Use of 7 Ps in Marketing:-

Once you've developed your marketing strategy, there is a

"Seven P Formula" you should use to continually evaluate and
reevaluate your business activities. These seven are: product,
price, promotion, place, packaging, positioning and people. As
products, markets, customers and needs change rapidly, you
must continually revisit these seven Ps to make sure you're on
track and achieving the maximum results possible for you in
today's marketplace.
1. Product
To begin with, develop the habit of looking at your product as
though you were an outside marketing consultant brought in to
help your company decide whether or not it's in the right
business at this time. Ask critical questions such as, "Is your
current product or service, or mix of products and services,
appropriate and suitable for the market and the customers of
today?"
Whenever you're having difficulty selling as much of your
products or services as you'd like, you need to develop the habit
of assessing your business honestly and asking, "Are these the
right products or services for our customers today?"

Is there any product or service you're offering today that,

knowing what you now know, you would not bring out again
today? Compared to your competitors, is your product or service
superior in some significant way to anything else available? If so,
what is it? If not, could you develop an area of superiority?
Should you be offering this product or service at all in the current
marketplace?
2. Prices
The second P in the formula is price. Develop the habit of
continually examining and reexamining the prices of the products
and services you sell to make sure they're still appropriate to the
realities of the current market. Sometimes you need to lower
your prices. At other times, it may be appropriate to raise your
prices. Many companies have found that the profitability of
certain products or services doesn't justify the amount of effort
and resources that go into producing them. By raising their
prices, they may lose a percentage of their customers, but the
remaining percentage generates a profit on every sale. Could this
be appropriate for you?
Sometimes you need to change your terms and conditions of
sale. Sometimes, by spreading your price over a series of months
or years, you can sell far more than you are today, and the
interest you can charge will more than make up for the delay in
cash receipts. Sometimes you can combine products and services
together with special offers and special promotions. Sometimes
you can include free additional items that cost you very little to
produce but make your prices appear far more attractive to your
customers.
In business, as in nature, whenever you experience resistance or
frustration in any part of your sales or marketing activities, be
open to revisiting that area. Be open to the possibility that your
current pricing structure is not ideal for the current market. Be
open to the need to revise your prices, if necessary, to remain
competitive, to survive and thrive in a fast-changing marketplace.
3. Promotion
The third habit in marketing and sales is to think in terms of
promotion all the time. Promotion includes all the ways you tell
your customers about your products or services and how you
then market and sell to them.
Small changes in the way you promote and sell your products can
lead to dramatic changes in your results. Even small changes in
your advertising can lead immediately to higher sales.
Experienced copywriters can often increase the response rate
from advertising by 500 percent by simply changing the headline
on an advertisement.
Large and small companies in every industry continually
experiment with different ways of advertising, promoting, and
selling their products and services. And here is the rule:
Whatever method of marketing and sales you're using today will,
sooner or later, stop working. Sometimes it will stop working for
reasons you know, and sometimes it will be for reasons you don't
know. In either case, your methods of marketing and sales will
eventually stop working, and you'll have to develop new sales,
marketing and advertising approaches, offerings, and strategies.
4. Place
The fourth P in the marketing mix is the place where your product
or service is actually sold. Develop the habit of reviewing and
reflecting upon the exact location where the customer meets the
salesperson. Sometimes a change in place can lead to a rapid
increase in sales.
You can sell your product in many different places. Some
companies use direct selling, sending their salespeople out to
personally meet and talk with the prospect. Some sell by
telemarketing. Some sell through catalogs or mail order. Some
sell at trade shows or in retail establishments. Some sell in joint
ventures with other similar products or services. Some companies
use manufacturers' representatives or distributors. Many
companies use a combination of one or more of these methods.
In each case, the entrepreneur must make the right choice about
the very best location or place for the customer to receive
essential buying information on the product or service needed to
make a buying decision. What is yours? In what way should you
change it? Where else could you offer your products or services?
5. Packaging
The fifth element in the marketing mix is the packaging. Develop
the habit of standing back and looking at every visual element in
the packaging of your product or service through the eyes of a
critical prospect. Remember, people form their first impression
about you within the first 30 seconds of seeing you or some
element of your company. Small improvements in the packaging
or external appearance of your product or service can often lead
