Whilst many people think they know the essence of what marketing is, we find when we sit down with clients, very few truly understand just what marketing is, from the initial planning and developments through to the end results and future impact, marketing, especially in the modern era, is often misunderstood, so even if you think you have a firm understand of this vast topic we welcome you to read on so we can bring a bit of insight on what we here at BuzzBoxx believe marketing truly is.
For most people, marketing is just the process of selling goods and services to potential customers, but what many don't appreciate is the selling of your brand is equally if not more important as well.
There are infinite examples of the power of a brand, from what we wear to the devices we use everyday, more often than not we are sold on a brand, often over affordability, usability and practicality, because we buy into the exclusivity, because we wan't to be a part of the club, because we feel left out if we don't.
This desire in us stems back to the origins of humanity - our desires for bigger and better things and to be a part of a clan has always been an intrinsic part of what makes us human, and marketing is there to convince people to buy into your "bigger and better" and become a part of your clan.
So now we have established the importance of building your brand and customer loyalty, let's talk about the other core factor of marketing - sales.
When talking about sales marketing, you will often hear references to the '4 Ps of Marketing' being:
Product
Price
Promotion
Place
In essence, this is establishing what you are selling, where you should be selling it, at what price, and how you aim to achieve those sales. Understanding these steps is key to building a solid marketing strategy, so it's important to communicate these factors with not only your marketer but your entire team so you can make sure you are all singing off the same hymn sheet.
Successful marketing has been achieved in various different ways throughout the ages, from the initial birth of marketing during the industrial revolution and globalisation, to the advent of the radio and television, then electronic mailing, and then to where we are today with the era of modern social media, marketers have always been where the attention is, and even though the "Place" has changed, so has how we "Promote" - at least, to an extent...
For many decades it has been typical to see and hear adverts on the radio and TV, to see large billboards on the side of buildings, to see store fronts advertise their latest products and have flyers amongst our mail for local services.
In todays world, these methods have simply adapted to take different forms; radio is now podcasts, TV is now YouTube, billboards are now banner ads, Facebook pages are now the store fronts and flyers are now social media posts. Of course, there is still a place for "traditional" marketing in today's world, but as the world becomes more digital, so must our marketing, hence the birth of Digital Marketing agencies like ourselves, and it's ever more crucial to be where the attention is.
Digital marketing, whilst in its relative infancy, is still becoming more and more saturated, so to stand out marketers are having to adopt new techniques and technologies to stay ahead of the curve. You will often hear buzzwords like SEO, Data Analytics and CRMs, all very challenging to adopt and maintain but can achieve huge results if done correctly.
But no matter how the way we market changes, the fundamentals have remained the same - to communicate with customers in an effective and engaging way, to capture their attention, to make them want bigger and better, to make them part of your clan.
Jimmy Gough
Founder and CEO
Tags: Marketing, digital media, 4 Ps of marketing, marketing strategy, history of marketing