3.1.1 and 3.1.

2- The role of marketing & Niche and Mass Marketing

What is Marketing and what does it include?
● Market
○ Exchange between producers and consumers
○ Fims need to have information
■ Size and profitability of a potential market
○ Market changes over time
■ People’s taste
■ New technology
■ New competitors
○ Firms use marketing to develop products that people need and want
■ Adapt depending on customer interests
● Marketing includes
○ Identifying needs and wants
■ Via research
○ Satisfying needs and wants
■ Selling right products at right price
○ Anticipating changes to the needs and wants
■ Taste change and new products take time to develop
● Need to anticipate these changes
○ See if the needs are being met or not and where
○ Creating and keeping customer loyalty
○ Generating revenue and profit
■ Purpose is to help make the profit

Product Orientation
● Firms develop a product then look for a market
■ Some products like medicines and technology
● Hard to predict what the final product will do
○ So they get developed first in the hope of finding a market
for them
■ The risk is you may make a product no one wants

Market Orientation
● Before committing to making a product
○ Firms try to work out if there will be consumer demand
■ Possible profitability
○ Firms access potential markets
■ By trying to find a product they can make
● Has a profitable market
○ Find this information by market research
■ Asking possible customers what they want and think
○ Less risky than product orientation
■ But is costly and slower to wait for trends to emerge
Marketing Objectives
● Raise awareness of the product or company
● Improve the image of the company
○ Unconscious decision to pick the certain company
● Improve the design and quality of existing products
○ Depends on the market audience and what they think
■ Environmental factors
● Develop and introduce new products
● Maintain or increase their market share
○ Share of sales in a market
■ Fewer competitors
● Find new markets
○ Overseas or new people to buy existing products
● Encourage repeat purchases and brand loyalty
● Increase and keep higher level of profitability

Marketing mix- 4 P’s

Product The design and quality of the product and packaging compared to rival products

Price The price at which the product is sold

Place The channels of distribution; where and how the product is sold

Promotion Brand name and image of the product; advertising and other ways to raise awareness
of the product

Mass Marketing
Selling to everyone
● Benefits
○ Can aid business expansion
○ Increased sales
■ Lead to higher profit
○ The bigger the business, the more it would benefit from economies of scale
○ By having lots of products
■ Minimise the impact of a drop in sales
● In one product with another
● Limitations
○ Often low price
■ Invites competition
○ Mass marketing can be expensive
■ If you fail to connect with a large number of customers
● Can prove to be costly

Niche Marketing
selling to a small part of a larger market
● Benefits
○ Usually less competition
■ Small market size
○ The product is the most important thing
■ Advertising costs are low
○ People will pay more
■ For the right product
○ Develop a reputation
■ Brand loyalty for specialization
● Limitations
 ○ Due to small size
■ Market may not grow much
○ Limited range of products
■ More at risk of people don’t want that product anymore
● Nothing else to offer

3.1.3- Market Changes

Market Trends
● Markets constantly change
○ Businesses can monitor to see whether they are
■ Demand side factors
● Changes in tastes and spending
■ Supply side factors
● Changes in the number
● Price and quality of rival products
● Type and amount of competition between rival producers
■ Legal protection for products
● Patent
○ Invention/ process/ product
● Copyright
○ Idea
● Trademark
○ Design
● The general direction of change or growth in sales over time
 Changes in Consumer Behaviour and Spending
● Price factors
○ The law of demand
■ people buy less of a product when the price rises
■ People buy more when the price lowers
○ Firms can compete for increased sales
■ Being cheaper than rivals
● Can be cheaper by keeping costs low
○ Buying cheaper raw material
○ Using technology
● Non price factors
○ Changes in target customers incomes
■ If potential customers have more disposable income
● May buy more goods
○ After paying taxes etc.
○ Changes in populations
■ Not just more people
● Change in distribution of ages and gender
○ Changes in tastes and fashions
○ Social and cultural factors
○ Seasonal factors
○ Technological change

