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Basics of Marketing Management

Md. Mehdi Hasan, MBA, Weekend MBA Programme (IBA-Jahangirnagar University)
Marketing Specialist
Naf Overseas Pvt. Ltd. Bangladesh.
Cell: 01956423588, 01717432064
E-mail: mehdihasan64@gmail.com

Md. Mehdi Hasan, MBA, Weekend MBA Programme (IBA-Jahangirnagar University)

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Basics of Marketing Management

Many companies face today strong competition and to survive in to such a market environment.
So it is necessary for them to know the customers need and to align all the business activities to
these customers’ needs.

Introduction (Main idea and understanding of marketing)

Question
What is marketing about?
Answer
Marketing is primarily about the market and customer orientation of the whole company. So,
marketing focuses on satisfying customer needs in a competitive environment.

According to AMA (American Marketing Association), “Marketing is an organizational function

and a set of process for creating, communicating, and delivering value to the customer and
managing customer relationship in ways that benefit organization and stakeholders”.

So, it is the customer oriented philosophy of the whole company.

Question
Why marketing is important?
Answer
If markets become more and more competitive, customer orientation is the key for success. If the
customer has a choice between company A and B, he or she will be attracted by the company
which fulfills his needs best. Therefore, companies have to look at customer needs in a
competitive environment and they also have to satisfy the customer by fulfilling these needs
which they offer.

Md. Mehdi Hasan, MBA, Weekend MBA Programme (IBA-Jahangirnagar University)

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Question
What is the impact of marketing?
Answer
If you try to answer this question, you can look at a circle of different effects. If a company has a
low customer orientation, it will not be able really to satisfy customer needs which they offers.
So, customer’s satisfaction ways go down and customers will not be loyal. Consequently the
company will lose their customers. To holds a customer base the company has to acquire
additional customer and that is very costly. So in the long run this company has to spend a lot of
money to attract customer and to be sustainable in the competitive market.

Little or no customer
orientaiton in the company

Cost reduction Not meeting the needs

of the customer

Short term profit Low customer

necessary satisfaction

Unbalanced Low customer

financial statement loyalty

High cost of
customer High customer
reacquisition migration

In comparison to this negative circle of effects, increasing customer orientation leads to higher
customer’s satisfaction rates, higher loyalty and lower acquisition cost and at the end higher and
sustainable profitability.

Question
Who applies marketing?
Answer
There are far more institutions which apply marketing and customer orientation. Think about
industry goods manufacturers, theatre, hospitals or environmental organizations. They all need

Md. Mehdi Hasan, MBA, Weekend MBA Programme (IBA-Jahangirnagar University)

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customer orientation in a competitive environment. So, marketing is applied by profit and

nonprofit organizations. They need professional marketing management tools to sustain
success in the market.

Question
How should marketing be implemented?
Answer
Marketing is all about customer orientation and satisfying customer needs. Therefore we look at
marketing in a duel way.

First of all marketing should be implemented as a function within the company. So, all the
marketing knowledge and expertise is bundled in a department. In addition to that, marketing is
also a set of cross functional processes. That means marketing and customer orientation
should be included in warranty, production and service. So, marketing manager has to take
care that the customer orientation is angkered in all the departments within the company.
Funciton(Depart
Marketing as a
Development
Research and
Procurement

Production

After sales
Logistics

service
ment)

Marketing as a set of cross functional processes

Internal processes
(Co ordination)

Md. Mehdi Hasan, MBA, Weekend MBA Programme (IBA-Jahangirnagar University)

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Marketing Management Process

Question
What are the role and relevance of marketing management? Or what is marketing management
about?
Answer
Marketing management can be explained by the following planning process.

Situaiton analysis (SWOT, Macro Environment, Markets,

Segmentaiton, Positioning)

Marketing Goals

Marketing Strategy

Marketing Instruments
(Marketing Mix, I.e product, price, place, promotion)

Marketing Organization

Marketing Controlling

We shall start with situation analysis. We would look at markets, customers and competitors and
our internal situations. Then we would look at our marketing goals. Marketing goals will be
implemented by defining marketing strategies and marketing strategies will be achieved by
designing marketing activities or marketing mix. Then we have to establish a marketing

Md. Mehdi Hasan, MBA, Weekend MBA Programme (IBA-Jahangirnagar University)

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organization and a marketing controlling process. This is a whole marketing management

process for implementing a professional marketing concept.

