Abbreviated as MKTG by AbbreviationFinder, marketing is a set of techniques and tools that, based on market and consumer studies, seek to better position brands and increase the perceived value of their products in order to increase companies’ profits.
The objective of corporate marketing is not only to increase sales immediately, but also to build a good image for the corporation and a good relationship with its customers, so that it is possible to reap results also in the medium and long term.
How does marketing work?
Marketing is already beginning to act on the brand and product design itself, studying the needs of the target market and identifying their real demands to supply products that satisfy them more effectively and efficiently than the competitors.
Based on this market analysis, a marketing plan is drawn up, which is the project of how the company intends to conquer this market, position its brand in it and add value to its products.
In addition to working to conquer a consumer market, it is also up to marketing to outline the strategies of customer loyalty, such as, for example, being concerned with assistance and after-sales relationship. Keeping customers happy helps to spread a good brand image.
That is why marketing should not be confused with advertising, which is only part of one of its facets, that of promotion.
Marketing mix
In Phillip Kotler’s conception, marketing acts on four variables, known as the “marketing mix” or “the four P’s of marketing”: price, place, product and promotion.
Price
In the price variable, marketing helps to define the value of the product according to the target audience it intends to reach, in addition to thinking about the most suitable ways of charging this consumer.
The price is not only linked to the cost of a product, but also to how that product wants to position itself in the market. In other words, the concept of value is also related to when the consumer is willing to pay for a certain product or service, and it is the job of marketing to add value to what the company sells.
Square
Square is the place where the product will be sold. The expression can refer to a region of the country, to a type of commercial establishment or to new platforms, such as e-commerce.
The trade marketing, one that is made directly on the point of sale, is a form of marketing job on the square. The creation of a beautiful and attractive display and the good positioning of products on supermarket shelves, to make them more visible, are some examples of this performance.
Product
In the case of the product, marketing, as already mentioned, works since its conception. The objective is to place on the market products and services that meet existing demands, after identifying them, highlighting these characteristics that make it special.
Promotion
Finally, promotion is the sum of strategies for promoting the product or service, such as advertising. The purpose of the promotion is to inform, convince and make the product remembered.
Types of marketing
The different ways of approaching the customer, the different platforms and the differences in objectives allow to give different classifications to marketing. Here are some examples:
Outbound marketing
It is traditional marketing, in which the company actively pursues the customer. In the case of promotion strategies, it is marketing that makes use of advertisements in the media, including the internet, posters, pamphlets, etc.
These are examples of a direct marketing approach, which identifies your target audience and creates direct messages for them. In addition to advertising, channels like e-mails, calls, cell phone messages and direct mail are also included in these categories.
Outbound marketing can also be expressed in a more subtle way, which is indirect marketing. The most common example of this type of marketing is merchandising, such as advertisements that appear in films, soap operas, games and at other times when the customer was not expecting them.
Inbound marketing
In growth, especially with the expansion of the internet, inbound marketing seeks to reverse the logic of traditional marketing. Instead of the company looking for its customers, it creates strategies for customers to look for it. This is clear in the Portuguese expression that translates this concept: attraction marketing.
An example of inbound marketing is content marketing. Instead of simply advertising, companies started producing content related to their target audience.
For example, a food brand can create a recipe site, which is now sought after by potential consumers interested in cooking. A brand of adventure sports equipment can also create a network of traveller’s blogs that chronicle their experiences around the world.
Social Marketing
It is the creation of a positive image for the brand from the support and sponsorship of cultural events and social causes.
Endomarketing
These are marketing strategies aimed not at consumers, but at the company’s own employees, with the aim of increasing their involvement in the organization.
Digital marketing
It is a very broad concept and with its own characteristics, but it can be summarized as marketing done through the internet, including on social networks.
The concept of digital marketing is related to the platform and, therefore, it can use both outbound marketing strategies (advertisements on Youtube, for example) and inbound marketing (such as content blogs).
Digital marketing has peculiarities especially in identifying the target audience, to approach consumers in an increasingly personalized way.
An important characteristic of marketing in this type of platform is the use of metrics, numbers and technologies that allow to understand the behavior of this dispersed consumer, in order to reach him and meet his needs.
Technical optimization for search engines (search engine optimization, or SEO, in English), aimed at increasing website visibility, and tools retargeting and remarketing, using technology to identify interests of users to personalize ads that they see on the internet, are common concepts in digital marketing.
Marketing of relationship
Relationship marketing is the set of actions taken by a company to maintain a positive relationship with the customers it has already conquered. Cordiality in the communication channels and good after-sales service are some of these techniques that aim to build customer loyalty.
Guerrilla marketing
Guerrilla marketing is one that, even with a low financial investment, manages to have a great impact before the public.
When guerrilla marketing emerged in the 1980s, it thought of small businesses that, even without budgets as large for advertising as their competitors already consolidated in the market, found creative, original forms that required more energy than money to gain visibility.
Over the years, big brands have also adopted guerrilla marketing techniques. The best known example of this type of strategy today is viral marketing.
Videos on Youtube, flashmobs and other actions that attract attention can start a chain of spontaneous sharing on social networks, even if the user knows they are advertising pieces. Viralization has an impact because it reaches a large number of people.
As an example of guerrilla marketing that took advantage of viralization, we can mention a small book publisher from São Paulo that, before the departure between Brazil and Germany at the 2014 World Cup, had promised a 10% discount on their books on their social network. for every goal that Brazil suffered, as a form of comfort.
The huge repercussion of the game, as Brazil lost the game 7-1, and the fact that the company decided to keep the promise and give 70% discount on all of its books until the end of stocks, made the small publisher’s post went viral on Facebook, greatly expanding the brand’s audience.
Multilevel marketing or network marketing
This is a very old type of marketing, born in the early 20th century. It is mainly characterized by a distribution strategy that takes products directly from factories to consumers, eliminating middlemen.
The salespeople distribute the products and have an important role in their dissemination, conquering and getting to know their customers and spreading the news through word of mouth.
Perhaps the best known example of this type of marketing is beauty products sold through catalogs and which reach consumers through a network of salespeople.
What is personal marketing?
Personal marketing, as its name says, is a set of techniques for the individual to promote his own image, giving it greater value.
Although not related to business marketing, this concept is also very important in the business world, more specifically in career building. That’s because doing good personal marketing is essential for anyone who wants to stand out professionally.
