidable circumstances.
Accidental fire, theft, flood, price reduction, change in demand and supply,
non-recovery of credit, dishonesty of employees and partners, and strikes
are few risks to list.

19. FEEDBACK INFORMATION
Feedback information is one of the basic market functions. It is collecting of
the vital information regarding type of goods needed by customers, site of their
need, quantity needed, market trends and the level of competition. After collection
of the relevant information from market, information feedback involves
conveying it to the top management. The feedback information is periodical
in nature i.e., daily, weekly, fortnightly, monthly, quarterly or yearly which are
important for reacting demand changes, decision making and future planning.