Situation analysis

Question
What is important, when performing a situation analysis?
Answer
First of all we have to start with an analysis of our internal and external environment. Looking at
the internal means, we have to identify our strengths and weaknesses regarding customer needs.
Looking at the external environment we have to identify the relevant market where the
customers, competitors, and sometimes retailers are included. And then we have to analyze the
customer needs. That is a big starting point in the external analysis. We have to look at our
brands and products in comparison to the competitors. In addition to market analysis, we have
also to take care about influencing factors or external environment. The analysis of micro
environment is called PESTLE analysis. That means, we have to look at political, economical,
technological, social, ecological and legal influencing factors.

Md. Mehdi Hasan, MBA, Weekend MBA Programme (IBA-Jahangirnagar University)

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Company Internal

Retail

Competitor Customer

Market as Micro
environment
External

Political Economic Social Technical Ecological Legal

al

Macro environment

The internal and external analysis will lead so called SWOT analysis where we combine the
internal strengths and weaknesses and the external opportunities and threats.

Marketing Goals

Question
What is marketing goals? Why marketing goals should be formulated?
Answer
We often observe false, when situation analysis is directly followed by exchange. Exchange
without orientation will lead to marketing throw. Therefore marketing goals should be
formulated. So marketing goals should fulfill different functions.

Md. Mehdi Hasan, MBA, Weekend MBA Programme (IBA-Jahangirnagar University)

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Orientation

Co ordination

Motivation

Control

After fulfilling the 1st 3 consequently functions, marketing goals should fulfill a control function.
That means, activities and strategies and their achievement should be controlled by having
defined goals. To define marketing goals, we can differentiation between economic and
psychographic goals.

Economic goals
Looking at economic goals, we have revenue goals, profitability goals, we can define market
share as a goal or sales volume or the contribution margin. These are tropical economic

Md. Mehdi Hasan, MBA, Weekend MBA Programme (IBA-Jahangirnagar University)

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marketing goals. Before we achieve these economic goals, we have to change something in the
customers mind and therefore, we have to address psychographic goals.

Psychographic goals
 It is awareness of our brand
 It is to create a special image of our brand
 Preference that the customer is willing to buy our product.
 Finally satisfactions goals are important to look or to create a loyal customer
Therefore the interplaying of psychographic goals and economic goals are important for
marketing planning. In formulating goals, some mistakes occur. Therefore, marketing goal has to
be defined precisely. Marketing goals should include the following elements.

1. Content (e.g: increase awareness or revenue)

2. Extent (e.g: increase of 10%

3. Time (e.g: with in one year)

4. Segment (e.g: key account customers)

Example
Increase awareness by 10% in the next 12 months in Dhaka City or in segment A or B or C.
Only by defining the goals in that way, you we can achieve the functions, we have seen before.
I.e. the orientation, the co-ordination, motivation and the control functions of marketing goals.
Only by having defined the marketing goals in such precise way, we can fulfill the goal
functions.

Marketing strategy

Question
Which marketing strategies are appropriate?

Md. Mehdi Hasan, MBA, Weekend MBA Programme (IBA-Jahangirnagar University)

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Answer
For the achievement of marketing goals, we have to develop marketing strategies. Marketing
strategies are long term plans for the achievement of marketing goals.

In the literature, we find a lot of strategies or recommendations to develop marketing strategies.

There is no right and no wrong, but marketing strategies can increase the probability for
successful marketing concept.

The first strategy typology was developed by Ego Unjoff to structure grow strategies.

You can look at existing markets and new market and at existing products and new products.
And then the question is how to grow?

 If you look at existing markets and existing products, you can grow with market
penetration strategy for an example, by X-Selling.

 If you want to grow in new markets with you existing products, you might go
internationally, so called market development strategy. So, market development means
that, you approach with your existing products in new market.

Md. Mehdi Hasan, MBA, Weekend MBA Programme (IBA-Jahangirnagar University)

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 And then you can develop new products for your existing customers. That is called
product development strategy.

 And finally you can grow with a more risky strategy that is if you approach new markets
with new products, so called diversification strategy.

The second strategy typology was developed by Michael Porter. His focus was on how to create
competitive advantage. He differentiated between 2 main types of strategy (for details with
example.

Type-1
To create a competitive advantage by being the cost leader (cost leadership) in the market. That
means, the company has lower price for reasonable quality of the product.

Type-2
It is just opposite to the 1st type and that is quality leadership. So, to create competitive
advantage by having the best quality in the market and for show for higher price indicates is a so
called quality strategy. And then Michael Porter indicates that both strategies can take
place in the mass market and in a niche market. So, a quality leader can be profitable in a
mass market but also in a small focused niche market.

Md. Mehdi Hasan, MBA, Weekend MBA Programme (IBA-Jahangirnagar University)

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In addition to grow strategy, say, competitive strategies, we can mention a lot of more strategy
types like branding strategies or timing strategies. All of these strategies well developed will
be a basis or platform for the implementation of marketing actions/majors.

