Marketing Strategy & Techniques :Three Stages in Business for Applying Marketing Strategy

Need for implementing Marketing Strategies:
As I discussed earlier in another chapter, marketing managers apply both scientific and artistic approaches to create a solid customer base, devising strategic techniques and employing a 4P plan. So, I will discuss other important points that need attention.

Selling your product requires a great deal of wooing your customers. 

Gone are the days when businessmen used to simply open their shops and wait for customers to come and buy goods with their money. There is much competition now, and nobody will approach you on his own to buy your product unless you attract him with your Marketing Strategy.

Selling your product requires compelling appeals and effective strategies to attract buyers and establish your market. Marketing strategies are aimed at expanding sales and promoting the business. It is a package of plans and techniques employed to establish and promote your business. It involves the use of many different techniques at different levels of business. 

Before starting a business, you need to understand buyers' tastes, identify your prospective buyers, and determine the areas for your market. Then, you need to advertise your products and services, offer discounts and incentives to create a market for your goods, and establish a strong hold in your area.

Apply Strategies According to Nature of Business:

Different types of products or areas of market require strategies typical of their business types. 

So strategies can differ from product to product or from area to area. 

An agricultural product requires its own typical strategy, and an electronic product requires its own strategy for marketing. 

Similarly, more advanced cultures need their own typical strategies, whereas rural culture has its own strategy for marketing. 

But overall, the principles are the same. We need to find out our market and prospective buyers. Then we establish our business by choosing the products and areas of operation according to the requirements. Then it involves retaining the customers with incentives so that they may not shift to other products and sellers.

Three Stages of Businesses in Applying Marketing Techniques

 
Any type of business goes through three stages while setting up their business and its market. These stages are as follows:

• Locating business opportunities and areas before starting a business through study and research.
• Promotion of the business after setting up your product and market.
• Retaining the market base and customer confidence through good quality, after-sales service and support.

All three stages of business require employment of appropriate and efficient marketing techniques. Let us study the techniques employed at each of these stages of business.

Marketing Techniques Before Establishing a Business

1. Conduct research to study the culture and tastes of the area where you want to establish your business. This will let you know what options are available for you to trade in, and you can choose one that is most suitable to you. For example, if the people are more cultured and like fashionable dresses, advanced electronic items, or continental foods, you can choose one of these items as your business.
2. Know about the resources available for procuring or producing your goods and about available transportation facilities for conducting your business.
3. Keep knowledge of the local laws and restrictions that are in effect in your business area to protect yourself from any later complications. 

Marketing Techniques Upon Starting the Business

1. Ensure good quality of your products. Your product should be preferred by customers in comparison with other sellers. Only then will they come to you.
2. Pricing should be reasonable. Fix your product price at a reasonable level, a bit lower than other traders, so that customers are attracted by the low price. The difference need not be much. Even a fraction of 1% can attract more customers to your product.  
3. Ensure continuous availability of your products. If customers do not get what they want readily from your store, they will go to other shops, and you can lose your customer base.
4. Promote your business through activities like distributing pamphlets, erecting posters and banners at different places in your area so that people come to know of your business. You can advertise through TV channels and by placing advertisements in newspapers also. Showing a celebrity using your product can be a more effective tool of publicity for your product. These are all publicity stunts for growing your business.
5. Make your online presence felt by maintaining a website and posting the salient features of your business and all your products there. This will help prospective buyers find sellers of their products more easily.

Marketing Techniques for Retaining Customers

1. Offer some value-added services and discounts to regular customers. Offer a discount, a coupon, or a points card to attract new customers and satisfy regular customers. They are pleased to know that they receive points or discount coupons every time they shop with you, and they return more frequently to enjoy this satisfaction.
2. Offer free Appraisals and usage/maintenance tips on your products. Let the customers know some important features and facts of your product that they do not know. Also instruct them how to use and maintain the product for longer-lasting benefits. This will make them more confident about your products.
3. Another important technique to be employed in business is the packaging and brand image of your product. A nice package with good design and appealing colours will enhance your product. They get associated with your brand image as an identity for good quality. 
4. Ask for feedback from customers to know their opinions about your products and services. Thereby, you can know about the likes and dislikes of customers, why they are choosing your product instead of others, and how you can improve your quality to satisfy them. This will always help you improve your business and grow your customer base.
5. One more technique is Goodwill to interact with customers in a cool manner when they come to you or are online. Applying gentle manners and a sweet voice enhances your image in their minds and creates a great image of your business and goodwill among customers.
6. Adding new items to your business can keep the customer base intact and also create new customers.
7. Finally, be prepared to adapt to the changes in tastes, culture, and technology.