So, What is Marketing?

A wonderfully simple definition of marketing that we came across is:

‘The bringing together of a customer and a product’.   Which means it’s a process, not an event.

 

Of course, you want to know how you can bring your customers to your products, and, having got them together, how to persuade your customer to buy from you.  But there will be no customer to persuade if the rest of the process isn’t there to set up the chance of a deal in the first place. 

 

That’s the purpose of marketing.

 

First, identify your market

To sell anything at all, you need a customer, and it’s much easier to sell to people who already want what you’re offering.  So you need, first of all, to find the market for your product or, even better, find the product for your market.  There’s no substitute for market research.  Once you’ve done your research, you can concentrate on attracting the people most likely to buy from you.  Then, not only do you have customers lined up, but you can also start to learn how they think and what they want, and begin to use the kind of language they understand in your marketing messages.  That alone can make all the difference.  Finally, once you know your market and their language, you must choose the medium that allows you to speak to as many of them as possible, as clearly and as economically as possible. 

 

Marketing is much more than advertising

Although advertising is a part of marketing, there is much more to marketing than just advertisements.  You’ll find some of the things we describe and explain here are methods of advertising, and at times the definitions can become blurred.  But later we’ll show you why advertising only works properly when it’s part of your coordinated marketing strategy.

 

Decide what you want your prospects to do

We’ve stressed the importance of identifying your ideal customer and target market and focusing your efforts on them through the best possible medium, but one thing we see handicapping too many marketing efforts is confusion over its purpose.

 

Before you implement any of the many strategies and techniques on offer, you have to know what you want your prospective customer to do.  Telling them you’re there or convincing them your product is wonderful won’t be enough; you must tell them what you want them to do and how to do it, and make it as easy as possible.  Otherwise, most of them will do nothing …

 

So, your second key to success is to know the purpose of your marketing.  That might not be as obvious as you think, because a lot of marketing isn’t aimed at getting an immediate sale.  But, once you know your target market and your purpose, you can choose your perfect marketing mix …

Roy Everitt
The Complete Marketing Manual, at
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