Competition
● Why should there be competition
○ To increase their number of customers
○ To increase sale revenue
○ To expand their share of market
■ Market share
○ To enhance their image
○ To maximise their profits
● Characteristics of a competitive market
○ More similar firms selling similar products
○ Increased innovation in product design and production
○ Price cutting may happen more often
■ Price wars
● Fighting to get more customers by lowering price
 ● Break even
○ Not making a profit- selling just enough to pay for the costs
○ The share of the market firms will change over time
○ Greater product development and marketing spending
○ New firms often enter the market
○ Prices and product features will change more frequently
● Reasons for increased competition
○ The economic development of developing countries
○ Rising global incomes
○ New technologies have reduced costs of starting and running a business
■ More innovative and can do different and new things
○ The development of e-commerce
○ Greater sharing of information making for more informed customers
● The need for competition
○ Forces firms to:
■ Innovate to reduce costs, lower prices and attract customers
■ Create better advertising and communication`11
■ To research products that better meets customer wants
■ To be aware of the impact on their image of how they operate
■ To attract and keep the best workers and manager
3.1.4 & 3.2.1- Market Segmentation and Market Research
Main ways to Segment
● Income
○ More money may increase sales of certain types of products
● Age
○ Buy different things
■ Different stages of life
● Lifestyle
○ How people express their choices and beliefs affects their spending
● Gender
○ Men and women buy different products
■ Different ways
● Location
○ Where people can live can change what and how they buy
● Socio- economic group
○ Social, economic and educational status
● Advantages
○ Makes the business marketing more effective
■ Focusing and adapting to the specific needs of each target market sector
○ Helps you identify gaps in the market
■ Customers whose needs and wants are not being met by other firms
● Offers new markets
○ Increases profit

Market Research
● Good market research reduces risk of developing and producing products that don’t
appeal to customers
○ Quantitative
■ Numerical information
○ Qualitative
■ Written or verbal information
 ○ Primary research
■ New data collection from “field research”
○ Secondary research
■ Desk- based research
● Using data from existing sources
● Different steps
○ Stage 1
■ What is the purpose?
■ What information is needed and what action may result?
○ Stage 2
■ Choosing the best method considering time and budget available
○ Stage 3
■ Design a questionnaire, target consumers and sources of information
○ Stage 4
■ Undertake the research
○ Stage 5
■ Analyse the result and produce a report of findings
● Primary research
○ Involves market researchers going out and collecting original data
○ Advantages
■ Collected to meet the specific requirements of the business
● More up to date
○ Types of research
■ Face-to face interviews
● Telephone, online and postal surveys
○ Can be cost effective
○ Ask varied types of questions
■ Can be explained to get best quality of answer
○ People may not take part or be honest
■ Telephone charge will be incurred
■ Takes time
■ Misunderstood or misleading
■ Consumer panel
● Gathering a variety of consumer opinions
○ Can be time- consuming and expensive to set up
■ Sometimes influenced by strong individuals in the
group
■ Observation and test marketing
● Can be cost effective to gather a large amount of quantitative data
○ Reduce the risk that products may fail by first testing
consumer reactions
● Can be time consuming
● Won’t say why people buy what they do and observed groups may
differ from region to region
■ Questionnaires
● Can be a useful way to collect information
○ Need to be well designed to get good information
● Good questions should
○ Not lead taker to a particular answer
○ Limit the number of possible answers
○ Not ask too many questions
○ Be asked in a logical order
 ○ Not be offensive or embarrassing
○ Be short, easy to understand and easy to answer
○ Not ask confidential details and names
■ Sampling
● Too expensive and impractical to interview or survey everyone
○ Get primary data from a small number of consumers
● Sample populations
○ 2 types
■ Random sampling
● Picking interviewees at random
○ To reduce the chance of getting a
biased sample
■ Might gather useless data
from people- not in the target
group
■ Quota sampling
● Choosing in advance interviewees
○ According to particular
characteristics
■ Age, sex etc
● Sources of secondary information
○ Found by desk based research
■ Internal sources
● Accounting
● Stock
● Records of orders
● Payments & deliveries
● Sales
● Customer feedback
■ External sources
● Government reports
● Market research
○ From professional organisations
● Newspapers
● Magazines
● Journals
● Trade association
● Competitors and the internet

