MidTerm Individual

Part. 2 Individual Submissions:

Based on the individual assignments, please submit your Reflec;on Paper of the
following:
Assignment 1: Role and value of marketing discipline in an individual
https://peace.edu/blog/why-study-marketing/
http://www.levlafayette.com/node/116
https://www.jstor.org/stable/43784378
https://www.jstor.org/stable/1250003

Introduction

Marketing is more than a concentration within a business major. More accurately, it describes a
collection of skills that are useful in any career. As a professional discipline, marketing is a vital
function of any business’ operation. It explores customer perceptions and journeys as primary
sources of profit. It also utilizes various data to make smart and insightful business decisions.

On a broader scale, marketing skills transcend the business world and are used in many careers. Even
outside of a traditional marketing role, people benefit from knowing the fundamental values that connect
people, brands, and businesses.

Marketing is a way of thinking and an approach to business that is based on the

organisation's attempt to meet its customers' needs as best it can and to simultaneously
create value for the organisation and for the customer.

As an activity marketing is a process that matches the wants and needs of customers with
an organisation's ability to meet these wants and needs by providing appropriate goods and
services. It creates value for the customers by:

 giving them suitable products (goods or services)

 at a price that they think represents a reasonable exchange of value in return for
their money, time and effort
 available at times and in places that are accessible and convenient
 communicated (or promoted) in ways that get the customers' or audiences'
attention, and stimulate them to respond.

How it applies to an individual

Explanation/why study it
Give examples
*Analysis
*Recommendation

Marketing is more than a concentration within a business major. More accurately, it describes a
collection of skills that are useful in any career. As a professional discipline, marketing is a vital
function of any business’ operation. It explores customer perceptions and journeys as primary
sources of profit. It also utilizes various data to make smart and insightful business decisions.
MidTerm Individual

On a broader scale, marketing skills transcend the business world and are used in many careers.
Even outside of a traditional marketing role, people benefit from knowing the fundamental
values that connect people, brands, and businesses. So, why study marketing?

Get to Know the Customer

Even with the most robust business plans, it’s the customers who make the rules. They drive
brand equity through their various perceptions and journeys. And that means companies must be
closely attuned to their customer base if they want their brand to grow.

Similarly, the ability to understand the wants and needs of different groups of people is useful in
any job. Marketing teaches that customer/employee/stakeholder/patient insight is a large factor in
determining success.

Learn How to Captivate

Perceptions of truth largely dictate the decision-making process for many consumers. Marketing
allows the opportunity to examine that process alongside the intricacies of design, promotion,
and branding.

Consumers make purchases based on how products and services are packaged. It is not a
decision based on truth, but rather the perception of truth. The ability to influence decision and
buying habits is a useful skill, even outside of a conventional marketing role.

Read and Understand Data

Marketing teaches valuable skills in data interpretation. Though not always stated as a job
function, many companies delight in having candidates who know how to read data.

Marketing experience, even if it’s just a course or two, can lend to foundational knowledge in
data interpretation and analytics. This exposure can then be used in any job that relies on
customer feedback, data, or metrics to inform success. No matter what the field or industry, the
ability to read and understand data is integral to making strategic decisions.

Deal With People

Marketing explores human interaction as an important function of a business. Not only are
marketers tasked with understanding customer experiences, but they are also expected to know
MidTerm Individual

how to communicate with diverse audiences with varying levels of cooperation. In other words,
marketing imparts communication tactics that are useful in dealing with different groups of
people.

So, whether it’s a doctor in a hospital or a lawyer in an office, understanding how to

communicate with different people is invaluable in the workplace.

Gain Awareness
Marketers stay in the know because awareness keeps them close to their customers. That
insatiable drive for mindfulness can prove useful in any career, most especially where close
relationships determine success. Marketing examines relationships from both the standpoint of
the business and the customer. This dual perspective is the key to making insightful decisions.

Why Major in Marketing?

A degree in marketing prepares students for more than just a career in business. Marketing is a
thorough exploration of customer perceptions, buyer personas, messaging, communication, data,
and much more.

A marketing degree, even if it is not utilized in a traditional business setting, equips students to
act as well-rounded, critical thinkers. Not only do marketers present impeccable skills in data
interpretation, but they also offer the higher-level thinking that turns analytics into strategy. Even
if it is just a course or two, foundational knowledge in marketing makes savvier professionals —
no matter what the industry.

