Functions of marketing and strategic marketing planning, market information, market planning, exchange functions, product design and development, standardization and grading, packaging, labeling & branding, physical distribution, financing, risk taking, customer support services, developing strategic marketing plan.

1. Functions of Marketing &
Strategic Marketing
Planning
By: APURV KUMAR MAURYA
MONIRBA {ALLAHABAD}

2. Functions of Marketing
• Marketing is related to the exchange of goods and services.
Through its medium the goods and services are brought to
the place of consumption. This satisfies the needs of the
customers.

3. 1. Market Information
• Identifying the needs, wants and demands of the
consumers and then analyzing the information to arrive
at various decisions for the successful marketing of a
firm’s products and services.
• The analysis involves judging the social and
demographic data of the target market. This
information is further used in market segmentations.
• All the relevant information about the consumer is
analysed. On the basis of this analysis an effort is made to
find out as to which product has the best opportunities in
the market.

4. 2. Market Planning
• Market-planning aims at achieving a firm’s marketing
objectives. These objectives may involve increasing market
presence, dominate the market or increase market share.
• The market planning function covers aspects of production
levels, promotions and other action programmes. In order to
achieve the objectives of an organization with regard to its
marketing, the marketer chalks out his marketing plan.
• It will also be decided as to who will do what, when and how.
To do this is known as marketing planning.

5. 3. Exchange Functions
• The core functions of marketing i.e. Selling and buying
comprise the exchange functions.
• It is concerned with the prospective buyers to actually
complete the purchase of a product. it involves what to buy,
of what quality, how much from whom, when and at what
price.
• They ensure that a firm’s offerings are available in sufficient
quantities to meet customer demands. The exchange
functions are supported by advertising, personal selling and
sales promotions.

6. 4. Product Designing and Development:
• Product designing plays an important role in product selling.
The company whose product is better and attractively
designed sells more than the product of a company whose
design happens to be weak and unattractive.
• In this way, it can be said that the possession of a special
design affords a company to a competitive advantage. It is
important to remember that it is not sufficient to prepare a
design in respect of a product, but it is more important to
develop it continuously.

7. 5. Standardization and Grading:
• Standardization involves producing goods at predetermined
specifications. Standardization ensures that product offerings
meet established quality and quantity. It helps in achieving
uniformity and consistency in the output product.
• Grading is classification of goods in various groups based upon
certain predetermined characteristics. It involves the control
standards of size, weight etc. Grading helps in pricing
decisions also. The higher quality goods and services attract
higher prices. Grading is mostly used in case of agricultural
products like food grains, cotton, tobacco, apples, mangoes,
etc.

8. 6. Packaging, Labeling & Branding:
• Packaging involves designing package for the products to
facilitates handling, lifting, conveying of the goods.
• Label is a slip which is found on the product itself or on the
package providing all the information regarding the product
and its producer. For example, the name of the medicine on
its bottle along with the manufacturer’s name, the formula
used for making the medicine, date of manufacturing, expiry
date, batch no., price etc., are printed on the slip.
• Packaging and labeling serve as promotional tools now a days,
Branding distinguishes the generic commodity name to a
brand name. For example, Wheat Flour is a generic name of a
commodity while “Ashirvad Aata” is a brand name. In service
industry, also branding matters a lot.

9. 7. Physical Distribution:
• Under this function of marketing the decision about carrying
things from the place of production to the place of
consumption is taken into account.
• To accomplish this task, decision about four factors are taken.
They are:
o (i) Transportation,
o (ii) Inventory,
o (iii) Storage or Warehousing
o (iv) Order Processing.
• Physical distribution, by taking things, at the right place and at
the right time creates time and place utility.

10. 8. Financing:
• The financing functions of marketing involve providing credit
for channel members or consumers. It involves the use of
capital to meet financial requirements of agencies dealing
with various activities of marketing.
• The services to provide the credit and money needed, the
cost of getting merchandise into the hands of the final user is
commonly referred to as finance functions in marketing.

11. 9. Risk Taking:
• In marketing term it refers to uncertainty about consumer
purchases resulting from creation and marketing of goods and
services that consumers may purchase in future.
• From production to selling, many risks involved due to
changes in market conditions, natural causes and human
factors, changes in fashion or inventions.
• They may also be due to deterioration, accidents or due to
fluctuation in prices caused by changes in supply and
demand. The various risks are termed as place risk, time risk
and physical risk etc.

12. 10. Customer Support Service:
• Customer is the king of market. Therefore, it is one of the
chief functions of marketer to offer every possible help to the
customers. A marketer offers primarily the following services
to the customers:
o After-sales-services
o Handling customers’ complaints
o Technical services
o Credit facilities
o Maintenance services
• Helping the customer in this way offers him satisfaction and in
today’s competitive age customer’s satisfaction happens to be
the top-most priority. This encourages a customer’s
attachment to a particular product and he starts buying that
product time and again.

13. Strategic Marketing Planning
• Strategic Market Planning is an ongoing process through
which the company creates marketing strategies and plans its
implementations in the target market. The process taken into
account the current position of the company, helps in
identifying the promotional opportunities & then evaluating
these opportunities. Target market is identified through
comprehensive research.
• Making spur of the moment strategic decisions reduces the
likelihood that these decisions are the best. A better approach
is to perform an annual comprehensive review of markets and
opportunities, then make long-term strategic decisions
without the distractions of day-to-day marketing and sales
activities.

14. Developing the Strategic Marketing Plan
• The Strategic marketing plan process typically has three stages:
o Segment the market
• Geographic
• Demographic
• Psychographic
• Behavior
o Profile the market segments
• Revenue potential
• Market share potential
• Profitability potential
o Develop a market segment marketing strategy
• Market leader or product line extension
• Mass marketing or targeted marketing
• Direct or indirect sales

15. • After analyzing market segments, customer interests, and the
purchase process, it's time to create the strategic marketing
plan.
• The strategic marketing plan document usually includes:
o Situational Analysis - Where is the company now?
• Market Characteristics
• Key Success Factors
• Competition and Product Comparisons
• Technology Considerations
• Legal Environment
• Social Environment
• Problems and Opportunities

16. o Marketing Objectives - Where does management want
the company to go?
• Product Profile
• Target Market
• Target Volume in terms of money or Units
o Marketing Strategies - What should the company do to
achieve its objectives?
• Product Strategy
• Pricing Strategy
• Promotion Strategy
• Distribution Strategy
• Marketing Strategy Projection

17. How to Use a Strategic Marketing Plan
• Once a company's executive team has approved the
strategic marketing plan it's time to take the next
step -- create the tactical marketing programs and
projects needed to implement the plan.
• These tactical programs usually include:
o Product Development Plan
o Marketing Communications Plan
o Sales Development Plan
o Customer Service Plan

18. Benefiting from a Strategic Marketing Plan
• The top-down process of developing a strategic
marketing plan helps insure that all tactical
marketing programs support the company's goals
and objectives, as well as convey a consistent
message to customers.
• This approach improves company efficiency in all
areas, which helps improve revenue and market
share growth, and minimizes expenses -- all of which
lead to higher profitability.