Accuracy of Market Research Data

● Despite trying to find out what the market wants
○ Products can fail to sell well
■ Competitor bringing a better or cheaper product
■ Tastes of consumer change quickly
○ Can also be the selling businesses fault
■ The research was faulty
■ Due to poor market research design
○ Primary bias
■ Sampling bias
● Those chosen for interview don’t represent the target market you
want to make the product for
■ Questionnaire bias
 ● Misleading or badly worded questions
○ Get answers that don’t reflect people’s buying habits
■ Response bias
● People often exaggerate when answering
○ Secondary bias
■ Taking information from a secondary source
● Always analyse for deliberate or accidental bias
○ Data collected may have sampling errors
○ Some results are published by people
■ To influence the reader to think in a particular way
● eg- political parties
○ Statistics go out of date
■ People change tastes and ideas

3.3.1 Product
The Right Product
● Product has to satisfy consumer needs and wants
● Needs to be “fit for purpose”
○ Should do what role or function it was bought for
● Cost of production each item or unit must be below the price at which customers are
willing or able to pay
 Role of Packaging
● Should protect the product in transportation and storage
● Needs to keep perishable items fresh
○ Eg. meat or milk
● Has to be easy to open and use
● Environmentally easy to dispose of
● Can provide important information
○ Use by
○ Ingredients
● Design, color, shape
○ Can reinforce brand image
● Usually has to comply with local laws

Field Trials and new product development

● Field trials
○ Tests sales potential and consumer reaction to the product
■ Before making a long term and potentially costly commitment to make a
product
● Advantages
○ Reduces the risk of producing a product customers don’t want to buy
○ Allows firms to assess if product fills the gap in the market
○ Helps firms build market share by expanding sales
○ Helps extend product range, to reduce dependence on sales of any one product
● Types of goods- each has a different target market

Consumer Goods Services Capital goods

● Durable goods ● Consumer service ● Produced for other

○ Washing machines or ○ Personal services businesses
laptops ■ Banking ○ Machinery
■ Beauty ○ Ships
treatments ○ lorries
■ restaurants

● Non-durable goods ● Producer service ● Semi-finished goods

○ Fast moving ○ Business banking ○ Materials and
consumers goods ○ Management components
■ Milk consultancy ■ For others to
■ Bread ○ Market research assemble
■ shampoo

Branding
● Creation of a lasting positive attitude to a company or its products
○ Can be used to identify and distinguish a product
■ Set it apart from competitors in the minds of the target audience
● Must haves for a brand:
○ Brand name
■ Easy for customers to remember
 ○ Brand image
■ Creates a positive image to the product
● If successful
○ May get brand loyalty
■ Customers repeatedly buy the same brand of product
● Sometimes at price higher than competitors
● Creating and advertising helps brand awareness
○ Potential consumers find out about the product
■ They might get brand recognition where even people who have not had
contact with the company know about it
● Becomes the name for the product
○ Sellotape
○ Velcro

Product Life Cycle

● Each product goes through a natural life cycle
○ It is conceived, introduced, grows, matures and the goes into decline

Do - Personal development
I - Introduction
awareness
Get - Growth
Persuade more people to try it
My - Maturity
Advertise to remind people it exists
Salad - Sales
Daily - Decline
Tech companies start making a new product when the previous one’s sales decline
Someone is always making high sales and profits

Extension Strategies
● If you do not have another product ready for introduction
○ Keep your existing product alive
■ Introducing product line extensions
● New version of products
○ Add new features
■ People will think its a new product
■ Selling product to new markets
● Possibly overseas
■ Introduce new, improved versions
■ Selling products via new outlets or online
■ Adding services
 ● Longer warranty periods
● More after-sales

Diversifications & Product Portfolio

● Product life cycles are shortening
○ Many organisations choose to produce more than one product
■ Sell them in more than one place
● Called diversification
● Having a range of organisations reduces the risk of failure
○ Even if one product goes into decline
○ Different place and different target audience
■ Product portfolio approach
○ Might confuse the customers
■ Might not know what you produce
○ May end up making poorer products
■ Can’t specialise in product processes

