1. Introduction
This monograph tries to bring together in a document the basic concepts to understand the marketing function, conceptualized from a perspective of a highly dynamic and interactive global economy. Of course, for a better understanding of the reader, a series of concepts are defined that will allow them to have the corresponding theoretical framework.
The reader will be able to understand from a general concept to the particular concept of each of the marketing variables and their interaction in the system. You will be able to understand with the progress of the reading how each part meshes to form the bases of applied market thinking.
Of course, this monograph tries to be descriptive of the concepts and their interaction and will serve the reader as a consultation document; it is not intended to be a document that creates new knowledge, but rather a center of knowledge gathering.
Trying to take the simplest path, this document once the concepts have been defined penetrates the strategic area, then moving on to the actions and finally to the systems for verifying compliance and concordance of the actions with the strategy and the forms of measurement and correction. associated.
2. Concepts
a) Strategic Marketing
It is the function whose purpose is to guide the company towards the attractive economic opportunities for it, that is, fully adapted to its courses and know-how, and which offer growth and profitability potential. Strategic marketing is about choosing the market, the goal, and creating and maintaining the marketing mix that meets the consumer's needs with a specific product or service.
b) Marketing
It consists of activities, both of individuals and organizations, aimed at facilitating and stimulating exchanges within a group of dynamic external forces. In this way producers, consumer intermediaries interrelate in their ability to exchange goods and services that meet specific needs. Marketing is the process of planning and executing concepts, prices, promotions and distribution of ideas, goods, services to create an exchange that meets the needs and objectives of the organization.
c) Marketing department
Must act as the guide and leader of the company before the other departments in the process of developing, producing, completing the services and products that consumers require. The marketing department should not currently only do so in conjunction with the other departments of the organization.
d) Research and analysis
They are critical factors in knowing the target market, opportunities and threats, marketing objectives, strategies, and tactics.
e) Business review
In order to put the marketing variables in order, it is necessary to be clear about the business concept and the characteristics of the products or services that are available in the context of competition.
f) Market review
It is essential to know the size of the target market, its structure, competitors, seasonality, and unmet needs will make commercial efforts properly oriented.
g) Environmental factors
We will delimit as environmental factors those of a political, economic, social, and technological nature. They are called from the environment because they are external to the company.
h) SWOT
Analysis of strengths, opportunities, weaknesses and threats. Widely known and known as Porter's model. By way of a simple reminder, we understand how threats and opportunities are determined by forces outside the company, as well as strengths and weaknesses are an integral part of the company.
i) Marketing mix
Possibly one of the best-known phrases in the field, we remember that it is made up of 4 p, price, product, promotion and place or distribution.
j) Price
It is the monetary value of a product or service. A price is said to have match quality, which means the transaction must be balanced. There are different pricing strategies, premium prices, penetration, economic, skim price, psychological price.
k) Distribution
The process by which the product or service reaches the consumer. To achieve this, there are distribution channels such as wholesale intermediaries, agents, retailers, the Internet, among others.
l) Life Cycle
It is the process of introduction, growth, development, maturity and death of a product or service.
m) Promotional mix
It is understood as all the tools available for the marketing communication process
3. Strategic Marketing
Having defined the theoretical concept of strategic marketing, we can direct our efforts towards its operational understanding. We could say that unlike operational marketing, strategic marketing is linked to the long term, so your responsibility will always be linked to the highest levels of the organization. Fundamentally, strategic marketing can be subdivided into two main areas: the selection of the market chosen as the goal of the organization and the creation and maintenance of the marketing mix that meets the needs of the market, understood as the unmet needs of the consumers of the product or service.
In order to synthesize the concept of strategic marketing, the reader can review the previous graph and will be able to analyze how long-term variables interact in the process. Strategic marketing begins with the definition of the mission and vision of the company. This will be the frame of reference to proceed to establish the long-term marketing guidelines that at the same time will allow us to establish a marketing plan and within it the marketing mix.
4. Marketing plan
The process of developing a marketing plan should be similar to the process when a child begins to take his first steps. You must learn and discover the market, develop entrepreneurial skills, know the strengths and weaknesses, establish clear and measurable objectives within the framework of the strengths and weaknesses, develop the strategies and plans that allow achieving the stated objectives, execute the plans to make things happen as scheduled and finally analyze the results and take the necessary corrective action.
A marketing plan should include an executive summary of the plan, then a market review with analysis of trends, target market segments. Then an analysis of the competition, analysis of products and business, analysis foda, objectives and goals set in terms of sales, and marketing objectives, positioning strategies, product, price, distribution, communication, action plans and ways of implementation, which include a media plan, budgets, schedule and tasks, and lastly, an evaluation model that allows the progress and sales results to be known.
Having defined the framework of a marketing plan, we will proceed to define each of its components in greater detail.
