Marketing

Market Orientation – What Is It, And How Does It Work?

Soumava Goswami

Marketing September, 09 2023

Most companies look to convince their target customers of the value of their products and services so as to sell the product. However, many companies use the Market Orientation technique. It is a process through which a business identifies the needs of its target customers and uses that data to create products and develop services. Learning this marketing approach can help you decide whether it suits your business or not.

In this article, you will learn about the market orientation approach, how it works for businesses, and how businesses use this technique to market their products and services. In addition to that, we will discuss the major stages of the market orientation approach. Finally, we will share with you some of the major advantages and disadvantages of market orientation. Hence, to find out more, read on through to the end of the article.

What Is Market Orientation?

According to Investopedia,

“Market orientation is an approach to business that prioritizes identifying the needs and desires of consumers and creating products and services that satisfy them. Companies that have a market orientation consider the opinions and needs of their target market as a critical component of their research and development (R&D) for new products.”

In this concept, the company’s focus is on identifying the needs and preferences of its customers. With those needs and preferences, the company designs and develops its products and services with the primary objective of earning profits.

In this marketing and product development strategy, the job of the business is to interact more with its customers and observe their needs and requirements. To become profitable, the business turns its focus to the preferences of the customers. The business makes use of its variety of resources to fulfill the needs of its target customers.

The businesses that use this method are also aware of their competition in the marketplace. They make use of different techniques to identify different threats. The enterprises that follow the market orientation strategy invest a lot in innovation and product development so that they keep up with the changing demands of their customers.

How Does Market Orientation Work?

Market orientation is a strategy for marketing that businesses use to focus on their customer base, and create and sell products on the needs of the customers.

According to the Wall Street Mojo,

“The strategy involves analyzing and researching the customers’ requirements, concerns, and suggestions concerning the particular product or service the enterprise deals with. This way, the enterprise will be aware of the trends in customer preferences. It will enable the company to modify or design its product or services according to customer preferences.”

A company that follows this strategy first does market research to find out its customer preferences. They make use of data analysis techniques to predict the desires of their customers. However, businesses that are already established and have good sales of their products use this strategy to improve their products or expand their product line.

Apart from that, using this strategy helps businesses to address issues associated with customer retention. Today, most companies follow the market orientation approach, as it helps them understand the needs and demands of their target customers better.

What Are The Stages Of Market Orientation?

The following are the stages of the market orientation strategy:

1. Initiation

In this stage, the business identifies all the potential threats for its business which might affect it. Apart from that, the business also researches what steps to take to handle the threats.

2. Reconstitution

Here, the researchers present the plans for the initiation stage to the employees of the business. With the managers point out to the employees about what steps to follow. Here, the organization also needs to ensure that all employees are ready for the change to happen.

3. Institutionalization

Here, the organization puts the plan into action. Here, they train employees and provide them with instructions on what steps to follow. This helps the employees to follow a pattern so that the business is able to cater to the needs and demands of the customers. Here, the plank is basically executed.

4. Maintenance

In this stage, the business continues the process and meets the customer requirements and demands, as per the initial plan. Here, the business tries to ensure that the plan is effective and everyone follows it to meet the business’s goal.

What Are The Advantages And Disadvantages Of Market Orientation?

According to Indeed.com,

“A market-oriented approach to business can help a company earn the trust and loyalty of its customers by showing them they’re a priority and that the business exists to serve them. It contrasts with conventional marketing, which attempts to convince customers of a product’s value while not necessarily prioritizing consumer preferences during product development.”

The following are the major advantages and disadvantages of market orientation:

Advantages Of Market Orientation

Here are the advantages of market orientation:

It helps to increase the overall revenue.
The business sees an increase in the market.
The customers are well-connected to the company.
Helps in innovation and product development.
It helps the business to enhance its market reputation, as the customers are happy with the products and services of the company.

Disadvantages Of Market Orientation

Here are the disadvantages of market orientation:

Continuous change is required, as the needs of customers change with time.
The company invests a lot in investment.
Research gets difficult as it is difficult to predict the preferences of the market.

Final Thought

Hope this article was helpful for you to get a better idea of the market orientation approach. You can see that it is really helpful for different companies to identify the needs and demands of their target customers. This helps them in developing new products and eventually sell them. Many top businesses use these principles to expand their products and services.

Even some of the major impractical demands from consumers help businesses make decisions in the long term. Hence, market orientation helps businesses to plan for the long term. What do you think of the market orientation approach’s importance for business? Share your thoughts and opinions in the comments section below.

