Introduction to Marketing Management

Introduction to Marketing Management





Needs: A condition or situation in which something is required.





The Marketing Process










Marketing Environment











Demographic environment: It includes the population and its characteristics.







PEST analysis


Porter’s five forces

  1. Existing competitive rivalry between suppliers
  2. Threat of new market entrants
  3. Bargaining power of buyers
  4. Power of suppliers
  5. Threat of substitute products (including technology change)

What is a ‘Marketing Mix’


BREAKING DOWN ‘Marketing Mix’


Understanding the Marketing Information Systems (MIS)


  1. Marketing success depends on making correct and timely decisions.










Quality Assessment:



The primary operating characteristics or benefits of a product

Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning








the consumers’ mind.





Developing Metrics:

Generate items for a performance scale

Describe the general nature of performance

Specify what exactly is being evaluated




 A newer version of the marketing mix is:

Create/Configure Value; Communicate Value and Deliver Value.


Consumer Buying Behaviour

Consumer Behaviour:

The term consumer behaviour is defined as the behaviour that consumers’ display in searching, purchasing, using, evaluating, and disposing products and services that they expect will satisfy their needs.


Characteristics affecting Consumer Behaviour





As evident from the above figure, consumer behaviour is affected by a host of variables, ranging from psychological factors like personal motivations, needs, attitudes and values, personality characteristics, socio-economic and cultural background, demographic variables like age, gender, professional status, social influences of various kinds exerted by family, friends,

colleagues, and society as a whole, and broader cultural factors. The combination of these variables has a deeper impact on each one of us as manifested in our different behaviour as a consumer.


The consumers follow a decision process characterised by problem recognition, information search, alternative evaluation, purchase decision and post-purchase behaviour. The consumers follow a decision process characterised by problem recognition, information search, alternative

evaluation, purchase decision, and post-purchase behaviour.


Influence of cultural factors

There is a subtle influence of cultural factors on consumer’s decision process. Immediate subculture also influences consumer’s decision process with which consumer identifies himself/herself as a member. Consumers also grow in a social setting, which is characterised by the concept of social class.



Culture is the complex way of living of individuals. It represents the way consumers live and grow to acquire cultural values and norms. While studying consumer behaviour in any culture, one must recognise products or services not only as materials produced by the culture, but also as the culmination of abstract values, attitudes, and related symbolism associated with the culture having a direct bearing on the consumption pattern of the user. It comprises values, norms, traditions and rituals of that society where he/she lives.



Culture is a larger manifestation of a nation. People tend to identify themselves with the immediate sub-cultural systems, which are reflected through the race, religion, nationality, and geographical locations. Subcultural factors help in providing an immediate identification and socialisation to the consumer.


Social class

Social class is defined as a relatively permanent and homogeneous division(s) in the society to which individuals and families belong and they share similar values, lifestyles, interests, and behaviour. These are very broad groupings of individuals who hold roughly similar status levels in the society, arranged in a hierarchy from low through middle to upper class divisions.


Reference group

A person’s reference group has a face-to-face, direct impact or indirect impact on his/her attitude and behaviour.


Psychological factors

Consumers are also influenced by the psychological factors. Internal psychological factors subtly guide the decision-making process. These factors are important as they influence the reason or ‘why’ of buying. These factors are motivation, learning and perception, and attitude.



Motivation leads people to move from a general level of need awareness to pursuing a specific goal and to take action towards achieving that specific goal.


 Abraham Maslow’s Need Hierarchy Theory:


Physiological Needs

Esteem Needs

Social Needs

Safety Needs

Physiological Needs

Self-Actualization Needs



Perception is a process through which a consumer’s mind receives, organizes, and interprets physical stimuli. It is influenced by various factors such as color, size, and brand. By seeing, hearing, or experiencing the product or service, consumers will develop an image in their mind. The message given by the company may pass through three different selection procedures.



Learning brings changes in people’s behaviour due to experience or application of insight. Most human behaviour is learned and people acquire new behavioural patterns and meanings through the learning process.



Attitude is defined as a favourable or unfavourable predisposition that people hold towards objects in the environment. Consumers develop favourable or unfavourable attitudes towards products or brands before they decide to buy the product or brand in the market place.



Types of Buying Decision Behaviour: Henry Assael Model


Henry Assael has come up with an explanation to analyse why consumers buy the goods they buy. He explained the relationship between the level of involvement by the consumers in the purchase of goods and services and the level at which diverse goods or services differ from one another.


Complex buying behaviour – Consumers are highly involved in a purchase and aware of significant differences among brands. This is usually the case when the product is expensive, bought infrequently, risky, and highly self-expressive. Typically the consumers don’t know

much about the product category and have more to learn. Example: personal computer.


Dissonance-reducing – Sometimes, the consumer is highly involved in a purchase but sees little differences in the brands. The high involvement is based on the fact that the purchase is expensive, infrequent, and risky. Example: carpet. After purchasing the carpet consumers might experience dissonance that stems from noticing certain disquieting features of the carpet or hearing favourable things about other carpets.


Habitual buying behaviour – Many products are bought under conditions flow consumer involvement and the absence of significant brand differences. Considering salt, consumers have little involvement in this product category. They go to the store and reach for a brand. If they

keep reaching for the same brand, it is out of habit and not strong brand loyalty.


Variety-seeking buying – Some buying situations are characterised by  low consumer involvement but significant brand differences. Here consumers often do a lot of brand switching. Consumers do the brand switching for the sake of variety rather than dissatisfaction. Example:

wafer potato chips.