It is difficult to define the essence of marketing because there are many ways to define it. It is often understood as a way of operating a company consisting in profitably satisfying the needs of customers. In a broader context, it should also be understood as a complex process that includes identifying and shaping the needs of recipients, creating appropriate products and acting to meet the needs of consumers.

The main division of marketing

When talking about types of marketing, marketing should be mentioned depending on the application. So it stands out:
– producer marketing,
– B2B marketing,
– B2C marketing,
– marketing of services,
– commercial marketing,
– international marketing.

What does marketing do?

Marketing is a very broad concept, which translates into its different faces. It covers many areas, including depending on the resources and media used or the way it targets customers.

Product marketing
This term is used to describe a set of activities that are aimed at product development, including in terms of its recognition and increase in sales. The steps taken include, for example, rebranding, promotion marketing, trade marketing.

Analytical Marketing
Its purpose is to use customer information, which is expected to increase sales. Among the activities carried out in this area, one can mention, among others geomarketing, neuromarketing, behavioral marketing, benchmarking, loyalty programs.

Event marketing
Its essence is to promote a company or product through organization / participation in events. Activities include sponsorship, own stand at the fair, organization of concerts / picnics for clients, lecture at an industry conference. If you are looking to up your game you can also try out attendee engagement solutions by hub live for your events. 

Inbound marketing
This term is understood as activities aimed at increasing the chance for a customer to find an offer and encouraging him to contact. In this case, e.g. content marketing is used, which may be manifested by content potentially of interest to the consumer – guides, entries, lookbooks and the like.

Outbound marketing
These are activities addressed to people who do not always expect contact from the company. Techniques and tools are used, such as direct marketing, field marketing, and e-mail marketing campaigns.

Mobile marketing
The notion of mobile marketing is not only “advertising on wheels”, but also activities using portable devices (smartphones, laptops). Tools such as communication via SMS / MMS, QR codes, dedicated display ads are used.

Internet marketing
This is one of the most common marketing varieties today. Includes activities that are carried out via the Internet. These include not only Google Ads positioning or advertising, but also other elements. These include, for example, email marketing, social media marketing, buzz marketing, and affiliate marketing.

It is worth noting that most companies are not limited to only one area. In practice, various types of marketing activities are used – to achieve the set business goals in the most effective way possible.

Factors affecting the effectiveness of marketing activities

It depends on the effectiveness of marketing activities whether and how quickly the company will be able to achieve its business goals. An important role in this aspect is played, among others, by factors such as:
– the strategy developed and its implementation,
– tools and techniques used,
– creation,
– matching activities to the target group.

The choice of channels through which the message will reach potential customers is also of great importance.

It is worth noting that effective marketing activities cannot be carried out based on intuition. Although it may be useful in many cases, numbers play the most important role – marketing is a measurable area. Therefore, it is necessary to take into account the range of activities, reactions of potential customers, impact time, etc. Based on the data, an analysis should be carried out – in order to eliminate “weak links” of implemented activities.

Although marketing is associated mainly with sales, you cannot limit yourself to it. The implemented actions should include, among others areas such as communication, analysis of activities, preparation and implementation of developed strategies. I hope you already understand what marketing does. The widest possible definition would simply be that it is any external manifestation of a company’s sales goal.

Marketing definitions – what is marketing?

Marketing is a concept that is defined in different ways:
– according to the American Marketing Association (AMA), all activities aimed at creating, communicating and providing products of value to the client and partners;
-Philip Kotler and Kevin Lane Keller define marketing as activities that involve recognizing and meeting human needs.
– There is still, among others managerial definition of marketing, according to which conducting specific activities is aimed at increasing the sale of certain goods.

Types of Marketing

Marketing is a very broad term, so several types can be distinguished. Some of them are the fruit of modern times – they were created as a result of the spread of the Internet.

1. Internet marketing (e-marketing)
Is currently one of the most popular types. These are all activities that take into account the development of a strategy for placing a product on the market, its promotion. In this way, you can increase the company’s visibility on the web, including via the website.

2. Personnel marketing
It covers the activities of the company, whose goal is to build and maintain the image of a friendly, attractive and responsible company.

3. Sensory marketing
Sensory marketing is defined as activities that engage all the senses of potential customers. In this way, they can evoke appropriate associations and reactions that contribute to increasing brand awareness. One of the forms of sensory marketing is fragrance marketing. It consists in flavoring the rooms in order to create a pleasant atmosphere, e.g. at the point of sale or customer service point.

4. Sports marketing
These are activities aimed at promoting specific products, e.g. through sport sponsorship (e.g. sports teams, leagues, athletes).

5. Word of mouth marketing
This concept covers activities through which marketing information is to reach a potential customer. The channel of communication is usually a direct discussion. Whisper marketing is inherently associated with so-called buzz marketing. It means provoking discussion among consumers about the subject of the marketing campaign.

6. Mobile marketing
These are activities that use many tools, e.g. SMS ads, SMS surveys, MMS etc.

These forms of marketing are really the tip of the iceberg and do not exhaust the subject in any way. It should also be remembered that each of them still has its own branches and it is difficult to find a specialist who has done well in several at once. Therefore, the form of marketing that we choose should be closely related to the group of recipients of our products or services.

Internet marketing – “to be or not to be” of modern companies Although marketing has many names, it is Internet marketing that is the foundation of conducted activities. It is one of the fastest growing branches of marketing – due to the fact that many potential customers can be found online.

The main purpose of Internet marketing is to increase the visibility of the company on the Internet. Activities focus on building and consolidating the brand – recipient relationship. It is a bond in which the role of a potential customer is much greater compared to classic marketing. Here, the client ceases to be just a passive recipient of messages. Can conduct a dialogue with the brand and respond to specific marketing activities.

When it comes to internet marketing, many of the techniques and tools used can be mentioned. The most popular are:

– website positioning,
– Google Ads,
– mailing campaigns,
– content marketing,
– viral marketing,
– remarketing,
– video marketing,
– social media marketing,
– influnecer marketing.

It is worth emphasizing that internet marketing activities should be carried out on a multifaceted basis. Only then will they increase the chance of achieving satisfactory results that will bring them closer to achieving their business goals.

Marketing is not just sales …

Although marketing is associated with sales activities, its role is much broader. It also includes, among others: communication and market knowledge, analysis of conducted activities, preparation and implementation of specific strategies.

Restricting only to sales will not bring long-term effects. Here, you need a carefully thought-out strategy that includes a wide variety of activities carried out using a variety of techniques and tools.

What determines the effectiveness of marketing activities?

There is no universal recipe that would make marketing activities 100% effective. Efficiency depends on many factors, among which an important role is played by, among others:

– strategy developed,
– tools used,
– creation,
– matching to the target group,
– selection of channels building relationships with recipients.

It should be emphasized that marketing activities cannot be carried out intuitively. In this area, first of all, numbers count, so it is necessary to regularly measure the effectiveness of marketing. It is worth noting, among others on aspects such as:

– range,
– reactions,
– impact length,
– media quality,
– method of collecting the carried out action.

Return on investment (ROI) is also a fairly reliable indicator. It helps to estimate the ratio of profits to incurred advertising costs.

Classic or internet marketing?

It is difficult to answer this question unequivocally, because a lot depends on the specifics of the company. The advantage of internet marketing is certainly the much wider range and much better adaptation to the needs and expectations of a particular customer (so-called personalized marketing).

If you have the opportunity, combine classic and internet marketing activities. Thanks to this, you will increase the chance of achieving the assumed goal – in line with the developed strategy.