Effective marketing is a very important process that largely contributes towards improved performance of an organization. It also helps businesses to determine appropriate methods of satisfying consumers’ needs and wants.
As a process, marketing helps in defining activities that are capable of creating value for organizations by facilitating interaction between businesses and consumers. Marketing alone cannot help companies to realize their set targets and goals.
As a result, several companies have embarked on modern marketing techniques that boost the effort of organizations in achieving the set targets and goals and also improving their overall performance.
The main objective why companies resort to modern marketing techniques is the need to develop a satisfying association with customers. The latter tends to benefit both business organizations and stakeholders. These efforts have a vital role within the marketing process in almost all organizations and also among consumers.
Bose (2010 p.28) defines modern marketing strategies as the processes, best practices, and tools that enable organizations to respond to the changing consumers’ behaviors.
By adopting modern marketing techniques, a business can easily achieve its set targets and goals, while providing consumers with products and services that satisfy their needs and wants.
From this definition, it can be observed that modern marketing is a new concept that requires marketers and companies to pay close attention for improved organizational performance.
The main intention of this discussion is to establish reasons why several business enterprises often adopt modern marketing techniques when dealing with various consumers’ behaviors.
In addition, this discussion analyzes different ways through which marketers respond to techniques employed by consumers in satisfying their needs and wants. Two Australian companies namely Asciano Limited and GPT Group have been used in this discussion.
Clemons (2008, p.15) provides quite a number of reasons that explain why most organizations often opt to use modern marketing techniques in dealing with consumers’ behavior.
The main reason for using revised marketing techniques is the changing consumers’ behavior that forces companies to re-evaluate the Porter’s work that is used by organizations as a competitive strategy.
Over the years, the Porter’s five forces analysis placed much emphasis on corporations while ignoring consumer behaviors in determining an appropriate corporate strategy.
Secondly, through the use of modern marketing techniques, organizations or businesses are able to meet the varying wants and needs from consumers in accordance to the current shopping patterns.
This serves as a very important technique used by companies to develop a good corporate strategy. It also helps companies to review their competitors together with their current portfolios or other new offerings introduced by the competitors.
Companies also introduce modern marketing strategies as a way addressing the market’s demand side which has been affected by varying competitive strategies from different firms.
Since the change of competitive strategies does not follow a similar change in the underlying needs and wants from consumers, there is great need for businesses to come up with an advanced marketing technique that can satisfy consumers’ needs and wants without affecting the organization’s level of profitability.
Although some firms are reluctant to adopt new marketing techniques, they are aware that consumer awareness keeps on improving hence the need to adjust their current marketing strategies.
It is worth to mention that increased consumer awareness is realized from their effortless access in accessing consumption information at the right time. This has consequently enabled consumers to practice good management of their varying choices.
Customers can easily get information on the different products available in the market, their prices, and product features. This explains why companies should also adopt modern marketing techniques to enable them provide the actual goods and services needed by consumers (Clemons 2008, p.16)
There are several ways used by marketers to respond to how consumers try to satisfy their needs and wants. To start with, many business managers adopt marketing techniques that provide consumers with the necessary information regarding how the products offered by the company will satisfy their needs and wants.
Some of these techniques include establishing a good relationship with their customers instead of using only visual effects or catchy slogans. Focusing on improved customer relationship helps an organization to interact with its customers and determine the actual needs and wants from them (Thompson 2009, p.102).
A company then uses its marketers to provide customers with all the information that relate to the different products and services offered by the business.
While undertaking this process, a good number of businesses always ensure that they employ advanced levels of communication with their customers in order to increase their awareness on the varying consumers’ needs that are expected to change any time.
Secondly, marketers respond to consumers’ needs by being genuine. Based on the fact that a good number of customers rely on technology to access consumption information, there is a great need for businesses to practice the highest possible integrity standards and practices.
Failing to observe these standards can make customers to avoid engaging with the business because they assume that the business lacks authenticity. If consumers develop a negative image towards the business, it is highly likely that they will spread negative information to other consumers.
This can have adverse effects on the business in terms of performance (Dickinson 2011, p. 10). To prevent such situations, many marketers often resort to the adoption of proper mechanisms that can help them in identifying loyal and potential customers, and fighting towards satisfying their needs and wants.
In addition, many organizations or businesses ensure that the products offered to consumers are innovative and conforms to consumers’ expectations. Several companies prefer to undertake this process while ensuring that their marketing plan is in line with consumers’ needs.
The information used by businesses to facilitate this process is obtained from extensive market research to ensure that the business is well prepared in fulfilling the varying consumers’ needs and wants (Griffin & Moorhead 2011, p.62)
Another method used by marketers in responding to consumers’ needs and wants is the creation of policies that increase their satisfaction, and enable employees to determine the actual requirements for consumers.
