Marketing: Introduction, Evolution, Approaches and Objectives (2024)

Marketing: Introduction, Evolution, Approaches and Objectives!

Introduction

In the earlier periods of human history, the problems of human beings revolved around the question of survival and later periods of human civilization, perhaps for centuries, human beings were mostly concerned about taking care of their primary needs-food, shelter and security. However, industrial revolution changed all that and metamorphic changes in the human behaviour continued at awful speed to recent times. Marketing plays a major role in our daily lives. Each day is filled with consuming products made available by marketers. Marketing is responsible for satisfying customers, which in turn, increases our standard of living and quality of life.

Any time one tries to persuade somebody to do something-to buy his product, donate for some charitable purpose, or vote for some candidate, or accept a social date with him-both of them are said to engage in marketing. Essentially, marketing exists in any type of economic system and in any stage of economic development except the most primitive situation where the individuals are economically self-sufficient and trade or exchange does not exist. Marketing is all pervasive in the present day world.

Marketing begins with the fundamental idea that most human behaviour is a purposeful quest for need satisfaction and this activity is rooted in “exchange” notion. Marketing requires the existence of two or more persons or groups each having certain wants, and also possessing certain products. Each believes that his total satisfaction will be increased if he exchanges some of the products that he possesses for some of the products of the other party. Exchange is, therefore, the process of satisfying human wants via trade.

The development of marketing is evolutionary rather than revolutionary. There is no single answer to the question of what is marketing? To understand, it may be explained in brief, as “Marketing is what a marketer does.” But this meaning lacks clarity in understanding the subject. The evolution of marketing is as old as the Himalayas. It is one of the oldest professions of the world.

Marketing is indeed an ancient art; it has been practiced in one form or the other since the days of Adam and Eve. The word, marketing has been defined differently by authorities in different ways. The traditional objective of marketing had been to make the goods available at places where they are needed. This idea was later on changed by shifting the emphasis from “exchange” to “satisfaction of human wants”.

Different authors tried to give suitable definition from their viewpoint. Some are very broad, others are rather too narrow. Some emphasis on the traditional view of producing goods and finding out customers, others emphasis on the modem view that marketing must first find out what customers want and then plan a product to satisfy that want. As any other subject, it has its own origin, growth and development. Let us briefly trace the evolution of Marketing.

Evolution of Marketing:

The barter system existed in the initial stage of marketing. The caveman, with his surplus products, approached and tried to exchange his products by accepting the products he needed-exchange of products for products. At that time, human beings were in nomadic hunter stage. In this primitive period, the human beings were nothing more than hunters or food gatherers. Then New Stone Age followed. In the stage of backward economy human beings were self-sufficient. In such backward economy or agrarian period, family units were self-sufficient making needed food, clothes, shelter, tools etc.

As time passed, the division of labour began to play its role and man started producing more than he needed. The surplus was exchanged in terms of commodities needed. They, in possession of surplus goods, searched for those who has a surplus to be exchanged. Searching for other who needed the surplus product became a tedious job as time and energy had to be wasted.

Therefore, the people assembled in places called local markets where goods were disposed of. And later, it developed into shops, bazaars etc. The people, according to their interest specialized in production. Specialists like carpenters, weavers etc., developed at this stage. The appearance of specialization developed the idea of marketing.

In the pre-industrial period, the difficulties of barter system were removed by adopting common mediums of exchange like cows, pigs, slaves, shells, sheep etc. Then these were replaced by metals like copper, iron etc.; and later this medium of exchange was changed to silver, gold etc.

At this stage, producers began to produce the products in larger quantities, employed the services of labourers in their factories; and middlemen, through whom sales were conducted, appeared. In the words of Kotler, “As the size of wealthy class increased, some goods and shops emerged that cater to the rich, and here some of the characteristics of consumer-oriented retailing first appeared.

But on the whole, early capitalism operated essentially in an economy of scarcity, and this meant there was little reason to study the needs or wants of consumers or to go out of the way to cater them.” Further, “the appearance of specialization in selling expanded the concept of marketing. Marketing was the process of exchange of economic goods and the set of specialized institutions that facilitated exchange.”

In the industrial period, handicraft operations appeared in factories; similarly many factories came up and rural areas developed into urban areas, where people were attracted. People started life, spending their time in factories and facilitated mass production, i.e., home production was replaced by factory system and hand operations were replaced by machines.

Because of the introduction of new inventions along with new machines, the production was on large scale. With the advent of industrial revolution, there arose mass productions. Mass productions were followed by large-scale consumption. In order that the products may reach the hands of the ultimate user, new methods of marketing appeared. This industrial revolution is the cause for the creation of the modem marketing system.