to completely different reactions from your customers.
With regard to the packaging of your company, your product or
service, you should think in terms of everything that the
customer sees from the first moment of contact with your
company all the way through the purchasing process.
Packaging refers to the way your product or service appears from
the outside. Packaging also refers to your people and how they
dress and groom. It refers to your offices, your waiting rooms,
your brochures, your correspondence and every single visual
element about your company. Everything counts. Everything
helps or hurts. Everything affects your customer's confidence
about dealing with you.
When IBM started under the guidance of Thomas J. Watson, Sr.,
he very early concluded that fully 99 percent of the visual contact
a customer would have with his company, at least initially, would
be represented by IBM salespeople. Because IBM was selling
relatively sophisticated high-tech equipment, Watson knew
customers would have to have a high level of confidence in the
credibility of the salesperson. He therefore instituted a dress and
grooming code that became an inflexible set of rules and
regulations within IBM.
As a result, every salesperson was required to look like a
professional in every respect. Every element of their clothing-
including dark suits, dark ties, white shirts, conservative
hairstyles, shined shoes, clean fingernails-and every other feature
gave off the message of professionalism and competence. One of
the highest compliments a person could receive was, "You look
like someone from IBM."
6. Positioning
The next P is positioning. You should develop the habit of thinking
continually about how you are positioned in the hearts and minds
of your customers. How do people think and talk about you when
you're not present? How do people think and talk about your
company? What positioning do you have in your market, in terms
of the specific words people use when they describe you and your
offerings to others?
In the famous book by Al Reis and Jack Trout, Positioning, the
authors point out that how you are seen and thought about by
your customers is the critical determinant of your success in a
competitive marketplace. Attribution theory says that most
customers think of you in terms of a single attribute, either
positive or negative. Sometimes it's "service." Sometimes it's
"excellence." Sometimes it's "quality engineering," as with
Mercedes Benz. Sometimes it's "the ultimate driving machine," as
with BMW. In every case, how deeply entrenched that attribute is
in the minds of your customers and prospective customers
determines how readily they'll buy your product or service and
how much they'll pay.
Develop the habit of thinking about how you could improve your
positioning. Begin by determining the position you'd like to have.
If you could create the ideal impression in the hearts and minds
of your customers, what would it be? What would you have to do
in every customer interaction to get your customers to think and
talk about in that specific way? What changes do you need to
make in the way interact with customers today in order to be
seen as the very best choice for your customers of tomorrow?
7. People
The final P of the marketing mix is people. Develop the habit of
thinking in terms of the people inside and outside of your
business who are responsible for every element of your sales and
marketing strategy and activities.
It's amazing how many entrepreneurs and businesspeople will
work extremely hard to think through every element of the
marketing strategy and the marketing mix, and then pay little
attention to the fact that every single decision and policy has to
be carried out by a specific person, in a specific way. Your ability
to select, recruit, hire and retain the proper people, with the skills
and abilities to do the job you need to have done, is more
important than everything else put together.
In his best-selling book, Good to Great, Jim Collins discovered the
most important factor applied by the best companies was that
they first of all "got the right people on the bus, and the wrong
people off the bus." Once these companies had hired the right
people, the second step was to "get the right people in the right
seats on the bus."
To be successful in business, you must develop the habit of
thinking in terms of exactly who is going to carry out each task
and responsibility. In many cases, it's not possible to move
forward until you can attract and put the right person into the
right position. Many of the best business plans ever developed sit
on shelves today because the [people who created them] could
not find the key people who could execute those plans.

Market vs. Marketing

Market is a collection of buyers and sellers. It is also thought to

be a set of individuals or institutions that have similar needs that
can be met by a particular product. For example, the housing
market is a collection of buyers and sellers of residential real
estate, and automobile market includes buyers and sellers of
automotive transportation. A market is, therefore, the set of all
actual and potential buyers of a market offer.

Until recently, market also meant a physical location where

buyers and sellers met to conduct transactions. These
marketplaces, like the grocery stores, malls etc. still thrive in the
society. However, with the advent of technology the 'where' of a
market - that is the location of the buyers and sellers - has
drastically changed. The answer to the 'where' question is fast
changing into 'anywhere' as markets are becoming less defined
by geography. The term marketspace has been coined to describe
these electronic marketplaces unbound by time or space.

