Discuss the Marketing Environment

The Marketing Environment consists of a complex set of interacting forces and influences outside the marketing department of an organization. The Marketing Environment affects the organization's ability to build and maintain mutually beneficial relationships with its target customers. Through continuous monitoring its Marketing Environment a company must be able to anticipate change and act in a pro active way rather than leaving it to a reactive reaction. It must also keep up to date by realizing any effective changing forces. It does this by monitoring SWOT i.e. Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. Obviously wanting to maximize on Strengths and Opportunities and eliminate Weaknesses and Threats. Marketers must use marketing intelligence and market research when monitoring the Marketing Environment.

The Marketing Environment can be divided into two main categories; the Micro and the Macro Environment.

The Micro Environment

This can also be divided. Internal Environment and Forces close to the organization.

The Internal Environment. This consists of Top Management and Other departments.

The Top management is responsible for setting the organizations overall mission, objectives, strategies and policies to guide all the organizations departments and employees. The success of the company is dependant on the competence of the Top managers.

Other departments must co-ordinate their efforts as to maximize potential and avoid conflicts. The smoother the departments work together the better the overall outcome is going to be. All employees should realize the importance of being market-orientated and of delivering customer satisfaction.

Forces close to the organization. This consists of Competitors, Marketing Intermediaries, Suppliers of resources, Customers and Publics.

Competitors: must offer superior value & satisfaction than their competitors and make it widely known throughout the target market. Companies must make an effort to attract their target