Introduction
Marketing is a very important pillar in business that enables activities to be carried out for the satisfaction of a given demand. The process of marketing involves lots of activities that are geared towards the selling of products and services. The process of marketing means making the products or services to be sold to be attractive to the buyers or sellers of these products. Various media is used in marketing and they include newspapers, direct marketing, Promotions, Television, and the internet. Research and implementation of careful marketing strategies are critical to achieving a successful marketing campaign. Today’s world has embraced channels such as social media in reaching potential customers or companies. This essay will look into different marketing and the effect of social media is changing marketing.
Seven Domains of Attractive Opportunities
In the process of marketing, we take a closer look at the various sectors where marketing is conducted. Marketing is made up of seven different domains which include attractiveness at a micro and macro level. Marketing is also divided into market and industry domains whereby the market has consisted of individuals or organizations interested in buying a good to satisfy their needs. While the industry is comprised of a group of companies or firms which offer a class of similar products or which are substitutes to each other. The industry is mainly comprised of sellers while the market is comprised of buyers. The attractiveness of the market will be divided into macro and micro levels. The macro-level is analyzed based on environmental conditions that affect the market or industry. While on the micro-level analysis examines individual at the market or industry level (Leakey, 2006, pp. 64). Market attractiveness is very important to the profession of marketing because it determines the needs and demands of the consumer.
This marketing domain is examined at the attractiveness of promoting a good or service in different environmental conditions. For instance, at the macro level, the market attractiveness examines the different business environments that would be necessary for marketing goods and services. In the process of marketing, it is important to examine the market demographics such as age, population, and social relationships. Other environments include the social-cultural environment which examines the behaviors, values, and attitudes of people. The main focus of this includes analyzing ethical behavior in organizations and companies. Technological, natural, economic, and regulatory environments should also be analyzed in the process of analyzing market attractiveness (Leakey, 2006, pp. 68). Another very important marketing domain is industry attractiveness whereby the main question to be examined is the definition of the industry.
Under the market and industry segments, the micro and macro levels need to be analyzed in different lights. For instance, at the micro-level, the customer’s pain needs to be identified. Differentiating companies or organizations at the micro-level is important for the non-duplication of products or services. Critical success factors are also important in the process of marketing since it helps in making decisions that help or jeopardize marketing. Under these factors, we look into the decisions or activities that could lead to success in marketing. For instance, having a well-connected team in reaching out to customers or producers is very important (Coughlan, 2001). Connectedness increases the value chain while having targeted goals and the ability in mitigating risk is vital in marketing. Companies or organizations having sustainable advantages such as monopoly should be analyzed in the process of marketing.
How Social Media Has Changed the World of Marketing and How It’s Changing the Future as Well
Social marketing is a new trend that is changing the world of marketing and business. Social media has the capability and the potential of reaching a huge and wide market demographic. Social marketing is utilized by celebrities and common people in socializing and communication. For instance, social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and 2Go are used by over a billion people around the globe. As a result, social marketing is a phenomenon that cannot be ignored easily and should be utilized for the benefit of promoting goods and services. Social media leverages its advantage on the new technology of the internet for communication. Thus, social media is a powerful tool to be used in promoting or selling goods and services. For instance, using the industry based marketing domain we can explore the use of social sites such as LinkedIn (Coughlan, 2001). Social media provides a very huge demographic that is increasingly being tapped by producers and consumers alike.
Huge companies and producers in a specific industry are turning into social media to market their goods or services. For instance, Ford recently launched the Ford Explorer Reveal vehicle using Facebook and other social channels. Social media has the ability to change the exposure and perceptions in the field of marketing. Unlike traditional forms of media used in marketing such as television, radio, or newspapers, social media reaches a huge demographic and population (Ryan, 2009). Before choosing social media as the appropriate marketing tool it is important to consider the marketing strategies to be applied and goals or objectives to be achieved. In selecting the best strategy to be used with social media it is important to look at brand perception, revenue growth, marketing efficiency, and support savings. Social media has been beneficial to companies who can now easily interact with their customers through these media and build their brand. Loyal customers can easily follow up on product launches or product upgrades. Through such initiatives, companies must be engaged in social media to understand the customers and their needs. Research is required in understanding the needs of the customers and the best formats of addressing or reaching out to these needs (Coughlan, 2001).
Social media has changed the market by reaching out to a huge population of people in different regions of the world. For instance, companies could develop relationships with various fans, customers, subscribers, or followers. These numbers could result in huge sales numbers and social media allows companies to service their customers. Social media has reduced the costs of marketing since using the internet is relatively cheap compared to other marketing media (Ryan, 2009). Using social media companies can service their loyal customers easily through call centers and E-mail responses or forums. Getting customer responses from customers through social media is very easy and thus, companies can easily rectify their products or services to satisfy the customers.
Conclusion
Marketing is one of the oldest business professions known to man and this skill has been used by people knowingly or unknowingly. The art of marketing requires people to understand the needs, wants, and demands of people for these services and products to be exchanged between people. Marketing is fully understood through the several domains that used in understanding or promoting goods and services. Attractiveness is vital in understanding the needs of different people in the market or industry. Moreover, the business environment should be well understood to cater to the needs of all stakeholders. Channels of marketing such as social media should well be researched for it to be utilized in marketing as it is being used currently.
References
Coughlan, A 2001, Marketing channels, John Wiley & Sons, New York.
Leakey, L 2006, “Symbiotic Marketing,” Harvard Business Review, vol. 1, pp. 59-71.
Ryan, D & Jones C, 2009, Understanding digital marketing: Marketing strategies for engaging in business marketing, Pelshiver, Chicago.