Marketing is at the heart of every organisation’s activity. Its importance is also growing in the non-commercial, public and voluntary sectors. Also, at the heart of marketing is the customer. This unit will introduce learners to some of the tools and techniques all types of organisations use to achieve their objectives.
Firstly, learners will explore how different types of organisations use marketing principles to meet the needs of their customers and achieve their objectives. The constraints under which organisations operate are important and learners will study the legal requirements and voluntary codes that affect marketing.
Learners will then go on to investigate how organisations collect data through market research and turn it into useful information which can be analysed and used to plan their marketing activities.
The segmentation and targeting of groups of customers is a key marketing technique and this is studied in detail. This includes the different bases for segmentation of both consumer and business markets.
Next, learners will examine how a marketing mix is developed to meet the needs and aspirations of a targeted group of prospective customers, before going on to develop a marketing mix for a new product or service.
The unit gives a brief overview of the principles of marketing or can be used as a basis for further study of specialist marketing units.
You will complete 4 separate assignments to complete this unit.
You should attempt to provide evidence of understanding of all the unit content in your coursework.
YOU MUST ENSURE EACH SET DEADLINE IS MET. Unit Content
On completion of this unit a learner should produce evidence covering all of their learning outcomes.
Learning Outcomes:
1 Know the role of marketing in organisations
Role: overall concept; marketing definitions
Objectives: private sector aims and objectives (survival, growth); public and voluntary sector aims and objectives (service provision, growth of range of provision, cost limitation, meeting quality standards); marketing objectives, eg market leadership, brand awareness, perceptions of customers or users; link between organisational objectives and marketing objectives
Techniques: growth strategies (diversification, product development, market penetration or market development, Ansoff’s Matrix); survival strategies; branding (importance in influencing buyer behaviour, brand building, positioning, brand extension); relationship marketing (definition, difference between transactional marketing and relationship marketing, value of lifetime customer)
Limitations and constraints: legal (Sale of Goods Act 1979, The Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008, Consumer Credit Acts 1974 and 2006, Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations, Data Protection Act 1998); voluntary, eg Code of Advertising Practice and Advertising Standards Authority; pressure groups and consumerism; acceptable language
2 Be able to use marketing research and marketing planning
Marketing research: qualitative; quantitative; primary internal/external research; secondary internal/external research; uses (reduce risk in decision making, measure progress over time); limitations (cost effectiveness, validity of data collected)
Marketing planning: marketing planning process model (audit with PESTLE (political, economic, social, technological, legal and environmental external factors); SWOT (internal strengths and weaknesses, external opportunities and threats); set SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, resourced, time-bound) objectives; determine strategy and tactics, implement changes; evaluate)
3 Understand how and why customer groups are targeted
Identifying customers in consumer markets: difference