Most companies conduct research to find out the credibility of

their product in the market, its sales patterns, buyer acceptance
levels and most importantly, to forecast future sales. The
company must be able to measure and forecast the size, growth,
and profit potential of each market. The market demand for a
product under a specific marketing activity is the sales volume of
the product in the target market for a specified time period in a
particular region.

Marketing, on the other hand, is an organisational function and a

set of processes that work in tandem to serve the market
effectively, efficiently and profitably. The American Marketing
Association defined marketing in 2005 as - Marketing is an
organisational function and a set of processes for creating,
communicating, and delivering value to customers and for
managing customer relationships in ways that benefit the
organization and its stakeholders. A marketer, by adjusting and
optimizing the 4P-s of marketing, has to carry out different
marketing tasks, take care of the task or internal marketing
environment, and keep his eyes and ears open about the
happenings in the broad or external environment, in order to
compete successfully in the market. Successful marketing
companies will be those who can provide appropriate solutions to
customer needs economically and conveniently and communicate
effectively with the targeted group of consumers.

Role Of Sales Manager

Sales manager is an important position in a company. He does

not only focus in sales alone, yet he needs to set sales objectives,
forecasting, budgeting, organizing and salesforce's recruitment.
In order salesforce to achieve it objective, sales manager needs
to create a positive environment for his salesforce. According to
Barker (2001), salesperson's behavior is influenced by three
groups of antecedents - activities of sales manager,
characteristics of salesperson and an appropriate sales
organization's design. One of the important functions of sales
manager is motivating salesforce towards their job performance,
productivity, job satisfaction and employees extension.
 Motivation is complex because it varies among people. People are
motivated towards something that they can relate to and
something that they can believe in. Motivational methods will
work if the arrangement and values are right in combination.
Basically, sales manager needs to motivate salesforce in order
them to focus in the sales result. Hence, there is no one that can
actually ‘do' a result but can only through carry out more
productive and efficient task, having a positive and creative
attitude and directed on higher-yield strategic opportunities.
Therefore, it is important to understand salesforce's attitude and
behavior before giving motivation.

The role of the marketing manager:

Key responsibilities of the marketing manager / director vary

according to the business but can include:

 Instilling a marketing led ethos throughout the business

 Researching and reporting on external opportunities
 Understanding current and potential customers
 Managing the customer journey (customer relationship
management)
 Developing the marketing strategy and plan
 Management of the marketing mix
 Managing agencies
 Measuring success
 Managing budgets
 Ensuring timely delivery
 Writing copy
 Approving images
 Developing guidelines
 Making customer focused decisions

The marketing role can be diverse or focused but now we'll

elaborate further on some key aspects which should be at the
heart of the job.
Market research

Marketing managers need to have a good knowledge of the

customer. This means building up an accurate picture using the
resources that are available. It is important to take personal
opinion out of as many decisions as possible – you probably don't
think in the same way as a typical customer. Information can be
gathered from questionnaires, focus groups, the internet,
interviews, buying habits and many more sources, but it's
important that the information is examined in a scientific way
using proper statistical methods. Gut feel can only take your
business so far.
Development of marketing strategy and plan

Marketing planning should be at the core to any business and is

usually presented in the form of a written marketing plan. A
consultant called Paul Smith first developed a process known as
SOSTAC® which is a useful model used to structure a marketing
plan. SOSTAC is an acronym for the following elements of the
plan:
Situation Analysis – where are we now?
Objectives – what do you want to achieve?
Strategy – how are you going to get there? 
Tactics - what are the details of the strategy?
Actions – who is going to do what, and by when?
Controls – how are you going to measure success?
Management of the marketing mix

The marketing mix includes all tangible elements that allow you
to market your product. This includes facilities, your employees,
the product itself, the cost strategy, the process of selling, and
how you promote and advertise. The extent to which the
marketing manager gets involved in these elements depends on
how marketing focused your business is. A product focused
organization will probably start with an ides for a new product,
then try and determine who is likely to buy it. A marketing
focused business starts with the consumer and tried to figure out
what they want to buy. Some product focused businesses are
very successful but it is generally accepted that a marketing focus
provides a greater chance of success.

