subject: A Review On Marketing: Reaching Potential Customers [print this page] Thinking of a small business to venture with? Are you a neophyte in the business arena? Is your business declining? Do you have one of these questions in mind? Then you have to be refreshed with the basic marketing techniques to help you think of a business plan that is apt to your taste, to give you ideas on what to do in the business world and to help you find ways for a fresh approach to bring life back to your business.
To start with, you have to bear in mind that every business or organization needs to think about its markets and how effectively it meets its customers or clients needs. Organizations that dont satisfy their customers sooner or later disappear and the clients switch to your competitors. Conversely, those companies and organizations that find new and better ways to meet customers needs prosper and grow. In the marketing world, theres a saying that it is better to prosper than to fail and disappear.
Remember that marketing is more than just persuading your customers. Your primary aim is to identify your customers needs and to meet those needs so well that your product almost sells itself.
You must begin with your potential customers needs and not with the production process. After you have identified your customers, you should then determine what goods and services you must develop. And that includes decisions about product design and packaging and the printing company that would cater to your advertisement paraphernalia. They offer a variety of designs whether you like your packaging done in a traditional printing or custom printing way. You can also print online your chosen design for your packaging because the web offers a wide variety of layouts and designs you can choose from.
Likewise, these factors are equally important to consider in your business: prices or fees; credit and collection policies; use of middlemen; transporting and storing policies; and after the sale, installation, customer service, warranty and perhaps even disposal policies.
When your business is already out in the street, you must be aware that your business, especially your marketing strategy, will be having many critics. Your marketing strategy will be open to criticism because it is the part of a world most visible to the public and to your competitors.
Some typical complaints about marketing includes: advertisement is annoying and misleading. The products are not safe. The quality is very poor. Packaging and labeling are often confusing and deceptive (maybe you have to use custom printing). And too many unnecessary products are being offered. There would also be some complaints about your marketing only serving the rich and exploiting the poor.
Such complaints should not be taken lightly because it shows that your customers are not happy with some parts of your products or your marketing system. But you should also keep in mind that you have competitors, individual firms or managers that intentionally are unethical and have no qualms to cheat in order to get ahead in the market. You must investigate first before making the necessary action.
But at other times, problems and criticisms arise because the owner or manager did not fully consider or was not aware of the marketing ethics. There is no excuse for sloppiness when it comes to marketing ethics the moral standards that guide marketing decisions and actions should always be adhered to.
Keep in mind that not all criticisms in marketing focus on ethical issues. Fortunately, the prevailing practice of most business people is to be fair and honest. And thats what a businessman should be in order to succeed fair and honest.
