The Role of Marketing

Marketing is the most powerful weapon available to a business; however, marketing is often confused with sales and advertising. It is noted that business need to understand that marketing is much more than that.

Marketing, in fact, has a various roltes in a firm or business; firstly, it connects the business with its target market, it provides the major link between the business and its customers. Secondly, as marketing focuses on the needs and wants of customers, it gives a business direction and help it to manage in a changing environment. Thirdly, it provides the information the business needs in order to change direction or adjust its tactics by providing new products or changing existing products. Fourthly, marketing helps to coordinate how a business can best use its resources to satisfy customers and achieve profit targets, yet the marketing plan can actually be seen as the 'blueprint' for a business's future success.

Market Street

[Fish market, Bergen, Norway] (LOC)

Market Square, Enniscorthy

As it is noted in order to carry out the marketing program, a business needs a plan that will help it to achieve its objectives, and there are several stages needed to be taken; which include the situation analysis, establishing market objectives, identifying target markets, developing marketing strategies, preparing marketing plan, and the implementation, monitoring and adjustment of the plan.

Situation analysis involves looking at the market in terms of size and growth, needs of the target market and trends in buyer behaviour, where the performance of the product(s) in terms of sales, profit margins and stage in the product lifecycle are examined, and major competitors are identified. The next stage in the marketing plan is about establishing marketing objectives; the objectives established in the business plan will be the guide for the marketing objectives. A number of general marketing objectives can be identified, such as, increasing a...