In short, traditional marketing developed from time immemorial. The wants were few or limited. The surplus produce if any, after their consumption, was exchanged in a local market. In course of time, farmers began to concentrate on selling, storing, transporting, providing credit facilities etc., and this created an opportunity to middlemen to play their vital role.

Around World War Second, India was importing capital goods as well as consumer goods; and in such a stage, the marketing functions were more or less inactive. But, when India was freed, the importing of consumer goods was also controlled. Import-substitution came up. New products came into existence. Many varieties of consumer goods which were imported formerly, began to be manufactured in India. Many manufacturers came up with new products, and similar goods were manufactured by producers, followed by mass productions and competitions. This is the stage where marketing functions started expanding.

The farmer approaches all the other three persons to sell and buy goods; the potter approaches all the other three persons to sell and buy goods and so on.

The development of centralized exchange came up. Merchants appeared, located an area, and called market. Thus we got all commodities from market or seller.

Evolution of Marketing:

1. Barter System:

The goods are exchanged against goods, without any other medium of exchange, like money.

2. Production Orientation:

This was a stage where producers, instead of being concerned with the consumer preferences, concentrated on the mass production of goods for the purpose of profit. They cared very little about the customers.

3. Sales Orientation:

The stage witnessed major changes in all the spheres of economic life. The selling activity becomes the dominant factor, without any efforts for the satisfaction of the consumer needs.

4. Marketing Orientation:

Customers’ importance was realized but only as a means of disposing of goods produced. Competition became more stiff. Aggressive advertising, personal selling, large scale sales promotion etc., are used as tools to boost sales.

5. Consumer Orientation:

Under this stage only such products are brought forward to the market which are capable of satisfying the tastes, preferences and expectations of the consumers- consumer satisfaction.

6. Management Orientation:

The marketing function assumes a managerial role to co-ordinate all interacting business activities with the objective of planning, promoting and distributing want-satisfying products and services to the present and potential customers.

Micro Marketing and Macro Marketing:

The term ‘marketing’ can be defined from two view points-micro and macro: that is, firm’s point of view and national point of view.

(a) Micro-marketing:

Under micro-marketing, if a firm formulates and implements such strategies (viz: product-development, pricing, promoting and distribution), that ensures flow of need satisfying goods and services at profit. According to Philip Kotler, “Marketing is a social and managerial process, by which individuals and groups obtain what they need and want through creating, offering and exchanging products of value with others.

In the words of Stanton, “marketing is a total system of interacting business activities designed to plan, price, promote and distribute want satisfying products and services to present and potential customers”. The ultimate aim of micro-marketing is satisfaction of human needs and wants, that is, it is consumer- oriented.

Again, in the narrower sense, or what is known as ‘micro-marketing’ marketing is the process of managing an individual business firm in such a way as to satisfy its particular customers. Marketing also involves the management of every aspect of a business with the, ultimate consumer in mind. It can be likened to close-up perspective of a scientist who inspects a small object through a microscope.

The concept of micro-marketing reveals two aspects. First, marketing must ensure need satisfying goods and services. That is, marketing begins with the customer and not with the production process. Secondly marketing rather than production should determine what products are to be produced. The two aspects suggest that consumer is at the centre of all marketing activities: producer does not determine the product.

(b) Macro-marketing:

From the broader point of view or macro-marketing, marketing is the complex system of organisations and processes by which a nation’s resources are distributed among the people, to satisfy their needs and wants. Thus, here the focus is on the total system, rather than the activities of a firm. So, it benefits the society as a whole. This concept keeps the producer informed of the changing needs of the “consumers” and equalizes by “distribution” the “demand” and “supply” of commodities, thereby ensuring price-stability, in the long run to the benefit of the society in general and buyers and sellers in particular.

Modern Approach is the Consumer Approach:

We cannot find a single answer to the question of what is marketing. Marketing is a comprehensive term. Marketing is defined in different ways.

A few definitions of notable authorities are given below:

“Marketing includes all activities involved in the creation of place, time and possession utilities. Place utility is created when goods and services are available at the places they are needed; time utility, when they are needed; and possession utility, when they are transferred to those who need them.” —Converse, Hugey and Mitchell

“Marketing is the process of discovering and translating consumer needs and wants into product and service specifications, creating demand for these products and services and then in turn expanding this demand.” —Hansen

“Marketing is concerned with the people and the activities involved in the flow of goods and services from the producer to the consumer.” —American Marketing Association

“Marketing includes those business activities which are involved in the flow of goods and services from production to consumption.” —Converse

“Marketing is the economic process by which goods and services are exchanged and their values determined in terms of money prices.” —Buddy and Reizan

“Marketing consists of the performance of business activities that direct the flow of goods and services from the producer or supplier to the consumers or end-users.”

