Question

• Identify and discuss the four areas of the evolution of  marketing. (Chapter 13);

Answer 1

The needs and wants of customers frequently changed/change in eras that have influenced the evolution of marketing. The four areas of the evolution of marketing are the production era, selling era, marketing concept era, and customer relationship era. The production era started in the early 1900s with the principal of business being “produce as much as you can, because there is a limitless market for it.” In the early 1900s, there was a vast demand for products but limited production. Business owners had only one goal, which was production. In the 1920s, because business production was booming with market demand, the concept changed from producing to selling, thus starting the selling era. Companies used selling and advertising to get consumers to buy their existing products.

The marketing concept era started right after World War II in 1950, and ended during the 1980s. Since there was a high demand for goods and services, the marketing concept was made. There are three parts to the marketing concept, customer orientation, service orientation, and a profit orientation. Customer orientation is the understanding of what the consumer wants while providing it for them. A service orientation meant making sure everybody in a firm pursued customer satisfaction. Lastly, a profit orientation means focusing on the goods and services that was earning the most profit. This era lasted long due to businesses not executing it. The customer era started in the 1990s, early 2000s. Customer relationship management was developed in this era and it meant the process of learning as much as possible about present customers and doing everything you can over time to satisfy them or even to exceed their expectations with goods and services. The goal is simply to enhance customer satisfaction and gain a long-term relationship with them.