Q.Discuss the marketing functions.

Marketing functions are the various activities performed to move goods and services from producer to consumer — chiefly buying & assembling, selling, transportation, storage/warehousing, standardisation & grading, packaging & labelling, branding, pricing, promotion, and financing & risk-bearing. They create utility and ensure customer satisfaction.

Marketing involves many functions that together take a product from the producer to the final consumer. These are called the functions of marketing.

Functions of marketing

1. Buying and assembling — Collecting/buying raw materials or finished goods of the right quality, quantity and price and assembling them at one place for sale or further production.

2. Selling — The most important function; finding buyers and transferring ownership of goods to them at a profit through salesmanship and advertising.

3. Transportation — Physically moving goods from the place of production to the place of consumption, thereby creating place utility.

4. Storage and warehousing — Holding goods safely from the time of production till they are demanded and sold, thereby creating time utility and ensuring regular supply.

5. Standardisation and grading — Setting standards of quality, size and weight (standardisation) and sorting goods into grades according to those standards (grading), which helps buying and pricing.

6. Packaging and labelling — Placing goods in suitable packages to protect and attract, and attaching labels that give information about the product.

7. Branding — Giving the product a distinct name or symbol to identify it and distinguish it from competitors.

8. Pricing — Fixing a suitable price for the product considering cost, demand, competition and consumer.

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