Marketing is the core of any organisation

In an ideal world, the setting up of new companies is based on thorough market research and analysis, and would focus around the one truly essential asset any company needs – the customer.

In practical terms, this is rarely the case, especially with new set-ups. The priority, at the time of setting up is usually identifying the right manner to conduct business in order to end up with some profit – what is called the ‘value chain’.

Once a basic value chain is established, companies focus on the essential functions needed to operate. These usually consist of management, accounting and finance, and those people responsible for delivering the actual product.

In some cases all these functions are performed by the same people to limit costs as much as possible, and rightfully so. The priority at this stage is to cut down on costs and get the revenue wheel going.

Once this is done and the company starts getting bigger and employs more people, a marketing person is usually appointed. Here, it is important to note that this in itself is already a positive thing since the people involved are aware of the importance of the function of marketing in a business.

The problem, however, is that more often than not they believe marketing is an ‘add-on’ which, once obtained will automatically result in more profits for the company. This is absolutely not the case and contradicts the very nature of marketing.

Marketing needs to be seen as a way of thinking and conducting business, not as a role or department within an organisation. It needs to be integrated with all other roles and instilled in all other employees independently of rank or role.

This business philosophy places the customer at the central point of the organisation and redefines all its functions accordingly. Naturally, this needs to be counter-balanced with the companies’ own resources, capabilities and strategic goals.

One common idea that is often forgotten down the line of businesses growth and profit maximisation is that the aim of all businesses is, or rather should be, to satisfy a customer’s needs profitably. This pretty much sums it all up.

The first priority is the customer’s need and satisfaction, which means that procedures cannot be mentally draining for customers, bureaucracy needs to be kept to a bare minimum, websites cannot take hours to load, customer care can’t keep people on hold for long.

I’m pretty much sure these situations have been encountered by anyone trying to buy something in Malta.

The second element, which although still a prerequisite but nonetheless should come as second priority, is profit. It might sound strange to some, but no person expects companies to conduct business for nothing.

What people do expect is a good level of service, whatever their needs may be. This brings us back to the main principle behind the nature of marketing: placing the customer at the centre of the organisation.

This is no easy task and one that might initially seem huge, as well as a waste of time and money. However, if broken down into smaller, more manageable elements and operations, re-aligning a company to focus on customers becomes not only achievable but also a more reassuring way for long-term growth and profit maximisation.

Simple and concrete examples for achieving this include creating a basic marketing training session for all employees independently of their role or rank. This should provide good ground for non-marketing staff to understand decisions that might otherwise be perceived as illogical or ‘intended to add work on staff’.

Employees will feel important and an overall sense of belonging and loyalty will be fostered.

Regular short training sessions should be held to instill a ‘customer-is-first’ approach and mentality, even if it means triple workload, as long as customers experience an efficient service.

Regular interdepartmental training is crucial, particularly for staff who do not face customers in a typical working day. This ensures that not only do these employees know, but actually experience how it feels to face customers on a day-to-day basis.

Organisation leaders should encourage, foster and reward customer empathy in each task employees are faced with, no matter how irrelevant it might seem. Mentoring staff to focus on customer needs and satisfaction not merely through the company’s products but more importantly through the service accompanying it, is also important.

Marketing is increasingly being recognised as an important tool in business development. Marketing should be seen as a mentality and approach to business, not merely as a function within it. If this is truly understood and kept in mind, a lot of common misconceptions could be prevented and the true value of this principle exploited.

melvinmizzi@gmail.com

Mr Mizzi is a B. Comm (Hons) graduate with an M.Sc in Marketing.