The Decisions Marketing Managers have to make

Question
What are the 4 Ps? Or what majors can be taken to implement marketing strategy?
Answer
To answer this question we have to look on marketing mix. The marketing mix consists of all
majors which we can implement to make our company customer oriented. The classical
marketing mix consists of the product, price, place and promotion. And within all this areas we
have to implement majors which make our company more customers oriented.

Product

Price Customer Promotion

Segment

Place

Product policy

The product policy is often called as a heart of the marketing mix. Without having customer
oriented products/services, mostly you will fail to satisfy customer needs.
Place
Md. Mehdi Hasan, MBA, Weekend MBA Programme (IBA-Jahangirnagar University)
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Question
What decisions to be made in the product policy area?
Answer
It’s about product innovation and product differentiation and sometimes you have to
eliminate products from the market. But you have to make more decisions. It’s about branding
of the product or service (like packaging and offering additional services). All these product
activities should be coordinated to satisfy customer needs.

Price policy

Price policy is about setting the right price and right conditions to a track customer.

Question
What are the main decisions in the price policy area to be made by marketing manager?
Answer
It’s about setting a price for a new product or changing the price for existing products. Giving
price promotions or price bonus.

Question
What changing in a price in a dynamic way?
Answer
Also price differentiation is main topic in the area of pricing. So, the objective of pricing policy
is to meet the willingness to pay of the customer in a competitive environment.

Distribution policy

Decisions in the area of place or distribution policy a targeted to the question when and where
our customer will get the product? Within the distribution policy area, we have to consider 2
types of decisions.

Md. Mehdi Hasan, MBA, Weekend MBA Programme (IBA-Jahangirnagar University)

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 First we have to decide the right distribution channel. There is a variety of options to
design distribution channel. Take a physical store or an internet shop or a mail order
option.

 The secret main area of decision is how to design a physical flow of the product to the
customer. This is all about designing logistical channel. So, defining the right
distribution policy will lead to give answering the question. When and where our
customer will get the product.

Communication policy

Finally we have to decide, how to communicate to our customer. This is the communication
policy area. There also main decisions to make.

 1st of all, what is the right communication channel? Is it print, newspaper, mailing or
the internet?

 Secondly, we decide about, what to tell to the customer? So, it’s about the content for
communication campaign. In this area, mostly advertising agency will help the
company to design and advertisement or campaign for the communication policy.

All the communication major should be co ordinate to address the customer group in and
efficient way. Finally, all the communication channels and the content of the
campaign should be co ordinate and target to the customer segments which are
defined our situation analysis.

Question
How should marketing be organized?
Answer
To answer this question, we can look at different options. First of all we can define responsibility
for co coordinating our marketing activities or the product level, so called product management.

Md. Mehdi Hasan, MBA, Weekend MBA Programme (IBA-Jahangirnagar University)

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Task Divided By....

Products Marketing
Customers Regions
Funcitons

Product Key Account Regions, Countries E.g. Advertising

Manager Manager Department

Could also be that, we try to build responsibilities around our core customers called key account
management. Another way is, marketing managers are responsible for regions or countries.
And then, we can define responsibilities by looking at different marketing functions like product
development, pricing, distribution and communication. It is important that, the marketing
organization supports the idea that is an overall philosophy of the company.

Marketing controlling

Question
Why should marketing be controlled?
Answer
Looking at overall marketing planning process, you will finally see that, marketing controlling is
also an important part. To control strategies and majors was we have defined and implemented is
one essential part to make our marketing management more effective and efficient.

Md. Mehdi Hasan, MBA, Weekend MBA Programme (IBA-Jahangirnagar University)

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Situaiton analysis (SWOT, Macro Environment, Markets,

Segmentaiton, Positioning)

Marketing Goals

Marketing Strategy

Marketing Instruments
(Marketing Mix, I.e product, price, place, promotion)

Marketing Organization

Marketing Controlling

So,
 Marketing controlling tries to define main marketing matrix and the key success
factors
 Marketing controlling also gives feedback to all the decision makers which are
involved in the marketing management process.

………………………………………………………………………………………………........................................................

Md. Mehdi Hasan, MBA, Weekend MBA Programme (IBA-Jahangirnagar University)

Marketing Specialist
Naf Overseas Pvt. Ltd. Bangladesh.
Cell: 01956423588, 01717432064
E-mail: mehdihasan64@gmail.com

Md. Mehdi Hasan, MBA, Weekend MBA Programme (IBA-Jahangirnagar University)