Marketing Essentials

This document discusses the key roles and responsibilities of marketing functions, the link between marketing roles and organizational processes, and how organizations apply marketing mix to achieve business objectives. It focuses on the case of eBay, a multinational e-commerce corporation. The document also provides an evaluation of various marketing concepts and strategies used by eBay and its competitor, Amazon. Additionally, it includes a discussion on the importance of marketing in customer satisfaction, increasing market share, product development, facing competition, and economic growth. The document concludes with the development of a marketing plan for eBay.

Marketing Essentials

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................1
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................1
P1. Key roles and responsibility of marketing functions.............................................................1
P2. Evaluate that how marketing roles & responsibility linked with organisation process.........3
TASK 2............................................................................................................................................4
P3. Evaluate that how organizations apply marketing mix in order to achieve business
objectives.....................................................................................................................................4
TASK3.............................................................................................................................................7
P4 Develop basic marketing plan in context of organization along with evidence.....................7
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................7
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................8

INTRODUCTION
Marketing is the most important function because it aids the establishment in selling,
advertising and promoting its products and services so that it can execute competitiveness over
competitor in the market. The marketing departments of the company is responsible for
increasing market share, growing the revenue and contributing to company profitability and
growth (Canha, Marques and Loureiro, 2018). The company eBay which is multinational e-
commerce corporation. It based in San Jose and founded in 1995 by Pierre Omidyar. This report
includes the evaluation of various marketing roles and responsibilities which a marketing
manager has to execute. It will also be elaborate the contribution of these marketing roles and
responsibilities in order to achieve organizational objectives. Further, it will involve the
comparison between eBay or Amazon to ascertain how various organisations implement
marketing mix components. At the end, a clear marketing plan will be developed which will
assist the marketing managers of the company in dealing with competitors in the market.
MAIN BODY
TASK 1
P1. Key roles and responsibility of marketing functions
Marketing can be referred as to the set of activities which are undertaken by the company
to increase the process of buying and selling the products or services of the organization. The
marketing process includes various activities such as purchasing, selling, advertising, promoting
and delivering of the products to the customers (Marketing, 2019). It also includes rendering
after sale services to the customers so that strong customer base line can be built up. The wider
area of the marketing function can be explained through marketing concepts.
The marketing concepts can be bifurcated into five major concepts which draw the core
of marketing. These marketing concepts include the present and upcoming trends for an effective
marketing planning. The concepts that are considered in marketing are:
Production concept: Production concept is related to the consumer perception which
describes that the consumers are tended towards the services or products which are easily
accessible in market in good quantities at cheap price.
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Product concept: Product concept defines that the customers can be maintained through
the services and products which are profitable or beneficial for them. The consumers connect and
prefer the products which have quality, innovative approach and value for money.
Selling concept: The selling concept indicates that the mind set of recent consumers can
be attracted through publicity. It has been seen that the customers' focus lean over the services
and products which are aggressively advertised in the market (da Silva, 2017).
Marketing concept: The marketing concept interprets that the brand value of the
establishment requires to be increased in order to associate with the potential consumers.
Consumers will select the brand over other competitors in the market, if the brand value is high.
Societal Marketing concept: Societal marketing concept depicts the leading focus over
requirements and needs of potential consumers, so the they will choose the organizational
products and services over the other competitors in the market.
Roles of Marketing:
Customer Satisfaction: Customer is the king of the market and it is crucial to satisfy
their requirements. Marketing professionals determine the desires and requirements of the
consumers and follow marketing strategies accordingly. They must be able to understand
customer desires as these are formed by individual and cultural personalities. Customer needs
can be quenched through the exchange activity.
Increase Market Share: Marketing uses mass communication instruments such as sales,
advertising, event marketing and promotion to promote business products wide and far.
Furthermore, PR programs create and secure image and brand of a company. Change in
technology and media have made merchandising more interactive.
Product designing and Development: Products manufactured by the organization have
to be in presentable and approachable condition with well packaging and labelling. On the other
side, products need modification, improvement and development. Therefore, marketing plays a
progressive role by scheming and managing products (Fiala, 2019). Product can be developed in
two different ways, first is to introduce a new product in a target market and second is to make
certain changes in an existing product or service. It helps in attracting large number of customers
and also helps in making the firm more competitive for a long run. Before developing a product,
an organisation must consider various factors such as competitors and also indulge in market
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research. eBay can develop its services in the target market in order to enhance its market share
and in earning high amount of profit.
Face competition: In today’s global market, marketing assists in maintaining
equilibrium between expectations of customers and offerings by competitors by observing the
market thoroughly. Premium products, superior services and prompt dealership are utilised by
marketing professionals to defeat competition and retain market share. eBay can use marketing
function in an effective manner in order to face the competition in the target market.
