1 1 INTRODUCTION TO MARKETING CONCEPT The marketing

1. 1 INTRODUCTION TO MARKETING CONCEPT The marketing concept is the belief that companies must assess the needs of their consumers first and foremost. Based on those needs, companies can make decisions in order to satisfy their consumers’ needs, better than their competition. Companies that hold this philosophy believe that their consumers are the driving forces of their business. Nowadays, most companies have incorporated the marketing concept.

THE MARKETING CONCEPT UNDERSCORES: �identifying the market or targeting consumers; �understanding the needs and wants of the consumers in the target market; �creating products or services based on the consumers’ needs and wants; �satisfying the needs of consumers better than competitors; and �accomplishing all of these while earning a profit.

MARKETING ENVIRONMENT �Definition: The Marketing Environment includes the Internal factors (employees, customers, shareholders, retailers & distributors, etc. ) and the External factors( political, legal, social, technological, economic) that surround the business and influence its marketing operations.

MACRO ENVIRONMENT IN MARKETING Macro environment factors which consist of external forces. These external factors influence the company’s marketing strategy is a great length. � The external environment factors are uncontrollable and the company finds it hard to tackle the external factors. � The macro-environment consists of demographic factors, economic factors, natural forces, technology factors, political factors, and cultural factors. � MICRO ENVIRONMENT IN MARKETING � Micro environment components are within the immediate surroundings of the organization. These are the initial spheres to work on, so as to shape a strong and credible image of the company in the larger or macro environmental context MARKETING ENVIRONMENT

DEMOGRAPHIC SEGMENTATION � Demographic segmentation — i. e. , defining audiences by factors such as age, gender, marital status, income, etc. — has been used by marketers for decades to help define their target audience profiles. SOCIO-CULTURAL Socio-cultural segmenta tion combines social (related to groups) and cultural variables (related to the shared values, beliefs, attitudes of people) that provide further basis for segmentation. SEGMENTATION

POLITICAL/LEGAL ENVIRONMENT �The political/legal segment is the area in which organizations and interest groups compete for attention, resources, and a voice in overseeing the body of laws and regulations guiding the interactions among nations as well as between firms and various local governmental agencies.

TECHNOLOGICAL ENVIRONMENT �Technology comprises of both machines (hard technology) and scientific thinking (soft technology) used to solve problems and promote progress. It consists of not only knowledge and methods required to carry on and improve production and distribution of goods and services but also entrepreneurial expertise and professional know how. Technology includes inventions and innovations.