Functions of marketing
The functions of marketing are embodied in the aggregate of economic activities related to the transfer of property right, selling and buying, the transport and storage of goods, distribution, packaging, financing and procurement.
All these areas involve numerous marketing actions that are distinguished between general and specific functions.
The general functions of marketing are:
- Market and consumer research. This is the main function of all marketing activities. This function implies obtaining the information about the current market situation and future perspectives. This is the foundation of all decisions: formulating the strategy, designing a new product or service, extension to a new market, targeting a specific market.
- Permanent adaptation to the requirements of social and economic environment. This implies the employment of all resources in order to operatively accommodate to the market demands. A company's adaptability can be measured by comparing the dynamics of the supply it is providing to the dimension, structure and level of demand. It depends on the capacity of the management to use the resources effectively.
- Full satisfaction of demand. This is the objective of any company that aims for a rewarding economic activity. As a company manages to accomplish better the market requirements, its chances to gain profit, increase its turnover and surpass its competitors, rise.
- Maximizing of economic efficiency. It assumes the optimization of all economic processes (production, transportation, storage, distribution) so that the profitability is increasing.
Marketing involves more than its functions. It has certain principles of organizing the company's activity:
- Market knowledge. The customer must be helped to make a choice. For this reason, various information from the market need to be collected and analyzed. Information about: the structure and dynamics of demand, tastes and preferences of consumers.
- The company needs to produce what it can sell, not to sell what it can produce.
- Anticipation of consumer preferences. The market needs to be studied and future trends forecasted.
- Marketing for the company, not company for marketing. All resources need to be invested in the business and the staff needs to be motivated to adhere to the company's general objective.
Achievement of these principles guides the company to attain the final objective and has a long term perspective of efficient activities.