GSBS6005 · Principles Of Marketing Strategy
Marketing Value and the Marketing Process
Week 1 sets the foundation the whole course builds on: marketing is the process of creating, communicating and delivering value through exchanges that satisfy both customer and organisational goals — the American Marketing Association definition Sonia uses, with the 4 Ps already embedded in it. The chapter draws the central line between the marketing concept (outside-in, "sense and respond") and the selling concept (inside-out, "make and sell"), traces the five marketing-management orientations from production through to the societal concept, and separates needs, wants and demands. It then shows that marketing creates value for three parties — customer, organisation and society — distinguishes value-in-use from value-in-exchange, and frames it all inside the phygital marketplace and the continuous four-step marketing process.
What this chapter covers
- 011. The AMA definition — marketing as exchange that satisfies goals, with the 4 Ps embedded (product, price, promotion, place)
- 022. Marketing concept vs selling concept — outside-in "sense and respond" against inside-out "make and sell"
- 033. Five marketing-management orientations — Production → Product → Selling → Marketing → Societal
- 044. Needs, wants and demands — felt lack → specific satisfactor → want backed by buying power
- 055. Absolute vs relative needs — intrinsic bodily needs against limitless, status-driven social needs
- 066. Value for three parties — customer satisfaction, organisational advantage and net societal welfare
- 077. Value-in-use vs value-in-exchange — value realised in consumption against value embedded in the traded good
- 088. The phygital marketplace and the 4-step marketing process — situation analysis → objectives → strategies → control, across three planning levels
Diagnose the marketing orientation (short-essay, 25 marks)
- +6Identify the current orientation as a selling concept with production-concept roots: the bakery starts from what is cheapest to make, offers a fixed range, and leans on discounting to clear unsold stock — an inside-out, "make and sell" logic with little attention to who is buying or why.
- +7Contrast it with the marketing concept the co-owner proposes: an outside-in, "sense and respond" philosophy that starts with a defined market and customer needs and integrates activities to serve them better than rivals. State the defining principle — find the right product for your customers, not customers for your product — earning profit through satisfaction and repeat relationships.
- +7Apply the framework to the case facts: surveying cafés and office workers before changing the menu is beginning with customer research rather than the oven's output; falling foot traffic signals that discount-led selling has run its course; a customer-driven range (popular lines, pre-orders for nearby offices, wholesale to cafés) builds loyalty and customer lifetime value.
- +5Explain three-way value: customers get products matched to their tastes and routines; the organisation gains steadier margins and retention instead of discount-driven churn; society benefits if a societal-marketing layer is added — for example, baking to forecast demand to cut food waste, or sourcing local ingredients.
Key terms
- Marketing (AMA definition)
- The process of planning and executing the conception, pricing, promotion and distribution of ideas, goods and services to create exchanges that satisfy individual and organisational goals — note the 4 Ps are embedded in the definition itself.
- Marketing concept
- A customer-centred, outside-in "sense and respond" philosophy that meets goals by knowing and serving target customers' needs better than competitors do.
- Selling concept
- A product-centred, inside-out "make and sell" orientation that pushes existing stock through heavy selling and discounting, focused on short-term sales rather than customer needs.
- Marketing-management orientations
- The five-stage evolution of what firms put first — production (efficiency/availability), product (quality/features), selling (push stock), marketing (customer needs), and societal (customer + firm + long-run society).
- Need / Want / Demand
- A need is a state of felt deprivation (a lack); a want is the specific satisfactor chosen to fill it, shaped by culture and personality; a demand is a want backed by buying power — both the ability and the willingness to pay.
- Absolute vs relative needs
- Absolute needs pertain to bodily function and are intrinsic and finite; relative needs are acquired and social, gaining significance only relative to others, which makes them effectively limitless.
- Value-in-use vs value-in-exchange
- Value-in-exchange is embedded in the traded output (the good sold for money); value-in-use (Grönroos) emerges during the customer's actual use of the product or service, where marketing increasingly shifts value creation.
- Phygital marketplace
- The blended physical + digital environment in which value is now created and delivered, where marketing technologies such as data, apps and AI reshape how value is sensed and supplied.
Marketing Value and the Marketing Process FAQ
Why does the definition of marketing say the 4 Ps are "embedded"?
Because the AMA definition already names them: "conception" is the product/idea, "pricing" is price, "promotion" is promotion, and "distribution" is place. The exam rewards you for spotting this and for anchoring the 4 Ps in the pay-off clause — "exchanges that satisfy goals" — rather than reciting the four words as if they were the whole definition.
What is the difference between the marketing concept and the selling concept?
The selling concept is inside-out and product-centred: start with what you already make and push it hard ("make and sell"). The marketing concept is outside-in and customer-centred: start with a defined market and its needs, then build the right offer ("sense and respond"). Graders specifically watch for this distinction, so name the logic, not just the focus.
How do I tell needs, wants and demands apart in an exam?
A need is a felt lack (thirst); a want is the specific satisfactor shaped by culture and personality (a particular cold drink); a demand is that want backed by buying power — the customer is both able and willing to pay. Remember markets are segmented on wants, not needs, and watch for prompts that call a product a "need" when it is really a want.
What are the five marketing-management orientations, in order?
Production → Product → Selling → Marketing → Societal. Production focuses on efficiency and availability, product on quality and features, selling on pushing existing stock, marketing on customer needs first, and the societal marketing concept balances customer wants, firm profit and the long-run welfare of society.
Who does marketing create value for?
Three parties: the customer (satisfaction and needs met), the organisation (profit, loyalty and competitive advantage along its value chain), and society (net welfare for the community). Strong answers name all three; the societal marketing concept is what keeps the third party in view.
Is this study guide affiliated with the University of Newcastle?
No. AskSia is an independent study resource and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or produced by the University of Newcastle. Always confirm assessment weights, dates and rules against your official Canvas course outline, since some weights in the public materials are listed as subject to confirmation.
Exam move
Treat Week 1 as the vocabulary and logic you must be able to deploy on demand, because it underpins every later topic and is examinable in both the open-book mid-term (Part I short-essays on weeks 1–5) and the final's Part A. For each idea build a one-line "name it, define it, apply it" card and pair it with a real Australian brand so you can argue rather than recall: practise diagnosing a firm's orientation, distinguishing the marketing concept from selling, and separating needs from wants from demands on short mini-cases. Always write in full argued prose — the lecturer penalises bullet points and fact-rehashing — and for every claim cite both the framework and the case fact that supports it, finishing orientation questions with the three-way value (customer, organisation, society) the shift creates.
