Defining marketing concepts and principles

Marketing has grown to be, over the expanded competitive years, as one of the most essential tools in any and every organizational structure. There are many varying ways to describe the concept of "marketing," some of which are mentioned below.

Marketing is:

The means to make a communication about a product or service a purpose of which is to encourage recipients of the communication to purchase or use the product or service" (www.preemptinc.com/definitions.html)

The process of organizing and directing all the company activities which relate to determining the market demand and converting the customers buying power into an effective demand for a service and bringing that service to the customer" (www.eyefortransport.com/glossary/mn.shtml)

All the activities involved in moving products and services from the source to the end user, including advertising, sales, packaging, promotion and printing" (www.garyeverhart.com/glossary_of_advertising_terms.htm)

In my opinion, marketing is all of the above; but if I had to describe marketing in my own words, I would say that marketing is the preparation and execution of a policy that augments or helps the image, trade, delivery, and advantage of any merchandise or service.

Marketing and Organizational Structure:

The concept of marketing planning has grown leaps and bounds in importance over the years within the organizational structure of a company. The main problem however lies with the clear, consistent and explicit treatment of the concept of marketing and its application in the overall structure. The important thing whenever planning a marketing strategy is to first determine the customers that are important to satisfy, retain and gain; only after this is determined can an efficient and clear-cut helpful marketing strategy be built, one that will benefit the company and bring in profits.

It is not a hidden fact of course that marketing and advertising are an imperial part of the organizational structure; as the above definitions make clear that the aim of marketing is to gain and satisfy key customers in the trade of the manufactured goods and services of the company.

George John and John Martin in their analysis of the research patterns of marketing and its role in the organizational structure have plainly stated the fact that all the researches that have been carried out in the past have been somewhat fruitless to determine the exact and precise areas of performance and management of all marketing related activities.

The focus of all marketing and advertising plans within the organizational framework is to increase the efficacy, reliability, demand, and purchase of the products, goods and services produced by the organization to increase the revenue and gain profits. Marketing strategies, to achieve the abovementioned task, can include the use of "...advertising, sales, packaging, promotion and printing"

The administrators designing the marketing plan within the organizational frameworks have to come to grips with the fact that when dealing with the marketing plan, one can only design so much, in other words, change is the only constant in a marketing plan. They have to address the following points as the determining factors of the marketing plan and strategy employed:

Increasing Financial Scrutiny of the Marketing Function

Expansion into Global Markets

Increasing Availability of Customer Information

Increasing Demands of Consolidated Customers

Rise of the Informed Consumer

Nowadays the market pattern is such that the marketing strategy and plan has become the forefront of all other strategies introduced within the organizational framework only because of the increasing pressure being put on the marketers by the principal monetary representatives, speedy extension into the global markets and the rising demands, needs and expectations of the clients as well as the consumers. Constant reformation of the demand in the market leads to constant reformation of the marketing plans and design which in turn leads to constant revision of the organizational setup and structure.

As can be evidently seen from the definition of "Marketing" given above, the main aim of marketing is to bridge the customers and the producers so that the demands of the customers are met and the producers have the optimum opportunities to gain profits and thrive in competition. This is one of the main reasons why a very lucid trend of customer-focused organizational frameworks are coming more into view, the company owners have realized that the growing competition and choices available to the customers have made their demands more complex and strenuous and to keep up with the changing market demands, the market planning and the organizational structures need to be more and more flexible, efficient, observant and swift (Hicks et. al, 2000).

The Mars Institute Organizational Structure has been divided into four main sections, each dealing with a completely different and layered aspect of the company's daily dealings and executions. These sections are:

Research Division

Marketing and Resource Development Division

Education and Public Outreach Division

Operations Division.

The main responsibility of the Marketing and Resource Development Division is to first design and then implement that design efficiently to increase the revenue and profits of the Institution. Plus, in this particular Institution, the Managing Director has the task to raise funds to add to the income or capital being out into the Marketing Planning as well as the Institute overall (http://www.marsinstitute.info/about/organization.html).

According to Williamson, the marketers in the U.S. can work hard to make marketing strategies, but the problem with them lies when smart and observant marketing strategies are the requirement. According to him, they concentrate on the overall consumers instead of those that are most profitable which is a mistake because no organizational structure anywhere in the world can be designed to bear such a load in such a competitive global setup (Williamson, David. Nov. 12, 1999. "Few U.S. companies marketing themselves properly").