Marketing Basics

Definition

Marketing is the social process by which individuals and organizations obtain what they need and want through creating and exchanging value with others.

Kotler and Armstrong (2010).
(Armstrong et al 2009)


The Exchange Process

Exchange is the act of obtaining a desired object from someone by offering something in return.

For example you go into a restaurant and order your favourite meal. You eat the food and then you pay for it with your credit card. That’s a basic exchange relationship.

SWOT Analysis

SWOT analysis is a tool for auditing an organization and its environment. It is the first stage of planning and helps marketers to focus on key issues. SWOT stands for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Strengths and weaknesses are internal factors. Opportunities and threats are external factors. A strength is a positive internal factor. A weakness is a negative internal factor. An opportunity is a positive external factor. A threat is a negative external factor.

We should aim to turn our weaknesses into strengths, and our threats into opportunities. Then finally, SWOT will give managers options to match internal strengths with external opportunities. The outcome should be an increase in ‘value’ for customers – which hopefully will improve our competitive advantage.

The main purpose of the analysis has to be to add value to our products and services so that we can recruit new customers, retain loyal customers, and extend products and services to customer segments over the long-term. If undertaken successfully, we can then increase our Return On Investment (ROI).