“Marketing is a word that in all cases has changed in today’s business world.” But what is marketing really? And what types of marketing can we distinguish? In this article, you’ll find the answers to these questions. We will also give you access to many valuable articles that will expand the information covered in this text. We invite you to read.

Today, every large company has a marketing department. A team of qualified specialists takes care of the promotion of the company, promoting its activities aimed at supporting sales and communication with customers. Depending on the industry and the goal the company wants to achieve, it will use different types of marketing. In this article, we explain how modern marketing is defined and tell about its most popular types.

Marketing – definition

There is no single definition of marketing that covers this whole concept. In recent years, marketing has developed so much that it is breakneck to include it in one definition. Most often, however, there are three different explanations for the term “marketing”.

Various definitions of marketing

• According to Philip Kotler and Kevin Lane Keller, marketing is an activity that consists in recognizing and satisfying people’s needs.
• As defined by the American Marketing Association (AMA for short), marketing is all activities that create, communicate and deliver products that are of value to the customer.
• And the so-called The managerial definition of marketing says that it is carrying out specific activities aimed at increasing sales.

As you can see,the goal of marketing is to convey information about a company and its products to a specific groupof people. The role of the sender is to define the content and method of conveying the message and to specify the goal that a given message is to achieve. Such a task, set before a marketing message, may be, for example, increasing sales or improving brand recognition.

Types of marketing

As you may have figured out by now, marketing is a very broad concept. Therefore, to clarify them a bit, we distinguish many types of marketing. Each type of marketing has certain characteristics that are unique to it.

Interestingly, many types of marketing arose relatively recently, along with the spread of Internet access. However, it is worth remembering that the type of marketing used by a brand should be selected primarily for its target group. However, it is also possible to combine many forms with each other and operate under the so-calledmulti-channel marketing.

Traditional Marketing

Traditional marketing is allactivities carried out offline, not on the Internet. The place of distribution in the case of traditional marketing are therefore all kinds of banners and large-format billboards, but also smaller forms, such as leaflets, brochures and press advertisements. Remember, however, that traditional marketing includes not only advertisements located, for example, in urban space. Traditional advertisements are alsotelevisionand radio messages.

Internet marketing

Online marketing meanspromoting your products and services online. In order for your Internet marketing activities to be effective, it is worth using the help of a professional Internet marketing agency that will optimize your activities so that they are more search engine friendly. For this purpose, among others, such activities as

• SEO and SEM,
• copywriting and content writing.
• content marketing

Thanks to them, the brand is able to precisely hit the target group with its message.

Traditional or internet marketing – what to choose?

The choice between traditional and online marketing should be made in many areas. First of all, the choicedepends on the target groupandwhat goal youwant to achieve. Internet marketing allows you to precisely define the group to which a given message is to reach. An advertisement placed in the city space reaches everyone, without the certainty that they will be interested in a given offer.

Traditional marketing also prevents direct contact with the client and is associated with high distribution costs, especially in the case of large-format advertising.

Internet marketing, in turn, is often cheaper and allows you to reach the customer more precisely. Online marketing campaigns are often billed in the PPC model (pay per click –this model is typical for performance marketing, which we write about later in the article).

Other types of marketing

Marketing activities are wide-ranging and currently there are many types of marketing. Some are just gaining popularity, others are becoming a thing of the past. This is perfectly normal as marketing is trying to keep up with the changing needs and interests of customers. Below, we discuss the most popular types of marketing and explain when they can be useful in your business.

Marketing mix

Marketing mixIt is​​a tool used to develop a brand’s offer. Thanks to such activities, the company has the opportunity to plan the manner in which they will be presented to potential customers. Work in the marketing mix formula begins with defining the target group, and then specific marketing activities are adapted to it.

As we have already said, the marketing mix is ​​a series of different concepts. The traditional concept was the 4P formula, which was superseded in favor of the 7P concept. Currently, however, it is considered that they are giving way to the latest4C concept, which is adapted to the needs of modern enterprises selling via the Internet.

Personal Marketing

Personnel marketing is aboutbuilding and maintaining a positive image of the companyin the eyes of employees and business partners – both current and potential. This type of marketing is about promoting content that presents, for example, the work environment. We are talking then about employer branding. The aim of such activities is to create an image that will allow the employer to be perceived as honest and trustworthy, not only inside the company’s structures, but also on the external market.

Performance marketing

Performance marketing is all online activities aimed at achieving a specific result, most often in the form of:

• more orders,
• more downloads,
• more visits to the website, etc.