Customer relationship management (CRM)

Customer relationship management is the process of

communicating with customers throughout the various stages of
the purchasing process, and this includes people who have
already bought from you. It is significantly easier to hold on to an
existing customer than it is to find new ones, but doing this
requires all elements of the marketing mix to be run well. For
example, it's no use sending out a beautifully produced customer
magazine if your customer service is dreadful or the product
breaks easily.
Managing agencies

It is unlikely that a small business will have the skills in-house to

develop all elements of the marketing mix. Websites, brochures,
and other promotional items will usually involve some form of
outsourced help such as graphic design or printing. Careful
management of these agencies is essential to provide an
integrated marketing approach to promotion. Agency
management involves the development of detailed project briefs,
signing off creative work and ensuring the work is delivered on
time. Depending on the volume of work which is outsourced, you
may feel it is worth developing some guidelines to ensure a
consistent style across different media.

Measuring success

An important element of the marketing manager's role which is

often neglected is the process of collecting and analysing data on
success. This can take the form of website hits, sales figures,
market share data, customer satisfaction or many other metrics
and it's important to record and track these as a core part of the
marketing process.

Final words
Marketing managers have a diverse and varied job, and
promotion should just be one element of the scope. Championing
a marketing focussed business structure will provide a greater
chance of success in today's challenging business environment
and will lead to a more sustainable future.

The Product Life Cycle

A new product progresses through a sequence of stages from

introduction to growth, maturity, and decline. This sequence is
known as the product life cycle and is associated with changes
in the marketing situation, thus impacting the marketing strategy
and the marketing mix.

The product revenue and profits can be plotted as a function of

the life-cycle stages as shown in the graph below:

      Product Life Cycle Diagram    

Introduction Stage

In the introduction stage, the firm seeks to build product

awareness and develop a market for the product. The impact on
the marketing mix is as follows:

 Product branding and quality level is established, and

intellectual property protection such as patents and
trademarks are obtained.

 Pricing may be low penetration pricing to build market

share rapidly, or high skim pricing to recover development
costs.

 Distribution is selective until consumers show acceptance

of the product.

 Promotion is aimed at innovators and early adopters.

Marketing communications seeks to build product awareness
and to educate potential consumers about the product.

Growth Stage

In the growth stage, the firm seeks to build brand preference and
increase market share.

 Product quality is maintained and additional features and

support services may be added.

 Pricing is maintained as the firm enjoys increasing demand

with little competition.

 Distribution channels are added as demand increases and

customers accept the product.

 Promotion is aimed at a broader audience.

Maturity Stage

At maturity, the strong growth in sales diminishes. Competition

may appear with similar products. The primary objective at this
point is to defend market share while maximizing profit.

 Product features may be enhanced to differentiate the

product from that of competitors.

 Pricing may be lower because of the new competition.

 Distribution becomes more intensive and incentives may

be offered to encourage preference over competing
products.

 Promotion emphasizes product differentiation.

Decline Stage

As sales decline, the firm has several options:

 Maintain the product, possibly rejuvenating it by adding new

features and finding new uses.

 Harvest the product - reduce costs and continue to offer it,

possibly to a loyal niche segment.

 Discontinue the product, liquidating remaining inventory or

selling it to another firm that is willing to continue the
product.

The marketing mix decisions in the decline phase will depend on

the selected strategy. For example, the product may be changed
if it is being rejuvenated, or left unchanged if it is being harvested
or liquidated. The price may be maintained if the product is
harvested, or reduced drastically if liquidated.
Role of Marketing Manager:

Marketing management is a business discipline which is focused

on the practical application of marketing techniques and the
management of a firm’s marketing resources and activities. The
marketing manager of a company plays an important role as far
as marketing of the firm’s products and services are concerned.
Apart from this, marketing managers are often responsible for
influencing the level, timing and composition of customer demand
accepted definition of term. It is worth noting that the roles of a
marketing manager can vary significantly based on a business’
size, corporate culture and industry concept. However, we will
discuss about the general roles that all marketing manager
independent of any business performs. These key roles of a
marketing manager will be analysed in depth below:

Carrying out of Marketing research: The marketing manager

should do a thorough marketing research and analysis in order to
possess a detailed understanding of their own business and the
market in which they are operating so as to make fact-based
decisions regarding, marketing strategy and design effective,
cost-efficient implementation programs.

