Marketing Essentials: Analysis of HSBC and Shell Marketing Strategies

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of marketing essentials, focusing on the key roles and responsibilities within a marketing function. It examines the interrelationships between marketing and other functional units of a firm, and explores the impact of the marketing environment. The report uses HSBC Holdings plc as a case study to illustrate these concepts. Furthermore, it compares the marketing strategies of HSBC with Royal Dutch Shell, analyzing their marketing mix and application to achieve organizational objectives. The report also includes an evaluation of marketing plans and the seven P's of the marketing mix to help businesses achieve their goals in the long run.

Marketing essentials

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
TASK1.............................................................................................................................................1
Discussion of the key roles and responsibilities of the functions of marketing..........................1
Evaluation and explanation of the roles and responsibilities of the marketing that are related
with the organisation taken as a whole........................................................................................3
Identification, analysis, and evaluation of responsibilities and roles of the marketing that are
related either directly or indirectly with the marketing environment..........................................4
Explanation of the interrelationship that is between marketing and other functional unit of the
firm..............................................................................................................................................4
Detailed examination of the key elements of the functions of marketing and their relationship
with other functional units of the company.................................................................................5
TASK2.............................................................................................................................................5
Comparison of different firms on the basis of the marketing mix and their application so that
objectives and goals of the firms are achieved in a systematic manner......................................5
Analysis and evaluation of the various techniques that are used by an organisation so as to
fulfil the objectives that are laid down at the starting..................................................................7
TASK3.............................................................................................................................................8
Identification and analysis of the basic marketing plan that will be useful for the organisation
in the long run..............................................................................................................................8
Detailed, sustainable, and evidence based marketing plan for the organisation..........................8
Analysis and evaluation of the seven P's of the marketing mix that help a firm to achieve its
goals and objectives in the long run............................................................................................9
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................9
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................11

INTRODUCTION
Marketing essentials are elements of marketing that are necessary for the operation of the
business as it helps a firm to increase its sales and are useful in the long run as it is directly
related to profitability of the organisation (Antczak and Sypniewska, 2017). There is a firm
named HSBC Holdings plc that is a company established in the UK and provides banking and
financial services to its customers and is operating since a very long time in the market and thus
has captured a larger share in the market. This report covers various topics that are related with
marketing and its aspects with reference to the firm that is HSBC Holding plc. Apart from this
the report also covers roles and responsibilities of the firm and there is also a comparison done
on the basis of marketing mix of the firm that is HSBC Holding plc and Royal Dutch Shell that
sis also a firm established in the UK and provides oil and gas services to its customers. Further
there is evaluation and analysis of the marketing plan is done in the context of the firm.
TASK1
Discussion of the key roles and responsibilities of the functions of marketing
Marketing is an essential element for a business as it is the force behind every business
and it helps the firm to grow and prosper in the long run but at the same time it has the potential
to damage the working of the business if not used correctly and precisely. There are various roles
and responsibilities of the marketing function as it is a necessity for a business and acts as a
lifeline for a firm. There are different marketing responsibilities and roles that are very important
for a company to keep all of them in mind before doing its operations (Badaró, 2020). HSBC
Holding plc is a firm that is operating on a large scale in the UK and has many things that affects
either directly or indirectly in the working of the firm. All of those factors are explained in detail
below with reference to the company-
 Identifying the requirements of the customer- It is the foremost and basic and the first
step towards achievements of goals and objectives that are laid down by the organisation.
In this needs, requirements, and demands of the target customers are identified by using
various tools and detailed research and analysis so that chances of any type of deviation
is minimum so that it will add to the value of the firm. HSBC Holding plc does a
rigorous, detailed, and summarised identification of the needs and requirements of the
customers so that the product and services can be given according to the market
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conditions and environment that favours the buyer of the firm. The firm focus on this step
very carefully and precisely too as it sets the tone for the company and if it is not tone
correctly it may hamper the working of the firm in a very adverse manner.
 Anticipating the requirements of the customer- It is also a very importance aspect that
is directly related with the profitability of the firm. A company after identifying the
needs, requirements, and demands of their potential buyer make product or provide
services that are in accordance with its customers (Bădin, 2018). This helps the company
to increase its market share of customers and helps the business to grow and prosper by
increasing its sales and profit in the long run as well as increasing the market value of the
firm too with that. HSBC Holding plc is a firm that has a vast team of experts that
anticipate the requirements of the customers and hence it proves to be very crucial and
critical for the firm in increasing its sales and then profitability that further helps the
organisation to stand ahead as compared to other competitors in the market. It is also
capable of increasing the market value of the firm drastically if used in a very careful and
precise format.
