Marketing, competition and the customer Flashcards
Customer base
The group of customers a business sells its products to
Market
All customers and consumers who are interested in buying a product and have financial access to do so
Target market
Individuals or organisations identified by a business as the customers or consumers of its products
Customer
An individual or business that buys goods and services from a business
Consumer
The final user of a product
Consumer markets
Markets for goods and services bought by the final consumer
Industrial markets
Markets for goods and services bought by other businesses to use in their production process
Business environment
The combination of internal and external factors that influence the operations of a business
Free trade
No barriers exist that might prevent trade between different countries
Niche marketing
Developing products for small segment of the market
Mass marketing
Selling the same product to the whole market
Market segment
A part of the whole market in which consumers have specific characteristics
Market segmentation
Dividing the whole market into segments by consumer characteritics and then targeting different products to each segment
Geographic segmentation
Dividing consumers in the market by geographic area
Demographic segmentation
Dividing consumers in the market by factors such as age, gender, income, ethnic background and social class
Psychographic segmentation
Dividing consumers in the market by lifestyles, personalities and attitudes
Market research
The process of collecting, recording and analysing data about the customers, competitors and market for a product
Unique selling point
The special feature of a product that set it apart from competitors’ products
Market-orientated
Products are developed based on consumer demand as identified by market research
Product-orientated
The firm decides what to produce and then tries to find buyers for the product
Primary research
The collection of first-hand data for the specific needs of the firm
Secondary research
The collection of data from second-hand sources
Quantitative research
The collection of numerical data that can be analysed using statistical techniques
Qualitative research
The collection of information about consumers’ buying behaviour and their opinions about products
Sample
A representative sample of the target market selected to take part in market research
Marketing mix
Four marketing decisions needed for the effective marketing of a product