Develop marketing strategies and plan: The marketing

manager should develop marketing strategies and plan. He needs
to identify the company potential long-run opportunities given its
market experience and core competencies.

Capturing marketing insights: A marketing manager is also

responsible for capturing marketing insights. To understand what
is happening inside and outside the company, the marketing
manager needs a reliable marketing Information System. The
Marketing Information System is a framework for day-to-day
management and structuring of information gathered regularly
from sources both inside and outside an organization.

Connecting with customers: Customers are very important as

far as buying of the product and creating its goodwill are
concerned. However, a marketing manager should consider how
to best create value, satisfaction and loyalty for its chosen target
markets and develop strong, long-term relationships with
customers.

Building strong brands: Branding of a product is very

important as far as the product displaying characteristics are
concerned. However, great attention should be given as far as
branding of the product is concerned. Yet, the marketing
manager bearing this fact in mind, must understand the
weakness and strengths of the product brand with customers. He
must pay great attention to its competitors, anticipating their
moves and knowing how to react quickly and decisively and
anticipates how the competitors will react to his moves. The
marketing manager should know how to improve product
branding so as to attract customers as branding is the only thing
that can attract customers’ attention. Customers sometimes
attach great importance to branding and therefore a marketing
manager should know what strategy to adopt as far as branding
of his product is concerned.

Shaping the market offerings: Apart from providing the

product quality, design, features and packaging, the marketing
manager can also provide various services, such as delivery
repair and training for examples. These supports can provide
competitive advantage in the global market.
Delivering value: The marketing manager should choose the
best marketing channel so as his product reaches customer’s
sight.

Communicate value: He must do marketing communications

activities in order to inform, persuade and remind consumers
directly or indirectly about the brands they sell.

Creating long-term growth: The marketing manager should

take a long-term view of the company’s products and brands and
how its profits should be grown. He should also see to it that the
company built a marketing organization that is capable of
implementing the marketing plan.

Why advertising plays major role in Marketing?

Advertising is the key factor in marketing. Simply putting your

product in the market will not make customers to buy it. You
need to advertise your product to make familiar to the buyers.
Advertising build trust in the people, they get familiarize with the
prices and your product features. Without advertising , marketing
is useless.

Advertising is very important factor of marketing. It gets the

name or product out where the public will know about it so they
can choose for themselves which is best. Sometimes Advertising
is so good it convinces the customer that their product IS the
best!

Price computing and labeling for excellent customer service! Give

that ,the role of advertisement in marketing goods. Identify and
explain the need for advertising and marketing by an SMME.
Advertising is a means of communication in marketing. Marketing
will be domat without communication and that is adverising.

The role of advertising in the market place is to persuade the

viewer or listener of the advertisement message to react in a
desired way. The most common desire is to create a reaction
where a purchase is made, or otherwise an exchange. Advertising
is 2/3rds of the marketing process when it comes to successful
interaction with potential buyers.

The role of advertising in product marketing is to inform potential

consumers of the benefit, function, and/or the price to create the
action of purchase.
Good advertising can promote a continual, healthy growth of your
business. Advertisement can be expensive, but without it, you
cannot "brand" your business image in the minds of potential
clients.

Build Familiarity

1. If a small ad in a weekly newspaper works for you, continue

to advertise in the same publication. By exposing your
business to a regular audience, you build familiarity.

Good Image

2. Advertisement will brand your business in the hearts and

minds of customers. Your message, images and attitude all
come into play, so craft ads that you are proud of. Many
business owners put themselves in their advertising to build a
closer relationship with clients.

Good Returns

3. Money invested in specific types of advertising must yield a

specific financial return. You don't want to waste dollars by
purchasing ads in print or public media that fail to attract
 enough customers. Ask clients or customers where they heard
about you and keep track of what works.

Stand Out in the Crowd

4. Your advertisement should spell out why your business helps

with a very specific need. Perhaps you give personalized
service for very small plumbing jobs, or maybe you plan
weddings with hundreds of guests. Your ads must tell why you
fit well with specific clients' needs.

Don't Look Too New

5. Design advertising that spells out your expertise and the

years behind it. If you just opened a pastry business,
emphasize that your family recipes were perfected over the
past 75 years.

Memorable Words

6. If people can't remember something, they won't seek out

your business. Advertisement should provide good one-liners
that people can repeat to others. For example, "Our deli is
open 24 hours" or "Our software programs serve colleges coast
to coast."

