Marketing Philosophies: 6 Basic Marketing Concepts with Examples

Since the era of modern-day arrival, companies have been forced to apply different management and marketing practices to beat the competition and earn profits. Do you think sticking to one marketing concept/philosophy gives better results? Due to competition choosing the right marketing concepts or philosophies has been a challenging task for marketers today.

Here, I will explain in detail different marketing philosophies also called marketing concepts and marketing management philosophies. The explanation will be in the order of how they evolved from the beginning to the modern days (today).

What is Marketing Philosophy?

A marketing philosophy is an idea of assisting companies to market their products, satisfy customers’ needs & wants, and achieve the business marketing goals. It guides companies on how to build marketing strategies and implement them in the field.

There are different marketing philosophies or concepts that have evolved. The evolution of marketing concepts is seen along with the civilization of our human beings.

The marketing concepts that evolved at the beginning of human civilization are called traditional marketing concepts and that evolved with modernization are called modern marketing concepts. The main marketing philosophies that evolved till now are:

• Production Concept
• Product Concept
• Selling Concept
• Marketing Concept
• Societal Marketing Concept
• Holistic Marketing

Out of these six marketing concepts, the production concept evolved first and later the other five concepts. The weaknesses or say failure of the previous marketing philosophies has led to the development of the next ones.

6 Basic Marketing Philosophies (Marketing Concepts)

These are also called the types of marketing philosophy. Now let’s understand these marketing management philosophies in detail.

Production Concept

The production concept of marketing assumes that consumers are price sensitive and they buy products that are widely available at lower costs. The basic idea of the product concept is to ensure mass production, reduce per-unit cost, and make products easily available everywhere which ultimately leads to more sales.

The philosophy of production concept perfectly matches Say’s Law of Market “Supply Creates Its Own Demand Itself”. What this concept argues is that if possible make products available as you can to wider locations which ultimately increases sales.

The production concept is the first marketing concept or philosophy which came into existence in the early 1930s. It tries to bring efficiency to production, achieve economies of scale, promote mass distribution, and think price is a key marketing variable.

Related: The 5 Core Concepts of Marketing

This concept is fit when the demand is higher than supply, labor cost is low, and resources are easily available. But it won’t work well when the supply is higher than demand, competition is high, and people search for quality products.

Advantages and disadvantages of the production concept:

Pros of Production Concept:

• It ensures the availability of products.
• Fit for price-sensitive customers.
• Helps to achieve economies of scale.
• May generate employment for local people.
• Increases the sales and profit of the business.

Cons of Production Concept:

• Fails in a competitive environment.
• Low-quality products.
• Ignores customers’ needs, wants, and preferences.
• Not so applicable today.

Example. One of the best examples of the production concept of marketing is Ford Company’s Car Model T. With mass production company was able to sell the car for between $260 to $850 in 1908.

Product Concept

The product concept assumes that people purchase the product which is qualitative. What the product concept tells us is that people even ignore the price when they see quality products.

The main idea of the product concept is that companies must manufacture quality products that have innovative features and give the best performance. It strongly argues two things first, the product should be qualitative, and continuous improvement is necessary.

The product concept is essential to gain a competitive position and advantage. Almost the same time 1930s, it evolved when the production concept’s low-priced products did not get enough attention from customers and reach the desired sales levels. The idea of producing quality products evolved.

Related: Difference Between Product and Production Concepts

Even though the product concept is an improved version of the production concept it still has not considered the needs and wants of customers. Following are some pros and cons of this product marketing philosophy:

Pros of Product Concept:

• It ensures quality products.
• Best for quality-sensitive people.
• Helps to gain prestige, position, and status.
• High-income people prefer quality products.
• Helps to gain a competitive position.
• Develops curiosity in people.

Cons of Product Concept:

• It neglects customers’ needs, wants, and preferences.
• Seller’s choice products.
• Low-income and price-conscious people do not prefer it.

Example. One of the best examples of the product concept is Apple i.e. iPhone. People buy it even if it is costly because of its quality and prestige benefits.

Selling Concept

The selling concept believes that people generally do not buy the products they need to be influenced to buy the products. It assumes aggressive selling and heavy promotions are the keys to influencing people and making their purchases.

This marketing philosophy came due to the failure of the above philosophies (product and production) in the sense that both concepts had made the availability of products and quality. Only making quality products and availability of products did get the expected results.

Then the concept was raised that marketers should visit the customers, present the benefits of their products, and influence them to buy. It came into existence between the 1930s and 1950s except for the time of WWII.

It did well with two marketing concepts but it has still ignored the customer’s needs and wants. The products were produced by sellers’ choice, with no consideration for people’s choice.

And a funny thing about what the selling concept believe is that, even if people have no intention to buy if you persuade them, they will buy, and if they get disappointed, later they will forget, even if they do not tell anyone of their bad experience. What do you think about it?