 Satisfying the needs of the customer- It is the basic requirement for the firm to sustain
in the market as each and every business tends to satisfy the needs and requirement of its
customers do that it can fulfil its objectives and goals. It is capable of increasing the base
of the customers if each and every aspect of the buyer is fulfilled as per the expectations
of the customer. HSBC Holding plc keep in mind the needs, demands, and requirements
of the customer and does it operation according to it and hence it helps the firm to fulfil
the expectations of the customers by providing them the best products and services that
are available in the market. Further it helped the firm in a positive manner as it increased
the market value of the company many folds due to its efficiency and effectiveness.
 Making profits in the long run- This is the main motive behind setting up a business
and each and every firm tends to increase its profit so that it can be beneficial for the firm
in the long run as well as in the current scenario (Bojanic and Reid, 2017). HSBC
Holding plc is a firm that is very profitable due to its very loyal customer base that helps
the firm to stand in the market way ahead of its competitors and thus making the
organisation very profitable.
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Evaluation and explanation of the roles and responsibilities of the marketing that are related with
the organisation taken as a whole
Marketing is an essential element for a firm and a business can not operate effectively
and efficiently in the absence of it or if it is not used correctly. There are different roles and
responsibilities of the marketing that are related with the company in its wider term because it
affects the working of the firm both directly and indirectly and in both positive and negative
manner. HSBC Holding plc is a firm that is very big and its marketing is related with its opther
functions either directly or indirectly. There are various factor that have inter relatedness that is
marketing is related with other functional units in different manner that are explained in detail
below with reference to the company-
 Marketing and finance- It is very important aspect that is related with the business very
closely and impact the working of the business (Chandiok and Sharma, 2017). As
marketing helps a company to closely examine its finance and its use and
implementation in various aspects of the business that are very crucial and critical in the
working of the business. HSBC Holding plc is a firm that employs a team of experts in
this regard so that it can utilise its funds and resources in an impactful manner so as to
increase the profitability and sales of the firm.
 Marketing and human resource- It is very crucial in recruiting the best suitable
candidate for the firm as marketing helps the human resource experts to identify and then
recruit the best personnel that fits in the company and is capable of carrying out the job
in an impactful manner. HSBC Holding plc is firm that put its focus on this aspect as it
acts as a core in the working of the firm. The company has a team of experts that are
experienced enough and marketing helps them to chose right candidate for the right job
that further helps in achieving the target that are established in the beginning.
 Marketing and production department and operations- Marketing further helps the
firm's production department to take correct measures regarding the production of goods
and services that helps the firm to achieve the targets efficiently and in a precise manner
(Fuller-Love, 2020).
 Marketing and customer service- Marketing is also inter related with customer service
as it helps the firm to give excellent product and services to its customers so that it can
add to the value of the firm in the long run. HSBC Holding plc is a firm that is well
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established and that too since a very long time and does a detailed research and analysis
on every aspect about the customer and this helps the firm to achieve its objectives that
are regarding its customers.
Identification, analysis, and evaluation of responsibilities and roles of the marketing that are
related either directly or indirectly with the marketing environment
There are various factors of marketing environment that are related with its roles and
responsibilities in a wider aspect and that is explained in detailed with reference to the firm.
There are various external environment factors that hinder and prosper the growth of HSBC
Holding plc and it include aspects like political, legal, technological, economic, environmental,
social, etc. and these all are very important for the firm and the company has to keep all of them
in mind before doing its operations and day to day activities (Loo and Leung, 2018).
Explanation of the interrelationship that is between marketing and other functional unit of the
firm
Marketing has an impactful significance for the business and it is related with many other
functional units of the firm and helps them to achieve the goals and objectives of the firm in the
long run. As marketing is directly related with finance, human resource, information technology,
etc. that possess an integral part of a company. HSBC Holding plc is a firm that put its focus on
marketing as it is related with other aspects too and thus it helped the firm to increase its
profitability and growth in the long run.
Detailed examination of the key elements of the functions of marketing and their relationship
with other functional units of the company
There are majorly four key elements of marketing function that are closely related with
other functional units of the company and these are product, price, place, and promotion. HSBC
Holding plc has a specialised team of experts for all these factors and thus it had proved very
crucial as well as critical for the company in increasing its sales in the long run that further
impacted the market value in a positive aspect (Lues and De Klerk, 2016).
