Background
Marketing – relationships with the environment
Organizations are created with the desire to reach successful operations and become profitable. The possibility to achieve this goal depends greatly on the way they perform their fundamental functions. Marketing is one of these functions that is why it is significant for firms to pay much attention to their relationships with the environment. Regardless of organizational sector, companies need to think of their clients and competitors, ensuring that they are able to remain competitive in constantly changing conditions.
Unfortunately, many people fail to understand what is marketing. As a result, they associate it only with sales and advertising. However, these are only two elements of this function. To overcome existing issue and bridge a gap in people’s knowledge, this paper will discuss major roles and responsibilities of marketing. To simplify perception of the information examples based on Robinsons Retail Holdings, Inc. will be used.
Key Roles and Responsibilities of the Marketing Function
Marketing is a term that is accepted internationally. However, professionals have developed several definitions of it. The most popular ones are the following:
- “Marketing is the activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large” (American Marketing Association, 2013 para. 1).
- Marketing can be perceived as a social process as well. For instance, Kotler and Armstrong (2013) believe that it allows individuals to reach product and services they need and to use them for interactions. In particular, when created, this items can be exchanged or given to others.
- Marketing is a philosophy and a broad business process that is not limited to selling (Cheung 2016). It is not specialized by particular activities, which presupposes the necessity for professionals to be innovative and creative. This philosophy is in the basis of all company’s operations. It requires the personnel to consider all processes and their outcomes from the customer’s point of view. Thus, the marketing function should not be treated as a concern of the marketing staff but discussed by different organizational departments.
In Robinsons Retail Holdings, marketing is used to organize the whole business. In this way, its major roles and responsibilities deal with the necessity to find out what are the needs of the customers. The success of the company can be identified by its ability to develop those products and services that meet those demands and that occur among clients. In this way, it is advantageous for an organization to be somehow proactive so that it manages to offer its items before its competitors react to the situation.
In the majority of cases, several companies operate in the same area simultaneously, which makes them utilize marketing to attract consumers and enhance their loyalty. This goal can be achieved with the help of a specific pricing strategy. For instance, offering affordable prices and decent quality, Robinsons Retail Holdings (2018) can easily turn into one of the leaders in the industry. However, this approach requires much knowledge of consumers’ wants.
The marketing process of the company allows achieving not only this advantage but also offers opportunities to communicate firm’s product or service to the targeted market. This function ensures that clients obtain all information about the product and become interested in it. As a result, Robinsons Retail Holdings also receive a chance to develop their loyal base of consumers.
The development of a competitive pricing strategy is significant for any organization because it affects its ability to remain in the market and be profitable. The marketing function includes this element as well as the distribution strategy. Thus, it affects the way clients obtain products and services. For instance, Robinsons Retail Holdings’ (2017) professionals considered that it is beneficial for them to have a variety of physical stores. In this way, marketing has a great influence on the performance of the organization and its successfulness.
All roles and responsibilities of marketing can be grouped in the following categories (Kotler & Armstrong 2013):
- Market analysis. The marketing function allows Robinsons Retail Holdings research its market to find out what products and services are required by their clients. This element is critical because it provides an opportunity to create new propositions.
- Strategic planning. Marketing allows professionals to identify whether their offerings are relevant for customers or alterations are needed to reach it.
- Marketing and product mix. This function ensures that the personnel is able to cope with its duties and the process of product design is appropriate. According to it, the personnel segments the market and establishes communication of the developed products and services. Distribution is also controlled by the marketing function.
In addition to that, it is significant to consider the difference between the final purpose of marketing associated with B2B and B2C activities. For B2C, the objective is to turn shoppers into buyers as soon as possible. Thus, aggressive approaches are used. For B2B, it is possible to maintain a more extended process of turning prospects into customers.
Relationship between the Roles and Responsibilities of Marketing and the Wider Organizational Context
Organizations consist of numerous departments that are not typically associated with marketing. However, it is critical to realize that even finance and IT deal with those tasks that presuppose the necessity to provide their products or services to clients. In this way, marketing is expected to find out what consumers need so that other departments can contribute to the creation of an appropriate product or service.
The personnel of Robinsons Retail Holdings (2016) can successfully manage to reach this goal if they develop their offerings per clients’ needs. The market research should be conducted in order to find out what is needed by the targeted population. The highest possible quality in association with affordable prices should be provided. All these activities require much knowledge of clients’ wants, which means that the marketing process helps Robinsons Retail Holdings (2016) to operate efficiently and effectively.
In the organizational context, marketing unites all departments, making them focused on the necessity to fulfill the needs of the customers. If a company creates a product that does not meet customer needs, its chances to have good sales reduce significantly (Kotler & Armstrong 2013).
Marketing operations are tightly connected to environmental factors that influence companies. For example, internal factors may deal with distribution of products and services, marketing, and sales force. They affect the productivity and the effectiveness employee performance. External factors, in their turn, can be considered through the PESTEL analysis. Political factors have enormous influence on any organization because they determine people’s needs and affect business-associated difficulties.
Political controversies, for instance, may determine the type of labor that can be used. In the 19th century, people worked with slaves while in the 20th century some countries allowed using prison labor. However, nowadays, Robinsons Retail Holdings (2016) is looking for experienced professionals.
