MODULE 2:

1. Market Segmentation

● Concept: Dividing a broad market into smaller, homogeneous groups with similar
needs.
● Key Elements:
○ Segmentation: Breaking down a heterogeneous market into homogeneous
subunits.
○ Targeting: Choosing specific segments to serve.
○ Positioning: Creating a distinct place for the product in the minds of the
target audience.

Importance of Segmentation

● Improved Customer Relations: Better understanding of customer needs.

● Perfect Marketing Mix: Accurate targeting for pricing, promotion, and distribution.
● Resource Allocation: Efficient use of resources by focusing on the right segments.
● Competitor Analysis: Identifies competitors and areas where a company can excel.
● Dynamic Environment: Helps in adapting to market changes.
● Focused Marketing Communication: Harmonized marketing messages for specific
segments.

Requisites for Effective Segmentation

1. Measurable: Market size and purchasing power must be quantifiable.

2. Accessible: Target segments must be reachable at an affordable cost.
3. Substantial: Must be large enough to be profitable.
4. Differentiable: Segments must respond differently to different marketing strategies.
5. Actionable: Companies must be able to implement strategies for the segment.

Types of Segmentation

1. Geographic Segmentation: Divides based on region, city size, or climate (e.g.,

urban vs rural).
2. Personal Demographic Segmentation: Based on age, gender, family size,
education, etc. (e.g., Generation Y, baby boomers).
3. Behavioral Segmentation: Focus on purchasing behavior, loyalty (e.g., frequent
flyers, brand loyalty levels).
 4. Psychographic Segmentation: Based on lifestyle, personality (e.g., reformers,
aspirers, achievers).
5. Socioeconomic Segmentation: Based on income, employment status, education,
and social class (e.g., middle-class vs luxury buyers).

2 . Targeting

● Meaning: Selecting the most suitable segments to serve.

Market Targeting Procedure

1. Evaluating Market Segments: Analyze based on size, growth, and profitability.

2. Selecting Market Segments: Choose which and how many segments to target.

Types of Target Marketing Strategies

● Undifferentiated Marketing: Single marketing mix for all (e.g., Coca-Cola).

● Large Segment Strategy: Focus on a large, profitable segment.
● Adjacent Segment Strategy: After saturating a core segment, companies move to
an adjacent, related segment (e.g., Suzuki starting with Maruti 800 and expanding to
larger cars like Maruti Zen).
● Multi-Segment Strategy: Serve multiple market segments with different offerings
(e.g., Nike for different sports).
● Small Segment Strategy: Focus on a small, often overlooked segment ignored by
large competitors.
● Niche Segment Strategy: Focus on a highly specialized, small segment.
● Sub-Segment Strategy (Micromarketing): Customization for individual or smaller
local segments.

Selection Criteria for Targeting

1. Market Share & Homogeneity: Consider the current market share and how
homogeneous the market is.
2. Product Expertise: The firm's existing expertise in the market.
3. Economies of Scale: Likelihood of benefiting from production and marketing scale.
4. Competitive Environment: The structure and intensity of competition.
5. Market Environment Trends: External forces like technology, regulations, and
trends.
6. Customer Needs Match: Ease of matching customer needs with the firm’s
resources.
7. Segment Attractiveness: Size, growth potential, and profitability of the segment.
8. Corporate Resources: Available resources to serve the segment effectively.
9. Profitability: Anticipated profits and market share.
3 . Positioning

● Meaning: Creating a unique image in consumers’ minds about the product relative to
competitors.
● Key Elements: Relevant differentiation and value proposition for target segments.

Types of Positioning Strategies

1. Attributes: Focus on product characteristics (e.g., eBay’s “Buy it, Sell it, Love it”).
2. Price/Quality: Focus on cost-value relationship (e.g., Omega watches).
3. Competitor Positioning: Position product against competitors (e.g., Walmart).
4. Application/Use: Highlight specific uses of the product (e.g., hot tea in winter and
iced tea in summer).
5. Cultural Symbols: Use cultural meanings for brand identity (e.g., airlines’ royal
treatment).
6. Product Class: Position within a broader product category (e.g., BMW’s “ultimate
driving machine”).