3.3.2 Price
Pricing Decision
● If a firm sets the price too high
○ Customers may be unwilling or unable to buy the product
● Price too low
○ May not cover cost of production
○ Miss out on making extra profits
● Major factors
○ Cost of production and level of profit required
○ Level and strength of consumer demand
○ Amount of competition in the market
● Influences
○ Market conditions
○ Production costs
○ Taxes and subsidies
○ Marketing mix
○ Marketing structure
○ Business objectives

Types of Pricing
● Cost-based pricing
○ Calculate the average cost to produce a unit and then the amount of profit you
want to make
 ■ Profit percentage is the markup
○ Selling price = total cost / total output + % age markup for profit
○ Profit margin`
■ The difference between the cost of production and selling price
○ Limitations
■ Does not consider what customers might want to pay
■ Does not consider what competitors might charge for the same product
● Competitive pricing
○ Competitive pricing strategies
■ To deter new competition
■ Defend market share
■ Keep business going
○ Destructive pricing
■ When a firm reduces selling price drastically- even below cost to product
● To force competitor to follow suit and make losses
■ Once competition has left- prices are raised again to recover from the loss
○ Price wars
■ Competitive market
● Prices may be repeatedly reduces in an effort to gain or retain
market share
■ Businesses will try to avoid price wars if possible
● They cause a reduction in profit
● Most firms set similar pricing to their competitors
● Demand based pricing
○ After completing market research to find what the customer can pay
■ High demand= higher prices
■ Weak demand= lower prices
○ Price skimming
■ When a product is new or faces little competition
● Firms may charge higher prices
○ To recover research costs
○ Get a higher profit from those willing to buy the new
product
○ Penetration pricing
■ Setting of low prices to enter or build market share for a new product
competing against established firms
● Will reduce profit level or each sale
● Hope that loyalty is established and price shouldn’t rise again
○ Physiological pricing
■ When firms try to influence what customers think about the quality of the
product by charging different prices
● Perfume for $9.99 seeming cheaper than $10
○ Promotional pricing
■ Reduced to price for a short period of time
● Boost sales
● Renew interest in an existing product
● Sell of old stock
○ Dynamic Pricing
■ When the price changes to reflect different market conditions
■ Uber and surge pricing is an example
● When taxis are in high demand = the price goes up
○ Runs the risk of confusing customers
○ May be expensive to administer
3.3.3- Place (distribution channels)
 Effective Logistics
● Managing inventories
● Controlling the availability of goods and services
● Identifying the best channels of distribution to customers
● Improving the speed and lowering the cost of deliveries

Channels of Distribution
● Businesses need to know how to get the product to consumer (may use variety)
○ Channel 1
■ Sells directly to the customer
● Eg. agricultural goods are
sold straight from farm
○ Businesses buy raw
materials from
another
■ Advantages
● Full Control of the
distribution
● Closer relationship between
producer and consumer
● Delivery costs are lower
● Producers can advertise and sell online
● Effective way of delivering and selling services
■ Disadvantages
● Selling in bulk means high transportation costs
● Producer needs to invest in expensive delivery systems
● Selling on-line may mean greater costs of selling individual items
via mail or courier
○ Channel 2
■ Involves selling to retailers
● Common when retailer is large or product is expensive
■ Advantages
● Can sell larger quantities to major customers
● Large retailers have lots of stores and own distribution system
○ Saving the producer the cost of building their own
● Retailers specialise in sles
○ Can help promote goods in their stores by advertising
■ Disadvantages
● No control over final sale
● No relationship with end customer
● Final selling price may be higher
○ Includes retailers costs and profits
■ Results in lower sales
○ Channel 3
■ Selling the product overseas through an agent
● Sells the product to wholesalers on behalf of the company
○ he/she has better knowledge of the local conditions
■ Advantages
● Local or overseas agents have detailed knowledge
○ Local customer preference/ customs/ legal controls
● Can help the producer choose the best way to sell and distribute
their good
 ■ Disadvantages
● Business has less control over distribution and sale of their
products
● Final selling price will increase :Agent will take a profit and may
get commission on each sale reduces the profit the producer makes
○ Channel 4
■ Involves product going through wholesalers
● Break bulk so retailers can buy them in smaller quantities
○ Common for perishable firms
■ Advantages to producer
● Wholesaler will buy in bulk and pay for storage
● Wholesaler will pay for transportation costs from producer to
retailer
● Reduces costs of making sales
○ Producers only needs to speak to one of the customer
● Wholesaler provides research data
○ In the form of sales figures, which products are successful
■ Disadvantages to producer
● Has less control over the final sale of product
● Wholesalers add their profit and may charge for transportation
services
● Perishable products may take longer to reach the final customers
■ Advantages to retailer
● A wholesaler will break up large quantities into smaller amounts
○ Allow credit payment later
● Wholesaler will have a large range of products
● Deliver when requested
○ Saving transportation and storage costs for the retailer
● Pass some of the bulk purchase discounts
● Advise retailers on new products coming to the market
■ Disadvantages to retailer
● Products may be more expensive
○ The retailer had bought direct from the producer
● A single wholesaler may not stock all the products a retailer want
to hold may have to deal with several
● Wholesalers may not sell or transport to small sized retailers
Choosing the right distribution method
● Type of customer
● Type of product
● How frequently product is needed
● Each product or service will have its best channel
○ Fits into its marketing mix and the best way to reach the end customer

