Art and Science of Marketing the Discipline

¶ … Art and Science of Marketing

The discipline of Marketing has come a long way since the advent of the industrial age, a consumer driven society, and an increasingly competitive global economy. Indeed, environmental compulsions have perforce led to many a management guru and business strategist developing new business models and marketing formulas that hold out the promise of the holy grail to building sustainable competitive advantages and increasing market shares. However, while these business models and marketing formulas are extremely helpful in understanding the dynamics of marketing, the fact remains that ultimately it is the application of these models or formulas to any one given marketing context that determines the success or otherwise of a marketing strategy. In fact, it is extremely critical that the context itself is defined correctly before any attempt is made to apply known marketing principles. The preceding facts, thus, make it evident that marketing is much more of an art than a science since a great deal depends on the skill of the practitioner in defining a given context and thereafter applying the right marketing principles.

The fact that marketing is much more of an art than science is also well illustrated by the number of marketing failures that take place in any given year. The primary reason for such marketing failures is usually because the marketing team has either been unable to anticipate the next move that competitors will make or identify consumer needs and motivations accurately. Indeed, it is largely these two facts that make it so difficult to define the market context, which the marketing strategy necessarily needs to address: "Advertisers, salespersons, and marketers need to understand motivation to be effective...so that they can market to the mind." (Fulton & Maddock, p. 33-34)

True, marketers do have several tools in market research to help them understand and define consumer usage attitudes and behavior. However, often a faulty research design or interpretation of research findings can lead to erroneous conclusions, which then become a shaky foundation for the development of marketing strategy. In any case, consumer research will always suffer from several limitations such as the fact that consumers do not consciously pay attention to their purchase motivations and are often reluctant to discuss their motivations, even when prompted (Fulton & Maddock, p. 33). More important, a consumer's own constantly changing context leads to changing motivations. For example, in times of economic recession, consumers may suddenly switch to lower priced products thereby negating the principle that consumers willingly pay a premium for a superior performing product. Thus, an ever-changing marketing environment, constantly evolving and revolving consumer needs, and the fact that human behavior can never be precisely measured are all factors that indicate that successful marketing is dependent on the talent of the practitioner in intuiting consumer motivations and changes in the environment. Indeed, it is probably these aspects of marketing that led to the now famous quip by retail guru, John Wanamaker in 1886: "I know that 50% of my advertising is wasted. I just don't know which half." (Black, 2003).