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TASK2
Comparison of different firms on the basis of the marketing mix and their application so that
objectives and goals of the firms are achieved in a systematic manner
Marketing mix– It refers to the marketing mix tools which are used to promote products
and services in the marketplace. In addition to this, it is for positioning, promoting and selling its
product at the right place, right price and right time. It consists of 7p's which are Product, Price,
Place, Promotion, People, Packaging and Positioning which are further elaborated below :
 Product is a commodity, manufactured to satisfy the wants and needs of its consumers.
 Price is the essential component which explains the amount a individual pays for it to
consume it.
 Place explains to distribute the product at a place that it is easily accessible to its
customers.
 Promotion is to promote the product to create its awareness into the market.
 People are the companies employee's which are essential part as they deliver the goods
and services to its clients.
 The packaging must be attractive to the customers to draw attention of the buyers.
 Positioning is place that a company occupies in consumers mind to differentiate its
products from the competitors.
Marketing Mix 7 P'S HSBC Holdings Royal Dutch Shell
Product Company made its action into
4 different segments named as
Private banking, Investment
Banking, Wealth and Retail
management (Mahajan, 2019).
The Royal Dutch Shell has 3
major operations upstream,
integrated gas and new
energies, downstream.
Price It prefers their services to
make an effect for the long run
thus HSBC prices their
products to attract more and
more customers.
Price depends on
manufactured by OPEC
countries. Natural Gas prices
vary from area to area and thus
depends on demand. Prices are
controlled by market and
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government policies.
Place HSBC have frame-up services
into different areas to provide
best services to its customers.It
has provided Internet Banking
option so that it gets easily
accessible in every possible
ways.
It has a supplying and
distribution all over the world
and has more than 100
terminals, 770 supply points in
around 25 countries.
Promotion Company is promoting its
products to reach out its
consumers by bill boards,
newspaper, television etc. It
also provides sponsorship for
sports events.
It promotes its brand by using
sound of shell unique
promotional strategy in which
uses music in visual and audio
communications, including
collaborations with renowned
singers.
People Organization make sure that
all the customers are well
connected with the brand
hence employees, workers,
management contributes more
to the growth.
It ensures the employees are
well satisfied with the work to
increase their productivity and
to contribute more to the
growth (Matikiti, Kruger and
Saayman, 2016).
Physical Evidence
(Packaging)
HSBC's website is its physical
evidence and the business
cards, brochures, furnishings
etc. The passbooks and the
check books are its medium of
marketing mix.
It has partnered with various
firms that are concerned with
converting plastic waste to
make its product packaging. It
uses waste mixture that
contain some amount of plastic
to do its packaging.
Process The activities are governed
internationally from
It offers several advantages
over conventional oils. Shell's
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headquarters. It follows its
rules and regulations thus the
documentation are
standardised and customer
engagement is ensured through
ATMS.
main business is managing the
vertical integrated oil
company. It has decentralised
its business in over 100
countries.
Analysis and evaluation of the various techniques that are used by an organisation so as to fulfil
the objectives that are laid down at the starting
Different marketing tactics are used by different firm according to the needs,
requirements, and demand of the market environment and conditions. The most common
marketing tactic that is used by almost each and every firm in this competitive market
environment is the use of social media marketing to its advantage so that it can reach maximum
number of people and that too within a limited period of time (Morgan, 2016). The firm that is
HSBC Holding plc also uses various tactics that are related with marketing so that it can make a
mark on the industry in which it operates. The company uses traditional as well as modern
marketing by using all the tools that are possibly available in the market so that it can act as a
stepping stone for the firm to increase its sales and further profitability and growth of the
business involving increase market value in the long run.
TASK3
Identification and analysis of the basic marketing plan that will be useful for the organisation in
the long run
The firm that is HSBC Holding plc has to apply various strategies of marketing in a very
careful and precise manner so that it can help the firm to increase its customer base and will also
be very beneficial in terms of expanding if the firm wants to do so. Apart from this various
different types of tactics of marketing also have to be applied so that the products and services of
the firm can reach to the maximum number of people and that too within a limited period of
time. Further all of the above factors will help the business to increase its market value in the
competitive market environment and also it'll impact the shareholders and customers in a
positive manner (Prabhakar, Mahajan and Kapoor, 2019).
