It is a social science course which infuses into every organizational structure, it is core in every setup as it converts all efforts into economic value for the firm; it can not be done without even in our daily lives. It is seen as a job for some but I rather call it a life style, because it characterized everything we do up to the choice of our car, clothes and even the food we eat. Marketing as a concept focuses on converting a need into a want, it is practical and very interesting. It is a department where you retire from and feel you have a take home as skill.

 

The ability to talk people into identifying a need and then converting the need into a want by providing a product or service to suit that need; Without this every system would be epileptic, even Church. “Everybody lives by selling something” – Robert Louis Stevenson, which is true. Importance has to be laid on something in other for it to be valuable to another person, in other words someone must talk the idea or show something physical to another person; the reason you see a color and love it, be a fashion or architectural design and desire it.

 

Marketing is broad and spreads across everything we do which reflects in the choices we make on a daily basis, but then seeing it as a job; various firms adopt different marketing models as it applies to what they do. Product Marketing must of course be different from Service Marketing. There is this specific service marketing model (which is the target of this article) adopted by some firms that requires that staffs are not paid salary or stipend but base them on commission from businesses they bring in, which is just a percentage of the business. Not attractive I must say, this I have experience time and again and most companies that practice this do not blend the concept of marketing mix appropriately, hereby making marketing a very stressful job, that is why people regard marketing less.

 

Marketing is interesting and fun in my opinion and I see staffs of a firm as marketers first before their different positions or roles because they carry the image of the company. Companies that recognizes this fact flaunt with the staffs as they have imbibed their culture and practices; an investment that bring greater returns, which is often disregarded by some companies. Some firms involves in some annoying practices and call it marketing, one I learnt of recently is that the company do not pay salary at all, employees gets commission on the businesses they bring in usually 2.5%. That is they get 25000 naira for every 1,000,000 naira they bring, this is labor not job, after obtaining a degree! Multilevel Marketing (MLM) is far better than this model; if MLM is adopted in place of this the company would do better off; A system where one joins a system and get others to join and the chain continues. A system that does not require a degree or any qualification; just know what you are doing, have the knowledge of the product behind the model, that’s all, everybody grows building a pyramid, which in turn build a perceive income to is members (Hope to bring more on MLM).

 

There are forms of marketing, some modifications from a conventional system and are proven to be effective. Firms are meant to take care of their staffs and not labor them. The first thing firms that labor their staffs do is ask you to produce a list of names of people that you know would bring business to them, entice you with the weak commission which it not up to anything. Look to see, their staffs are not well kept, no physical evidence that the firm is doing great, a manager cannot afford a car from his earnings, on medical allowance or any allowance and so on. With the knowledge that people are always job hunting, this is about a bus stop for some frustrated ones and very open to fresher Graduate, but then you don’t just settle for anything if you truly know your worth.

 

One attribute of those firms that makes marketing stressful is that they don’t understand the concept of Marketing Mix (sets of controllable variables used to influence the target market i.e. the clients, consumers or prospects). They are; price, product, place, promotion. They come up with product/services with no promotion on them; they hardly do any form of advertisement, no jingles on the radio, no ads on television, newspaper etc. they put everything on their marketers, a reason they should even pay salary, yet nothing and they want businesses. The only place you see their board is probably at the direction to their office complex. As a marketer for such company, you have to work; in fact you really have to work. you are left to yourself to create awareness before marketing, after much talk you may not get the business, seeing you worked out who would want to trust you with money. Now compare that with this method whereby the firm provides a branded bus or car for marketing purpose, you get there maybe with your team; your prospect would see you first before you even open your mouth, they know who you represent and your motive for coming around and so they are open to your discussions. With good evidence, they are convinced and before you know it business is concluded. Is that not marketing also?

 

For me I use to hate marketing going by the former picture, but now; Marketing is it. It is one role that equips you, builds you up and makes you important in any gathering, making you feel you can talk to anybody. Building relationships, not for the firm but for yourself while doing your job, makes you mobile, meet people and opportunities. It is a dynamic job that when done with the required zeal you even get excited to see tomorrow. If you have a bad image of a marketing job, I hope this write-up would help you modify that belief. I tell you today it is a very good job; it just depends on the companies practice. What we can do as individuals differ, people take such jobs and they adapt to it (it depends on what you can do or take) but then always have a choice.

 

Back soon!

 

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