The word 'marketing' is familiar to everyone, from small businesses to large corporations. In simple terms, marketing is an exchange process through which the needs and desires of consumers are fulfilled with satisfaction. The concept of marketing emerged around the mid-1950s, shifting the focus from just profit-making to satisfying customer needs and achieving long-term customer loyalty. Before marketing concepts appeared, businesses primarily aimed at making profits. However, this perspective shifted with the advent of marketing, leading businesses striving for customer satisfaction alongside profit-making to establish long-term customer loyalty.
During the Industrial Revolution from 1760 to 1840, significant changes occurred in production systems. Before the Industrial Revolution, production systems were limited to families, where goods were produced to fulfil their own needs. However, with the arrival of the Industrial Revolution, the emergence of capitalism, the invention of steam engines, coal mining, and the extensive use of iron and steel led to the establishment of many industries and factories in urban areas. Large-scale production began, but the focus was mainly on profit-making rather than customer satisfaction. Competition arose as multiple companies started producing similar products, leading to the birth of marketing concepts.
Nowadays, simply producing goods and putting them on the market is not enough to ensure significant sales. Before introducing a product to the market, a thorough market research is necessary to understand how well the product can fulfil consumer demand. Moreover, merely fulfilling demand is not sufficient; consumer satisfaction is also essential. If we consider today's leading mobile phone companies, we'll see that they compete in terms of who can bring better cameras and processors to the market, all at a competitive price. This competition arises from the marketing paradigm.
If your marketing policy is not effective, your business may not survive. If we look at the world's leading brands today, we see that they lead global business because they succeed in achieving consumer satisfaction through their marketing policies. Today, the availability of high-quality products is primarily due to the marketing paradigm. Because the primary goal of marketing is to transform consumers into loyal customers by satisfying their needs, it drives extensive market research and the discovery of innovative products capable of fulfilling advanced demand. In short, the contribution of marketing to the improvement of human life is undeniable.
Md. Tajul Islam
Department of Marketing, Islamic University, Bangladesh
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