UNIT -1
Topic: - Marketing Concepts and Tasks
* Fundamental Marketing Concepts, Trends, and Tasks
To understand the marketing function, we need to understand certain fundamental concepts and tasks, along with current trends.
Core Concepts
A core set of concepts creates a foundation for marketing management and a holistic marketing orientation.
* NEEDS, WANTS, AND DEMANDS
The marketer must try to understand the target market's needs, wants, and demands. Needs are the basic human requirements. People need food, air, water, clothing, and shelter to survive. People also have strong needs for recreation, education, and entertainment. These needs become wants when they are directed to specific objects that might satisfy the need. An American needs food but may want a hamburger, French fries, and a soft drink. A person in Mauritius needs food but may want a mango, rice, lentils, and beans.
Wants are shaped by one's society. Demands are wants for specific products backed by an ability to pay. Many people want a Mercedes; only a few are willing and able to buy one. Companies must measure not only how many people want their product but also how many would actually be willing and able to buy it.
These distinctions shed light on the frequent criticism that "marketers create needs" or "marketers get people to buy things they don't want." Marketers do not create needs: Needs pre-exist marketers. Marketers along with other societal factors, influence wants. Marketers might promote the idea that a Mercedes would satisfy a person's need for social status. They do not, however, create the need for social status.
Understanding customer needs and wants is not always simple. Some customers have needs of which they are not fully conscious, or they cannot articulate these needs, or they use words that require some interpretation. What does it mean when the customer asks for a "powerful" lawnmower, a "fast" lathe, an "attractive" bathing suit, or a "restful"...