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Soumava Goswami

A passionate writer and an avid reader, Soumava is academically inclined and loves writing on topics requiring deep research. Having 3+ years of experience, Soumava also loves writing blogs in other domains, including digital marketing, business, technology, travel, and sports.

Network Marketing: What Is It? Is It The Right Option For You?

Network Marketing is a type of business model that constitutes a group of people forming a network to earn from sales commissions, as well as through new joinings to the network. This system creates a flexible approach to the business, where a new member (as a salesperson) also becomes a business owner. The system has been in existence for many decades and has evolved multiple times since. In this article, you will learn the essential details about network marketing (also known as multi-level marketing). You will also learn how network marketing works, as well as the types of network marketing options with the help of which businesses operate. Finally, we will also look at some of the major advantages and disadvantages of network marketing for businesses. Hence, to learn more, read on through to the end of the article. What Is Network Marketing? According to Investopedia, “Network marketing is a business model that depends on person-to-person sales by independent representatives, often working from home. A network marketing business may require you to build a network of business partners or salespeople to assist with lead generation and closing sales. There are many reputable network marketing operations, but some have been denounced as pyramid schemes.” The network marketing businesses that run through pyramid schemes focus more on the recruitment of salespeople. This is because new salespeople are required to pay upfront for expensive starter kits. For these payments, the people up the order in the pyramid get commissions. Most companies that you will come across run through pyramid schemes. Hence, if you are looking to join a network marketing company, make sure that it is not a scam. Most companies with pyramid schemes have been banned due to running scams. Therefore, research is essential before you are looking to join a network marketing business. Some of the most famous network marketing companies are Amway, Avon Products, Tupperware, Herbalife Nutrition, etc. Read More: Market Segmentation: Definition, Types, Benefits, And More How Does Network Marketing Work? - Types Of Network Marketing Every network marketing business focuses on sales as the most important factor. In such a business, a core sales team specializing in sales starts selling products and brings in new salespeople. Here, each of the salespersons in the core team brings in new salespersons, thus creating a new tier. Each of the salespersons in the new tier creates another tier in the same way. This is how the team takes the shape of a pyramid as the tiers increase. With more tiers, the team gets more salespeople, who add to more sales of the business. The salespeople earn commission based on the number of items they sell. however, there is an interesting catch in this business model. With each sale, the people up the order get commissions based on their rank. However, this feature is different in many companies. Types Of Network Marketing The following are the major types of network marketing options: 1. Single-Tier Here, the salespersons in the team earn based on direct commission. Getting another tier of people is not compulsory. Here, affiliate marketing strategies come into play. 2. Two-Tier In this case, apart from earning direct sales commissions, salespersons also earn through commissions for new recruits. 3. Multi-Tier Marketing It consists of more than two tiers of people. Both direct sales commissions and indirect recruitment commissions are available in this case. Network Marketing - Scam Or Legit? Many network marketing businesses had their rise during the COVID-19 lockdowns. As people were locked in their homes, they were looking to make more money. Since the internet was a huge relief for many, and social media users grew, many people started online counterpart to advertise their products and brands. This led to many such businesses getting bigger. However, there were many scams as well. According to Wall Street Mojo, “By recognizing the potential for such gig works, many businesses exploited the people looking for jobs by making them pay upfront for training materials. Their objective is to earn money from people in the name of a business. Thus, the pyramid schemes focus not on customers but on workers who become the bait.” What Are The Advantages Of Network Marketing? Here are some of the major advantages of network marketing that you will benefit from: It helps to bring together people who are sales enthusiasts. For many people, it offers a secondary source of income by acting as an affiliate. They only pay those who contribute to sales, which is a gain for the business. The company does not need to think about recruitment or providing additional benefits to employees. In most cases, the business supplies quality products. What Are The Disadvantages Of Network Marketing? According to Entrepreneur.com, “Things can get sticky when a network marketing network compensates participants primarily for recruiting others rather than for selling the company's products or services. A network marketing system in which most of the revenue comes from recruitment may be considered an illegal pyramid scheme.” The following are a few disadvantages of network marketing, which you must be aware of: It is difficult to predict the production targets for the business. Manufacturers have a limited role in facilitating the distribution of the products. Too much focus on creating a pyramid of salespersons and earning through commission leads the business to trouble. New distributors have to spend a lot at the start. Many businesses are found to be scams. Read More: Micromarketing – What Is It? How Does It Work? Pros And Cons Wrapping Up Hope this article was helpful for you to get a better idea of what network marketing is and how it works. You might have already understood that it is mostly suits those people who have high energy and top-end sales skills. If you are confident about building a profitable business with a modest investment, network marketing can be a good option for you. You can choose a single-tier, two-tier, or multi-tier approach based on what you are comfortable with. However, research well before you join a network marketing company. Do you think this can really help in achieving financial independence? Share your thoughts on the matter in the comments section below. Read Also: Marketing Mix – What Are The 4 Ps Of Marketing? Market Orientation – What Is It, And How Does It Work? Market Cannibalization – Definition, How Does It Work, Example, And More