Delivery issues
● Cost and speed
○ Faster the delivery is needed, more expensive
■ Eg. using sea containers or air freights
● Risk of damage in transportation
● Delivery lead time
○ Time delay between an order being placed an delivered
■ Firm that delivers quicker will usually gain more customers
● Even if it’s a little expensive
 3.3.4- Promotion
Promotions
● Designed to create consumer wants for products and inform customers where to buy them
● It can make the customer aware of a product, its brand name and features, where to find it
and its selling price
○ Above-the-line
■ Communication using mass media, such as, tv, radio, newspaper,
facebook. So a producer uses a media owned by someone else to advertise
their products.
○ Below-the-line
■ Not using mass media, so direct mail, the company website, celebrity
endorsement- which the company can control themselves.
○ Can use a mixture of both

Advertising
● Main method by which firms promote their goods and services
○ Informative advertising
■ Provide information about the product to the consumer (such as
timetables, ingredients and services offered)
○ Persuasive advertising
■ Designed to create a consumer wants and to boost sales of a particular
product, often at the expense of rival products
 ● Targeted at a particular market segment to appeal to their wants
● The goal is to differentiate your products from competitors
○ Achieved by creating the right brand image by using logos, design and packaging
● Benefits
○ Repeat purchases from loyal customers- provides a steady stream of revenue
○ Customers will choose your product even if it is more expensive than rivals
○ Protects market share from competitors
○ Customer may higher prices for the brand
● Choice of advertising media
○ Newspaper
■ Advantages
● Bought by a large number of people
● Can hold a lot of information
● Can be referred back to
● Reasonably cheap to advertise in
■ Disadvantages
● black and white
● Small advertisements can get “lost”
● Readers can ignore the ads and sales are falling
● Local newspaper quality can be poor and only reach a smaller
number of readers
○ The cost to reach each is higher than national papers
○ Magazines
■ Advantages
● Adverts can be linked to featured articles
● Can be targeted to specific readerships
○ Gardeners
○ Travelers
■ Disadvantages
● Need to submit adverts a long time in the future making it
challenging to time adverts
● Magazine may only be published monthly
● is more expensive than newspaper advertising
● No way to stop rivals advertising on the same page
○ Radio
■ Advantages
● Use sound and music
● Relatively cheap to produce and air
● Growing number of digital stations
● Allows for targeting by choosing stations that appeal to your
chosen audience
■ Disadvantages
● Has no visual aspect
● Usually very short
● Cannot contain complicated information
● Can be ignored
● Reach a limited audience
○ Television
■ Advantages
● Sound and visuals can be used
● Large audiences
● Can be repeated to reinforce messages
 ● Can be targeted by choosing to pair with specific types of shows
○ Toys around children shows
■ Disadvantages
● Production and airing costs can be very high
● Only short lived and most people try to avoid the ads
○ Movies
■ Advantages
● Sounds and visuals can be used
● Targeted by choosing the type of film to advertise alongside
■ Disadvantages
● May have a limited audience
● Don’t get repeat showings to reinforce the message

