MEANING SA MARKETING COST

Marketing costs are the all expenses that the company makes to market and sell its products and
develop and promote its brand. These marketing costs or expenses include expenses incurred to
change the title of goods, promotion of goods, inventory costs, distribution of goods etc. Marketing
costs are generally composed of two factors- fixed costs and variable costs. The marketing cost is
also used to determine the risk associated with budgets.

https://www.mbaskool.com/business-concepts/marketing-and-strategy-terms/13635-marketing-
cost.html

The total cost associated with delivering goods or services to customers. The marketing cost may
include expenses associated with transferring title of goods to a customer, storing goods in
warehouses pending delivery, promoting the goods or services being sold, or the distribution of the
product to points of sale.

Read more: http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/marketing-cost.html

NATURE OF MARKETING COST??????

Marketing costs analysis serves the purpose of allocating costs to specific marketing activities
or efforts. This will allow an organization to see clearly, the financial contribution of their
marketing activities. Marketing activities are defined on the basis of (1) elements of the
product-service offering such as ads that give information about an organizations offering, by
providing answers to questions like, “What does your product or service do?”, “What is the
benefits of your product/service?”, and “How does your product/service stand out from the
competition?” (2) Sales divisions, district, or territories, which is areas in which specific
marketing efforts or sales teams are responsible for converting prospects into customers. (3)
Marketing channels, such as Facebook and Google’s search and display network where
organizations can promote their offerings through paid ads and/or (4) type or size of
customers which involve marketing efforts composed to resonate specifically with an
organizations target market.

https://www.madmarketingpro.com/blog/nature-of-the-marketing-cost-analysis

IMPORTANCE OF MARKETING COSTS?????

The concept is important in order to forecast marketing costs, and accordingly assess the risk in
the marketing budget. Because expenditure on marketing is a discretionary expenditure, it can
significantly affect the profit for the firm. This can be thought of as an investment though as the
objective is to increase brand awareness and acquire new customers. Marketing cost may be fixed
or variable. Managers must distinguish marketing costs onto fixed and variable and allocate funds
accordingly. The fixed marketing costs include sales force
expenses, advertising campaigns, sales promotion and distribution costs. Variable marketing
costs include sales commission, bonuses and performance allowances. Variable marketing costs
are easier to forecast and hence bears less risk than fixed cost. Fixed cost may bear result in long
term and therefore difficult to evaluate. It is an important decision for any business to decide what
 proportion of the revenue should be spent on marketing activities. This should enable the company
to make better strategic financial decisions.
Marketing cost analysis is another important tool of marketing control. In recent years, business
firms all over the world have experienced steep escalations in their marketing and distribution
costs. They have found, to their dismay, that increased sales do not necessarily bring them
increased profits. Containing marketing and distribution costs has become an imperative for
optimizing profits. It has also become an imperative for survival against the growing competition.

https://www.citeman.com/2488-marketing-cost-analysis.html

Marketing cost analysis EXAMPLES NI SA MARKETING COST?????

Examining the cost associated with each individual marketing activity to assess the profitability of
each.
Marketing cost analysis is a strategy applied in marketing where the costs connected with selling,
storing, advertising and distributing of products to particular buyers, are analysed in order to
determine their profitability

Marketing expense is comprised of those costs incurred to present an organization's goods

and services to prospective customers. Examples of costs that are classified as marketing
expenses are:

 Advertising
 Agency fees
 Customer surveys
 Development of advertising and other promotions
 Gifts to customers
 Online advertising
 Printed materials and displays
 Social media monitoring and participation
 Sponsorships

Most marketing expenses are charged to expense in the period incurred, though some printed
materials and advertising costs can be treated as prepaid expenses.
https://www.accountingtools.com/articles/2017/5/9/marketing-expense
HOW COMPANIES IMPLEMENT MARKETING COST??????????

