Comprehensive Marketing Concepts and Strategies for Students

Marketing Concept (outside-in)

Start with the market and customer needs - design customer-driven strategy - build profitable relationships - profits through customer satisfaction.

Production Concept

Consumers favor products that are available and affordable; focus on efficiency, low cost, and mass distribution.

Product Concept

Consumers favor products with the most quality, performance, and features; risk of marketing myopia if you ignore needs.

Societal Marketing Concept

Balance company profits, consumer wants, and society's long-run interests (e.g., sustainability, ethics).

Types of Products (simple)

Goods, services, ideas/experiences. (Exam 1 focuses on core differences vs. services and value creation.)

Types of Customers (microenvironment)

Consumer markets, business/reseller markets, government/nonprofit markets, international markets.

Marketing Process Model (5 steps)

1) Understand marketplace & needs, 2) Design customer-driven strategy (STP), 3) Build integrated program (4Ps), 4) Build profitable relationships & engagement, 5) Capture value (sales, CLV, customer equity).

Consumer Engagement Marketing

Creating ongoing brand conversations and community; invite and motivate customers to participate and share.

Customer Loyalty & Retention (why it matters)

Retained customers buy more, cost less to serve, cross-buy, and recommend; drives CLV and customer equity.

Customer Lifetime Value (CLV)

Present value of the future cash flows from a customer over the entire relationship.

Customer Relationship Groups

Strangers (low loyalty/low profit), Butterflies (low loyalty/high profit short-term), True Friends (high/high), Barnacles (high loyalty/low profit).

Customer Evangelists

Highly satisfied customers who enthusiastically recommend and advocate for the brand.

Marketing Myopia (Levitt)

Focusing on products and company operations rather than customer needs/benefits; leads to missed opportunities.

Law of Color (branding)

Choose brand colors that contrast with key competitors to stand out in memory and on shelf.

Moderate Incongruity (ads)

Messages just novel/abstract enough to make viewers think without confusing them; boosts attention/recall.

Down-Aging (positioning)

Appeals that let older consumers feel youthful/energetic through imagery and experiences.

LOHAS Segment

Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability consumers—value eco-friendly, natural, and socially responsible brands.

Targeting Criteria

Segment size/growth, structural attractiveness, company objectives/resources, fit with competencies.

4Ps (Marketing Mix)

Product, Price, Place, Promotion (service marketing sometimes adds People, Process, Physical evidence).

Channel Intermediaries vs Suppliers

Intermediaries help distribute and sell (wholesalers, retailers, shippers); Suppliers provide inputs/resources used to produce offerings.

Marketing Environment (why important)

Forces outside and inside the firm that affect ability to serve customers; scanning helps anticipate opportunities/threats.

Microenvironment (actors)

Company, Suppliers, Marketing Intermediaries, Competitors, Publics (financial, media, government, citizen-action, local, general, internal), Customers.

Macroenvironment (forces)

Demographic, Economic, Natural, Technological, Political/Legal, Cultural.

Demographic Forces (examples)

Age structure, household structure, population diversity, geographic shifts.

Economic Forces (examples)

Income, inflation, interest rates; 'Value marketing' and 'treasure-hunter tradeoffs' (splurge + cutbacks).

Natural Forces (examples)

Resource shortages, pollution, environmental sustainability; weather events affecting demand/supply.

Technological Forces (examples)

Innovation pace, RFID and tracking, AI/automation; tech shapes products, pricing, and distribution.

Political/Legal Forces (examples)

Regulation, consumer protection, privacy, antitrust (e.g., Sherman Act vs price fixing; price discrimination regulated).

Cultural Forces (examples)

Core beliefs/values, subcultures, societal trends like 'hypertasking' and 'clanning'.

Trend: Hypertasking

Doing multiple activities simultaneously with technology; impacts ad formats and attention.

Trend: Clanning

People form groups with shared interests/values; brands build communities and tribes.

Competitive Advantage (environment)

Delivering greater value or lower cost than rivals; can stem from brand, tech, relationships, operations.

Competitor Orientation + Law of Color

Understand competitors' positions and choose distinct positioning cues (including color) to differentiate.

Marketing Intelligence

Publicly available info about consumers, competitors, and marketplace developments (ethically gathered).

Marketing Research (steps)

Define problem & objectives → Develop research plan → Collect data → Analyze findings → Present insights.

Research Objectives (3 types)

Exploratory (define problems), Descriptive (describe markets/problems), Causal (test cause-effect).

Primary vs Secondary Data

Primary: collected for specific purpose (surveys, experiments). Secondary: already exists (reports, databases).

Research Approaches

Observational (watching behaviors), Survey (questionnaires), Experimental (manipulate variables to test causality).