○ The internet
■ Good
● Cheap and easy to to use by setting up a website
● Deliver in an attractive way to customers around the world
● Updated regularly
● Targeted to specific groups of customers
■ Bad
● Not available in all countries
● Has lots of competition
● Search engines are driven by payments
● May miss your site out
● May be prone to credit card fraud by online payments
○ Posters and billboards
■ Good
● Cheap
● Permanent
● Placed in locations to support local sale
■ Bad
● Can be missed
● Have limited information
● Can be vandalised
○ Leaflets
■ Good
● Cheap
● Can be handed out near businesses
● Offer discounts to offer to encourage people to come to the store
■ Bad
● People don’t often read leaflets
● May be thrown away as unsolicited “junk mail”
○ Other ways to advertise
■ Logos on clothes or bags are cheap but difficult to assess in their
effectiveness and may be seen to send a negative message if missed
● Below-the-line - “pull” your customers in
○ Publicity- Relatively cheap and easy to use
○ Sales Literature- Promotional leaflets, brochures, etc
○ Signage- In or on the business premises
○ Vehicle Livery- Designs and logos on delivery vehicles
 ○ Product endorsements- Celebrities or specialists
○ Product placements- Your products being used as part of film or show
○ Trade shows- Using stands to explain the benefits of your products
○ Public relations- establish and keep good image or repair image after bad things
○ Sponsorship- funding of events
○ Donations- charities after disasters
○ Fundraising events- involving employees or business owners
○ Press releases- given to the press to publicise something good and new
● Point of sales
○ Placed near checkouts to boost sales or create attention
○ Often “impulse items”
■ Things you didn’t set out to buy but pick up
● When bored or distracted in the queue
● Sales incentives
○ Often aimed at creating loyalty by offering rewards for continued purchase
■ Money off coupons
■ Competition: after the purchase of products, customers may enter a
competition to get a prize
■ Loyalty Cards: repeat purchase is rewarded with discounts on future
spending or free food. For example- Coffee bean- buy 6 cups and your
7th is free
■ Direct Mail: Using the mail or the internet to send out promotional
messages, discounts and other offers to either targeted or untargeted
receivers
● New technology allows for increased personalisation but still often
ignored as “junk mail”
■ Personal selling: allows for specialised knowledge to be explained and
can persuade potential customers when and what to buy
■ After-sales service: offering increased care after sale, firms can reassure
customers of the safety of purchase but this adds cost
● Marketing budget
○ Goal is to reach as many as your target audience as cost-effectively as possible
■ Promotion can be expensive and wasteful if not applied correctly
● Marketing Budget
○ The financial plan which gives an estimate of likely costs
involved in developing, releasing, monitoring the
promotional support a firm's product will need. Includes
■ Research
● Design and analysis, survey, test marketing
■ Communications
● Printing and mailing, advertising, design of
logo
■ General
● Advertising agency payment, marketing
staff payment, office space
 3.3.5 Technology in the Marketing Mix
Technology in Marketing
● Products: Creates new products to satisfy needs and wants using 3D software and made
using computer controlled machines- often product life cycles are getting shorter
● Place: Businesses can sell their products to customers and take payment directly by
offering online services
● Price: Prices can be adjusted quickly to respond to market trends or discounts can be
targeted to different consumers using emails
● Promotion: Websites offer a global “shop window”, allows sales to made at any time and
anywhere. Businesses can utilise services (social media) to target specific customers

E- Commerce
● Involves using the internet to promote, buy and sell goods and services
○ Business-to-business: marketing to non-consumers markets
○ Business-to-consumers: marketing to consumers
● Businesses have a website that offer information and an option to buy products using
credit cards or paypal and keep buyers details private that can be found on search engines
● Advantages to business
○ Websites are a cheap way of contacting customers around the world
○ Can attract more customers
○ Saves money on renting shops
○ Can help find low cost suppliers to reduce production costs
○ Can record previous purchases and help you retain customers
● Disadvantages to business
○ Increased competition from at home and abroad, may lead to some shops closure
○ Staff need training on using technology and update website
○ Online fraud is possible
○ Website design and maintenance is expensive
● Advantages to consumer
○ Wider variety of goods available
○ Reduced prices due to increased competition
○ More convenient than traveling to the shops
● Disadvantages to consumer
○ Shops can close if they can’t offer online sales- reduces variety
○ Deliveries may be made at inconvenient times
○ Harder to return damaged or faulty goods
○ Vulnerable to fraud (banking details etc.)
○ Spam/ phishing

