SKIP TO CONTENT

LIVE

Understanding Marketing in Business: Key Strategies and

Types
By

ALEXANDRA TWIN

Updated July 18, 2025

Reviewed by
DAVID KINDNESS

Fact checked by

ARIEL COURAGE
Part of the Series

How to Start a Business: A Comprehensive Guide and Essential Steps

Investopedia / Lara Antal

What Is Marketing?
Marketing encompasses all the activities that a company undertakes to promote and facilitate the
buying or selling of its products or services. This critical business function involves advertising
and other promotional strategies aimed at reaching consumers, other businesses, and
organizations. In a company, marketing professionals focus on capturing the attention of target
audiences through a variety of methods, including celebrity endorsements, engaging slogans,
eye-catching designs, and expansive media coverage. Their ultimate goal is to connect a
company's products with its intended market, ensuring both business growth and customer
satisfaction.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
 Marketing is crucial for companies to promote their products or services to potential customers
and build lasting relationships.
 The Four Ps of marketing—product, price, place, and promotion—form the essential framework
for any marketing strategy.
 Traditional marketing strategies have evolved with technology, giving rise to new digital
marketing avenues such as social media and email marketing.
  Effective marketing not only attracts and retains customers, but also shapes a company's brand
image and enhances customer experience.
 Despite its many benefits, marketing can be costly and poses challenges in choosing the right
strategy to yield profitability.
The Basics of Marketing and Customer Engagement
Marketing encompasses all the activities that a company undertakes to promote and facilitate the
buying or selling of its products or services. This critical business function involves advertising
and other promotional strategies aimed at reaching consumers, other businesses, and
organizations. In a company, marketing professionals focus on capturing the attention of target
audiences through a variety of methods, including celebrity endorsements, engaging slogans,
eye-catching designs, and expansive media coverage. Their ultimate goal is to connect a
company's products with its intended market, ensuring both business growth and customer
satisfaction.
FORMAL DEFINITION:
"Marketing is the activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating, communicating,
delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society
at large. "
—Official definition from the American Marketing Association, approved 2017.
Exploring the 4 Ps: Product, Price, Place, and Promotion
Product, price, place, and promotion are the Four Ps of marketing. The Four Ps collectively make
up the essential mix a company needs to market a product or service. Neil Borden popularized
the idea of the marketing mix and the concept of the Four Ps in the 1950s.
Image by Sabrina Jiang © Investopedia 2020

