The Comprehension and Effective Execution of the Marketing Principles - Assignment Example

? Principles of marketing Introduction The prime business function of all business organizations is hinged on marketing. This rests on the assumption that organizations survive on a foundation of sales in the absence of which there would be no production or in essence any other form of managerial activity. Marketing in the simplest form is defined as the activity and processes entailed in the creation, communication, delivering and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients and partners. In the endeavour to be effective in marketing, certain principles must be followed. It is only when these principles are adhered to, will a business organization be well placed to experience the maximum benefits of marketing. There are four core principles of marketing that will be expounded in this paper. The marketing presumption is that in the absence of these marketing principles effective and complete marketing would essentially be impossible. The success of any business venture is significantly hinged on the comprehension and effective execution of these marketing principles. Main Body In context to marketing endeavours, business organizations would rather revert to conventional forms of advertising deals and marketing ideas. This is hinged on the assumption that since these ideas been proven to work since time immemorial. As such, these are safe strategies whose risk is as low as it can get. However, business organisations must exercise caution and restraint when implementing strategies that are not in line with common conventional strategies. If caution is not observed, the huge amounts of funds that are dedicated towards product marketing will be lost. The art of learning how to market effectively is one of the biggest hurdles for an upcoming business venture or launching a new product. The risk of encountering failure is more than real. As such, the following basic principles must be used to avert failure. The principles are product, price, place and promotions. These are commonly referred to as the four Ps. The first principle is product. At the initial stages of marketing, the first step is to create a product or service that would interest the final consumer. This product or service must most of all, be easy and clear to comprehend. This is hinged on the rationale that it is important for buyers to understand what is being offered if significant sales are to be experienced (Barcharts, 2010). In respect, this is one of the most vital aspects of marketing. If the product that is being offered is not clearly understood, in terms of functions or benefits of the product or service, by the impending clients then they will simply pick up and move on from the product. As such, in an endeavour to avert such catastrophic eventualities, a few measures can be instituted. The measures are hinged on ensuring the public are in full comprehension of the respective products that are being offered. These measures can best be exemplified by including warranties, efficient customer service, adequate instructions, company name, and visual illustrations of how your product or service functions. Prior to the launch of the product into the market, there are a number of product decisions that have to be made. The first is deciding on brand name. This is an especially important process in an endeavour to maintain the uniqueness of the business organization. The chief risk is that the business venture will be successful, and then an imitator will come into the market with a similar name. In the event whereby the name assigned to the product or service was descriptive of some feature of the product or service, it might be futile to prevent that particular name from getting into the market. The impact of this is far reaching; this is sourced from the fact that this imitation of the product or service name might grab a share of the market position which the business organization has already established. This is the rationale behind the adoption of invented names for unique products and services. A significant number of successful brands have adopted either invented words, or words that have no relationship to the product or service. The second product decision pertains to product packaging. The design of Packaging is used as a means of capturing the attention of the customers as they are shopping or glancing through a catalogue or website. This is principally vital for customers who are not aware of the product. As such when these new customers are in situations, such as those found in grocery stores, where a product must be conspicuous among other products. However, Packaging designs that stick out are more probable to be committed to memory on future shopping trips. Product packaging must not only be motivated by acceptance by the consumers. Rather, it should also meet the approval of the distributors who are a link between the producer and supplier. This is in context to storage capabilities of the packaging feature. Products with a higher and an efficient storage capability are most likely to be in favour with distributors when compared to products that have low characteristic storage capabilities. The second marketing principle is based on pricing. There are a number of different price strategies that can be employed in context of this principle. However, each strategy that is being deliberated upon must cover the basic production cost of the product or service (Schindler, 2012). It is imperative for this to guideline to be observed unless the pricing strategy entails the adoption of low prices so as to woo customers. This is commonly referred to as loss leader pricing. The worth of a product is directly linked to how much the final consumer is willing to pay. In this context, the value that has been placed on the product by the target market is hinged on the features characterising the product or service and the budget of the consumers (Mills, 2002). Another factor of prime importance is taking into consideration the pricing strategies adopted by competitors. This is coupled with analysis of the factors existing within the marketing environment. Pricing is vital for a business organization as it is the core element that generates turnover. All the processes entailed in the production of a commodity up to its arrival to the final consumer are costly. These costs must be catered for using an efficient and adequate pricing strategy. In addition to this, pricing is a difficult endeavour and must fall in line with the reflections of supply and demand relationships. The fragile nature of this decision rests on the assumption that pricing a product too high or even too low will eventuate in the realization of loss in terms of sales. The appropriate pricing strategy to be adopted must encompass fixed and variable costs. The strategies adopted by the competition should also be analysed. Additionally, the pricing should be in line with the objectives of the business organization. Also of prime importance is the