Importance of Marketing Environment to a Marketer
Introduction
Regarding marketing activities, a business or an organization can be affected by various environmental factors, which surround the firm. Such environmental aspects have influence over the decision making of an enterprise. Therefore, as definable by Edeling & Fischer (2016), the surrounding and influencing factors collectively make up a marketing environment. The elements comprise of all forces that may have an impact on the market, as well as affect the marketing efforts of a company. Keller (2016) agrees that a marketing system of a firm needs to operate within the frameworks of its environmental forces. Since environmental and marketing dynamics of a firm tend to change and seem to be uncertain, it is imperative for a business to understand all these aspects, and in the process, aim to develop approaches that might be beneficial to the firm (Tischler, 2014). The objective of this literature review is to examine and determine the importance of why marketers should understand marketing environment of a company.
Helps Understand Consumer Behavior
There is so much competition existing in a market and that there is too much noise, which makes it difficult for consumers to choose the right goods and services. As Bhasin (2016) puts it, such “noise” makes consumers confused, thus perplexing their decision making. Understanding the marketing environment is vital in helping marketers identify and recognize what customers want. In simpler terms, without an understanding of a marketing environment, the situation would be complicated for the firm, and therefore miss on what consumers need, thus resulting in losses. Marketing environment is essential to marketers since it assists them to identify with the needs of their customers, especially regarding how consumers make decisions when purchasing products. Yadav & Pavlou (2014) compliment the aspect of consumers and culture whereby marketers are required to study and grasp the different cultures of different customers. Culture is a remarkable influence on how buyers behave, and it is largely dependent on income and social class.
Assists in Understanding Its Competitors
According to Tischler (2014), no brand or product can escape the viewpoint of competition. Every niche and category have different brands and products whereby each product features its USP such particular brands target a specific group. Thus, as reiterated by Bhasin (2016), marketing environment come to the rescue and offers assistance to the marketers so they may comprehend their competitors. Without a better appreciation of major and minor competition, business is doomed to fail. The most efficient way to fight competition is by offering better and more advanced products at affordable prices. The goods or services ought to be satisfactory such that the consumers become loyal to the brand (Edeling & Fischer, 2016). Therefore, as the firm becomes determined to keep its trustworthy users, the marketers have no alternative but to continue monitoring its marketing environment, which includes its rivals.
Marketers Get To Strategize and Make Prompt Decisions
As noted by Yadav & Pavlou (2014), comprehending the marketing environment is fundamental to marketers since it enables them to capitalize on challenging business scenarios. Due to different marketing factors, a business has the possibility of strategizing on what to do in case the firm faces some drawbacks. Constant study and monitoring of the marketing environment is likely to enable a company to avoid losses. That is, with a perfect discernment of possible threats in a marketing environment, a firm can make fast decisions on how to cope with such challenges. In the process, and because of a reasonable anticipation of the threats, a company possesses the capability to solve the problems as fast as possible. Keller (2016) argues that a marketing environment is a valuable feature to a firm’s marketing team because it sensitizes a company’s performance due to change in the marketing environment. The sensitization further becomes useful in meeting the desires and wishes of potential consumers. Any scanning process by a corporation results in collecting of qualitative information concerning effective marketing strategies for the company (Bhasin, 2016).
Helps with Innovation
According to Yadav & Pavlou (2014), technological factors comprise part of marketing environment. Such facets include automation, internet expansion, technological incentives, and hi-tech barriers. Any change in technology or its advancement has an effect on how a business operates. It also affects its profits and losses; thereby, marketers have an obligation to maintain and ensure any revolution in technology does not affect the firm in a negative manner (Edeling & Fischer, 2016). Steady keep up with technological advancements are effective since it helps develop innovative products and services, thus improving the performance of a company. It is worth noting that outsourcing decisions are dependent on technological alterations whereby firms across the world are becoming more observant with their business environments concerning potential technological changes. Companies can no longer risk on never noticing any substantial technical modifications that might affect the company. For instance, Tischler (2014) mentions the example of Kodak, which missed the innovative change from film to digital among the majority of its consumers.
Conclusion
Both large and small organizations operate within their business environments. Various external and internal forces influence the marketing strategies of a company. Such forces can affect a firm either positively or negatively. Consequently, it is the duty of marketers to monitor any changes in these forces, which then assists them in decision-making. Since a marketing environment is a representation of the total sum of variables that impact an organization. Monitoring of a marketing environment is constructive since it aids in the survival of a corporation. Keller (2016) reiterates this by stating that if a business executive does not scrutinize a marketing environment, there is a risk involved due to any unseen market transformations that may affect a corporation’s endurance. Therefore, as confirmed by Bhasin (2016), every business is supposed to examine and understand the importance of marketing environments, especially from a marketer’s perspective.
References
Bhasin, H. (2016). The importance of marketing in today’s business climate. Marketing91.com. Retrieved from https://goo.gl/cM9D0n
Modeling, A., & Fischer, M. (2016). Marketing’s Impact on Firm Value: Generalizations from a Meta-Analysis. Journal Of Marketing Research (JMR), 53(4), 515–534. https://goo.gl/sn9DiU
Keller, K. L. (2016). Unlocking the Power of Integrated Marketing Communications: How Integrated Is Your IMC Program?. Journal Of Advertising, 45(3), 286–301 https://goo.gl/HVxWZk
Tischler, J. (2014). The Three Most Important Marketing Environment Concepts That an Organization Should Consider. Smallbusiness.chron.com. Retrieved from https://goo.gl/20iqyw
Yadav, M. S., & Pavlou, P. A. (2014). Marketing in Computer-Mediated Environments: Research Synthesis and New Directions. Journal Of Marketing, 78(1), 20–40. https://goo.gl/pV0BJV