Contact Methods: Mail

Pros: low cost, no interviewer bias; Cons: slow, low flexibility/response, potential credibility issues.

Contact Methods: Phone

Pros: fast, can clarify; Cons: interviewer bias, lower cooperation than in-person.

Contact Methods: In-person

Pros: most flexible, rich data; Cons: costly, interviewer effects.

Contact Methods: Online

Pros: fast, inexpensive, easy to reach; Cons: sample/control issues, response quality varies.

Focus Groups (classification)

Primary, descriptive research; qualitative insights into attitudes/motivations.

Experiments (classification)

Causal research; manipulate independent variable under controlled conditions to infer cause-effect.

Consumer Behavior (definition)

The study of how individuals/groups select, buy, use, and dispose of goods/services to satisfy needs/wants.

Cultural Factors

Culture (basic values), subculture (Hispanic, Asian American, African American), social class influence preferences.

Subculture: Hispanic Consumers

Shopping often a family affair; higher brand loyalty; strong word-of-mouth.

Subculture: Asian American Consumers

High purchasing power; enjoy shopping; early adopters; quality-focused.

Subculture: African American Consumers

Strong influence on music/fashion trends; brand-conscious segments.

Social Factors

Reference groups, family/household, roles and status; opinion leaders and influencers shape attitudes.

Personal Factors

Age/lifecycle stage, occupation, economic situation, lifestyle (activities, interests, opinions), personality/self-concept.

VALS Framework

Primary motivations: Ideals (guided by knowledge/principles), Achievement (success/status), Self-Expression (social/experiential).

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

Physiological → Safety → Social (belonging) → Esteem → Self-Actualization.

Cognitive Dissonance (post-purchase)

Discomfort from conflicting attitudes/behaviors after purchase; managed by reassurance, warranties, follow-up.

Buyer Decision Process (5 steps)

Need recognition → Info search → Evaluation of alternatives → Purchase → Post-purchase.

Baby Boomers (exam traits)

Most affluent; stay physically active; focus on wealth management; quality and service oriented.

Generation X (exam traits)

Skeptical, pragmatic; value experiences and authenticity; research before buying; cautious spenders.

Millennials / Gen Y (exam traits)

Now-oriented; multitaskers; maker/creator mindset; value experiences and purpose; heavy digital/social use.

Generation Z (exam traits)

Digital DNA; crave sensory-rich content; expect personalization; privacy wary (distrust sites with personal info); 'makers' not 'sharers'.

Publics (types)

Any group with interest in or impact on organization: financial, media, government, citizen-action, local, general, internal.

Sherman Antitrust Act (exam)

U.S. law prohibiting monopolization and price-fixing agreements; promotes competition.

Price Discrimination (policy)

Charging different prices to similar buyers without cost justification; regulated under U.S. law (e.g., Robinson-Patman).

Scenario: Coupon-loyal but low spending customer

Likely a Barnacle—high loyalty but low profitability; manage or re-target to increase share of wallet.

Scenario: New tech using RFID in logistics

Technological macroenvironment force; impacts Place (logistics) and Product (tracking features).

Scenario: Choose school for party atmosphere & sports

Cultural macroenvironment force (values/lifestyle).

Scenario: Lexus family ad (status/identity)

Consumer behavior factors: family, roles/status, aspirational reference groups.

Scenario: Tiger ad uses moderate incongruity

Ad is slightly abstract yet understandable—grabs attention and recall.

Scenario: Coca-Cola 'peace & harmony'

VALS motivation = Ideals (principle-driven, harmony/values cues).

Scenario: Focus group on teens' attitudes

Primary, descriptive research (qualitative).

Scenario: Experiment to test ad version effect

Causal research; manipulate ad version; measure purchase intent.

Scenario: Party cuts to afford concert ticket

Treasure-hunter tradeoffs (economic force); may also trigger post-purchase dissonance.

Mail survey (pros/cons)

Low cost/no interviewer bias, but slow, low flexibility, lower response/credibility.

Telephone survey (pros/cons)

Fast and can clarify; risk of interviewer effects and limited depth vs in-person.

Face-to-face survey (pros/cons)

Most flexible, rich data; costly and subject to interviewer bias.

Online survey (pros/cons)

Fast, inexpensive, scalable; sample quality/representativeness can vary; response depth depends on design.

Intermediaries vs Suppliers vs Customers

Intermediaries help company promote/sell/distribute; Suppliers provide resources/inputs; Customers are end users (not intermediaries).

Micro vs Macro Examples

Micro: suppliers, intermediaries, competitors, publics, customers. Macro: economic (inflation), cultural (values), political (regulation), technological (RFID), natural (resource scarcity), demographic (age structure).

4Ps vs 'People'

'People' is part of 7Ps for services, but not one of the classic 4Ps (Product, Price, Place, Promotion).