Page 32 - Marketing Management

DEFINING MARKETING FOR THE 21ST CENTURY | CHAPTER 1 9

Communication |Fig. 1.2|

A Simple Marketing
Goods/services
Industry Market System
(a collection of sellers) (a collection of buyers)
Money

Information
KEY CUSTOMER MARKETS Consider the following key customer markets: consumer,
business, global, and nonprofit.
Consumer Markets Companies selling mass consumer goods and services such as juices,
cosmetics, athletic shoes, and air travel spend a great deal of time establishing a strong brand image
by developing a superior product and packaging, ensuring its availability, and backing it with
engaging communications and reliable service.

Business Markets Companies selling business goods and services often face well-informed
professional buyers skilled at evaluating competitive offerings. Business buyers buy goods to make
or resell a product to others at a profit. Business marketers must demonstrate how their products
will help achieve higher revenue or lower costs. Advertising can play a role, but the sales force, the
price, and the company’s reputation may play a greater one.
Global Markets Companies in the global marketplace must decide which countries to enter;
how to enter each (as an exporter, licenser, joint venture partner, contract manufacturer, or solo
manufacturer); how to adapt product and service features to each country; how to price products
in different countries; and how to design communications for different cultures. They face different
requirements for buying and disposing of property; cultural, language, legal and political
differences; and currency fluctuations. Yet, the payoff can be huge.
Nonprofit and Governmental Markets Companies selling to nonprofit organizations with
limited purchasing power such as churches, universities, charitable organizations, and government
agencies need to price carefully. Lower selling prices affect the features and quality the seller can
build into the offering. Much government purchasing calls for bids, and buyers often focus on
practical solutions and favor the lowest bid in the absence of extenuating factors. 15
MARKETPLACES, MARKETSPACES, AND METAMARKETS The marketplace is physical,
such as a store you shop in; the marketspace is digital, as when you shop on the Internet. 16
Northwestern University’s Mohan Sawhney has proposed the concept of a metamarket to describe a
cluster of complementary products and services closely related in the minds of consumers, but
spread across a diverse set of industries.
Metamarkets are the result of marketers packaging a system that simplifies carrying out these
related product/service activities. The automobile metamarket consists of automobile manufacturers,
new and used car dealers, financing companies, insurance companies, mechanics, spare parts dealers,
service shops, auto magazines, classified auto ads in newspapers, and auto sites on the Internet.
A car buyer will engage many parts of this metamarket, creating an opportunity for metamediaries
to assist him or her in moving seamlessly through them. Edmund’s (www.edmunds.com) lets a car
buyer find the stated features and prices of different automobiles and easily click to other sites to
search for the lowest-price dealer for financing, accessories, and used cars. Metamediaries also serve
other metamarkets, such as home ownership, parenting and baby care, and weddings. 17

Core Marketing Concepts

To understand the marketing function, we need to understand the following core set of concepts.

Needs, Wants, and Demands
Needs are the basic human requirements such as for air, food, water, clothing, and shelter. Humans
also have strong needs for recreation, education, and entertainment. These needs become wants