Q : 4 - Distinguish between Market and

Marketing

Ans : Marketing is the process of performing market research,

selling products and/or services to customers and promoting
them via advertising to further enhance sales. It generates the
strategy that underlies sales techniques, business
communication, and business developments. It is an integrated
process through which companies build strong customer
 relationships and create value for their customers and for
themselves.

Marketing is used to identify the customer, to satisfy the

customer, and to keep the customer. With the customer as the
focus of its activities, it can be concluded that marketing
management is one of the major components of business
management. Marketing evolved to meet the stasis in developing
new markets caused by mature markets and overcapacities in the
last 2-3 centuries. The adoption of marketing strategies requires
businesses to shift their focus from production to the perceived
needs and wants of their customers as the means of staying
profitable.

The term marketing concept holds that achieving organizational

goals depends on knowing the needs and wants of target markets
and delivering the desired satisfactions.

It proposes that in order to satisfy its organizational objectives,

an organization should anticipate the needs and wants of
consumers and satisfy these more effectively than competitors.

Advantages of planning

 Planning facilitates management by objectives :- Planning

begins with determination of objectives.It highlights the purposes for
which various activities are to be undertaken.In fact, it makes
objectives more clear and specific. Planning helps in focusing the
attention of employees on the objectives or goals of enterprise.Without
planning an organization has no guide.Planning compels manager to
prepare a Blue-print of the courses of action to be followed for
accomplishment of objectives.Therefore, planning brings order and
rationality into the organization.

 Planning minimizes uncertainties :- Business is full of

uncertainties.There are risks of various types due to
uncertainties.Planning helps in reducing uncertainties of future as it
involves anticipation of future events. Although future cannot be
predicted with cent percent accuracy but planning helps management
to anticipate future and prepare for risks by necessary provisions to
meet unexpected turn of events. Therefore with the help of planning,
uncertainties can be forecasted which helps in preparing standbys as a
result, uncertainties are minimized to a great extent.

 Planning facilitates co-ordination :- Planning revolves around

organizational goals.All activities are directed towards common goals.
There is an integrated effort throughout the enterprise in various
departments and groups. It avoids duplication of efforts. In other
words, it leads to better co-ordination. It helps in finding out problems
of work performance and aims at rectifying the same.

 Planning improves employee’s moral :- Planning creates an

atmosphere of order and discipline in organization.Employees know in
advance what is expected of them and therefore conformity can be
achieved easily.This encourages employees to show their best and also
earn reward for the same.Planning creates a healthy attitude towards
work environment which helps in boosting employees moral and
efficiency.

 Planning helps in achieving economies:- Effective planning

secures economy since it leads to orderly allocation ofresources to
various operations.It also facilitates optimum utilization of resources
which brings economy in operations.It also avoids wastage of resources
by selecting most appropriate use that will contribute to the objective
of enterprise. For example, raw materials can be purchased in bulk and
transportation cost can be minimized. At the same time it ensures
regular supply for the production department, that is, overall efficiency.

 Planning facilitates controlling:-Planning facilitates existence of

certain planned goals and standard of performance. It provides basis of
controlling.We cannot think of an effective system of controlling
without existence of well thought out plans.Planning provides pre-
determined goals against which actual performance is compared.In
fact, planning and controlling are the two sides of a same coin. If
planning is root, controlling is the fruit.
 Planning provides competitive edge:- Planning provides
competitive edge to the enterprise over the others which do not have
effective planning. This is because of the fact that planning may involve
changing in work methods, quality, quantity designs, extension of
work, redefining of goals, etc. With the help of forecasting not only the
enterprise secures its future but at the same time it is able to estimate
the future motives of it’s competitor which helps in facing future
challenges.Therefore, planning leads to best utilization of possible
resources, improves quality of production and thus the competitive
strength of the enterprise is improved.

Planning encourages innovations.In the process of planning,

managers have the opportunities of suggesting ways and means of
improving performance.Planning is basically a decision making function
which involves creative thinking and imagination that ultimately leads
to innovation of methods and operations for growth and prosperity of
the enterprise.

Disadvantages (limitations) of planning :-

Internal Limitations -There are several limitations of planning. Some of

them are inherit in the process of planning like rigidity and other arise
due to shortcoming of the techniques of planning and in the planners
themselves.