Factors To Contemplate In Connecting With The Right Target Audience In Social Media For Your Business

Connecting with your target audience is essential for any successful social media marketing strategy. To get started, consider your target audience and what platforms they use most often. Then create content that speaks to their interests and needs. Consider using visuals, such as infographics, high-quality images, and videos, to draw in your target audience. If you want to create more traffic to your social media, your account should consider instagram likes. Below are several factors you should always consider if you want more traffic across your business's social media platforms. Keywords Are Integral When creating your content, make sure to include keywords that will help people find your content. You can also use hashtags on platforms to increase visibility and reach a wider audience that would have otherwise remained undiscovered. Each content you post on your page should include all the important keywords. It is important to post content regularly to maintain visibility and engagement. Through keywords, people will easily land on your page and become active followers who, in turn, become loyal customers for your business. Understand The Target Audience Consider running surveys or analyzing data from platforms to understand your target audience better. All this will give you an understanding of the type of content your target audience wants to see. Once you better understand what your audience wants, you can tailor your content to suit their needs. With the right content, you will engage your followers while attracting new followers to your page. Active Engagement Engagement is key in social media marketing and reaching your target audience. Respond to comments and messages that you receive and ask your followers for their opinions. Showing you actively listen to your followers will help build trust and loyalty. You can also join conversations and groups relevant to your target audience. Different social media accounts can start live videos where you can directly engage with your followers. Ensure you utilize this feature and make your followers feel loved and appreciated in your account. With this, you will increase followers directly and indirectly by bringing onboard the right target audience. In conclusion, social media is a great way to get your content in front of new audiences and target people interested in your brand. You can use your collected data to customize your campaigns and increase your chances of success. However, if you want your brand to get out there and reach thousands of people, you need also to have a huge following. If you have a small number of followers, you can buy instagram likes. By following these steps, you can ensure that your social media efforts are effective and successful in connecting with your target audience and increasing your social media following and likes. Read Also: What Are Social Media Apis And Why Do They Matter? Does More Censorship Guarantee For A Safer Internet Connection? How To Run A Social Media Campaign At A Low Budget For An Aspiring Entrepreneur?