Product
Product refers to an item or items the business plans to offer to customers. The product should
seek to fulfill an absence in the market or fulfill consumer demand for a greater amount of a
product already available. Marketers must understand what they are selling, how it differs from
competitors, if it pairs with other products, and if substitutes exist in the market before starting a
campaign.
Price
Price is the amount a company charges for a product. Companies should consider unit costs,
marketing, distribution, and competitor prices to ensure their price is competitive and reasonable
for consumers.
Place
Place refers to the distribution of the product. Key considerations include whether the company
will sell the product through a physical storefront, online, or through both distribution channels.
In physical stores, how is the product placed? Online, how is the digital placement managed?
Promotion
Promotion, the fourth P, is the integrated marketing communications campaign. Promotion
includes a variety of activities such as advertising, selling, sales promotions, public relations,
direct marketing, sponsorship, and guerrilla marketing.
Promotions change with the product's life cycle stage. Marketers know consumers link price and
distribution to quality, which they consider in their strategy.
IMPORTANT
Marketing refers to any activities undertaken by a company to promote the buying or selling of a
service. If there is a limited quantity of a product, a company may market itself in an attempt to
be better positioned as one of the few who get to buy something.
Comprehensive Overview of Marketing Strategies
Marketing is comprised of an incredibly broad and diverse set of strategies. The industry
continues to evolve, and the strategies below may be better suited for some companies over
others.
Traditional Marketing Strategies
Before technology and the Internet, traditional marketing was the primary way companies would
market their goods to customers. The main types of traditional marketing strategies include:
 Outdoor Marketing: This entails public displays of advertising external to a consumer's
house. This includes billboards, printed advertisements on benches, sticker wraps on vehicles, or
advertisements on public transit.
 Print Marketing: This entails small, easily printed content that is easy to replicate.
Traditionally, companies often mass-produced printed materials, as the printed content was the
same for all customers. Today, more flexibility in printing processes means that materials can be
differentiated.
 Direct Marketing: This entails specific content delivered to potential customers. Some
print marketing content could be mailed. Otherwise, direct marketing mediums could include
coupons, vouchers for free goods, or pamphlets.
 Electronic Marketing: This entails the use of TV and radio for advertising. Through short
bursts of digital content, a company can convey information to a customer through visual or
auditory media that may grab a viewer's attention better than a printed form.
 Event Marketing: This entails attempting to gather potential customers at a specific
location for the opportunity to speak with them about products or demonstrate products. This
includes conferences, trade shows, seminars, roadshows, or private events.
Digital Marketing
The marketing industry has been forever changed with the introduction of digital marketing.
From the early days of pop-up ads to targeted placements based on viewing history, there are
now innovative ways companies can reach customers through digital marketing.
 Search Engine Marketing: This entails companies attempting to increase search traffic
through two ways. First, companies can pay search engines for placement on result pages.
Second, companies can emphasize search engine optimization (SEO) techniques to organically
place high on search results.
 E-mail Marketing: This entails companies obtaining customer or potential customer e-
mail addresses and distributing messages or newsletters. These messages can include coupons,
discount opportunities, or advance notice of upcoming sales.
 Social Media Marketing: This entails building an online presence on specific social
media platforms. Like search engine marketing, companies can place paid advertisements to
bypass algorithms and obtain a higher chance of being seen by viewers. Otherwise, a company
can attempt to organically grow by posting content, interacting with followers, or uploading
media like photos and videos.
 Affiliate Marketing: This entails using third-party advertising to drive customer interest.
Often, an affiliate that will get a commission from a sale will do affiliate marketing as the third
party is incentivized to drive a sale for a good that is not their own original product.
  Content Marketing: This entails creating content, whether eBooks, infographics, video
seminars, or other downloadable content. The goal is to create a product (often free) to share
information about a product, obtain customer information, and encourage customers to
continue with the company beyond the content.
FAST FACT
In 1978, Gary Thuerk sent a message to roughly 400 people using ARPANET, the first public
packet-switched computer network. With that message, the first ever recorded spam e-mail
message had been sent.
Unpacking the Benefits of Effective Marketing
Well-defined marketing strategies can benefit a company in several ways. It may be challenging
to develop the right strategy or execute the plan; when done well, marketing can yield the
following results:
 Audience Generation. Marketing allows a company to target specific people it believes
will benefit from its product or service. Sometimes, people know they have the need. Other
times, they don't realize it. Marketing enables a company to connect with a cohort of people
that fit the demographic of whom the company aims to serve.
 Inward Education. Marketing is useful for collecting information to be processed
internally to drive success. For example, consider market research that finds a certain product is
primarily purchased by women aged 18 to 34 years old. By collecting this information, a
company can better understand how to cater to this demographic, drive sales, and be more
efficient with resources.
 Outward Education. Marketing can also be used to communicate with the world what
your company does, what products you sell, and how your company can enrich the lives of
others. Campaigns can be educational, informing those outside of your company why they need
your product. In addition, marketing campaigns let a company introduce itself, its history, its
owners, and its motivation for being the company it is.
 Brand Creation. Marketing allows for a company to take an offensive approach to creating
a brand. Instead of a customer shaping their opinion of a company based on their interactions, a
company can preemptively engage a customer with specific content or media to drive certain
emotions or reactions. This allows a company to shape its image before the customer has ever
interacted with its products.
 Long-lasting. Marketing campaigns done right can have a long-lasting impact on
customers. Consider Poppin' Fresh, also known as the Pillsbury Doughboy. First appearing in
1965, the mascot has helped create a long-lasting, warm, friendly brand for Pillsbury.
 Financial Performance. The ultimate goal and benefit of marketing are to drive sales.
When relationships with customers are stronger, well-defined, and positive, customers are more
likely to engage in sales. When marketing is done right, customers turn to your company, and
you gain a competitive advantage over your competitors. Even if both products are exactly the
same, marketing can create that competitive advantage for why a client picks you over someone
else.
FAST FACT
According to MarTech, a digital marketing provider, the world will spend $4.7 trillion on
marketing by 2025. This estimate includes an increase of $1.1 trillion from 2021 to 2025.
Understanding the Challenges and Limitations in Marketing
Though there are many reasons a company embarks on marketing campaigns, there are several
limitations to the industry.
  Oversaturation. Every company wants customers to buy its product and not its
competitors. Therefore, marketing channels can be competitive as companies strive to garner
more positive attention and recognition. If too many companies are competing, a customer's
attention may be strongly diluted, resulting in any form of advertising not being effective.
 Devaluation. When a company promotes a price discount or sale, the public may
psychologically eventually see that product as worth less in the future. If a campaign is so strong,
customers may even wait to purchase a good knowing or remembering what the sale price was
from before. For example, some may intentionally hold off buying goods if Black Friday is
approaching.
 No Guaranteed Success. Marketing campaigns may incur upfront expenses that hold
no promise of future success. This is also true of market research studies, where time, effort, and
resources are poured into a study that may yield no usable or helpful results.
 Customer Bias. Loyal, long-time customers need no enticing to buy a company's brand or
product. However, newer, uninitiated customers may. Marketing naturally is biased towards non-
loyal patrons as those who already support the company would be better served by further
investment in product improvement.
 Cost. Marketing campaigns may be expensive. Digital marketing campaigns may be labor-
intensive to set up and costly to maintain the scheduling, implementation, and execution of the
plan. Don't forget about the headlines that promote Super Bowl commercial expenses in the
millions.
 Economy-Dependent. Marketing is most successful when people have capital to spend.
Though marketing can create non-financial benefits such as brand loyalty and product
recognition, the ultimate goal is to drive sales. During unfavorable macroeconomic conditions
when unemployment is high or recession concerns are elevated, consumers may be less likely to
spend no matter how great a marketing campaign may be.
What Is Marketing?
Marketing is a division of a company, product line, individual, or entity that promotes its service.
Marketing attempts to encourage market participants to buy their product and commit loyalty to
a specific company.
Why Is Marketing So Important?
Marketing is important for a few reasons. First, marketing campaigns may be the first time a
customer interacts or is exposed to a company's product. A company has the opportunity to
educate, promote, and encourage potential buyers.
Marketing also helps shape the brand image a company wants to convey. For example, an
outdoor camping gear company that wants to be known for its rugged, tough goods can embark
on specific campaigns that embody these traits and make these emotions memorable to
prospective customers.
What Is the Purpose of Marketing?
An important goal of marketing is propelling a company’s growth. This can be seen through
attracting and retaining new customers.
Companies may apply many different marketing strategies to achieve these goals. For instance,
matching products with customers' needs could involve personalization, prediction, and
essentially knowing the right problem to solve.
Another strategy is creating value through the customer experience. This is demonstrated
through efforts to elevate customer satisfaction and remove any difficulties with the product or
service.
What Are the 4 Ps of Marketing?
A commonly used concept in the marketing field, the Four Ps of marketing looks at four key
elements of a marketing strategy. The Four Ps consist of product, price, place, and promotion.
What Are the Types of Marketing?
There are dozens of types of marketing, and the types have proliferated with the introduction and
rise of social media, mobile platforms, and technological advancements. Before technology,
marketing might have been geared towards mail campaigns, word-of-mouth campaigns,
billboards, delivery of sample products, TV commercials, or telemarketing. Now, marketing
encompasses social media, targeted ads, e-mail marketing, inbound marketing to attract web
traffic, and more.
The Bottom Line
Marketing is an essential part of any business. It allows for a business's products or services to be
known to consumers and it helps entice consumers to buy its product over a competitor's.
Though marketing costs a significant amount of money, companies create marketing budgets as a
part of expenses in the hope that sales and profits will outweigh the marketing costs.
ARTICLE SOURCES
Part of the Series