The most popular channels for conducting effectiveness activities are Facebook Ads andGoogle Ads. With the help of these two tools, you are able to reach the majority of network users and target your ads in such a way that they reach only people interested in your services and products.

Word of mouth marketing

Word of mouth marketing can be calledgiving information a second circulation. The message is therefore disseminated not by the brand but thanks to the votes of satisfied customers. These are stories that are informative, humorous, or even sensational. Word-of-mouth marketing usually takesthe form of a conversation,either online (e.g. on internet forums) or offline (e.g. a conversation with friends). Word of mouth marketing is boththe voices of satisfied customersandthe deliberate actions of the brand. Such a deliberate activity may be paid for by issuing positive opinions or creating controversial situations that lead to the fact that the company is talked about.

Mobile Marketing

Mobile marketing isactivity aimed at reaching smartphone users. Companies that decide to use this method of communication mainly focus ontext messages, e.g. by sending SMS messages to their customers or pushing notifications with information about upcoming promotions. It is recognized that online marketing is one of the most effective ways to improve sales, both in online and stationary stores.

Brand Marketing

Brand marketing consists inconducting marketing activities in such a way that a specific brand is clearly identified with specific products, and the products are associated with having certain characteristic features. In the case of brand marketing, thebrand does not only want to promote goods or services, but alsobuild a strong positionon the market.

Brand marketing is characterized bylong-term activities:building a brand that will be credible in the eyes of customers and consolidating its position as an industry leader is time-consuming but brings great results, enabling, among other things, dictating prices to competing companies.

Influencer marketing

For several years, influencer marketing has enjoyed unflagging popularity. We call this strategyall those advertising activities that are based on cooperation with an influencer. He is a kind of an intermediary between a brand and a potential customer. In this case, marketing activities are based on the popularity of a given influencer and its credibility.

Influencer marketing ismainly used by brands with a younger target group(around 15–25 years old). However, for this type of marketing to be effective, you should remember to choose the right influencer to cooperate with—followers will sense any falsity, and marketing activities may be counterproductive.

Recommendation marketing

Referral marketing is an area of ​​marketing that has a lot to do with word of mouth marketing. It consists of various types ofrecommendations and verbal instructions from existing clients. The goal of recommendation marketing is to attract new customers byturning satisfied customers into a kind of brand ambassadorwho will help in promoting products or services, thus generating more sales. confidence in your company. Recommendations from satisfied customers are considered more effective and more credible than marketing activities carried out by the brand.

Affiliate Marketing

Two entitiesare involved in affiliate marketing: advertisers and publishers. Mostly, this type of marketing is used to promote online stores and financial and educational services.Affiliate marketingThis consists of the fact that the advertiser provides a product or service to the publisher, and the publisher recommends it to third parties (usually the community gathered around him). The partner receives remuneration (commission) only when someone decides to buy the product on his recommendation. An example of such action is discount codes provided by fashion bloggers.

Is marketing just selling?

Marketing is activities that are not only aimed at increasing sales. The role of marketing activities is much wider. Marketing specialists also deal with, inter alia, company communication, carrying out analyzes measuring the effectiveness of the activities carried out and the preparation and implementation of specific strategies, becausesales alone is not enoughto achieve the goals set by the company.

Due to high competition, marketing activities should be directed to a precisely defined target group, and at the same time stand out on the market. From among many types of marketing, you should choose the one that will bring the best results. When opening a new business, it is not worth wasting time on independent marketing activities. It is betterto use the help of a professional marketing agencythat will adjust the strategy to the goals that the entrepreneur would like to achieve and the budget he has at his disposal. Cooperation with the agency is also a guarantee of up-to-date knowledge at the highest level and professional advice supported by many years of experience.

Effectiveness of marketing activities – what does it depend on?

Whether your marketing efforts will be effective depends on many factors. The effectiveness of the chosen strategy is influenced, among others, by precise determination of the target group and selection of appropriate channels on which to build relationships with recipients. Many brands, especially beginners, make a very common mistake and conduct their marketing activities in an intuitive way.

Meanwhile, marketing should be based oncontinuous data analysis and drawing conclusions from it. It is extremely important to monitor which activities bring the best results, what content is of interest to customers, and whatfeedbackthe company receives from the market.

Marketing is certainly not an easy topic. There are many types of marketing, and each has its own unique characteristics. When choosing a method of marketing communication for your company, you should first of all take into account the target group and have a precisely defined goal.A professional marketing agency, for which marketing has no secrets, will help you determine the strategy.