Marketing is change, A change towards better and better. Marketers are just enablers who make this change happen, and over a period of time, these changes make an improved culture. Therefore the final objective should convert strategy into the culture — a way of new life.
All marketers keep on doing this, trying day and night to make change happen, towards better…and better.
History proves that all change-makers who succeeded in changing the way of life were marketers. They have started a new culture and a new way of life, but initially, they must have drafted the entire GTM plan, which may be lasted in thousand of years.
Creating an audience, mobilize them, make them loyal customers, followers, and then advocates.
They took the help of influencers, even supported new influencers, and spread their brand across continents. It helped them to be covert an idea – strategy – tactics- execution- loyalty – advocates – revised idea – influencers – finally a culter.
Isn’t – fascinating? dont read between the lines and let’s stick here only.
From pre-history civilization to Modern Age, Religions, Communities, Aidiologies, Brands to political parties, they all have been trying to make the change with their tools and narratives.
But here BETTER for whom? Many times, it’s for company, most of the time themselves, very few of the time it’s for society and country, and rarely it’s for the planet and none of the time for humanity.
But is that true?
Did marketing have no role in mankind’s evolution?
Do marketers care for humanity, or it doesn’t?
From the general perception, we perceived that marketing is the art of selling. Marketing uses glamour, artificial things to shine the product, does branding to capture the mind, and it targets to create a culture where only one specific brand runs. This ecosystem supports one type of product and services to flourish. Marketing intends to create a blue ocean, and that blue ocean doesn’t allow two different fish to swim together.
There are many examples around us how apple succeeded in making a culture of the I-phone, which I think a step ahead from just a culture to be a part of the collective consensus. They have built not only loyal customer base but advocates rather, I would say advocates, plus jury and judges too. 🙂
Marketers are change-makers, and marketing is an effort to bring the change towards the better — an Endeavour from making strategy to become a Culture.
Story of fiate Punto.
This brand has a strong fan base who love this car. Fiate Punto has many fan clubs on digital space, and they keep on talking about it, That’s the objective should be for everyone, when people start talking about you or your product.
- Although Fiate Punto –
- · doesn’t have re-sale values, no good Mileage
- · High priced accessories
- · Poor services network
- · Waiting time
- · 2 lakh rupees higher the cost in same category cars
But at the same time, Maruti has excellent re-sale value, even for its tinny Wagon-N car, but the love for Punto has not decreased a bit.
Reason – The excellent product quality, Amazing engine probably the best available diesel engine and word of mouth publicity. Marketing without advertising.
I remember, when I used to drive new Punto, people used to ask me about the experience and believe me when someone gives a look at your car, half of the money comes back.
This is culture, Punto culture, the same thing happens with Apple, A sense of pride, sense of ownership that’s what the brand objective. This is not for everyone, even not anyone can have it. It is exclusive, and this exclusivity creates brand equity.
Matthew Kobatch says that an idea is important, but the execution followed by a presentation of the idea is equally important. So it implies that marketing needs an excellent presentation to make the IDEA a success.
So, let’s agree that marketing is not natural. A presentation is essential to make marketing happen, although for change and betterment, even for the planet. It involves a budget and an effort. This cost needs funds, eventually an unnecessary burden on society.
What Mr. Seth Godin says – Marketing is the act of making change happen. Making is not sufficient; you have to make an impact until you change something. Continues Change the demand for your product. He says- marketers make things better by making change happen. The 1st step on the path to making things better is to make better things. It’s a revolutionary idea, isn’t it?
So finally, we got to reach this conclusion that marketing is not the war of brands nor a fight between corporations. It is a generous act of finding solutions for mankind to make a good living.
Marketing is helping people to make the right decision for themselves, which eventually makes them happy, thus in a few words, marketing is all about bringing a smile on the face.
Let’s get some realistic sips of filter coffee.
Is Marketing pure science or fine arts? In both the case, it needs creativity, and for a creative mind – there should be absolute FREEDOM. Freedom to think, act, and most important – FREEDOM TO MAKE MISTAKES.
I went to a marketing meetup last week, they were all marketing heads, mid-level, and many higher management ranking ones. I somehow gathered courage and proposed my idea of marketing. Although I am not good at giving such speeches where everyone presents, there is judging you, but anyhow, I narrated my purpose of marketing.
I said, don’t keep marketing within corporate guidelines; it should be available and straightforward for everyone.
I believe that a small kid is also a little marketer, dont you realize he communicates using all marketing tactics when he feels hungry.
He wants milk – that’s objective
He cries in full volume – advertising and non-verbal communication
His target customer – Mommy (in this case it is tough to find out who’s the customer and who’s the company, a start-up maybe 🙂
Mom feeds the baby, he gives a smile – that’s the reward, exchange the value. Indeed…!
Anyways I was explaining the meetup-story, so they were not satisfied with my reasoning, even giving me a weird type of expression like I was there as an alien among the humans.
Then I said – trump’s latest kill is also part of his election strategy. Marketing beyond the known dimensions of marketing. He is a good marketer, a quintessential salesman who knows how to use the tactics, His strategy is to make Americans vote for him unanimously.
This was the moment of truth that the same feeling that any new college boy used to experience on arriving at a south Mumbai college from a small town of Bihar.
Despite the reactions, I firmly believe that everyone is a marketer at its own place because we all keep trying to make things better and better, More and more…therefore we have to make better things.
A homemaker, a physiotherapist, a milkman, or the President, everyone wants recognition and appreciation.
We Indians love it, we like to be called – Boss, Sir, Heads of anything such as marketing, departments, chapter. I remember when I was working with MTS in 2011, my boss, who happened to lead of marketing communication, calls himself Head of Marketing while extracting with agencies. So I do believe that appreciation and salutation should come from the audience, not from the speaker or subject himself. What we say is not important but what others say about my product, brand or myself, that is more important.
It should be natural, after all, no one goes to goa for pilgrimage.
As the father of marketing – Mr. Seth Godin says, The 1st step on the path to making things better is to make better things, so 1st of all make a better product, be a better marketer and better human being. The narrating story comes after that. I can give you some real-life examples.
A few years back, I saw an Auto coming from Swargate to MG road branding featuring Kareena Kapoor endorsing Iball mobile handsets. C’mon, people know everything, who will believe that Kareena Kapoor using IBALL mobile. At the same time, I have also seen a hoarding Bipasa Basu endorsing a mobile handset brand – BYOND.
For god sake, how can the management of Beyond dare to imagine to associate Bips with BYOND? That is why, today, BYOND is not available in the mobile ecosystem and beyond the reach of the customer.
I have some more examples – askmebazar.com, which destroyed investors’ money to hire Ranveer Kapoor and Kangana but lack of right product it all wasted.
Marketing doesn’t allow the discussion on morality, there is nothing right and wrong, it’s absolute, it’s all the perception of an individual. Everyone has his or her own experience about marketing, every view counts Its pure mathematical – where every number adds up. The basics of digital marketing, digits matter to frame an entire canvas.
I am not a brand expert and don’t claim that these facts are correct. Honestly, I recorded these thoughts while driving from Pune to Mumbai, thanks to google voice typing. These views are multidimensional and subject to open discussion.
Marketers are change-makers, and marketing is an effort to bring the change towards the better — an Endeavour from making strategy to become a Culture.
