Question 7
- What is marketing segmentation?
- Explain six functions of marketing.
Observation
Most candidates did not attempt the question and those that did not performed well in the question.
The expected responses to the question include:
(a) Market Segmentation: This is the process of dividing a company’s market
into identifiable groups in a way that specific products can be developed to satisfy each group.
(b) Functions of Marketing
- Risk bearing - it involves calculation of marketing risk and taking necessary insurance cover to reduce their impact on marketing of goods and services;
(ii) Distribution - marketing ensures that goods and services are moved from
points of production to points of consumption ;
(iii) Exchange - marketing ensures that goods and services are sold and sales
targets are set and met to achieve company’s marketing objectives;
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- Warehousing - through warehousing goods can be produced ahead of
demand and then stored until they are needed;
(v) Promotion/ Advertising - it creates adequate awareness of the company’s
products and services;
(vi) Standardisation and grading - it establishes specified quality that products must
conform to and classify them into different sizes to suit each
market segment;
(vii) Pricing - marketing determines the pricing structures, margin and discount policies and pricing strategies to be adopted by a company;
(viii) Product development - marketing identifies the consumers’ needs and wants and
plans and designs effective products based on the identified needs and
wants;
(ix) Marketing research - marketing provides information on marketing mix and
how they could be effective to the target market;
(x) Financing - marketing provides income to the company through
sales of goods and services.