Social Networking
● Fast and cost-effective/fast way of communicating with potential customers
○ Social network sites/ coupon websites
○ Microblogging sites- twitter/ instagram
○ Online video-hosting services/ online blog
3.4.1- Marketing Strategies
Developing Market Strategies
● A marketing strategy combines product development with design, pricing, promotion and
distribution
 ○ Goal is to target a specific group of customers and provide planning and resources
to achieve the marketing objectives of the business
○ Tactics (short term)
■ Day to day actions to solve individual problems
○ Strategy (long term)
■ The combined plan of resources and ideas to meet the goal

General Objectives
● Grow sales of an existing product
○ New sales, increased sales or introduce to new markets
● Grow sales with new product
○ Updated versions, extensions of existing or brand new products
● Grow market share
○ Increase the overall percentage of sales
● Gain sales in niche market
○ Dominate a small sub-section of a market
● Maintain the status quo
○ Keep things as they are
● Exit a market
○ If it no longer helps achieve a marketing objective

Planning and Analysis (SWOT)

● Strengths- Things inside the company that you are good at
● Weakness- Things inside the company you are not good at and can change
● Opportunities- Good things that might happen outside the company’s control
● Threats- Bad things that might happen outside the company’s control

3.4.2- Legal Controls in Marketing

Protection from Misleading Marketing
● Can use marketing strategies to mislead and exploit consumers to boost sales and profits.
○ Introduce customer protection laws that come with penalties of fines or closure
■ Products which don’t do the job they were bought for
■ Unsatisfactory quality or condition
■ Making false or misleading claims
■ Selling underweight goods
■ Misleading about the actual purchase price or promotions
■ Preparing food in unhealthy conditions
■ Refusing to refund when the product doesn’t work
■ Offensive or indecent advertising
3.4.3- New Markets Abroad
Targeting Overseas Marketing
● Why would you target overseas markets?
○ Overseas markets grow rapidly, providing opportunities for more sales and profits
○ International trade has become easier
■ Due to e-commerce, lowering trade barriers between countries
○ Room for expansion if the domestic market isn’t growing
○ Businesses can increase scale of production and advantage of economies of scale
by selling in greater volumes, making better profits
○ Firms can take advantage of cheaper production costs
 ■ Fewer regulations or lower taxes by producing overseas
○ Governments may support firms that bring jobs and methods that they don’t have
● How can they expand?
○ Selling their goods and services directly to consumers
○ Setting up a business unit (their own office) in the country
○ Appointing a local agent or distributor to develop the local market

Potential Problems
● Language barriers
○ May experience challenges communicating with people or have translation errors
● Different cultures, customs and tastes
○ Acceptable as business practices or products will change country to country
● Legal controls and taxation
○ Reflect local customs and may penalise overseas firms to protect domestic ones
● Exchange rate risks
○ The value of sales paid in overseas currency may go up (appreciate) or down
(depreciate) with a change of exchange rate with your domestic currency
● Increased risk of non-payment
○ Hard and expensive to force payment
■ Some overseas firms try to take goods without paying for them

Overcoming Problems & Reducing Risks

● Use local agents
○ Advantage of local knowledge, country may ask working with domestic country
● Set up assembly or sales only
○ Concerns over quality production, allow overseas unit to complete the production
process or sell finished units produced
● License or franchise through a local firm
○ Transfer risk of setting up overseas to a local partner, whilst still supporting them
● Set up a joint venture- share risks, benefits, bring ideas but keep parent company separate
● Merge or take over an existing business
○ Set up a new business unit, merge or acquire. Already customers and workers.
● Go it alone and set up after proper market research
○ Answer potential questions to find problems before involving overseas market