Marketing is a way of thinking and an approach to business that is based on the

organisation's attempt to meet its customers' needs as best it can and to simultaneously
create value for the organisation and for the customer.

As an activity marketing is a process that matches the wants and needs of customers with
an organisation's ability to meet these wants and needs by providing appropriate goods and
services. It creates value for the customers by:

 giving them suitable products (goods or services)

 at a price that they think represents a reasonable exchange of value in return for
their money, time and effort
 available at times and in places that are accessible and convenient
 communicated (or promoted) in ways that get the customers' or audiences'
attention, and stimulate them to respond.

Marketers may tell production what to produce, but only after production has told marketing
what it is capable of producing. The process is circular. Marketing provides the interface
MidTerm Individual

between the organisation and its customers. It is the only function that principally focuses
on generating revenue.

Marketing people market 10 types of entities: goods, services, events, experiences, people,
places, properties, organisations, information and ideas.

Source: Kotler, Keller & Burton, 2009.

Marketing's increased importance is predicated on three key trends: increasing

competition., increasing consumer choice and consumer power., technology and access to
information.

Environmental changes have led to business response and marketing responses to both of
them. Some key features include; Relationship marketing, Marketing based on customer
lifetime value, Increasingly smaller segmentation and targeting of markets, Greater use of
database and data-mining activities, Integrated marketing communications.

We talk about marketing as a philosophy because it is founded on a discipline that focuses

attention primarily on the customer, but at the same time helps to deliver the outcomes
that the organisation is seeking. [WTF does that have to do with philosophy?!]

To be successful, the organisation needs to:

 Create value that better meets the needs and wants of the target group of customers
(or stakeholders) that they want to interact with
 Communicate the value in ways that triggers the customers/stakeholders to respond
 Deliver the value in a manner that generates satisfaction for the
customer/stakeholder
 and profit or some other desired outcome for the organisation
 Sustain this value exchange with the customer/stakeholder in a way that creates an
ongoing valuable relationship.

Marketing cannot be effective without the full support of the whole organisation, from the
board, executive and management team to the frontline employees. If they are not
coordinated in their efforts customer value creation, satisfaction and loyalty will suffer. [In
other words, marketing requires your organisation to act like a cult.]

However not all organisations have adopted and applied the marketing concept—a
customer-centred approach focussed on creating and managing mutually valuable
exchanges. Many successful organisations still operate with a technical, cost-focussed,
production or sales mindset. While marketing orientation doesn't guarantee success, it is
more likely to mean that the organisation can win and maintain a base of customers who
want to exchange value.

Generally speaking, organisations tend to adopt one of the following approaches or

orientations in their marketing behaviour.

- Production orientation—also known as the production concept—stems from the belief that
customers will seek out and be attracted to readily available and affordable products or
offerings that they perceive best meet their needs.
MidTerm Individual

- Product orientation—also known as the product concept—arises when the driving

philosophy for the organisation is based on the idea that customers look for the 'best'
(superior) goods or services—those that offer the highest technical level of quality,
performance, etc.

- Sales orientation—also known as the sales concept—is where an organisation first creates
the goods or services that it thinks customers want (or should want), and then seeks to
persuade customers to prefer them.

- Marketing orientation—also known as the marketing concept—is adopted by organisations

that understand the wants and needs of customers so that they can develop goods and
services that meet customer needs and create value for both the customer and the
organisation.

- Societal orientation—also known as the societal marketing concept—applies to

organisations that carry out their activities and reach out to their audiences in ways
consistent with the principles or values of their customers. This is in addition to satisfying
customer wants and needs.

Based on the understanding of these different orientations, we now need to focus on the
specific orientation that marketing (the philosophy) suggests is more likely to lead to
success. There are four key characteristics of a marketing-oriented organisation, one which
demonstrates the marketing concept:

[There is is again... Marketing is NOT a philosophy]

Customer satisfaction is a central focus., Products are defined by customer needs.,

Marketing is integrated across the organisation., Marketing intelligence is valued, captured
and shared [except with competitors, amirite?]

Current thinking is that service marketers rely on not just the 4 Ps of product, price,
promotion and place but also on distinctive value communicated through people, process
and physical evidence as cues designed to overcome intangibility, perishability, variability
and inseparability.

Interesting factoid: In developed regions like Australia, North America and Western Europe
more than 70% of the country's gross domestic product (GDP) and a similar proportion of
employment comes from organisations doing business with other organisations, rather than
doing business directly with the final consumers.