proposed position strategies adopted by the business organization, the target group and their respective willingness to pay. Pricing is a function of the level of novelty characterising the product. The higher the standard of innovation, the higher the value added (Brassington & Pettitt, 2003). As such, the business organization has more latitude in dictating the price to be set. The price to be set should serve the customer well and maximize profits to the business organization. The important thing is to arrive at a price that is both sensible and competitive with other business organizations in the respective market of operation (Pride, 2011). It is advisable to first embark on some research on these business organizations and investigate their average prices of the respective product or service. This will better place the business organization in pricing in that it will be able to fashion a price much lower than the average. This will be the case if and only if the budget `constraints and the profit margins deems it plausible. Chances are that the general public will notice a product or service significantly quicker when the price for the product or service falls within their budget. It has always been the norm that the public will appreciate the low cost of the product or service. The third principle of marketing is location. In context to marketing a product or service, an appropriate location to conduct these services must be sought. This location should be of a nature that best suits the prospective market of the business organization. In many situations, this task is largely ignored. This is in-spite its relative important role in determining the success of the business venture. The location to be chosen must be able to maximise the client reach potential of future customers. This is essentially true for new products that are being launched into the market. This is based on the rationale that if customers do not know about the existence of the new product or service, then they will know but the commodity hence resulting in little or no sales. The marketing principle of place entails the location of the actual production point, the point of storage and the means by which it is transported to within reach of the final consumer. The locations that are chosen to fulfil these expectations should be of a nature that assures the commodities will get to the right place and at the appropriate time (Walters, C., & Dana, 2007). This should be motivated by the intention of minimising the risk of loss or damage is as limited as possible. The ideal location should be convenient for both the consumers and the business organisation. Additionally, the location should be accessible to the consumer. This is especially so if it is the location that will be adopted as a sale point. However, in spite of all these factors to be considered, chief amongst these has to be the reasonable cost to the business organization. The locations to be adopted must fall within the financial limits of the business organization. The final marketing principle is promotion. The success of a product or service is hinged on the strategy employed to communicate its existence to the target market. Promotion of a commodity entails raising its awareness or to encourage the purchasing of the product by the consumers. Promotion of a product can best be defined as the process of communicating the existence of a product coupled with its benefits and functions (Stafford & Faber, 2005). Promotion can best be exemplified by advertising. However, not all forms of promotion can be categorised into promotion. With regards to the marketing principles, promotion embodies the various features of marketing communication. This entails the communication of information to the target market about the product. This is made with the endeavour of generating positive consumer response. Insistence on product quality forms a core principle adopted by business organisations. However, all these efforts are to no avail if the public is not aware of the existence of such a quality product or service. The strategy employed by a business organisation is dependent on a number of factors. The first of these factors is the purpose of the promotional campaign. Different intentions of promotion will necessitate the adoption of different promotional strategies. This second factor entails the budget of the promotional campaign. So as to ensure the success of a marketing endeavour, it should fall within the financial constraints by the business organization. Also a factor to consider is the marketing environment in which the firm operates (Schindler, 2012). Lastly, the target market for the product must be put into consideration. This rests on the assumption that even when adequate and effective promotion, if it is not conducted on the target market for the product or service. As such, the increase in sales that are being endeavoured will not be realized. In this context, it is vital to remember that promotion fashions the most important principle of marketing of a new product or service. The firm should endeavour to make the consumer feel comfortable and that they are making the right decision in purchasing the product or service. Effective modes of promotion are advertising, public relations campaigns and promotional incentives. Conclusion The marketing principles are a means to ensure the success of marketing strategies. It does this by maintaining the objectivity of the marketing process. As such, there are four principles of marketing that should be observed and used as a guideline. The first principle is product. This entails the production of a commodity that appeals to the consumer. In addition to this, the product must also appeal to the distributor. This is in context to its storage characteristic. The second principle is prising. The pricing strategy to be adopted must take into consideration the risk of low sales arising from poor pricing. The third principle is place. It entails the location of production, distribution and point of sale. The last principle is about promotion. An excellent product or service is not useful to a business organization if the promotional strategy adopted is inefficient. This outlines the vital nature of adhering to marketing principles. As such, the success of any business venture is directly hinged on the level of comprehension and execution of marketing principles. References Barcharts, I. 2010 Marketing Principles. Quickstudy. Brassington, F., & Pettitt, S. 2003. Principles of marketing. Harlow, England, FT/Prentice Hall. Mills, G. 2002. Retail pricing strategies and market power. Carlton South, Vic, Melbourne University Press. Pride, W. M. 2011. Marketing principles. South Melbourne, Vic, Cengage Learning. Schindler, R. 2012. Pricing strategies: a marketing approach. Thousand Oaks, Calif, Sage Publications, Inc. Stafford, M. R., & Faber, R. J. 2005. Advertising, promotion, and new media. Armonk, NY., M.E. Sharpe. Walters, C., & Dana, L. P. 2007. Marketing principles. 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