An effective consumer satisfaction policy is used by businesses to address any confusion that exist within a company, and helps to establish an appropriate platform for interacting with customers in a desired manner.
Consumer satisfaction can be easily realized if companies are able to offer adequate training to employees (Mathis & Jackson 2010, p.76).
Companies that are able to conduct regular training to employees can easily guide workers to avoid making minor mistakes and also make them to put more effort towards realizing new ventures for the success of the company.
From a marketing perspective, companies should be able to develop and adapt innovative marketing techniques that are able to target potential consumers without causing any form of inconvenience.
If possible, organizations or businesses should adopt marketing avenues that provide an opportunity for active participation of consumers. For example, an organization should consider making extensive use of social networking sites because a large number of potential customers frequently use such sites (Harris 2009, p.132)
Other companies respond to consumers’ needs and wants by offering products and services that have value. This is based on the fact that several customers are always ready to receive products that possess value.
A customer is likely to become loyal to an organization that has the best interests for its customers. Such customers spread positive information to other potential customers. This consequently improves the overall performance of the business (Clemons 2008, p.23)
Currently, several companies have understood the importance of applying modern marketing techniques in order to reap the most out of consumers’ behavior. Asciano Limited and GPT Group are typical examples of companies that have effectively applied modern marketing techniques.
Asciano is a leading company in Australia that provides logistical services in various supply chains that are infrastructure-based. As part of its marketing techniques, Asciano ensures that it delivers superior experiences to its consumers with the aim of generating attractive returns to its shareholders.
In addition, the company has embarked on innovative partnership with its customers so that it can be able to attain differentiated performance capable of delivering long-lasting solutions to consumers’ needs and wants (Aremu & Bamiduro 2012, p. 210).
The company’s supply chains are also infrastructure-based in order to enhance and improve its operations (Asciano Group 2011, p.13).
GPT Group is also based in Australia and is involved in managing a wide range of portfolio of quality property, assets, and deliverance of long term benefits to its consumers. The company has incorporated the modern marketing techniques in different areas so as to address varying consumers’ behaviors.
For example, the group has developed learning and development programs that support career development amongst its employees through continuous training and learning.
The company also acknowledges the use of technology in establishing innovative methods of attending to consumers’ needs, and also identifying the required knowledge and skills for its employees (GPT Group 2012, p.1).
According to Perner (2013, p.8), offering adequate training to employees makes it easier for companies to meet consumers’ demands by engaging in quality production that conforms to the requirements of consumers.
In conclusion, it is vital to reiterate that modern marketing techniques play a vital role when dealing with today’s consumers’ behavior. Through modern marketing strategies, companies are able to deal with the changing consumers’ behavior and establish an appropriate competitive strategy.
These strategies also help an organization to cope with the increasing customers’ awareness regarding their needs and wants.
The discussion has revealed the need for marketers to adopt marketing techniques that provide consumers with the necessary information regarding how the products offered by the company will satisfy their needs and wants.
This should go hand in hand with the establishment of policies that improve satisfaction of consumers, and enable company employees to determine the actual requirements for consumers.
According to Harris (2009, p.133), there is need for companies to become familiar with modern marketing techniques or strategies. Companies should avoid drawing attention to narrow interests.
They should instead put more emphasis in fulfilling consumers’ needs and wants. If possible, companies should do away with traditional methods of marketing and adopt modern marketing strategies.
References
Aremu, M. & Bamiduro, J 2012, “Marketing mix practice as a determinant of entrepreneurial business performance.” International Journal of Business and Management vol. 7 no.1, pp. 205-213.
Asciano Group 2011, Investor Day Presentation, Collins Press, New York.
Bose, C.D 2010, Modern marketing: principles and practice, New Delhi, PHI Learning.
Clemons, EK 2008, “How Information Changes Consumer Behavior and How Consumer Behavior Determines Corporate Strategy”. Journal of Management Information Systems. vol. 25 no. 2, pp. 13–40.
Dickinson, B, 2011, “The role of authenticity in relationship marketing”. Journal of Management and Marketing Research, vol. 8 no.6, pp.1-12.
GPT Group 2012, REA Real Estate. Super-sector Leader Report. Vol. 4 no.1. pp. 1-2.
Griffin, R. W. & Moorhead, G 2011,Organizational Behavior: Managing People and Organizations, Cengage Learning, New York, NY.
Harris, F 2009, “Product classification: an ethical perspective”. The Marketing Review, vol. 9 no. 2, pp. 127-138.
Mathis, R. L. & Jackson, J. H 2010, Human Resource Management, Cengage Learning, New York, NY.
Perner, L 2013, “Consumer Behavior”. The Psychology of Marketing, vol. 2 no.3, pp. 1-9.
Thompson, D. J 2009, Approaches to organizational design, University of Pittsburgh Press, Pittsburgh.