Posted by Anjali Kaur on Aug 20, 2020

What are the Functions of Marketing Management?

It is important to understand the functions of marketing management to realize how important a marketing management role is in creating the value of a product in a customer’s mind. I will recommend you to revise the marketing management and the 5 marketing management philosophies. Now, we will start our learning process. Let’s go! 😎

The Functions of Marketing Management

1. Gathering and Analyzing Information

This function is necessary to identify the needs of the customers, which helps in analyzing the available opportunities and threats as well as the strengths and weaknesses of the organization. As shown below:

Opportunities (O) and Threats (T) constitute the external environment outside the organization.

Strength (S) and Weakness (W) constitute the internal environment these are internal to the organization.

For gathering information from the market, the marketer focuses on OT and uses its strength to capture the opportunities and prepare policies to overcome their weaknesses and threats.

For example, companies use internet sites, SMS facilities to obtain customer information regarding the product.

2. Market Planning

After market research, the marketer has to plan the steps which are required to achieve the marketing objective. They make a plan to increase production, to increase sales, maintain goodwill, etc.

For example, Ross is a marketer of an XYZ soft drinks company, after conducting his research, he found out that only 10% of the total population was buying his product. He then plans to increase his market share to 40% by adopting different promotional techniques.

3. Product Designing and Development

The design of the product contributes to making the product attractive to the target customer. A good design can improve the performance of a product and also give it a competitive advantage in the market.

For example, when we plan to buy products like a motorbike, we not only see features like cost, mileage, etc. but also the design aspects like its shape, style, etc.

4. Standardization and Grading

Standardization means maintaining a quality standard to achieve uniformity in the product. It provides quality assurance and consistency to consumers.

For example, Indian Standard Institution (ISI) mark is used for different industrial items, etc.

Grading means the classification of the product in different groups based on some of its important characteristics like size, quality, etc. It is used in agricultural products like apple, wheat, orange, etc.

5. Packaging and Labeling

Packaging refers to designing of packets, wrapper for packing the product.

Attractive packaging induces the customers to buy the product. That’s why it is called the silent salesman. Designing and developing the label to be put on the package. For example, graphics.

6. Branding

Branding helps in creating product differentiation, that is, providing a basis for distinguishing the product of a firm with that of the competitor, which in turn helps in building customer loyalty and in promoting its sale.

For example, Sony TV doesn’t have separate brands so they market their brand. In the case of HUL (Hindustan Unilever limited), they have separate brands such as kwality walls, Dove, Sunsilk, etc.

So, HUL promotes other brands. The selection of brands plays important role in the success of a product.

7. Customer Support Service

An important function of marketing management relates to developing customer support services such as after-sale service, handling customer complaints, getting credit service, maintenance, customer information.

All these services aim at providing maximum customer satisfaction, which is the key to marketing success in modern days.

8. Pricing of Product

Price means the money which a customer has to pay to buy a product or service.

Price is the most crucial element of marketing as a customer is highly price-sensitive, a little variation in price may take a customer to the competitor’s product.

9. Promotion and Selling

After the production of a good, marketers perform two functions which are promotion and selling. It includes all the activities which are undertaken to communicate with the customer and to increase the sale.

For promotion, marketer performs functions like advertising, sale promotion, etc.

For example, to boost the sale of nestle maggie, marketers start offering free samples to the customers.

10.Physical Distribution

For the distribution of goods and services, the location has to be decided by the marketer which is easily accessible to the customers.

The physical distribution includes decisions like the choice of channel distribution, maintaining stock, storage, etc.

11. Transportation

The goods are not necessarily consumed at the same place (where they are produced). There is a gap between production and consumption.

To cover this gap, the marketer makes use of various modes of transportation.

These modes of transportation help to transfer the goods to different corners of the country.

For example, In the case of the Club factory, the goods are transported from different countries to the customer, that’s why it takes more delivery time.

12. Storage and Warehousing

The goods are not consumed immediately when they are produced. There is a time gap between production and sale. So, it is necessary to keep the goods safe during this time.

Goods need to be protected from moisture, insects, etc. So, marketer often maintains their warehouses to store the products or use public warehouses to store the same until they are demanded in the market.

For example, cold storage for agricultural goods.

I hope, it was helpful.

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Thank You!

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