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Fundamental Concepts

Defining Marketing

Developed by:
Stephen P. DAlessandro
M.A. (Mrktg), B.A. (Hons.) Bus. Mang, FIM, MCIM, TEP, MIOD
Clive Scerri
B.Com. (Hons.), MIM, MAWOP
This module has been level-rated at MQF Level 5 by the Malta Qualifications Council according to the
European Credit System for Vocational Education & Training - ECVET.
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Overview
Any effective analysis of marketing must start off
with the most basic questions:
What is marketing all about?
What is its aim?
Traditionally, marketing has been associated with
advertising and selling, however over the years
studies and international best practice have
shown that there is more to marketing than that
The marketing landscape has evolved through
time, based on the needs of the industry, the
consumers and the tools provided to marketers

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Overview
Marketing is not about the setting up of a
department within an organisation which is
focused on sales and carries out some marketing
research in support of such activities

Marketing is far more than that; it is indeed a
philosophy based on continually looking at the
business from the most important perspective of
all the customers!

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Overview
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Getting the basics right
What is marketing?
Marketing is more than just a sales or
advertising department
Quite simply it is all about "looking at the
business through the customers' eyes"

It is vital because it enables the enterprise to
plan on the basis of the true objective and is
the only yardstick which will guarantee
success; i.e. supplying value satisfactions to
the customer at a profit
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Getting the basics right
With this basic understanding, the definition of
the essence of marketing is more pertinent and
reflects how this translates to the actual
workplace by going through the 5 key steps of
the marketing process

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The Marketing System
The market and its segments

Within each market there are a number of
different segments which can further be divided
into groups of actual or potential customers who
can satisfy similar needs with the benefits of the
same product

Each segment can in fact be differentiated by a
degree of buyer loyalty ranging from total to nil
These segments have to be tackled selectively to
achieve minimum conflict to image and maximum
profitability
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The company and its functions

Every company has three basic functions,
namely: production, finance and marketing.
It operates through the utilisation of two
major resources, capital and labour

Each of these functions has a different
objective, operates to some extent on a
different time-scale, attracts different types of
people and regards money in a different way
The Marketing System
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The company and its functions (cont.)

It calls for a prioritisation of the various internal
goals and objectives, to ensure that there is an
understanding of the overall goals and
objectives of the firm and the manner in which
the different people must collaborate to attain
them
The Marketing System
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