Introduction to Business - Marketing a Business

Vocabulary flashcards covering the fundamentals of marketing, utility, segmentation, consumer behavior, and marketing research as presented by Prof. Dr. Sebastian Müller on May 12, 2026.

Marketing

An organizational function and a set of processes for creating, communicating, and delivering value to customers and for managing customer relationships in ways that benefit the organization and its stakeholders.

Utility

The ability of goods and services to satisfy consumer "wants."

Form utility

A type of utility that satisfies wants by converting inputs into a finished form.

Time utility

A type of utility that satisfies wants by providing goods and services at a convenient time for customers.

Place utility

A type of utility that satisfies wants by providing goods and services at a convenient place for customers.

Ownership utility

A type of utility that satisfies wants by smoothly transferring ownership of goods and services from seller to buyer.

Customer Relationship Management (CRM)

The ongoing process of acquiring, maintaining, and growing profitable customer relationships by delivering unmatched value.

Value

A customer perception that a product has a better relationship than its competitors between the cost and the benefits.

Customer satisfaction

Occurs when customers perceive that a good or service delivers value above and beyond their expectations.

Customer loyalty

When customers buy a product from the same supplier again and again—sometimes paying even more for it than they would for a competitive product.

Marketing plan

A formal document that defines marketing objectives and the specific strategies for achieving those objectives.

Market segmentation

Dividing potential customers into groups of similar people, or segments.

Target market

The group of people who are most likely to buy a particular product.

Consumer marketers (B2C)

Marketers who direct their efforts toward people who are buying products for personal consumption.

Business marketers (B2B)

Marketers who direct their efforts toward people who are buying products to use either directly or indirectly to produce other products.

Demographic segmentation

Dividing the market into smaller groups based on measurable characteristics about people, such as age, income, ethnicity, and gender.

Geographic segmentation

Dividing the market into smaller groups based on where consumers live, which can incorporate countries, cities, or population density.

Psychographic segmentation

Dividing the market into smaller groups based on consumer attitudes, interests, values, and lifestyles.

Behavioral segmentation

Dividing the market based on how people behave toward various products, including benefits sought and how they use the products.

Marketing mix

The blend of marketing strategies for product, price, distribution, and promotion.

Environmental scanning

The process of continually collecting information from the external marketing environment, including competitive, economic, social/cultural, technological, and political/legal factors.

Market share

The percentage of a market controlled by a given marketer.

Consumer behavior

Description of how people act when they are buying, using, and discarding goods and services for their own personal consumption, including the reasons behind those actions.

Cognitive dissonance

Consumer discomfort with a purchase decision, typically for a higher-priced item.

Business buyer behavior

Describes how people act when they are buying products to use either directly or indirectly to produce other products, based on purchasing training and rational criteria.

Marketing research

The process of gathering, interpreting, and applying information to uncover marketing opportunities and challenges, and to make better marketing decisions.

Secondary data

Existing data that marketers gather or purchase for a research project.

Primary data

New data that marketers compile for a specific research project.

Observation research

Marketing research that does not require the researcher to interact with the research subject.

Survey research

Marketing research that requires the researcher to interact with the research subject.