How to Start a Business: A Comprehensive Guide and Essential Steps

How to Start a Business: A Comprehensive Guide and Essential Steps

Researching a Market

1. How to Do Market Research, Types, and Example

2. Marketing Strategy: What It Is, How It Works, How To Create One
3. Marketing in Business: Strategies and Types Explained
CURRENT ARTICLE
4. What Is a Marketing Plan? Types and How to Write One
Planning and Developing Your Business
Funding Options
Business Structures
Starting Specific Businesses

READ MORE

 Business

 Marketing Essentials
Related Articles

Bootstrapping Your Business: Strategies, Benefits, and Challenges

5 Proven Methods to Validate Your Business Idea Pre-Launch

Crowdfunding: What It Is, How It Works, and Popular Websites

LLC vs. Incorporation: Which Should I Choose?

Understand Value-Based Pricing: Key Strategies and Benefits

Understanding Greenwashing: Definition, Examples, and Statistics

What Is a Marketing Strategy?

What Is Data Mining? How It Works, Benefits, Techniques, and Examples

Understanding Digital Marketing: Key Types, Channels, and Examples

Public Relations (PR): Definition, Types, and Real-World Examples

Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA): What It Is, Who Pays

The Cost of Hiring a New Employee

Unlocking Freelancing: Types, Taxes, Benefits, & Challenges

Marketing Plan: Types and How to Write One

What Books Won't Teach You About Building Your Own Business

Why Economic Uncertainty is Worse Than Bad News for Small Business
Owners

Investopedia

NEWSLETTER SIGN UP

Follow Us






 NEWS
 INVESTING
 SIMULATOR
 BANKING
 PERSONAL FINANCE
 ECONOMY
 REVIEWS
 DICTIONARY
 About Us
 Editorial Process
 Careers
 Contact Us
 Privacy Policy
 Terms of Service
 Advertise

Investopedia is part of the People Inc. publishing family.

Ad