Introduction
The principle of the marketing module involves the study of marketing as one of the business functions. It is a module in which we were supposed to understand the operation of the marketing concept and identify its application. Understanding of the marketing principle’s application effect on different groups and its implication on the other business functions is also required. Going into this module, I was eager to learn how to become a professional marketer with a thorough backing of sound academic grounding.
Lessons from the Module
The marketing concept generally means a customer-centered business philosophy, which emphasizes customer satisfaction as the way to achieving organizational objectives (Finch, 2001). One of the principles is the marketing environment refers to all the forces which could be internal or external that affect the organization’s marketing strategies (Fitzen, 2009). The other principle is consumer behavior, which deals with the analysis of how individuals decide on how to spend their resources to satisfy their needs. Consumer behavior is to a large extent guided by individual preferences (Deaton & Muellbauer, 1980).
The other principle concerns the issue of the product, which involves the understanding of the product life cycle, the product classification, as well as the product share in the market. Pricing is the other critical aspect of marketing. The understanding of the company, consumers as well as competitors is important in pricing decisions (Daly, 2002). Understanding distribution is also important because once the product has been manufactured, it has to be distributed and different products have different distribution processes.
The learning process and problem solving
One of the things I found interesting is the fact that consumers generally have a product that comes first comes to their minds in all categories of his or her needs. This is true as the first product that actually comes into my mind in the category of energy drinks, is red bull, dell in personal computers among others. To confirm this, I asked a few friends about the brands that they would choose in the different categories. What was inspiring is the critical role that marketing can plays towards helping the company become successful. It is inspiring because I am particularly interested in being at the center of the efforts towards success of a company.
I found pricing a confusing since there are many issues to be considered before a price is fixed. A balance has to be created between having competitive prices and maintaining profitability. The issue that I found difficult was how to deal with a product which has reached maturity and whose sales can only go down. Maintaining the relevance of such a product is what I found challenging. I learnt through taking case studies and trying to find out how companies apply the marketing principles
One of the problems I wanted to solve was what I would do if was placed in a managerial position and I had to compete against already established companies. The first thing I did was to identify two companies where I chose coca cola and Pepsi. Coca-Cola has been the dominant company in the sale of soft drinks with competition from Pepsi. In 2002, Pepsi managed to reduce the disparity to 35%. Despite the fact, that coca cola is still the world’s largest company in carbonated drinks; its market share has reduced (Fairfield, 2007). I identified is the fact that Pepsi targeted the younger population, and run the advertisement about thinking immaturely and drinking young. This is the time that Pepsi managed to close the disparity in sales by a significant figure.
Reflection on Mistakes and success
I learnt that one of the strategies that can be effective is the use of market segmentation. Segmentation assists in the identification of niche opportunities and capitalizing on it, to gain dominance (Weinstein, 2004). I found that while it can be difficult to challenge the dominance of a company, it is possible to topple it if a thorough analysis of the market is done and a niche found.
Marketing requires a person who is able to pay an exceptional attention to details. To understand the consumers needs which are ever changing and making adjustments within a reasonable time to avoid losing the market. My strength is the fact that I am keen on understanding the fine details that are critical in making a person a good marketer. The general interest in trying to understand why people behave in a particular way comes in handy in understanding and analyzing the behavior of customers and competitors.
The marketing process requires patience because the results may not be instant. It takes time before the efforts can be realized. For example, in development of a new product, it takes time before the product gets a significant share in the market. This requires a lot of patience and persistence. However, I lack the patience to wait for things to work out my way. I give up easily, and I realize that this is a weakness that I have to work on.
Conclusion
Marketing is a business function, which holds the key to the success of the organization. The marketing personal is has to be open-minded, innovative and able to capitalize on opportunities. Effective utilization of the marketing principles is a guarantee to organizational success. Having covered this course, I have learnt a lot that has positively transformed my understanding and perception of marketing.
References
Daly, J. 2002. Pricing for Profitability: activity-based Pricing for Competitive Advantage. Hoboken: John Wiley and sons.
Deaton, A. & Muellbauer, J. 1980. Economics and Consumer Behavior. Cambridge: Cambridge University press
Fairfield, H. 2007. I’d like to Sell the World a Coke. New York Times. Web.
Finch. E. 2001. The Essentials of Marketing Principles. Piscataway, NJ: Research & Education Association.
Fitzen, L. 2009. Marketing Environment: What Factors “internal “to an Organization Can Have an Influence on the Way it perceives and Responds to Its External Environment. Munich: GRIN Verlag.
Jain, R. 2009. Principles of Marketing. New Delhi: FK Publications.
Various. 2007. Principles of marketing. West Sussex: Global media Publishers.
Weinstein, A. 2004. Handbook of market segmentation: strategic targeting for business and technology firms. London: Routledge publishers.