INTRODUCTION TO MARKETING  

Marketing may be defined as the process of assessing consumer needs, wants, preferences and demand; designing and producing goods and services that will satisfy such wants and moving such gods and services to the final consumer at a profit to an organisation.

Importance of Marketing to the Economy

1. It encourages mass- production which leads to lower unit cost of goods and services
2. It promotes competition and efficiency
3. It improves the standard of living of people by making modern goods available to them
4. It creates employment opportunities for the practitioners
5. It ensures consumers satisfaction
6. It increases productivity (GDP) and is the key to economic growth

Functions of Marketing

1. Exchange function
2. Buying function
3. Selling function
4. Storage function
5. Transportation function
6. Financing function
7. Risk bearing function
8. Pricing function
9. Standardizing and grading of goods
10. Market information and research
11. Production planning and development
12. Determining the level of production