Analysis
Recommendation

Assignment 2: Importance of a Value Proposition distinct to a person

MidTerm Individual

https://www.kunocreative.com/blog/good-value-proposition-examples#:~:text=A%20value
%20proposition%20is%20a,similar%20offerings%20from%20your%20competition.&text=So%2C
%20having%20a%20clear%2C%20concise,is%20more%20important%20than%20ever.
https://cxl.com/blog/value-proposition-examples-how-to-create/
https://www.invespcro.com/blog/value-proposition-what-is-it-how-it-works-and-why-you-should-pay-
attention/
https://www.forbes.com/sites/markevans/2013/10/31/why-value-propositions-are-important-and-
how-to-create-them/
https://www.helpscout.com/blog/value-proposition-examples/

Introduction

What is a Value Proposition?

A value proposition is a promise of value stated by a company that summarizes how
the benefit of the company’s product or service will be delivered, experienced, and
acquired. Essentially, a value proposition specifies what makes the company’s product
or service attractive, why a customer should purchase it, and how the value of the
product or service is differentiated from similar offerings.

Generally, the value proposition is addressed to the company’s target customers

or target market segmentTotal Addressable Market (TAM)Total Addressable Market
(TAM), also referred to as total available market, is the overall revenue opportunity
that is available to a product or service if. The proposition takes the form of a short,
clear, and concise statement of the tangible and intangible benefits that will be
delivered to customers. The perfect proposition must quickly transmit the values to
potential customers without the need for further explanation. Each proposition must
be unique, as it is a method to communicate the differentiation points of a company to
the target customersTypes of CustomersCustomers play a significant role in any
business. By better understanding the different types of customers, businesses can be
better equipped to develop.

The value proposition must not be confused with slogans and catchphrases, as the
latter two may not clearly convey the benefits of a company and its products.

Importance of a Value Proposition

The development of a value proposition is a vital part of a company’s business

strategyCorporate StrategyCorporate Strategy focuses on how to manage resources,
risk and return across a firm, as opposed to looking at competitive advantages in
business strategy. Since the proposition provides a company with a method to
MidTerm Individual

influence the decision-making of customers, it is frequently displayed on the

company’s marketing materials, such as a website.

The value proposition is a powerful tool to drive sales and build a customer base.
Additionally, a perfect and compelling value proposition can advance the
effectiveness of the company’s marketing strategiesWalmart Marketing MixWalmart
is a powerhouse of a business, and one of its key strengths is its marketing mix.
Surviving in the retail market requires more than just luck. Generally, it is regarded as
the most effective and wide-reaching marketing activity.

How to Create a Value Proposition

As we’ve already determined, the perfectly tailored value proposition can become a
huge success factor for a company. However, the creation of a powerful proposition is
a challenging yet rewarding task for every business. Below, we have listed some tips
that will help you to create an effective one:

1. Know your customers

Before creating your value proposition, you must analyze the market and potential
customers. Identify your target customers and target market segment to understand
their desired benefits.

2. Understand your costs and benefits

Identify and assess the benefits delivered by your company and its products or
services, along with the costs incurred to provide them. It is important to do this
because the value to your customers is essentially the difference between the benefits
and costs of your product or service.

 
MidTerm Individual

3. Don’t forget about your competitors

After the analysis of target customers and your own company, evaluate the
competitive landscape in the market. Determine the strengths and weaknesses of your
major competitors and identify ways you can differentiate your business from them.

4. Be clear and concise

Don’t forget that an effective value proposition is clear and concise. Your target
customers must quickly grasp the message you want to convey. It should not exceed
two or three sentences.

5. Design is king!

Make your proposition visible and appealing on all marketing materials (e.g.,
website). Remember that if you have created a powerful value proposition, but no one
can see it, the effect of the proposition will be zero!

Your value proposition is the promise you give to customers that you will deliver
something of value to them. It's a statement that explains: (1) the benefit you
offer; (2) who will benefit; and (3) why you are the best choice to deliver that
benefit.

What Is a Value Proposition in Business Development?

As you develop your business, your value proposition defines both the purpose
of your business and your relationship with your customers. It should be clear
and concise.

To create an effective value proposition, you need to know and understand your
target demographic. Ask yourself:

 Who are your customers?

 What do they care about?
 What problem do they have that you can solve?
 Why are you the best business to solve that problem?
 What benefit will customers gain from working with you?
MidTerm Individual

Once you understand your customers' needs and values, you'll be able to create
a value proposition that appeals to them.