The Power Of SEO: Elevating Your Online Presence

SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is a digital marketing strategy focusing on enhancing a website's visibility in search engine results. It involves optimizing website design, content, and coding, use of relevant keywords, building high-quality backlinks, and ensuring mobile-friendliness. This increases organic (non-paid) traffic from search engines like Google, Bing, and Yahoo, thus boosting brand awareness, credibility, and customer engagement. Hiring an SEO analyst for a website is critical in today's digital age. They optimize your website to achieve higher search engine rankings, increasing your site's visibility. More visibility leads to more traffic, potentially translating into higher sales or wider audience reach. Moreover, an SEO analyst understands the latest trends and algorithms, keeping your site relevant. Thus, an SEO analyst plays a crucial role in the online success and growth of your business. Understanding SEO SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, works by enhancing various elements of a website so it appears higher in search engine results. It involves the incorporation of relevant keywords and phrases in a website's content, such that search engine 'crawlers' can identify them. This, along with other factors like UX/UI design and backlinks, helps improve website ranking and visibility, thereby generating more organic traffic. SEO is a critical aspect of digital marketing strategy. SEO (Search Engine Optimization) offers several benefits to your website. It improves your site's visibility and rankings on search engines, thereby increasing organic traffic. With SEO, you can target specific demographics and convert visitors into customers by enhancing the user experience through relevant content. It also builds your brand credibility, as search engines are trusted by users. Plus, it's a cost-effective strategy for long-term business growth. The Significant Role of an SEO Analyst An SEO Analyst is responsible for improving a company's online presence by optimizing its websites for search engines. Their duties encompass researching and implementing keyword strategies, improving website ranking and traffic, analyzing performance through SEO tools, and generating reports to illustrate progress. They also work on website design to ensure it is user-friendly and often cooperate with content creators to incorporate SEO best practices. The overall aim is to increase visibility and conversions. An experienced SEO Analyst can profoundly impact a business website. Their expertise can optimize a website's visibility, increase its ranking on search engine result pages, boost organic traffic, and improve conversion rates. The analyst's ability to perform comprehensive keyword research, analyze competitors, and understand algorithm changes is vital to maximize the site's potential. Essentially, the expertise of an SEO Analyst can elevate a business's online presence and increase revenue. The impact of SEO on website visibility SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, plays a significant role in enhancing website traffic. It involves optimizing a website and its content with relevant keywords, enhancing the site’s visibility in search results. SEO not only helps in attracting more visitors but also attracts quality traffic with higher conversion potential. The more SEO-friendly a website is, the higher it ranks on search engines like Google, leading to increased visibility and consequently higher website traffic. Website ranking on search results is crucial for digital visibility and business growth. It directly affects the amount of traffic your website receives. A higher rank increases the chance of internet users finding and engaging with your business. It's also a sign of credibility and relevance to both search engines and users, contributing to user trust and brand reputation. Therefore, optimizing your website for search engine ranking is an essential part of online marketing strategies. Choosing the right SEO Analyst When hiring an SEO Analyst, consider their analytical skills, understanding of SEO trends, and proficiency in SEO tools. Experience in keyword research, content optimization, link building, and SEO audits is vital. They should understand your business niche and have a proven track record of improving website rankings. It’s also crucial that they possess excellent communication skills to effectively articulate strategies and suggest improvements. A certified SEO Analyst with technical expertise can drive your business's online visibility. When examining an individual's portfolio or previous work, look for consistent quality, creativity, and versatility. Ensure that their style aligns with your project or company's aesthetic. Their portfolio should showcase a range of skills and be updated with their most recent work. It's also essential to assess practical elements like their ability to meet deadlines and their responsiveness to feedback. If possible, look for testimonials or seek out reviews of their past performance. The process of SEO analysis A typical SEO audit involves an examination of a website's on-page and off-page performance to determine its rank-ability on search engines. This process includes analysis of website speed, mobile-friendliness, URL structure, meta descriptions, keyword relevancy, and backlinks. The audit aims to identify issues that could be hindering the site's organic search performance and provides recommendations for necessary improvements to enhance SEO effectiveness. Continuous SEO monitoring and updating are vital for maintaining and enhancing the online visibility of a website. It helps keep your site relevant in ever-changing digital landscapes by adapting to updated algorithms, user behavior, and market trends. Continuous SEO activities not only ensure a higher ranking in search engine results, but also improve user experience, leading to increased traffic, conversion rates, and return on investment. Without consistent SEO monitoring and updates, even the best-planned strategies can become ineffective. The potential ROI on hiring an SEO Analyst An SEO analyst can significantly increase your revenue by improving your website's visibility on search engines. They devise strategies to amplify your content's reach, ensuring it appears in relevant keyword-related searches. This increases your chance of attracting and converting prospective clients, driving more high-quality organic traffic to your site. With their expertise in user experience, conversion optimization, and web analytics, an SEO analyst assists in creating an engaging and user-friendly website that heightens customer retention and boosts sales. Hiring an SEO analyst may seem expensive initially; however, the potential benefits often outweigh the costs. An SEO analyst can boost your website's ranking on search engines, increasing visibility and bringing more organic traffic. Higher traffic usually translates to more leads and sales, subsequently improving your business's revenue. Thus, though the upfront costs for hiring an SEO analyst can be high, the potential return on investment can make it a financially valuable decision. Read Also: How To Optimize Your SEO Strategy For Startups The Benefits Of Hiring An SEO Company In Los Angeles Apptivo CRM Review: The Most Versatile All-In-One CRM Tool

Marketing Mix – What Are The 4 Ps Of Marketing?