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Detailed, sustainable, and evidence based marketing plan for the organisation
Detailed marketing plan for HSBC Holding plc- The marketing plan that can be used
by the firm that is mentioned above which is HSBC Holding plc is given in an elaborated manner
below with respect to the operations that it does on a regular basis.
A model of SOSTAC which helps in understanding the market in a better manner so that
a marketing plan can be formulated that can prove beneficial from the company’s point of view
is done below in an elaborated way-
Mission and objectives of the firm- The mission of the firm is to provide world class
product and services in investment banking and financial services to its customers at affordable
prices. Its objective is to increase the sales and revenue of the firm by 20% and 15%
respectively. In order to achieve all the factors various strategies have to be followed that are
explained in detail below-
Corporate level strategy-
 Allocation of resources- It is the most important aspect as in this resources are utilised
fully so that any wastage can be reduced so that it can help to increase the profitability
level of the firm. HSBC Holding plc allocates its resources in a very careful and precise
manner and it deploys a specialised team for that so that there would be no room for
errors.
 Organisational design- HSBC Holding plc keeps an eye on its organisational design and
necessary rectifications are made in the structure so that it can add to the value of the firm
in the long run.
Business unit strategy-
 Market penetration- The firm that is HSBC Holding plc keeps on doing various
marketing campaigns so that it can reach out to the masses and it has also proved very
beneficial for the firm in adding a new customer base to the firm.
 Product development- HSBC Holding plc develop new products and services according
to the needs, requirements, and demands of the customer so that it can leave a large
impact on the market (Roberts, 2020).
 Diversification- HSBC Holding plc keeps on changing its products and services in
accordance with the market conditions that are prevailing and thus it has made the
company stand ahead of all of its competitors in the similar industry.
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Marketing strategy-
 Product- HSBC Holding plc has a wide range of product and services that it gives to its
customers.
 Price- HSBC Holding plc uses different pricing strategies to keep in pace with the
current market situations that are prevailing in the market.
 Place- HSBC Holding plc is situated very well geographically that allows the customers
to access its product and services and that too with ease.
 Promotion- HSBC Holding plc uses various different types of promotional strategies like
advertisements that help the firm to increase its sales and subsequently profits in the long
run.
Thus it can be said that it is very crucial and important at the same time for the above
mentioned company to use the above formulated marketing plan so that it can perform in a well
prescribed and in a standard manner that can help the company to grow in the current market
situations that are highly competitive as well as dynamic in nature.
Analysis and evaluation of the seven P's of the marketing mix that help a firm to achieve its
goals and objectives in the long run
After a detailed analysis and evaluation of the seven P's of marketing mix of the firm that
is HSBC Holding plc it can be said that the firm is very well placed in the market and has to do
minor rectifications and changes in its existing plans, policies, and procedures and it would help
the company to reach new heights of profitability and that too within a limited period of time
(Truong, 2017). SWOT analysis is also done in this regard below-
 Strengths- HSBC Holding plc is a firm that has captured a larger share in the market
and has a loyal customer base since a very long time (Jarosławska-Sobór and Dulewski,
2018).
 Weaknesses- HSBC Holding plc is a firm that lacks the experience that is needed in its
operation as many experienced staff left the company and that is a weak point of the
firm.
 Opportunities- HSBC Holding plc is a firm that has many opportunities lying ahead of
it as there are many online platforms that can prove very useful for the firm if used
correctly and precisely.
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 Threats- HSBC Holding plc has a big threat looming ahead of it due to wide
competition in the market and freedom of entry and exit for the firms.
CONCLUSION
There are various essential elements of marketing as it is an important aspect of each and
every firm that operates in the market as it is very handy in increasing the profitability level and
growth of the firm and that too in the long run. HSBC Holding plc is a firm that is based in the
UK and is doing its business since a long time and thus the company is also able to generate
good amount of profitability by its sales due to its loyal customer base that the firm has made in
its long operational career. From the above it can be concluded that marketing and its related
aspects is very crucial as well as vary critical for the firm and can help the firm to achieve its
objectives but at the same time it has the potential to degrade the market value of the firm if not
used in a correct and precise manner. Apart from his it can also be concluded that both the firms
that is HSBC Holding plc and Royal Dutch Shell has various similar aspects and also both of
them differs on various points and thus it is very important for them to keep the important factors
in mind so that it can add to the growth of the company rather than degrading it.
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