Economic growth: As the result of marketing, demand of the products increases which
encourages production and distribution activities that helps in increasing employment
opportunities and improve income level. This process improves the standard of living that
ultimately helps in boosting the overall economic growth of the nation. eBay can use marketing
function for economic growth and sustainability.
Marketing Strategy- The another important role and responsibility of marketing
function is to develop and formulate and effective marketing strategy which helps in achieving
long term business goals and objectives. There are various strategies which can be adopted by
eBay in order to achieve business goals and objectives. These strategies such as market
penetration, market development, product development and diversification. eBay can either
develop a new product, enter into a new global market, indulge in various promotional activities
or it can simply develop a new product with a new market. The most beneficial thing which can
be done by eBay is to introduce a new product in a target market.
Responsibilities of Marketing:
Social Responsibilities: Environmental debasement, rising consumer expectations and
governmental pressure have forced organizations to exercise high levels of societal
responsibilities in which social marketing provides help to the establishment. Recyclable
packaging, spreading the awareness about social issues with the help of promotion, etc. are the
social marketing strategies regarding social responsibilities (Fontanela, 2015).
Organizational Responsibilities: The main objective of the marketing function is to
ensure the growth of the company profit and developing strategies to improve the brand image of
the company. For this purpose, it is the responsibility of the marketing division to invest the
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funds effectively and develop healthy and strong relationship with the customers so that revenue
of the entity can be accelerated.
Customer Responsibilities: Marketing managers need to create healthy relationship with
the customer so that they can understand demands of the customers from the company. There
may be two methods for understanding the customer requirements which reflect demands of the
customers which are to taking their feedbacks from sales division through internal channels and
developing customer service section for conducting feedbacks and understanding preferences.
Competitive Responsibilities: The marketing professionals are also liable for
investigating the competition and sticking up with them to know their strategies, their product
offerings, the weaknesses of the competitors and confront making the identical mistakes as the
challengers. It is also necessary to know why the customers prefer the other companies, how the
company is placed in relation to its competitors, what customers the competitors target and the
relationship they have with their customers (Gamarra, Raedig and Schlüter, 2019).
P2. Evaluate that how marketing roles & responsibility linked with organisation process
Finance and Marketing: All marketing strategies include a prime financial magnitude.
Profitability analysis and budgeting are the key feature of marketing control and planning which
includes financial techniques. While creating a marketing strategy, managers discuss with
finance division so that they can assign financial resource in a befitting manner. This assists in
developing co-ordination among organizational units and also aids in managing impressive
marketing program that accomplish all the requirements for planning.
Production and Marketing: The most trenchant function of marketing is to investigate
and determine current market directions. Marketing managers have to enquire with production
administrator so that required changes can be made in the production procedure. Production and
marketing can make requisite changes in a product with mutual understanding which will assist
the establishment in accelerating its productivity as well as profitability (Junger and et.al, 2017).
R&D and Marketing: The R&D division profoundly examine that content, which is
gathered by marketing department, improves the growth of business organization. The
interrelation between R&D and marketing section assists the establishment in achieving its
desired objectives as well as goals.
Human Resource and Marketing: Marketing managers have to cooperate with
personnel section in processing job descriptions, selecting candidates and scheming training
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programs and inducement systems. As a specialized marketing action, marketing research could
render precious assistance in the arrangement and execution of a figure of personnel.
TASK 2
P3. Evaluate that how organizations apply marketing mix in order to achieve business objectives
Marketing mix is a concept that function as a fundamental level to the prosperity of the
organization. A business has to earn the profits and this is possible only with the appropriate and
suitable marketing process and strategy. Marketing mix is the concept in which right product is
provided at right place and the right time so that it can be easily comprehensible to the customers
and gross sales and profit of the establishment may improve (Lamarca, Sresnewsky and Barreto,
2014). With the changing scenario and the nature of business, there are 7 P’s used as marketing
mix of eBay which are described as under:
Overview:
eBay is an multinational American based company who deals in online platform or
provide variety of goods to their customers in order to satisfy their needs & desire. Currently,
eBay offer huge range of products such as fashion, home, electronics, cosmetics and appliances
etc.
Objectives of eBay:
 Build strong customer base through providing quality products as well as service. It
further helps in enhancing brand loyalty in context of customers.
 To become number one e-commerce company in the world but they have to make sure
about their quality service and products.
eBay has enough competitors so they have to think different from their rivals. Online
mode of shopping beneficial for customers as well as company which reduce the lots of
complications. At the time of entering in the competitive market, organization have set some
gaols & objectives and further develop their strategies accordingly. Below mention marketing
mix table evaluate that different organizations perform their functions in order to achieve their
business goals & objectives:
Marketing
Mix
Description eBay Amazon
Product Product is what is eBay deals in the variety of Company deals in huge
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offered in the target
market by marketers
and buyers in the
exchange of money.