Why Is a Value Proposition Important? 

Your value proposition doesn't need to be something you share directly with
customers, but it should form the basis of every product or service you create, as
well as all your marketing strategies.

For example, if you are a sales consultant, your value proposition could be:

Clients who work with me grow their business, large or small, by a minimum of
30% a year. They accomplish this without working 80 hour weeks or sacrificing
their personal lives.

This type of value proposition, which includes clear results that benefit
customers, can serve as a guide for your business decisions. It tells you what
type of services you should be focusing on, what clients you want to work with,
and what important information your marketing should include.

The Three Parts of Your Value Proposition

A value proposition is made up of three components:

1. Your target customer. Define the people who will benefit from your

services, including their values and needs.
2. The problem you solve. What solution are you offering? How will this
solution impact customers' lives?
3. What sets you apart. Why should customers choose you instead of
a competitor? Consider your experience, price, results, connections, or any
special skills.

If you are having trouble creating your value proposition, you may need to
conduct market research in order to better understand your target demographic.

Test Your Marketing Proposition

A clear value proposition can help your business grow. But one that is too vague
or confusing can lead to wasted resources, unclear messaging, and
miscommunication with customers.

To create an effective value proposition, ask yourself:

MidTerm Individual

1. Is it relevant? What you are focusing on should matter to your target

market.
2. Is it believable? Your message should be not only compelling but
realistic.
3. Can you defend it? You must be able to offer proof that backs up your
statement.
4. Is it flexible? Leave room for your business to grow and change without
losing ground with customers.
5. Is it emotional? Your prospects and customers have to connect with you
emotionally in order to feel compelled to make a purchase.

For every business, understanding both your own goals and your customers is
key to creating a value proposition that positions you for growth.

In good times and bad, knowing your value proposition can help
you to maintain your growth. In this post we discuss why you
should know yours.

A lot of businesses, particularly smaller ones, don’t dedicate a lot

of time to marketing strategy. We understand this as lots of
companies have experienced success without consciously setting
objectives or developing strategies.

When we come into contact with businesses that are doing less
well, however, we wish they had spent or would spend time
defining their value proposition and communicating it to their
market - or let us do it for them.

What is value proposition?

Value proposition is a complex principle and one that is subject to
interpretation, but put simply, we believe that value proposition is
your business':
 MidTerm Individual

 Reason for existing

 Reason to be chosen over its competitors
 Reason for charging what you charge
A more scientific description is that value proposition is 'the
promise of value that will be delivered to your customer'.

Read our Introduction to B2B Inbound Marketing here and learn

all about this powerful approach to generating leads and sales.

Why is value proposition important?

If you are unable to communicate your value to your customers,
why should customers place value in what you offer? If you are
unable to tell customers why they should choose you and why
they should pay what you are asking, why would they?

This is more true now then ever. Many buyers and suppliers will
look to remove layers of margin by foregoing specialist services or
removing 'middle men'. Companies that do not know and share
their value proposition with customers may find themselves
loosing out on price frequently or being removed from the supply
chain altogether.

Don’t price cut - apply your value

proposition
It's natural to get frustrated when others win business from you by
lowering their price. And its natural to be tempted to do the same.
But price cutting is a dangerous, potentially irreversible, and
unsustainable game to play.
MidTerm Individual

In the eyes of customers, price cuts are permanent. Once you

reduce your price, you will most likely struggle to increase it
again. This is especially true with repeat customers - and repeat
customers should be the customers most willing to pay a fair price
for your services.

Instead of price cutting, discover your value proposition then

revitalise your marketing effort with your value proposition at its
core. Be bold and vocal - if customers don’t know your value
proposition, and feel your conviction, they are unlikely to believe
in it. And after all, your value proposition should be very, very real
- it’s the reason you are in business.

Finding your value proposition

Need help defining your value proposition, read our post on how
to find your value proposition.

How to write your value

proposition
MidTerm Individual

Phil Vallender
Mar 21, 2013
Marketing Strategy

Your value proposition is a powerful marketing tool. One that

can be used to either maintain, or return to growth
If you are ready to write your value proposition but don’t know
where to start, read on to see how we would go about it.The term
value proposition means different things to different people. Ask
two marketing professionals what they think it means and you will
almost certainly get two very different answers. What their
answers will have in common however is that it should be
possible to capture your value proposition in a single, succinct
statement. But how do you get there?