7 Cost Effective Marketing Strategies For Growing A New Brand

In marketing your brand, it’s important to find a balance between the cost and the results.
Particularly for a new brand that’s trying to grow, the goal is to maximize your ROI, by finding the
most effective strategies for the least amount of money. Here are some of the best and most cost-
effective marketing strategies to explore.

1. Blogging

One of the simplest and most effective ways of driving traffic to your site is to have a blog.
Google’s search algorithms favor websites that are updated frequently and provide high quality,
relevant content to their users. A regularly updated blog serves both of these purposes.

According to one source, sites that post 16 blogs per month (roughly 4 blogs per week) generate
3.5 times more web traffic than sites that blog four times or fewer. The more high quality blogs you
post, the more opportunities your audience will have to visit and interact with your site, and the
better exposure you’ll get for your brand.

2. Mailing lists

“No matter what kind of customers you encounter,” says John Matson
of TopCreditCardProcessors.com, “Get them on your mailing list, to build up your contacts.” E-mail
lists have developed a bad reputation in recent years. But used correctly, they can be a very useful
tool. If you’re spamming random strangers to tell them to buy your products, your brand will
become annoying and unpopular.

So instead, you need to build a list of people who are genuinely interested in what you have to
offer, and provide them with regular updates about what’s going on in your company and why it’s
of interest to them. You’ll see much better results and generate real, qualified leads that can be
nurtured into sales.

3. Online companies

One of the best and most cost-effective ways to reach new customers is by using online sites to
market you company. Depending on your business, there are a number of sites that can help you
reach new customers through search results and networking. A Yelp profile can increase your
visibility to potential customer. It also gives you an opportunity to encourage loyal customers to
leave you positive reviews, thus boosting your reputation. TripAdvisor provides the same
opportunities for hotels, restaurants, and other tourist-centered businesses. And Mogul provides a
platform for female business owners to show potential audiences what their companies are all
about.
Social media can be a helpful tool in this regard as well. Ty Crandall, CEO of CreditSuite says,
"Some of the most effective and cost-effective marketing strategies for growing a new business
now come from social media. Platforms such as Facebook now make it easy to test headlines,
images, concepts, ads and more for investments of less than $5 per day. Once you know what
works, then it’s easy to apply that to other platforms that might cost more. This type of strategy can
save you a ton of money and help you figure out what works quickly, even if you are only working
with a shoe-string budget."

4. Calls to action

“The key [to growing your business] is understanding how your target market is looking for your
service, then maximizing efforts in those marketing channels with relevant and strong calls to
action,” explains Spencer Kirk, CEO of Extra Space Storage. Believe it or not, many sites don’t
include a call to action in their content. Every on your site, every blog you post, and every e-mail
you send, should suggest the next step for interested users.

It may be, “Contact us for more information,” or “Download our white paper,” or “Subscribe to our
newsletter,” but there should always be an opportunity for those who want to know more to further
their relationship with your company.

5. Press releases

Distributing press releases is a great way to keep people in your industry apprised of important
updates from your company. You can create press releases to announce new products, award or
accolades you’ve recently received, changes to your company structure, and more. It may take
time to build up the right press contacts to gain your announcements real exposure, but the longer
you persevere and the more effort you put into it, the better results you’ll see.

6. Coupons and discounts

One thing is guaranteed to get your audience’s attention: telling them how they can save money.
Offer discounts and coupon codes on your products or services. Make them seem exclusive, like
the customers who are getting them are part of an elite few. By offering a few dollars off of your
regular price, you can bring in customers who will stay loyal to your company for years to come.

7. Using videos

Videos are one of the most effective tools to use in your marketing campaign. You can either
create them in-house or outsource them to another company that specializes in creating high
quality video content. Whichever option you choose, videos are a great way to engage your
audience visually and increase your brand’s visibility.

These are just a few of the strategies you can use to grow your business cheaply and effectively.
Do some experimentation, and see what strategies work best for your company, and have the
biggest impact on your customer base.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/steveolenski/2015/11/23/7-cost-effective-marketing-strategies-for-
growing-a-new-brand/#68eb6cbe9551