1. Rigidity - Planning has tendency to make administration

inflexible.Planning implies prior determination of policies, procedures
and programmes and a strict adherence to them in all circumstances.
There is no scope for individual freedom. The development of
employees is highly doubted because of which management might
have faced lot of difficulties in future. Planning therefore introduces
inelasticity and discourages individual initiative and experimentation.

2. Misdirected Planning - Planning may be used to serve individual

interests rather than the interest of the enterprise. Attempts can be
made to influence setting of objectives, formulation of plans and
programmes to suit one’s own requirement rather than that of whole
organization. Machinery of planning can never be freed of bias. Every
planner has his own likes, dislikes, preferences, attitudes and interests
which is reflected in planning.

3. Time consuming - Planning is a time consuming process because it

involves collection of information, it’s analysis and interpretation
thereof. This entire process takes a lot of time specially where there
are a number of alternatives available. Therefore planning is not
suitable during emergency or crisis when quick decisions are required.

4. Probability in planning - Planning is based on forecasts which are

mere estimates about future. These estimates may prove to be inexact
due to the uncertainty of future. Any change in the anticipated situation
may render plans ineffective. Plans do not always reflect real situations
inspite of the sophisticated techniques of forecasting because future is
unpredictable. Thus, excessive reliance on plans may prove to be fatal.

5. False sense of security - Elaborate planning may create a false sense

of security to the effect that everything is taken for granted. Managers
assume that as long as they work as per plans, it is satisfactory.
Therefore they fail to take up timely actions and an opportunity is lost.
Employees are more concerned about fulfillment of plan performance
rather than any kind of change.

6. Expensive - Collection, analysis and evaluation of different

information, facts and alternatives involves a lot of expense in terms of
time, effort and money .According to Koontz and O’Donell, ’ Expenses
on planning should never exceed the estimated benefits from planning.
’

External Limitations of Planning

1. Political Climate- Change of government from Congress to

some other political party, etc.
2. Labour Union- Strikes, lockouts, agitations.
3. Technological changes- Modern techniques and equipments,
computerization.
4. Policies of competitors- Eg. Policies of Coca Cola and Pepsi.
5. Natural Calamities- Earthquakes and floods.
6. Changes in demand and prices- Change in fashion, change
in tastes, change in income level, demand falls, price falls,
etc.
Following are the important difference between Market
and Marketing
MARKET
1 Market is a public gathering 1 The act or process of buying
. held for buying and selling . and selling in a market. The
merchandise. A place where
goods are offered for sale.
Market is place where the
product(s) are sold.
2 2
. .
The term used to describe
the meeting place between
customers and suppliers.
3 3
MARKETING
commercial functions
involved in transferring
goods from producer to
consumer.
Where as marketing is
process of carrying out sale
of product(s), including
other ancillary and
supportive activities to carry
out sale, as well as
advertising and publicity.
Marketing is important
function of complete
Business Cycle.
The all-embracing function
that links the company with
the customer tastes to get
the right product to the
right place at the right time.
. .

Marketing means - a
technique or skills for selling
Market means to sell.
a product. Marketing skills
needs to be developed and
can be achieved with
experiences.

4 4
Is a plan or strategy for
. .
your prospective and/ or
target of group of people to
A place where we can trade
your products and / or
our products and/ or
services.
Services.

5
. 5
.

The sellers used so many

techniques to promote their
sales by means of their
representatives, media,
The place where we can
canvassing trends and to
avail every commodities for
enter into the method of
our daily use starting from
win to win sales by
the household items ,
persuading their customers
furniture, Groceries, Textile
and also among General
 goods, Building materials, public to promote their Daily
drugs etc..for the purchase sales in which they are
6
from the sellers. involved in the particular
.
6 business of their material
. choises.

Marketing is an
organisational function and
a set of processes that work
in tandem to serve the
market effectively,
efficiently and profitably
Market is a collection of
buyers and sellers. It is also
thought to be a set of
individuals or institutions
that have similar needs that
can be met by a particular
product.

7
.
7
.