Steps in Positioning

1. Identify competitors and target products.

2. Determine product attributes.
3. Collect customer perceptions.
4. Locate the product’s current position in the market.
5. Identify customer preferences.
6. Examine market fit and gaps.
7. Develop a positioning statement or value proposition.

Module 1:
1. Definition of Marketing

● Philip Kotler’s Definition: Marketing is a social and managerial process where

individuals and groups obtain what they need and want by creating and exchanging
products and value.
● American Marketing Association’s Definition: Marketing is the activity of creating,
communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers,
clients, partners, and society.

Four Components of Marketing

1. Creating: Collaborating with suppliers and customers to create offerings.

2. Communicating: Describing and learning from customer needs.
3. Delivering: Getting offerings to the consumer in the best way.
4. Exchanging: Trading value for offerings (goods/services).
Four Ps of Marketing

1. Product: Goods and services offered.

2. Promotion: Communicating value to customers.
3. Place: Making products available for purchase.
4. Price: The monetary value charged for the product.

2. Modern Marketing

● Modern marketing focuses on customer experience across every touchpoint and

emphasizes building relationships.
● Key Components:
1. Technology Stack
2. Skills and Team
3. Measurement
4. Ongoing Education

3. Evolution of Marketing Concepts

1. Production Orientation Period: Focus on mass production; assumed that good

products sell themselves.
2. Sales Orientation Period: Emphasized aggressive selling techniques to push
unsold inventory.
3. Customer Orientation Period: Focus on understanding and satisfying customer
needs.
4. Social Orientation Period: Emphasized customer retention and long-term
relationships.

4. Core Marketing Concepts

● Need: Basic human requirements.

● Want: Desires shaped by culture and personality.
● Demand: Wants backed by purchasing power.
● Customer Value: Difference between benefits received and costs incurred.
● Satisfaction: How well a product meets or exceeds customer expectations.
● Exchange: Act of obtaining a desired object by offering something in return.
● Transaction: Agreed exchange between two or more parties.
● Market: Group of buyers and sellers for a specific product.
● Marketing Management: Choosing target markets and building relationships to
deliver value.
5. Marketing Orientations/Concepts

1. Production Concept: Focus on efficient production and wide availability of products.

2. Product Concept: Focus on product quality and innovation.
3. Selling Concept: Emphasis on aggressive selling and promotional efforts.
4. Marketing Concept: Focus on customer needs and delivering superior value.
5. Customer Concept: Tailoring offerings to individual customer preferences.
6. Societal Marketing Concept: Balancing customer needs with societal well-being.

6. Marketing Environment

● Microenvironment: Immediate factors affecting a company, such as:

1. Company
2. Suppliers
3. Marketing Intermediaries
4. Competitors
5. Publics
6. Customers
● Macroenvironment: Larger societal forces affecting marketing:
1. Demographic: Population size, age, location.
2. Economic: Consumer purchasing power.
3. Natural: Environmental concerns and resource availability.
4. Technological: Innovations impacting business.
5. Political and Social: Laws and regulations.
6. Cultural: Social values and behaviors.

7. Scope and Functions of Marketing

1. Research Functions:
○ Marketing Research: Understanding buyer preferences.
○ Product Planning: Designing products to meet customer needs.
2. Exchange Functions:
○ Buying and Assembling: Gathering necessary resources.
○ Selling: Generating revenue through sales.
3. Physical Supply Functions:
○ Standardization/Grading: Setting product standards.
○ Packaging and Labelling: Protecting and branding products.
○ Storage and Transportation: Managing logistics.
4. Facilitating Functions:
○ Financing: Ensuring sufficient funds for operations.
○ Salesmanship: Promoting products to customers.
○ Advertising: Communicating product benefits.
○ Marketing Information: Data to support marketing decisions.
8. Importance of Marketing

1. Communication Between Manufacturer and Customer: Information sharing for

better product decisions.
2. Profit Maximization: Effective marketing creates demand and increases profits.
3. Decision-Making: Helps businesses make informed decisions.
4. Employment Creation: Marketing supports multiple sectors.
5. Improves Standard of Living: Delivers better products to society.