Executive Summary includes a short summary of the plans for review by the executive group, including summary of the market, competition, products, SWOT, strategies, action plans, timelines and evaluation methods.
Market analysis: it is the process of describing what the market situation is at the time of the study, and should clearly include the size of the market, its activity towards growth, foreseeable changes, market segmentation and competition, and target group including its demographics. Likewise within the target group must also proceed with the psychographic analysis to know the perceptions about the benefits and the value of the product or service, in short, to know why they buy or use the product or service. In the analysis of competition, in addition to direct competition, substitutes or indirect competition must be taken into account. You should proceed with a SWOT analysis and how you can capitalize on weaknesses and threats.
Continuing with the process of a marketing plan we come to the analysis of our product. This stage is fundamental since it will allow us to really know what we have, it must include the product and its use, characteristics, price structure, distribution channels, position and position in the market, promotions and communication, and packaging. Additionally, the analysis must be carried out to convert each of the characteristics into at least two benefits, define the sales objectives specifically and in such a way that they can be measured, establish the levels and goals that are achievable but at the same time signify a commitment work, the schedule of activities to measure the progress of the plan and of course the estimates of profits associated with the plan.
Every marketing plan must be accompanied by the marketing objectives. For this, the necessary resources must be included in the plan in order to maintain reliable statistics that allow us to define our potential, which in turn allows us to define the path that must be followed to achieve the objectives.. Positioning would be the next step in the plan, it should be included from a broad positioning to reach a narrow situation and a great effort that allows us to have a definition of the position in a specific way that is achieved by translating the characteristics of the product to tangible benefits unique to the plan's product or service.
The marketing plan must allow us to come to define a value positioning that is the mix of price, distribution channels that in the end is a situation of consumer perception.
Marketing mix: most of the operational marketing decisions can be framed within what we have defined as the 4 p, be these products as the physical product including the service offered as an integral part of it, or the service offered to the consumer. Product decisions include functionality, appearance, packaging, service, warranty etc. Price that must take into account profitability, the probability of reaction of the competition, discounts, financing, leasing and any other variable associated with the value of the transaction for the product or service offered. Promotion, understood as decisions related to communication aimed at selling to potential customers. This section includes the cost of acquiring an additional client, advertising, public relations, media.Distribution understood as the decisions associated with the work schemes of the distribution channels, associated logistics, market coverage, service levels.
In the subject of prices, in the other sections we address some price criteria but to be reasonably covered in the subject it must be considered that there are also prices for product lines, option prices, captive prices, combo prices, promotional prices, geographic of value. As you can see, the price variable is not only putting a value on a product per transaction, but it is closely linked to the positioning and strategy of the product or service offered to the customer.
In terms of distribution, channel decisions can be framed using direct or indirect channels, single or multiple, multiple, intermediaries per level, each associated with the market segment, product life cycle. The wholesalers or intermediaries are characterized by buying large quantities to sell them in small quantities to many clients, the representatives are those who work on behalf of the company and therefore receive a commission, do not maintain inventories, the company does the logistics process. Retailers are those who are in the line of fire, are those who have contact with the consumer customer of the product or service associated with creating value for their own brand of commercial establishment.
As you can see, the marketing mix is the process through which strategic marketing is landed, the marketing plans in order to achieve the stated objectives. The marketing mix is nothing more than the tactics applied to achieve the proposed plans, which in turn would be the objectives of the commercial strategy.
5. Conclusions
To be successful in the marketing strategy, you must be very clear in the mission and vision of the business, with an orientation to serve the current and potential customer. Due market research, market penetration and development, adequate segmentation, clear and achievable objectives, executable tactics, programs and budgets that lead to adequate performance monitoring and corrective actions in time and order are the keys to success.
Marketing places the consumer at the center of the organization. This is the only way to maintain the customer base of any company and to survive in an increasingly competitive market with a growing range of possibilities, with unlimited access to information around the world.
6. Bibliography
- Adcock D, Bradfield R, Halborg A & Ross C, Marketing Principles & Practice. Pitman, 1995. Jobber D, Principals and Practices of Marketing, McGraw Hill, 1995. Dibb S & Simkin L, The Marketing Casebook, Routledge, 1994 Ac Nielsen Global Site: Customized Research Services: Evaluating your Marketing Mix. Www.howstuffworks.com, How Marketing Plans Work www.rlc.fao.org/prior/desrural/mercadeo/Cap2.PDFwww.marketingmixanalytics.com, Marketing Mix Analysis.www.marketingteacher.com/lessons/lessons-pricing.htmwww.marketingteacher.com/ lessons / lessons-place.htmwww.marketingteacher.com / lessons / lessons-product.htmwww.marketingteacher.com / lessons / lessons-pricing.htmwww.marketingteacher.com / lessons / lessons-plc.htmwww.marketingteacher.com / lessons / lessons-promotion.htm