It includes features
and variety range of
products or services
offered by
company.
product line such as home
appliances, beauty
products, fashion,
electronic items, health
care, sports equipment etc.
(Maia de Vasconcelos, C.
R. and et.al, 2018.).
range of product which
helps in satisfying every
type of need such as home
appliances, cosmetics,
healthcare, media content,
electronic items etc.
Amazon offer these product
through online platform
where customer can explore
their needs.
Place It is determined as a
place or area where
marketers makes the
products or services
available to its
target customers. It
can be on various
shopping
application sites,
online or offline
stores, etc.
eBay spend their operations
around 30 countries in the
worldwide area. Company
expand their business
through make their brand
global and consumers able
to reach any time through
using websites. Company
also launch their mobile
application for better
experience which also save
the time as well as efforts.
Amazon only deal on online
platform where all the
products available, so
customer can select into cart
and make payment as per
their connivance. Now
amazon globally deals in 11
countries which included
Canada, North America,
Germany, Mexico, United
Kingdom etc.
Price It is defined as an
amount of money
which is given by
customers to sellers
in exchange of
goods and services
provided by them.
This is one of the
eBay adopted different
pricing strategies like
prevailing market price and
dynamic pricing strategy
which allow buyers or
sellers to negotiate and set
one specific price for
products that is also
Company uses competitive
pricing strategies which
ensure the customers that
Amazon provide best price
for their products in
comparison to their rival.
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most important
factor which must
be considered by an
enterprise as it is the
most crucial part of
marketing mix.
flexible pricing.
Promotion It is the process in
which customers are
made aware about a
particular product or
service which is
produced by an
organisation.
Basically, it is form
of communication
between consumers
and marketers
regarding a product
or service.
Customers can use
both online and
offline promotional
measures.
Company follow online
mode of promotion such as
social media marketing,
google advertisement etc.
Amazon also follow online
method where they promote
their products by using
social media sites and other
platform as well such as
television, news paper etc.
Process It is a process and
manner in which
products are made
available to
customers. It
includes
manufacturing and
eBay follow the easy
process where seller post
picture along with
description of product
which further help the
receiver to check the details
and make their decisions.
Customer have to follow
simple process where
customer have to select item
and added into cart and
further proceed for the
payment options where
consumer find various
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delivery procedure.
It is a service or an
element in which
customer is able to
see offerings of an
organisation.
After selecting product,
customer have to proceed
for payment and choose
payment options
accordingly. After
completing payment
product will be shipped to
the address of customer.
options to pay. Company
also provide the return or
refund options if consumers
not satisfied with the
products.
Physical
Evidence
In this element of
marketing mix,
customers are able
to experience as
well as see the
usage of a specific
product or service.
It helps in
contributing
towards the service
or product's
perceived quality
and it added value
to a product or a
service.
eBay fulfilment centres is
the physical evidence of the
company. It will provide
the information regarding
product such as product
receive, inspect, store and
shipment details.
Company's website and
packing material comes
under the physical
evidence.
Company sell their products
with unique colour
packaging which attract
customers and also provide
gifting options where they
beautifully pack the gift
along with few line of
message from the person
who place order. Along with
this, company's website and
mobile application also
consider in the physical
evidence which help the
consumers to track their
order.
People In marketing mix,
people are those
individuals who are
directly or indirectly
involved in the
production
procedure of a
Around 12,600 people
employed with eBay
company and manage their
work in order to achieve
organizational goals &
objectives. Digital
marketing team will
Amazon having large digital
marketing team who handle
online and social media
promotion as well as all the
queries which customers
have regarding products.
Further company perform
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product or a service.
These people have a
contribution
towards a product
or a service.
continuously assist the
customers along with
supervision.
to maintain or update their
customers feedback and
provide them information
regarding latest offers and
discounts.
TASK3
P4 Develop basic marketing plan in context of organization along with evidence
Marketing Plan
Marketing Objectives: These are the goals which are set by an organisation in order to
promote their offered products and services for their potential customers to achieve the success
of marketplace. These objectives include increasing and spread the awareness regarding product,
provide relevant information about services and also reduces the resistance of consumers in order
to purchase products. To prepare an effective marketing plan and strategies, it is compulsory to
identify the external and internal environmental factors that can affect the organizational
business and develop a better understanding of the needs of potential customers (Wang, 2015).
Being a new seller in online market of all kind of products, eBay have conducted a broad
research in the market and then understand the market trends and advantages and disadvantages.
The company then decided the main objective of the company’s product and services which are:
 Providing better experience and satisfaction to the customers.