Marketing builds company’s reputation and increases clients’ faith for the brand. Robinsons Retail Holdings (2016) develops their pricing strategy in association with marketing, which provides it with an opportunity to adapt to the changing economic environment in the country. In this way, the organization managed to survive during the global economic crisis that was observed about 10 years ago.
The marketing function is to facilitate the long-term growth of the organization. That is why it is significant to discuss the influence of social and cultural factors on its performance. The company needs to be aware of the environment in which it operates so that it manages to appeal to its consumers. Thus, marketing allows making decisions regarding the expansion of business and possibility to work with new populations. These activities affect other departments, as additional alterations are required in the wider organizational context.
Roles and Responsibilities of Marketing in the Context of Marketing Environment
Marketing environment alters significantly with the course of time, as it is influenced by such innovations as globalization or the Internet. It appears to be rather unpredictable so that marketing is to provide the company with an opportunity to predict at least some of the future changes. Studying and analyzing trends, organization become able to remain profitable and sustainable regardless of the issues it faces (Kotler & Armstrong 2013).
Robinsons Retail Holdings (2016), for instance, has developed its operations and extended significantly since its creation due to the information it managed to obtain when investigating its marketing environment. As a result, the company provides a wide range of products, including beverages, food, and drugs, distributing them to its own supermarkets and pharmacies, etc. Thus, due to the marketing function, this organization developed productive and efficient operations.
Due to marketing research, Robinsons Retail Holdings (2018) identifies the needs of its consumers and provides those products that can meet them. This approach presupposes the necessity to gather knowledge associated with the wants of current and potential clients who can benefit the company significantly. Prices and distribution options also depend on marketing, as it is vital to ensure that Robinsons Retail Holdings can compete with other organizations.
Significance of Interrelationships between Marketing and Other Functional Units of the Organization
Robinsons Retail Holdings (2018) is willing to benefit its clients, so it provides various products of good quality at affordable prices. Different functional units of this company need to interact with each other in order to operate harmoniously and reach organizational objectives. All activities performed by diverse departments should be aligned so that they can eventually benefit firm’s clients.
It is important to maintain interrelationships between marketing and other units because it is the best way to share knowledge and unitize findings for organizational purposes. The sustainable growth of the organization can be achieved only in this way. Having a base of loyal consumers, Robinsons Retail Holdings can operate in the business environment successfully. To support its position, the company also emphasizes the quality of its products.
Marketing of Robinsons Retail Holdings is connected to its productions department. As a result, the company can be sure that its offerings have required design and quality. Relations with the finance department, provide an opportunity to ensure that funding is appropriate for promotion, research, and distribution. Association with the human resource management is needed to ensure that the personnel is able to perform its duties and develop required products.
Key Elements of the Marketing Function and How They Interrelate with Other Functional Units of an Organization
- Product: Robinsons Retail Holdings is focused on the provision of high-quality products to its clients that is why it is significant for this organization to continue expanding and reaching new markets. Being connected with the product production, the company manages to create those items that meet the needs of its clients.
- Pricing: The prices set by Robinsons Retail Holdings are to be competitive to ensure that clients will not prefer the products of another company. Thus, it is significant for marketing and finance departments to cooperate and share information. The organization does its best to develop affordable prices so that the representatives of the general public can buy its offerings. As a result, through the cooperation between marketing and finance departments, Robinsons Retail Holdings (2018) reaches its vision and mission.
- Promotion: The company targets social media and mass marketing to improve its recognition. Robinsons Retail Holdings uses marketing in order to deliver information about its products to the customers and to be able to respond to the demographic shifts in the target market. The promotion allows increasing the number of existing and potential clients, developing a loyal base of consumers.
- Place: Robinsons Retail Holdings offers its products in physical stores. However, some of its sub-companies provide an opportunity to make online orders, which proves that the organization manages to meet the needs of current clients.
- People: The company hires qualified employees to ensure that they are able to develop those products that the marketing department believes to be needed.
Physical evidence: Physical can be found in different locations.
Process: Robinsons Retail Holdings (2016) pays much attention to innovation and creation of diverse products that are needed according to the marketing department. Market expansion and segmentation are significant because the organization works with food, drugs, and toys, etc. Strategic marketing ensures that the company meets client needs.
Robinsons Retail Holdings operates successfully and profitably due to the successful performance of its marketing function. The company pays much attention to its relationships with the environment, ensuring that it is able to satisfy its clients and remain competitive. All business operations of Robinsons Retail Holdings are interrelated with marketing, which allows the organization to develop those products that meet clients’ needs, considering their quality, design, and pricing.
References
American Marketing Association. 2013. Definition of marketing. Web.
Cheung, J. 2016. Book review: “Drucker on marketing” by William Cohen. Web.
Kotler, P & Armstrong, G 2013. Principles of marketing, 15th edn, Pearson, New York, NY.
Robinsons Retail Holdings, 2016. Annual report. Web.
Robinsons Retail Holdings, 2018. Vision, mission and values. Web.
XPHS: RRHI Robinsons Retail Holdings Inc.: Annual Report 2017. Web.