Abstract
Marketing is a very essential component of successful business organizations.
In the course of undertaking marketing to reach the customers important components such as societal marketing, geographic segmental and real marketing need to be addressed by those in charge of the marketing department.
This paper explores into the three components of marketing and how they influence the marketing strategy.
Thesis statement
Societal marketing, geographical segmentation and real marketing are essential components of a sustainable marketing strategy for a company.
Introduction
In the course of undertaking marketing for products of a given company, there are certain essential components that are critical in facilitating the process. Societal marketing, geographical segmentation and real marketing are all essential components of a marketing strategy that are interrelated are all focus on the overall wellbeing of the consumers and the company.
The Societal Marketing Concept
This can be defined as an organizations ability to identify what the society requires in terms of needs and provide goods or services tailored to maintain the well being of that particular society in comparison with other competitors in the market. It can also be looked at from the point of view of an organization trying to strike a balance between maximizing profits , satisfying the consumers and a long term society wellbeing. This follows then that when a company makes decisions there are a number of important considerations that need to be addressed. This include what the consumers needs , what the company has in terms of requirements and the long term interests the company has to be pursuied.This concept tends to put a lot of emphasis on the need for organizations to exercise social responsibility. As much as organizations would want to maximize on profits they should deliver value to the consumers and the society at large. This kind of value should be in the sense that consumers should be satisfied and there should be overall well being of the society due to the organization. All this can help the organization achieve long term success in the course of its operations (Philip, p. 11, 1969).
Societal marketing strategy concept can be said to be a new way of thought in marketing which can contribute significantly especially when it comes to reducing or preventing inequalities at the various levels The policies formulated by a company should not only target increased sales volumes and profits but should also address ethical and environmental issues that can be very important for the societies well being. Ethical and environmental policies that are formulated by such a company should be put into use by the organizations taking proper action and regulations. For an organization to achieve societal marketing a number of principles are quite fundamental. First of all the interests of the consumers should be given first priority by the organization. An organization that listens to the consumer opinions will endeavor to come up with improvements of the products and this will consequently give such products and services a long term value.
An organizations that believes in the sense of mutual trust and mission can utilizes societal marketing strategy to do good things for the society and for which the organization improves on its name much more than the competitors who are available. I have personally experienced a company do good fro the society and still right now the impact of the action that was taken is still in the memories of many. The organization is a commercial bank and undertook city beautification program and because of such an undertaking reaction parks have been put up and are maintained by the same company and this has greatly benefited the public and the good name of the company has been acquired and maintained because of this endeavor. Societal marketing is a very difficult concept to implement by organizations especially keeping in mind that most of the organizations lack what can be looked at in terms of lack of social conscience.
Geographic Segmentation
Many business organizations are unable to completely satisfy the needs of the consumers because it can lead to over utilization of the available resources of the business. Market segmentation is the process of diving the market of the organization into various portions so as to try and meet the specific wants of a particular portion. Geographic segmentation is an example of a division of the market that is based on the various geographic regions of the market. This is a concept in marketing which refers to the process by which the market of a company or organization is divided on the basis of geographical regions.In this strategy there is division of the market into various geographical regions. This type of division can be done basing on the argument that consumers in different geographical areas will exhibit different characteristics and trends. Therefore in pursuit of societal marketing and fulfilling social responsibility, geographic segmentation is quite essential to make sure that the needs and requirements of different geographical regions are adequately addressed by the market policies of the organization. With geographical segmentation it becomes very easy to plan and implement market strategies in particular geographical regions that in an amorphous market which does not consider the minority groups and their needs. I have personally encountered a company which has a global outfit and can be said to have divided its markets geographically into the Asian market, American market, African market, Europe market. Products are specially manufactured with a particular region in mind and this goes far in terms of satisfying the needs of the consumers in that particular market segment. Addressing the needs of the geographical segments in the market is a very key factor in as far as increasing the sales volume and market share of a company is concerned. If well taken care of geographical segments can contribute significant volumes of sales towards the company and thus help the organization to easily achieve the set targets. Geographic segmentation is a very important aspect of any organization that is to achieve high levels of sales volume within a given market area. In a highly competitive market this can be a very essential strategy if at all the business has an intention of outdoing the competitors and win many consumers in the market. Geographic segmentation has seen many organizations achieve profits that had never been witnessed before the implementation of the strategy (Guiltinan 1996).
Real marketing
Real marketing is also a very important aspect of a successful profit oriented business organization. There are important aspects that make up what can be described as real marketing. This includes the ability of the marketer to come up with quality leads. Secondly the real marketing strategy must also aim at reducing the costs that are incurred in the course of selling the products produced by the company. Coming up with quality leads would involve going into that particular market in the society with the different types of consumers with different needs and trying to identify what they actually desire from the company. This helps to give the real marketer an insight into the situation on the ground and therefore he is in a better position to come up with a better strategy that addresses the various needs of consumers in that particular market..(Philip, 1969). As far as reducing the cost of sales real marketing strategy aims at reducing the cost that the business organization would incur in the course of delivering the products to the various consumers. This is where Geogra0p-hic segmentation really helps the marketer. Knowing that the various customers are only found at a particular geographical location the expenses that would have been incurred while reaching the unexpected customers are thus minimized to a significant extent. Real marketing in cooperates all the important aspects that are supposed to make the company increase the sales volume and at the same time satisfy the needs and wants of the targeted market segment.. Real marketers often have a sustainable market strategy that addresses the needs of the customer for a long time that the society feels the value of that particular business organization. Therefore real marketing can be said to be a very essential component for the growth and sustenance of any business organization or company. Without real marketing it becomes very difficult for the company to address the needs of potential customers since it becomes a general strategy that cannot be relied on to deliver the desirable results in terms of reduced costs of sales , increased sales volumes and more profits for the organization. Companies such as GNLD have been involved in real marketing of their products using direct sales and networking has continued to achieve tremendous results from the strategy. This shows how it is important not only to deliver the message to the consumers but also of importance is to make a follow up to see if the customer is getting the value for his/her money. Therefore real marketing can be seen to be a move that targets to deliver the message to the potential customer and also get the feedback from the customer. (Guiltinan, 1996). All this is for the company aiming at sustainability in its marketing strategy.
Conclusion
In conclusion it is vital to underscore the fact that societal marketing, geographic segmentation and real marketing are three very important components that work hand in hand for the business to achieve the desired results because they all aim at addressing the needs of the potential customers in the business organization. Therefore they remain essential components of a sustainable marketing strategy for a company. If the three components are well taken care of by those who are in charge of marketing for a company great results can be achieved and even social responsibility just comes automatically. All business entities seeking to develop good marketing strategies should focus on adequately putting into consideration these important components to facilitate their achievement of marketing objectives.
Works cited
- Philip Kotler and Sidney J. Levy, “Broadening the Concept of Marketing,” Journal of Marketing, Vol. 33 (1969), pp. 10-15
- William Lazer, “Marketing’s Changing Social Relationships,” Journal of Marketing, Vol. 33 (1969), pp. 3-9
- Guiltinan et al, McGraw Hill/Irwin “Marketing Management: Strategies and Programs”, 1996