What is Marketing? (OCR GCSE Business)

Identifying and Understanding Customers

• Marketing helps a business identify and understand the needs and wants of its customers

• It involves finding out about:

  • Variety and quality of goods and services that customers want

  • Prices they are willing to pay

  • Promotional techniques that may persuade them to make repeated purchases

  • Convenience factors, including where and how they want to purchase products

  • After-sales services they expect

• Businesses that successfully identify, understand and then satisfy customer needs can:

  • Compete more effectively with rival businesses, often on factors other than price

    • This means they are likely to make more profit

  • Create products that meet customers' precise desires

    • This can lead to customer loyalty and positive word-of-mouth advertising

  • Keep up-to-date with changing tastes and preferences

    • They can offer new or varied features, such as sizes, colours and styles, required by different customers

      • This can provide a competitive advantage over rivals

  • Increase sales

    • The positive reputation gained by satisfying customers leads to increased recognition

      • Customers often feel confident enough to buy from well-known brands

    • Appropriate pricing, including special offers, can attract customers to a brand

  • Avoid costly mistakes

    • Developing an inappropriate marketing mix may mean products have to be withdrawn or cause reputational damage

Typical Customer Needs and Wants

• Businesses that successfully identify and understand customers' needs and wants are in a good position to satisfy them

• Satisfied customers are likely to remain loyal to a business

  • They will return time and again to buy its products

  • They often recommend products to friends and family and leave positive reviews online

Informing Customers and Increasing Sales

• The overall aim of marketing activity is to increase sales

• Persuading customers to purchase products from a business requires them to :

  • Be aware that the product exists

  • Be persuaded of its use and desirability

  • Be reassured that it will meet their needs

• Marketing is key to informing customers about the goods or services a business offers

How marketing informs customers

Advertising

• Advertising can inform, persuade and reassure customers about the features and benefits of products

  • A variety of advertising media can target specific groups of customers

    • Media such as television or the national press can be used to target the mass market effectively

    • Niche or local markets can be targeted through regional publications, cinema and outdoor advertising (e.g. billboards, public transport)

Promotional activities

• These can attract the attention of customers

• Eye-catching price promotions, such as special offers or package deals, emphasise value for money

• Obtaining celebrity endorsement for products can increase awareness

• Brochures and catalogues can provide detailed information and present products in a desirable way

Public relations

• Engaging with consumers at events such as conferences, trade fairs or in the media is an effective way to gain media attention

Social media activity

• Advertising and promotional activity, as well as public relations efforts, are often shared on social media

• Communications can be shared quickly, making use of sound and visuals to make them more memorable