9. Social, Ethical, and Legal Aspects of Marketing

1. Social Marketing: Addressing societal issues such as poverty and environmental

sustainability.
2. Ethical Marketing: Avoiding consumer exploitation and misleading advertising.
3. Legal Aspects: Adhering to laws governing advertising, product safety, and
consumer protection.
10. Consumer Behavior

● Definition: The study of how individuals buy, use, and dispose of products to satisfy
needs.
● Factors Influencing Consumer Behavior:
1. Cultural: Culture and subcultures.
2. Social: Influence of family, social networks.
3. Personal: Age, occupation, lifestyle.
4. Psychological: Motivation, perception, beliefs.

11. Consumer Decision-Making Process

1. Need Recognition: Realizing the need for a product.

2. Information Search: Gathering information about solutions.
3. Evaluation of Alternatives: Comparing product options.
4. Purchase Decision: Selecting a product.
5. Post-Purchase Behavior: Assessing satisfaction after purchase.

12. Customer Journey Map

A customer journey map outlines the steps a customer goes through when interacting with
a business, aiming to reach a goal. Here's a simplified breakdown:

● Buying Process: This is the planned path businesses want customers to take to
make a purchase, listed step by step.
● Customer Stages: There are typically four key stages—inquiry (awareness),
comparison, purchase, and installation. Sometimes, there's a fifth stage called
loyalty or advocacy.
● User Actions: Customers go through various actions, like discussing needs with
others in the inquiry stage, taking product demos, and finally making a purchase
using cash or card.
● Emotions: Throughout the journey, customers feel different emotions like
excitement, worry, or relief, depending on how easy or complex the process is.
● Pain Points: Identifying where customers face difficulties helps businesses
understand and fix issues that cause negative experiences.
● Customer Touchpoints: These are the points where customers interact with the
business, like making phone calls or using chatbots during installation or service.
● Solutions: Finally, businesses need to find ways to improve the process to reduce
pain points and create a smoother customer experience..
● Stages:
1. Awareness: Learning about a product.
2. Consideration: Evaluating product options.
3. Purchase: Making the buying decision.
 4. Retention: Continuing to use the product.
5. Advocacy: Recommending the product to others.

Module 3:

MODULE 3: MARKETING MIX DECISION

Product Decisions

Meaning of Product
A product is anything offered to a market for attention, acquisition, use, or consumption that
satisfies a want or need. It includes physical goods, services, events, persons, places,
organizations, ideas, or a combination of these. Examples: an Apple iPad, Toyota Camry,
Starbucks Green Tea Frappuccino. Services like banking, hotel, airline services, tax
preparation, and home-repair services are also considered products.

Product and Service Classifications

Products and services are classified into:

● Consumer Products: Bought by final consumers for personal consumption.

○ Convenience Products: Frequently purchased with minimal effort, e.g.,
soap, candy.
○ Shopping Products: Purchased after careful comparison, e.g., furniture,
clothing.
○ Specialty Products: Unique products for which consumers make a special
effort to purchase, e.g., luxury cars, designer clothes.
○ Unsought Products: Products that consumers do not normally think of
buying, e.g., life insurance, blood donations.
● Industrial Products: Bought for further processing or business use.
○ Materials and Parts: Raw materials (wheat, lumber) and manufactured parts
(tires, wires).
○ Capital Items: Major purchases like buildings, equipment.
○ Supplies and Services: Operating supplies and business services like
consulting or repair services.