“Marketing is the business process by which products are matched with market and through which transfers of ownership are effected.” —Cundiff

“Marketing is a total system of business activities designed to plan, price, promote and distribute want-satisfying goods and services to present and potential customers.” —W.J. Stanton

“Marketing is the creative management function which promotes trade and employment by assessing consumer needs and initiating research and development to meet them. It co-ordinates the resources of production and distribution of goods and services, and determines and directs the nature and scale of the total efforts required to sale maximum production to the ultimate user.” —UK Institute of Marketing

The above definitions refer to the modem concepts of marketing as against the traditional definition by Clark who defines the term as “marketing consists of those efforts which effect transfers in ownership of goods and care for their physical distribution.”

Previously market was considered to be a place where buyers and sellers would meet. But market does not necessarily mean a place. According to Barwell, marketing consists of identifying, anticipating and satisfying customer needs and desires. According to Stanton, “marketing is the creation and delivery of a standard of living; it is finding out what customers want, then planning and developing a product or service that will satisfy those wants; and then determining the best way to price, promote and distribute that product or service.”

Peter Drucker observes that the purpose of business is to create a customer by which he lays stress on two aspects:

(a) Identification of consumer needs and

(b) Organizing the business to meet these needs. The modem concept focuses on the consumers and their satisfaction. The approach of modem marketing is consumer-oriented instead of solely product- oriented.

“Marketing is not high pressure selling, nor is it fancy advertising. The philosophy of marketing is the philosophy of consumer service. It is the chain of process backed by creative thinking that spreads from the concept of the product through strengthening the “want” for the product when it is consumed or used.” Latif. He also observed that “marketing is an attitude of mind that should condition a whole enterprise in all economies. Rather it is the creative adaptation by a company of its practices to its changing environment. It concludes, in its scope, problems of location of the company, market segmentation, product differentiation, doing profitable advertising, practising good public relations-all aimed at better selling.”

Marketing is not selling, nor is it a sophisticated word for selling but more comprehensive and could be termed as the “co*cktail science”, since it draws its materials, doctrines and principles from various other science, viz. Economics, Laws, Sociology, Psychology and anthropology”. It is the base, the bedrock and the backbone of company’s survival.

Objectives of Marketing:

Barker and Anshen say, “The end of all the marketing activities is the satisfaction of human wants.” Through the satisfaction of human wants, profits are rewarded to the business and the reward is inducement for marketing. Now the time has changed and object of marketing is more than securing profits.

The following are the aims of marketing:

1. Intelligent and capable application of modem marketing policies.

2. To develop the marketing field.

3. To develop guiding policies and their implementation for a good result.

4. To suggest solutions by studying the problems relating to marketing.

5. To find sources for further information concerning the market problems.

6. To revive existing marketing function, if shortcomings are found.

7. To take appropriate actions in the course of actions.

Marketing Functions:

Marketing involves certain activities to make the goods to start journey from the place of production to the place of consumption. The act, operation and service which are concerned with the marketing activities are called marketing functions. The functional approach to the study of marketing splits the whole process into several smaller activities. The marketing functions link the producer and the ultimate consumer.

The functions of marketing involve a number of operations, to be performed side by side. Take for example wheat; it travels from the land (cultivator) to the final consumer through the functions of collection or buying, storing, grading, packing, selling, transporting etc. Thus, it involves many functions including risk-bearing and market information. Therefore, various authorities quote different lists of marketing functions.

Relationship Marketing:

As marketing has been different eras of development, the outlook of companies towards customers has also totally changed in these eras. In the sales era, companies concentrated only on pushing products to customers and services were virtually non-existent. Then the marketing era began.

Companies started focusing on customer needs and wants. They realized that they needed to focus on the long-term profitability of customers. This is possible only when marketers develop a long-term relationship with the customers. Relationship marketing refers to understanding and responding to customer needs and preferences to build more meaningful and long-term connections with customers.

The goal of relationship marketing is to satisfy the customer in such a manner that he becomes loyal to the company and is unlikely to switch to the competitors. Companies try to convert the customer into clients by giving them special treatment and then try to convert these clients into members who join the company’s club to avail of special benefits.

The members turn into advocates who recommend the company’s products to other potential customers and ultimately, the company aims at converting the advocates into partners who work actively with the company in producing quality products. It creates a mutually beneficial relationship between the company and the customers.

As the market-place becomes more and more competitive and the environment more and more volatile, organisations are fighting hard to attract and retain customers. Organizations’ need to retain their existing customers because the cost of retaining a customer is much lower than the cost of acquiring a new customer.

The cost of losing a customer is not just the loss of a one-time sale but also the lifetime value of that particular customer. So, marketers are engaging themselves in building lasting relationship with customers to achieve profitability. To retain customers, it is essential that organizations focus on customers’ needs and wants and increase their service standard levels.