Having the best product in the market never helps if the company fails to get the word into the market. Your target customers should have a good idea of what you offer so that the company is able to develop its brand in the marketplace. They must know what you are trying to offer. However, the strength of your marketing mix is the important thing that will enable you to achieve your marketing goals. In this article, you will learn what a marketing mix is, its purpose, and how it works for different companies in different situations. In addition to that, we will also discuss how the marketing mix is performed with the help of the 4P structure, as well as the 7P structure. Finally, we will also discuss some other essential marketing tools. Hence, to find out more about the marketing mix read on through to the end of the article. What Is A Marketing Mix? According to Indeed.com, “A marketing mix includes the tactics and tools you use to market your company’s offerings and influence customers to buy them. The best marketing mix is one that uses up-to-date market research and data-driven strategies to reach customers and drive sales.” In some cases, to develop a marketing mix for your business, you might need to change your current marketing strategy. If your marketing mix is not in a continuous state of flux, you must be doing something wrong with your marketing strategy. You will need to understand that just because something worked for the business to get more customers ten years ago, or even three years ago, might not work at the present time. Hence, you will need to consistently assess your target audience from time to time. Apart from that, you must also evaluate your marketing tools as well as the marketing plan you use for the execution of the marketing process. In a comprehensive marketing plan, there are multiple areas of focus if one takes the marketing mix into consideration. In most cases, a company’s marketing mix is classified into 4Ps - product, placement, price, and promotion. Read More: Market Orientation – What Is It, And How Does It Work? Why Is Marketing Mix Important? According to Investopedia, “At its core, a marketing mix is focused on promoting a product or service to generate revenue for a company. On the whole, it integrates key marketing strategies that create brand awareness, build customer loyalty, and drive product sales.” Rather than running through only one marketing message, effective marketing touches on various broad ranges. This helps the brand to reach a wider audience. Furthermore, with the help of the 4Ps of marketing, it becomes easier for marketing professionals to maintain more focus on the major things that matter. It also gets easier for organizations to make more strategic decisions when they are launching a new product or revising an existing product. What Are The 4Ps Of Marketing Mix? The following are the four P classifications of the marketing mix strategy in business: 1. Product This is the product or service that the business offers to satisfy the needs and demands of customers. To market the product, the company needs to determine what differentiates it from competing products. 2. Price Here, the business needs to find out what the actual price of the product is and what the consumers are willing to pay based on the demands of the product in the market. Marketers also find out the costs based on R&D, manufacturing, marketing, and distribution so as to do cost-based pricing. 3. Placement It is also important for marketers to find out the type of product they are trying to sell to the consumers. They need to determine whether they want to categorize the product in the basic or premium category. 4. Promotion These include the forms of marketing practices the marketers are willing to employ to promote the product in the market. Here, the budget is one of the major factors to consider. In addition to that, marketing professionals also construct a message based on the previous three Ps as they try to reach their target consumers. What Are The 7Ps Of Marketing Mix? (Three More Ps) Here are the three more Ps that are also used in a business’s marketing mix: 5. People People include the employees that are interacting directly with the consumers. In such cases, a business might consider showcasing a positive company culture, which becomes a part of their brand strategy. Many companies also include customer relationship management to increase customer loyalty. 6. Physical Evidence Physical evidence might include the packaging of the product, as well as the structure and layout of the physical store. This is done to create a strong impression on the customers. 7. Process Here, the marketers identify areas from the standpoint of logistics so as to ensure that customers are provided with a seamless experience of the product or service. Other Helpful Marketing Tools According to Investopedia, “Not all marketing is product-focused. Customer service businesses are fundamentally different than those based primarily on physical products, so they often will take a consumer-centric approach that incorporates additional elements to address their unique needs.” In addition to all the seven Ps, marketers also consider some other elements in their marketing strategies. Some of them include furniture, signage, and layout. In addition to that, marketers also study the needs and demands of customers (both present and future possibilities). To do this, they get feedback from customers and define the type of feedback. Read More: Market Cannibalization – Definition, How Does It Work, Example, And More Wrapping Up The marketing mix is one of the most essential requirements for a brand if it wants to successfully promote its products and services in the marketplace. As per the strategy, companies make use of four Ps, namely, product, price, placement, and promotion. The ultimate goal of working with a marketing mix is to generate more sales for the business. In addition to the four Ps, in some cases, three more approaches are integrated, namely, people, process, and physical evidence. This is done to reinforce a marketing strategy that is more centered on customers. Do you have any more information to offer related to the marketing mix? Share your information with us in the comments section below. Read Also: Marketing Campaigns: How To Do It? – Steps To Follow What Is A Venture Capitalist, And What Are Their Functions? 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Market Orientation – What Is It, And How Does It Work?

What Is Market Orientation?

How Does Market Orientation Work?