Definition of Marketing’s Changed?
Posted on | May 29, 2009 | Comments Off
What is marketing? You will find many definitions. However, usually the marketer as well as academic books and marketing guidelines refer to the definition of AMA (the American Marketing Association), namely: “Marketing is an organizational 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”.
From these definitions, we can see that marketing is a process running (ongoing process). Dynamic marketing environment because the market was likely to change – what customers want today does not mean what they want tomorrow. For example, meat sales in the U.S. declined due to consumer-oriented health start.
This process is starting from planning to implement (the execution) of the plan, and involves several basic components 4P. Marketers need to help design products to fit the will of the market. Marketers are also thinking about distributing the product, in order to reach consumers efficiently. Marketers also need to promote the product. In addition, marketers also determine the price of products to the market absorbed the product. As we know, in many cases, corporate sales negatively correlated with the price of the product. The more expensive, the smaller the market needs. Therefore, marketers need to engage in price in order to maximize profits and increase consumer demand for products through various means of communication.
However, the above definition is no longer appropriate. The Internet has changed the way consumers communicate. Several years ago, the company can mass communicate via traditional media (television, print and radio). Today, consumers already have the new behavior in terms of media consumption. Internet has now become part of consumer life, except for watching television, reading newspapers / magazines, or listens to the radio.
Surf consumer behavior is more complex than the behavior of using traditional media. Internet users are more interactive. Their position is also getting stronger because of its ability to compare products via the Internet. Besides, they also interact with each other through social networking.
Maybe that is why the AMA eventually has to make a new definition of marketing,
Now the definition becomes:
“Marketing is the activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large “
There are three things that changed the definition.
First, marketing is no longer functions, but the activity.
Second, marketing is not only a process for creating, communicating, delivering, but also the process for exchanging. I suspect this change because it is triggered by the strengthening of the position of consumers because of the Internet.
Third, target market, marketing is not just customers, clients and partners, but also society at large.
How does this change affect your marketing strategy ahead?