Production and marketing of goods and services are the essence of economic life in any society.
Introduction
Production and marketing of goods
and services are the essence of economic life in any society. All organizations
perform these two basic functions to satisfy their commitments to their
stakeholders – the owners, the customers and the society, at large. They create
a benefit that economists call utility which is the want-satisfying power of a
good or service. There are four basic kinds of utility – form, time, place and
ownership utility. Form utility is created when the firm converts raw materials and component inputs into finished goods
and services. Although marketing provides important inputs that specify
consumer preference, the organization’s production function is responsible for
the actual creation of form utility. Marketing function creates time, place and
ownership utilities. Time and place utility occur when consumers find goods and
services available when and where they want to purchase them. Online retailers
with 24*7 format emphasize time utility. Vending machines focus on providing
place utility for people buying snacks and soft drinks. The transfer of title
to goods or services at the time of purchase creates ownership utility.
To survive, all organizations
must create utility. Designing and marketing want-satisfying goods, services
and ideas is the foundation for the creation of utility. Management guru, Peter
F.Drucker emphasized the importance of marketing in his classic book, The
Practice of Management as: ‘If we want to know what a business is, we have start with its purpose.
And its purpose must lie outside the business itself. In fact, it must lie in
society since a business enterprise is an organ of society. There is one valid
definition of business purpose: to create a customer’.How does an organization create a
customer? Guiltinan and Paul explain it this way: Essentially, ‘creating’ a customer means identifying needs in the
marketplace, finding out which needs the organization can profitably serve and
developing an offering to convert potential buyers into customers. Marketing
managers are responsible for most of the activities necessary to create the
customers the organization wants, These activities include: 1. Identifying
customer needs 2. Designing
goods and services that meet those needs 3. Communicating about those goods and services to prospective buyers 4. Making the goods and services available at times and places that meet
customers’ needs 5. Pricing goods and services to reflect costs, competition and customers’
ability to buy 6. Providing for the necessary service and follow-up to ensure customer
satisfaction after the purchase Activity 1.1.1
Think of a recent purchase you made. How did the
company provide you with the following utilities?
Form _________________________
_________________________
Time _________________________
_________________________
Place _________________________
_________________________
Ownership _________________________
_________________________
Tags : MARKETING MANAGEMENT - Introduction to Marketing
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