Read our Introduction to B2B Inbound Marketing here and learn

all about this powerful approach to generating leads and sales.

What differentiates you?

As we described in What is value proposition and why is it
important?, Our belief is that value proposition is more than just
the value you deliver to your customers. It is the reason
customers should chose you, at any price, over other competitors
offering similar products or services.

Your value proposition therefore has to communicate something

unique about your business. This could be your unique selling
point or your competitive differentiation. If you are not already
clear on what your differentiators are, you may want to go back
and perform competitive advantage analysis on your company.
MidTerm Individual

A model for value proposition

So how do you put your value proposition together? A model
would help, right? Well, there are many models for constructing
value proposition statements but the one we favour is the one
proposed by Neil Rackham in his seminal book Rethinking the
Sales Force.

In this model, Neil defines value proposition as being the

combination of four factors:

1. Capability
2. Impact
3. Proof
4. Cost
Composing your value proposition
Next to each component, write down how your company satisfies
each point. Then, write a new sentence or statement that
summarises all four points - this sentence is your value
proposition.

In our experience, the four headings can appear narrow and

constrained but in reality they are not. Cost, for example, need not
only mean how much you cost, it could also refer to the cost of
not taking action or the risk of taking an inferior action. And proof
can refer to a wide range of evidence including success statistics,
awards received, groups of clients etc.

How you structure your value proposition is entirely up to you -

you just need something that sums up your capability, impact,
proof and cost statements. If you are struggling to find the right
format, this post, 7 Proven Templates for Writing Value
MidTerm Individual

Propositions That Work, by Tor Grønsund offers some through

provoking suggestions.

Analysis
Recommendation

Assignment 3 : Creating a Personal Brand (please refer to separate slides for the detailed instruc;ons) –
for submission by midterm period, due date to be announced.
https://www.thinkific.com/blog/personal-branding-guide/
https://www.forbes.com/sites/goldiechan/2018/11/08/10-golden-rules-personal-branding/
https://www.quicksprout.com/the-complete-guide-to-building-your-personal-brand/
https://digitalmarketinginstitute.com/blog/7-steps-to-build-your-personal-brand
https://medium.com/better-marketing/the-complete-guide-to-building-a-personal-brand-in-2020-
725c9530bc49

Introduction
Analysis
Recommendation

Assignment 4: Taking a different platform to enhance career growth or extending related

services/products or diversification in a personal business or career.
https://www.workforce.com/news/what-is-the-difference-between-career-growth-and-career-
development
https://m.economictimes.com/wealth/earn/-6-ways-to-improve-your-career-
potential/articleshow/55907021.cms
https://www.brightermonday.co.ke/blog/career-growth-vs-career-development/
https://www.pushfar.com/article/career-progression/

https://www.mycareerdiamonds.com/importance-career-diversification/
https://www.davidmeermanscott.com/blog/the-portfolio-theory-of-diversification-applied-to-career-
planning
https://www.forbes.com/sites/danschawbel/2014/01/10/are-you-ready-for-the-age-of-career-
diversification/
https://www.wayup.com/guide/community/the-importance-of-diversification/

Introduction
Analysis
Recommendation
MidTerm Individual

Part. 2 Individual Submissions:

Guide in a reflective writing :
Your reflection offers you the opportunity to consider how your personal experiences and observations shape your
thinking and your acceptance of the new idea. By assessing a theory or approach based on your observations and
practice and evaluate your own knowledge and skills in relation to your functional discipline or professional field.
Consider the following:
1. Contextualize your reflection. What are your learning goals, and how does it fit to the themes and concepts of the
course and your expectations?
2. Provide important information, share your learn from the experience and lessons from the reflection.
3. Demonstrate your learning of the course. The reflection paper for each assignment must not be more than 3 pages
in 1.5 spacing if using standard 12 font.

Part. 2 Individual Submissions:

Instruc;ons in the submissions:
1. Kindly label the file you will submit with the following: Last Name.FirstName._MArkMA.R(class
no.)_.Assignment No._ email this to me directly at: [email protected] You may submit all of the individual papers at
one ;me or per piece so long as you will complete submissions not later than August 2, 2021. Only Assignments 1, 2 & 4 are
required to be submiWed for the deadline set here.
2. Please take note that for Assignment 3, a detailed instruc;on and template will be issued out separately. Due date for this
assignment will be not later than Aug. 6, 2020.