Commercial vs. Social Marketing Strategies
Commercial Marketing
Commercial marketing: Market research is carried out to establish consumer demand. It does not involve making moral judgments on the buying habits of customers.
Strategies
Traditional focus (using billboards, TV ads, or local print media) or an online marketing campaign.
Social Marketing
A marketing approach aimed at influencing a positive change in individual behavior and improvement in society’s well-being. For example, anti-smoking campaigns centered on reducing smoking.
Advantages of Social Marketing
Gives firms a competitive advantage as consumers may perceive such firms to be socially responsible; therefore, buy products from them.
Commercial vs. Social Marketing
- Purpose: Commercial marketing wants to sell physical goods and intangible services for profit, while social marketing aims to influence desired change in social behavior.
- Benefits: Commercial marketing exists to satisfy individual needs and reaps profit for the business, and social marketing satisfies the needs of the general public; it reaps benefits for society.
- Main users: Commercial marketing is used mainly by private sector businesses. Social marketing is used mainly by the government and non-governmental organizations.
Social Media Marketing
The use of the internet through social networking websites to market a firm’s products or services.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Social Media Marketing
Advantages: Direct feedback while still appealing to them personally. Provide customers with the opportunity to ask questions and voice their complaints. Low cost and reach a large target audience. Disadvantages: Since it is easy for any business to join a social media network, it can be very difficult to stand out from the crowd.
Market
“Refers to the group of consumers or organizations that is interested in the product, has the resources to purchase the product, and is permitted by law and other regulations to acquire the product”.
Market Size
Total sales of all businesses in a given market.
- By volume: Measures the number of goods bought by customers (by quantity sold).
- By value: It measures the amount spent by customers on the total number of goods sold by businesses (by revenue).
Market Growth
This is the percentage change in the market size over a given period.
Market Share
The portion of a market controlled by a particular company or product. Refers to an organization’s portions of the total value of sales revenue within a specific industry.
Market Share (%) = Firm’s Sales / Total Sales in the Market x 100
- Market share will give you how you are doing with your competitors. Effective strategies will make you grow in the market share.
- If the business grows a lot, it will be the Market Leader (business that has the biggest market share). It will have increased sales, the business will be able to gain economies of scale, and it is also the brand leader.
- Since market share can be measured in different ways, by volume or value, different results may be obtained in the same period.
- Changes in the time period and market can influence market share results (e.g., Chile).
- Type of products included may also influence the calculation (e.g., luxury cars vs. all cars).