Main Functions of the Marketing

One way to understand the use of marketing in a business or enterprise is through knowledge of their duties.

Let’s look at what are the main functions of the marketing or, in other words, what are the main functions of the area, department or persons responsible for marketing a business:

Market Analysis

The primary function of marketing is to analyze the market, which is to analyze the needs, preferences, tastes, desires, habits and customs of the consumers.

Through analysis of market, we can detect, for example:

* Business opportunities, for example, the opportunity to enter into a new market.
* New needs or desires, and thus to design new products that take care of those needs or desires.
* Changes in tastes and preferences of consumers and, thereby, to tailor our products to such changes.
* New fashions or trends, and thereby to create or adapt our products according to these fashions or trends.

The role of market analysis should not be done once, but must be made permanent. We must always be attentive to what happens in the market and try to anticipate what might happen.

Also, to perform this function, it is necessary to perform a complex market research, but we can, for example, simply observing consumers, talking to our customers, conduct surveys, collect and evaluate data and buying preferences, etc…

Competitive Analysis

The second function of marketing is to analyze the competition, which is well known to our competitors, be aware of their movements, and try to anticipate their strategies.

Through the analysis of competition, is seeking to detect which are our main competitors, where they are located, what their target audiences, what are its main features, its main strategies, market expertise, capacity, competitive advantages, strengths and weaknesses.

Like market research, the study of competition must be permanently and, equally, it is necessary to conduct a thorough investigation, but we can make use of simple techniques such as, visiting some competitors and buy some of their products visit or interview people who have worked with them or some of its customers, etc.

Marketing planning

The role of marketing planning is to make the process of:

* Analyze the environment, analyze the market and competition.
* Analyze the internal situation to analyze the capacity and resources (financial, human, technological and material) available to the company.
* Establishing marketing objectives, taking into account the analysis made previously, and the aspirations of the company.
* Designing marketing strategies to achieve the proposed objectives: taking into account also the external and internal analysis.
* Design action plans, where establishing the steps necessary to implement or execute the strategies and resources to be used, responsible managers or the times or periods, and the budget or the investment required to implement them.

Designing marketing strategies

This function should actually be done in marketing planning, is to develop and formulate marketing strategies to achieve the marketing objectives proposed by the company.

For a better analysis, marketing strategies are often divided into strategies for the product to the price for the square and for the promotion.

The strategies for the product are based on decisions related to product design (features, attributes, functions), branded with the launch of new products, customer service, etc.

Price strategies are based on decisions relating to price reductions, with the policies of discounts, special offers, etc..

Strategies for the square or distribution is based on decisions related to distribution channels, storage, transportation, retail outlets, etc.

And the strategies for promotion are based on decisions related to sales promotions, advertising, direct marketing, etc…

Implementation of marketing strategies

This role is to deploy or implement the proposed marketing strategies.

To this end, guided action plans previously established in marketing planning, we are dedicated to distribute resources to those responsible for assigning tasks to coordinate and direct the implementation of strategies.

Monitoring and evaluation

Control is to ensure that marketing strategies are being implemented as specified in the plans of action and the good performance of individual and group responsible for their implementation.

While the evaluation is to verify that the objectives are achieved through verify that the results obtained are consistent with the proposed marketing plan, for otherwise, to take corrective action or, in any case devise new marketing strategies.

Finally, note that they all marketing functions should be made permanent, i.e. they must be part of an ongoing process that never ends. These features make a process (the process of marketing), as once the latter role, you must start again with the first meet.

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