Final Exam

Kotler and Keller (2009) believe that marketing is about identifying and meeting human and social needs. They further explain that this idea can be simplified by defining marketing as meeting needs profitability. Some argue that marketing goes beyond meeting needs and wants. For these critics, their counterpoint is that marketers create products and services to make people want or need what they otherwise would not. Although this may be true with unsought goods such as insurance, encyclopedias, and cemetery plots, I disagree with critics and believe that effective marketing includes constant upgrading of brand, products, and services in order to satisfy the consumer. Today, companies like Coca-Cola, IKEA, and Starbucks are more aggressive and innovative in promoting their brand as well as satisfying their customers’ needs and wants.
In the case of Coca-Cola, the company’s former vice president of marketing once stated that “the purpose of marketing is to sell more stuff to more people more often for m ore money in order to make more profit.” With this attitude, Coca-Cola has continued to meet the needs and wants of its consumers. For example, in the age of social media and technology, the company has empowered consumers to be more involved and engaged in its marketing campaigns. Coca-Cola has established a mycoke.com website that allows participants to play games, mix music, and read and write blogs within a virtual world. Another example of the company’s marketing campaign to meet customer’s wants and needs is Coca-Cola’s international product of Diet Coke. In some countries, it was said that the word diet had a negative meaning. Coca-Cola changed the name of the product and outside of the United States it is sold as coca-Cola Light. Additionally, the internationally known soft drink company began packaging soft drinks in smaller containers such as mini cans to target customers that did not want or became more health conscience of drinking the typical twelve