 Promoting its delivery system and increase the market share of the product.
 Expanding the business activities on new locations in order to acquire more customers.
Marketing Strategies: After deciding the marketing objectives, the marketing managers
of the eBay has to prepare the marketing strategies, which can be decided on the basis of
customer requirements and desires and some business analysis tools such as:
Segmentation: Segmentation is the process of dividing or filtering the market into
segments on the basis of their individual characteristics (Nascimento, da Silva and do
Nascimento, 2018). These segments are split into various factors such as demographics, lifestyle,
beliefs and values, geography and behaviour. For segmenting the market, eBay would take aid of
geographic and demographic components because it assists the administration in portioning the
market in befitting manner.
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Targeting: Targeting is the process of choosing a section from the segmented parts which
can be focused as the potential customers of the business offerings. When company has different
segments of market then they need to customize them and choose best as their targeted market.
The marketing managers can target the few segments which may be profitable for the
establishment. The respective firm can choose the high profile business persons as well as aged
people of the UK.
Positioning: Positioning is the process of creating a positive image or a brand name of
the company products in the mind of potential customers. It helps in identifying the alignment of
products in target market. It determines that offering something valuable than their competitors
to offer in the specific market. For drawing the attention of targeted customer segment, eBay
needs to take the help of various advertisement and promotional tools and techniques such as
social media, TV advertisements and personal selling as well.
Marketing tactics: Marketing tactics are those which are applied by the organization in
order to implement an effective marketing strategy (Takeara and et.al, 2017). It is a method
which is used to promote the offered goods and services and also consider that their sales and
profitability must increases and for this, they make proper plans and strategies. There are most
important market mix components which are utilized by eBay for having improved growth, these
are followed:
Product: The most essential product of eBay is its highly managed delivery services of
eBay for their potential customers of a specific age and area.
Price: The cost generated while launching of managed delivery system will be started
from 100 Euro in urgent delivery of products so that customers with all economic background
can purchase the product.
Place: For attaining the sustainable growth, company will increase its offerings and also
provide more and more products on social selling platforms or its website.
Promotion: For attracting more and more customers, company will provide discounts and
offers occasionally to the customers and increase the advertising activities.
People: The company will hire skilled marketing and selling professionals who can sale
the products with maximum customer satisfaction.
Process: An easy and systematic process for ordering and delivering the product will
have to be accomplish so that business objectives can be achieved.
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Physical Evidence: The highly satisfied customers and registered brand logo will work as
a reliable physical evidence for the organization.
Resource Allocation: After consulting with finance department, managers of the
company allocate the monetary resources and develop budgets accordingly. Statement of budget
mentioned below:
Particulars 1st year 2nd year 3rd year
Investment 9800 12560 18000
Lending 10500 6200 9500
Retained earning 5500 8500 10000
Total 25800 27260 37500
Marketing Outlay
Advertisement expenses 8800 8000 13500
Promotion 4000 7400 9500
Distribution expenses 5500 12500 8500
Total 18300 27900 31500
Cost profitability analysis: With the help of this analysis tool, managers of eBay
evaluate the profitability of the company and ensure to minimise the overall cost which further
helps in maximising profit margin of the company. This analysis start through identifying
operational activities and what actual incur. After collecting data, managers should analyse the
information and how it contribute to generate profit. At the end, managers need to make effective
decisions which helps in maximising productivity as well as profitability for the company.
Marketing Budget and Control: For executing the above mentioned plan, it is
important to prepare an impressive marketing budget. Without sufficient financial resources, it
will not be possible to apply all the marketing strategies in order to sale the product. With the
help of marketing research and financial management team, marketing professionals are able to
estimate that overall plan execution process will cost 100,000 Euro to the company. Marketers
also have to make sure that the plan and budget which is prepared is working in its defined and
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guided manner. For this purpose, rating scales as well as cost-benefit analysis will help the
professionals in managing the budget and overall marketing activities.
CONCLUSION
By discussing above mentioned summary, it can be concluded that marketing is the most
critical function of business organizations as it assists establishment in advertising as well as
promoting its image in the current competitive economy. There are various marketing activities
and responsibilities such as brand management, market research, promotion, product
development, advertisement, etc. Marketing can contribute in achieving organizational objectives
by fulfilling its roles as marketing corporate with other functions for organisational growth.
The marketing mix is an important concept that must be followed by eBay for gaining
competitive advantages of the market place. With the utilization of marketing mix components in
an impelling manner, eBay can improve its customer market shares as well as baseline. Apart
from this, an organization can take assistance of a consistent marketing plan for fulfilling its
marketing objectives in a systematic and most effective manner as well.
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Online:
Marketing, 2019. [Online] Available through
<https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/what-is-marketing>
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