FLOR G. TARRIELA l October 24, 2023 l Manila Bulletin
My favorite marketing couple Josiah Go and Chiqui Escareal Go came out with a new book “Marketing for Beginners – Start Strong Succeed Fast”. Josiah is the Philippines leading marketing guru and Chiqui Escareal Go is a pioneering marketing anthropologist. With them as co-author is RG Gabunada, a fast-rising young marketing and digital consultant. Incidentally, Chiqui was chairwoman of the recently successful Women Biz conference on “The Future of the Handmade in a Digital World.”
“Marketing is the process of continuously and profitably satisfying target customer’s needs, wants and expectations superior to competition”. Selling is often mistaken to be marketing. But marketing is much more, it involves advertising, promotions, market research, product planning, pricing, distribution, customer service, data analytics etc. And “marketing is not about being manipulative or doing deceptive acts to close a sale. It is genuine caring, having empathy and creating trust between the company and its customers.”
Marketing has changed so fast with the digital revolution. From traditional ways of reading newspapers, going to banks, shopping in stores etc to online. Consumers now expess their opinions even complaints on their media posts. But can be “brand endorsers if they love your product. Conferences, meetings and school now have the option of hybrid. Even selling real estate previously by “open house”, is now via Virtual Reality (VR) apps showing 360-degree views of the property. And so on.
The contemporary approaches to marketing have changed dramatically, but the fundamentals remains the same. It is the interaction of the Company and Its target Customers and how it can outperform vs Competition. The Key Result Areas or KRAs of marketing are to generate Sales and more sales thru New Users, Extended Users, New Usage and More Usage, to Expand Market Share (percent of company sales to industry), and to generate Profits.KRAs must be SMART—Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Time Bound . Progress should be regularly monitored and action plans are /adjusted refined when not achieved.
How do you know if marketing was effective? Josiah introduced the be “better than before” (improved sales vs. industry growth rate), be “better than others” (improved market share) and be”‘better than expected” (profit performance-avoid non-strategic expenses that don’t contribute to building the business).
The book is everything you want to know about marketing…from marketing principles and strategies, marketing opportunity analysis, customer relationships and consumer analysis, segmenting-targeting-positioning, the marketing mix , marketing implementation etc. including a marketing plan . Interesting was the 80 new cultural, social, personal and pychological trends in the Philippines that can trigger new ideas : Home (late marriages, plantitas); Buying Preferences (healthier alternatives, outdoor dining); Lifestyle (out door activities, new gadgets and travel);etc.
What is a marketing plan? It is a written document that serves as a guide and outline of how a company intends to grow in the marketplace and win against competition. Usually done annually, results are reviewed regularly on what worked versus what did not work. The marketing plan must be focused, and all issues/activities should be clear. Must have good inputs both internal and external; evaluate problems, pain points and opportunities. Ensure all support requirements are in place (product, operational support, distribution, people etc).
The book presented a typical marketing plan format which included the following:
• Business Review – past performance of business; what worked and did not work
• Economic and Environmental Analysis: What is the market landscape and trends?
PESTLE (Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Legal and Environmental) Industry and Competitive Situation
• SWOT Analysis
Strengths to focus and outperform competitors
Weakness. Problems /challenges that need to be solved
Opportunities to gain advantage
Threats to be minimize or negate
• Company Priorities: Business Objectives (the total company) and Marketing objectives (covers how marketing contributes to the overall business objectives).
• Marketing Strategy: To include the marketing Mix or 4Ps (Product, Price, Place and Promotion) and Positioning of the Product
• Financial and budgeting – the expenses to be incurred and the percentage of agreed sales target.
• Execution Plan/Guide: How will the marketing plan be implemented? Key tasks, team members, responsibilities with target dates. Execution is key .
The book is an excellent guide to help build a solid marketing foundation. The world is changing fast and so with marketing requiring new knowledge ,new skills ,new behaviors, new attitudes. We are all” beginners “and we need to keep on learning. The Marketing for Beginners is must read if you want to start strong and succeed fast.
*** Ms. Tarriela was former PNB Chairman. She is PNB Board Adviser, lead independent director of Nickel Asia, director of LTG FINEX, and TSPI. A gardener and an environmentalist, she founded Flor’s Garden in Antipolo which practices natural farming technology.