Marketing
Marketing is how an organisation decides who to serve and how to reach them. It starts with the STP model: segmenting the market into groups with similar needs, targeting the segment(s) the organisation wants to serve, and positioning the offer so it stands out in the customer's mind relative to competitors. Once a target segment and position are chosen, the organisation shapes its marketing mix — product, price, place, and promotion — to actually reach and serve those customers. For an IT professional, understanding marketing helps you see why a stakeholder wants a system to capture certain customer data, or why a feature exists to support a specific target group.
Starting Points
- OpenStax – Introduction to Business (free open textbook: marketing, STP & the marketing mix)
- LinkedIn Learning – Understanding Business
Key Points
- You explain the purpose of marketing: identifying and serving the needs of a chosen target group.
- You apply the STP model (segmenting, targeting, positioning) to determine who an organisation should serve and how it should stand out.
- You apply the marketing mix (product, price, place, promotion) to analyze how an organisation reaches and serves its customers.