MARKET :
1. The world of commercial activity where goods and services
are bought and sold; without competition there would be no
market"; "they were driven ...
2. Engage in the commercial promotion, sale, or distribution of;
"The company is marketing its new line of beauty products"
3. Buy household supplies; "We go marketing every Saturday"
4. The securities markets in the aggregate; "the market always
frustrates the small investor" deal in a market
5. The customers for a particular product or service; "before they
publish any book they try to determine the size of the market for
it"
6. Grocery store: a marketplace where groceries are sold; "the
grocery store included a meat market"
7. Commercialize: make commercial; "Some Amish people have
commercialized their way of life"

MARKETING:
1. selling: the exchange of goods for an agreed sum of money
2. the commercial processes involved in promoting and selling
and distributing a product or service; "most companies have a
manager in charge of marketing"
3. shopping at a market; "does the weekly marketing at the
supermarket"

Q 3. Discuss the Importance of Service Marketing?

The Importance of Service Marketing

To keep customers, give exceptional service.

Service marketing is a subfield of marketing, which can be split

into the two main areas of goods marketing (which includes the
marketing of fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) and durables)
and services marketing. Services marketing typically refer to both
business to consumer (B2C) and business to business (B2B)
services, and include marketing of services like
telecommunications services, financial services, all types of
hospitality services, car rental services, air travel, health care
services and professional services.

Services are economic activities offered by one party to another.

Often time-based, performances bring about desired results to
recipients, objects, or other assets for which purchasers have
responsibility. In exchange for money, time, and effort, service
customers expect value from access to goods, labor, professional
skills, facilities, networks, and systems; but they do not normally
take ownership of any of the physical elements involved.

There has been a long academic debate on what makes services

different from goods. The historical perspective in the late-
eighteen and early-nineteenth centuries focused on creation and
possession of wealth. Classical economists contended that goods
were objects of value over which ownership rights could be
established and exchanged. Ownership implied tangible
possession of an object that had been acquired through purchase,
barter or gift from the producer or previous owner and was
legally identifiable as the property of the current owner.

Marketing a service is different from a product in that services

cannot be owned, according to LearnMarketing.net. On the
contrary, they can merely be used for a period of time. Because
of this, it is important for a representative of a service company
to focus on providing customers exceptional value.

Knowledge

1. Whether it's repairing a flat tire or getting a massage,

customers seek service-based companies to solve a problem
or fulfill a desire. Given this, it is important that the
representatives of such companies are knowledgeable in
their profession.

Exceed Expectations

2. Customers have expectations, whether directly expressed or

implied, of anyone they do business with. Service companies
should strive to meet or exceed those expectations.

Reward Customers

3. Customers have choices when deciding which company they

do business with. With this known, a company can add value
to the exceptional service it provides in the form of a
discount for future services to reward repeat customers.

Developed and Developing Market

4. Developing markets are markets that are associated with

nations that are considered to be developed. In order for a
developed market to exist, the nations involved with the
market must be considered to be somewhat stable in terms
of economy and governmental structure. This does not mean
that a nation must currently be undergoing a period of
extreme prosperity and political unity, only that the current
circumstances are highly unlikely to undermine the
performance of the investment market to the point of
causing long-term damage.
5. A developed market is typically one that has been long-
established and shows promise for remaining stable in the
years to come. This is in contrast to emerging markets or
frontier markets that are beginning to develop but are not
considered yet to be stable enough economically to be
considered fully developed. Organizations such as the World
Bank have established criteria for determining if a developed
market exists in a given nation. Many countries also have
created qualifications to help determine what is understood
to be an acceptable level of development within an economy
to merit this type of designation.
6. A development market will also promote transaction costs
that are reasonable and do not place an inordinate amount
of burden on either buyers or sellers. This includes
responsible management of tariffs and other types of taxes
in a manner that encourages rather than discouraged
trading. In many cases, this type of marketplace will also
take steps to encourage an equitable trade balance that is
considered to be in the best interests of the nation involved,
often by providing incentives that encourage a certain
amount of imports while also promoting exports to other
countries.
7. It is important to note that a developed market does not
mean that it is free from challenges that must be overcome
in order to protect the economy. Political coups, recession,
and a variety of other factors can combine to create severe
trials that threaten the function of the marketplace. When
events of this type do occur, it is not unusual for the market
to suffer for a period of time, even as mechanisms already in
place are implemented and the ill effects of the negative
consequences are slowly but surely reversed over time.