What is Marketing?

What does the term marketing mean? Marketing must be understood not in the
old sense of making a sale - 'selling' - but in the new sense of satisfying customer
needs. Many people think of marketing only as selling and advertising. And no
wonder, for every day we are bombarded with television commercials, newspaper
ads, direct mail and sales calls. Someone is always trying to sell us something. It
seems that we cannot escape death, taxes or selling!
Therefore, you may be surprised to learn that selling and advertising are only
the tip of the marketing iceberg. Although they are important, they are only two
of many marketing functions, and often not the most important ones. If die
marketer does a good job of identifying customer needs, develops products that
provide superior value, distributes and promotes them effectively, these goods
will sell very easily.
Everyone knows something about 'hot' products. When Sony designed its first
Walkman cassette and disc players, when Nintendo first offered its improved
video game console, and when The Body Shop introduced animal-cruelty-free
cosmetics and toiletries, these manufacturers were swamped with orders. They
had designed the 'right' products; not 'me-too' products, but ones offering new
benefits. Peter Drucker, a leading management thinker, has put it this way: 'The
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