Pros of Selling Concept:

• May increase sales volume and profits.
• Right for products like insurance, expensive cars, expensive clothes, etc.
• Increases the market coverage of the business.
• Free up the stock.

Cons of Selling Concept:

• The selling concept has ignored the customer’s consideration.
• It only focuses on short-term goal achievement.
• It does not value repeat business.
• The wrong assumption people will forget in the long run.

Example. The selling of an insurance policy is the right example of this selling concept. The seller or insurance agent is continually involved in persuading people to buy the insurance policies. And, even if people do not have the intention to do so they are influenced and purchase.

Marketing Concept

The marketing concept believes companies’ success relies on customer satisfaction. It explains companies should first consult consumers about their needs and preferences and based on their choices should produce products.

In fact, the marketing concept is a customer-centric marketing philosophy. It gives priority to customers’ needs and wants and aims to serve what they want and generates better customer value and satisfaction. This concept is fit in the competitive markets to confront the competition and achieve a better market position.

With the failure of the above three (production, product, and selling) marketing philosophies to meet customers’ satisfaction and stand in competitive markets the marketing concept evolved. Its existence is seen since the late 1950s.

The above three marketing concepts were based on selling products that the company, seller, or marketer wants but the marketing concept produces products that customers want. Thus, it is very relevant in confronting competition successfully and achieving long-term success.

Pros of Marketing Concept:

• The marketing concept helps to achieve customer satisfaction.
• Increases repetitive buying.
• Ensures long-term success.
• Increases market share.
• Helps to build a good public image.

Cons of Marketing Concept:

• Visiting customers, identifying their needs and wants, and producing their desired products may result in a costly process.
• Skilled and quality marketers are required.
• It is time-consuming also.

Example. Take the example of the Lamborghini car company which first takes orders from customers and delivers them products as per their choices.

Societal Marketing Concept

The societal marketing concept holds that companies should think about the long-term interests of customers and society as a whole while delivering and satisfying customers’ needs and wants. It is a socially responsible marketing philosophy.

What societal marketing tells us is that while making products and marketing decisions a company must consider the customer’s interests, their satisfaction, and the welfare of society and the surrounding environment. It states companies operate in society, they get resources from the environment, and they should repay them.

In fact, the societal marketing concept is marketing concept + society, it is the addition of society’s welfare to the marketing concept. According to it, a company must balance the company’s profit goal, customers’ interest, and well being of society.

It is one of the new through in marketing management philosophies. During the 1972s it came into existence due to the ignorance of the marketing concept of society’s well-being in the process of satisfying customers and the movement of consumerism and environmentalism.

Pros of Societal Marketing Concept:

• Helps to achieve customer satisfaction.
• Societal marketing helps in achieving society’s welfare.
• Supports in gaining a competitive position.
• Ensures good public image.
• Increases customer retention.

Cons of Societal Marketing Concept:

• It might be costly.
• It might be difficult to convince employees and society about environmental marketing strategies.
• The implementation may take a long time.

Example. Take an example of The Body Shop a cosmetic company that has been producing products only by using ingredients from natural resources that have no harmful effect on human and society’s well-being.

Also Read: Social Responsibility in Business

Holistic Marketing Concept

Holistic marketing is the latest addition to marketing management philosophies. It is the combination of marketing and societal marketing concepts.

The holistic marketing concept holds the belief that an organization is a system of different interconnected units and for effective marketing results, all units should have a shared purpose to achieve as effectively as possible.

It compares an organization with a human body. What holistic marketing tells us is that for the human body to perform well every body part should work properly, and for the organization to succeed every component (i.e. all employees, departments, business units, marketing strategies) should work properly yet collectively.

Holistic marketing emphasizes proper integration and coordination of all marketing efforts to achieve common marketing goals. Its idea upholds this interconnectedness and holds that the greatest outcomes require a wide-ranging, comprehensive viewpoint.

Pros of Holistic Marketing:

• Holistic marketing is effective in this present time.
• Brings coordination.
• Helps in achieving a competitive advantage.
• Better customer satisfaction.
• Goods brand value and public image.
• Helps to achieve long-term success.

Cons of Holistic Marketing Concept:

• As holistic marketing is a comprehensive marketing strategy it is difficult to implement properly.
• It might also cost more.
• Managing people and bringing coordination among diverse people is a challenging task.

Example. Take an example of Coca-Cola‘s product Real Magic which is a very human-supporting and environmentally product. The whole Coca-Cola company is properly adopting the holistic marketing concept.

Summing Up: Marketing Management Philosophies

Now you may have understood the theme of these six basic marketing concepts. Each concept has its means, focus, and ends. They all have an impact on companies’ marketing activities and performance.

You should choose the marketing philosophy that best fits your marketing goals and the capacity of your business to successfully implement it and achieve the desired goals. Great start ahead!

Read Next: What is STP Marketing?