An Effective Marketing Strategy

"Every action and inaction, every behavior and trait observed by a customer, whe
ther business or retail, forms part of the larger picture. It is not enough to r
ely upon an image, a perception (or sometimes, more accurately a manipulation of
perception) to support the sale of products or services" (Ellson, 2004). Other
sources might disagree with this statement. One source argues that a positive br
and image will be the only way to create lasting competitive advantage in the fu
ture (King 3). Perhaps this is also true. However, a focus on only image and per
ception is not enough to ensure the success of an organization, a product, or a
service. A consideration of the issue will show that perception may be part of a
n effective marketing strategy, but it is useless if it is not accompanied by ot
her considerations as part of an overall marketing strategy.
The Creation of Customer Satisfaction
The creation of customer satisfaction is accepted as being of major importance i
n business (Perreault & McCarthy 2000). The importance is based on the understan
ding that a business exists to make profits and that a business makes profits wh
en customers buy the business's product or service. Without customers handing ov
er their money to the business, a business cannot make money. In this way, attra
cting and keeping customers is crucial to a business, with these activities all
part of the marketing function. Customer satisfaction occurs when the organizati
on meets the needs of customers. When this occurs, customers are likely to be re
turn customers. When customer satisfaction does not occur, a customer is unlikel
y to return (Perreault & McCarthy 2000). This means that creating customer satis
faction is essential to an organization operating successfully.
The creation of customer satisfaction is also especially important in the curren
t business environment. The first reason that the creation of customer satisfact
ion is more important.than ever is linked to the high degree of competition in t
he market (Daft 1997). This has been largely due to globalization, where a compa
ny now faces worldwide competition, even when operating in their own local marke
t. If a consumer is not satisfied by a company's products or by the service they
receive, it is increasingly easy for them to use the services of another compan
y. Not only is it easy for the customer, but other companies are also actively m
arketing their products trying to attract customers (Kotler, Armstrong, Brown, &
Adam 1998). Even if a customer thinks they are satisfied with a company, they c
an easily be attracted to another company by finding out that company has someth
ing more to offer. This environment means that businesses need to make a distinc
t effort to satisfy customer needs, both to attract customers currently using th
e services of competitors, and to retain current customers. A second key factor
that makes the current business environment different than in times past, is tha
t customers are more demanding than ever (Kotler, Armstrong, Brown, & Adam 1998)
. Customers have more options than ever before and customers are better informed
than ever before. There is also a tendency for customers to be aware that the r
ole of the business is to meet their needs. The overall result is that customers
expect more from a business. This impacts on what it takes to gain the consumer
interest, with it often taking more than just a suitable product. Excellent cus
tomer service and additional benefits may be required just to get a customer int
erested in a service. This shows that quality is considered as everything the cu
stomer wants, not just what it takes for the product to do its job. The problem
with an approach based only on creating an overall view of the product or servic
e is that it neglects the small factors that will ultimately determine customer
satisfaction.