Although marketing can take many forms, all marketing is an act of communication. The fundamental goal of marketing is to deliver a message to potential consumers designed to convince them to perform a specific action--usually to purchase a particular product or service. To be an effective marketer, one must have a keen grasp on the effects of different media on communication and understand how consumers are most likely to interpret various messages.
Communication Media:
Marketers
can communicate a single message using a variety of different media. To market
effectively, a marketer must determine both how the characteristics specific to
various media--both their advantages and disadvantages--and know which are best
suited to an organization's message. In addition, the marketer should also know
how to adapt an organization's message to fit each media, so that the consumer
is delivered the same message through a number of different formats.
Direct vs. Indirect Messages:
The
message is a piece of marketing can be either direct, indirect, or a
combination of both. For example, a sign that reads "Save a Tree:
Recycle" is a relatively direct piece of marketing. By contrast, a photo
of a fashion model wearing an elegant dress and holding a bottle of perfume is
relatively indirect. The viewer must infer that the model is advertising the
perfume and--the marketer hopes--associate the perfume with beautiful,
well-dressed people.
One-way vs. Two-Way:
With
the advent of social networks and user-generated content--the so-called web
2.0--many savvy marketing companies understand that the most effective marketing
is often interactive than the presentational. While traditional advertising has
consisted of a company broadcasting or publishing a message to a target
audience, information-age advertising involves a dialogue with potential
consumers.
Communication Across Cultures:
One
of the difficulties that companies in a globalized world run into is the
complexity of communicating to potential customers who are part of a very
different culture. While some marketing messages may be appropriate for some
audiences, a skillful marketer will know that these same messages may
communicate something very different in another culture.