Maharashtra HSC Bifocal Marketing and Salesmanship flashcards

36 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Marketing

The business activity of identifying customer needs, creating and delivering value through products and services, and building profitable exchange relationships that satisfy both the customer and the organisation.

Selling concept

A business orientation holding that consumers will buy enough of a product if it is aggressively promoted and sold; it focuses on volume and push rather than on identifying customer needs first.

Marketing mix

The controllable set of tools a firm combines to reach its target market, traditionally the 4Ps of Product, Price, Place, and Promotion, extended to 7Ps for service businesses.

Salesmanship

The personal, oral, face-to-face presentation of goods or services to a prospective buyer, using persuasion and demonstration so that the prospect voluntarily decides to purchase.

Micro environment

The actors close to a firm that directly affect its ability to serve customers: the company itself, suppliers, marketing intermediaries, customers, competitors, and various publics.

PESTLE analysis

A scan of macro-environmental forces - Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Legal, and Environmental - that shape opportunities and threats for all firms in a market.

Consumer behaviour

The study of how individuals, groups, and organisations select, purchase, use, and dispose of products, services, or ideas to satisfy their needs and wants.

Buying decision process

The five stages a consumer passes through: need recognition, information search, evaluation of alternatives, purchase decision, and post-purchase behaviour, which includes satisfaction or dissonance.

Reference group

A social group whose values, attitudes, or behaviour a consumer uses as a frame of comparison and imitation when forming beliefs and making purchase decisions.

Market segmentation

Dividing a broad, heterogeneous market into smaller, homogeneous groups of buyers who share similar needs, characteristics, or behaviour and can be served with a tailored offer.

Target marketing

Evaluating the attractiveness of each market segment and selecting one or more segments that the firm chooses to serve with a designed marketing mix.

Positioning

Designing the company's offering and image so that it occupies a distinct, valued place in the mind of the target customer relative to competing brands.

Perceptual map

A two-dimensional visual chart that plots competing brands on two key attributes as customers perceive them, revealing gaps and repositioning opportunities.

Product life cycle

The pattern of sales and profit a product follows over time through introduction, growth, maturity, and decline, each stage requiring different pricing and promotional strategies.

Brand equity

The added value a brand name gives to a product beyond its functional benefits, reflected in awareness, loyalty, perceived quality, associations, and proprietary assets.

Product mix width

The number of different product lines a company carries; depth refers to variants within a line, and length to the total number of items offered.

Brand

A name, term, sign, symbol, design, or combination of these that identifies a seller's goods or services and differentiates them from those of competitors.

Penetration pricing

Setting a low initial price for a new product to attract a large number of buyers quickly, gain market share, and discourage competitors from entering.

Break-even point

The sales volume at which total revenue equals total cost, calculated as fixed cost divided by the difference between selling price per unit and variable cost per unit.

Distribution channel

The set of interdependent firms - producers, wholesalers, retailers, and agents - that move a product from the point of production to the final consumer.

Exclusive distribution

A market coverage strategy in which a producer grants only a limited number of dealers the sole right to distribute its product in a territory, used for specialty goods.

Promotion mix

The combination of advertising, sales promotion, personal selling, public relations, and direct marketing that a firm uses to communicate with customers and build demand.

AIDA model

A communication model stating that an effective sales message should attract Attention, hold Interest, create Desire, and lead the prospect to Action.

Integrated Marketing Communication

Coordinating all promotional tools and channels so that the firm delivers a consistent, clear, and compelling message about itself and its brands at every touchpoint.

Push strategy

A promotional approach that directs effort at channel members - through trade allowances and incentives - so they stock and push the product toward final consumers.

Prospecting

The first step in personal selling: identifying and qualifying potential buyers by checking their need, authority to buy, ability to pay, and readiness.

Objection handling

The stage of the selling process in which the salesperson responds to a prospect's doubts or resistance using methods such as direct denial, yes-but, boomerang, or compensation.

Order getter

A salesperson whose main task is creative selling - finding new customers and increasing sales to existing ones - rather than merely processing routine repeat orders.

Line and staff organisation

A sales structure in which line managers hold direct authority over salespeople while staff specialists such as trainers and researchers advise them without commanding.

Span of control

The number of subordinates a sales manager can directly supervise; a narrow span produces a tall structure, a wide span produces a flat one.

Sales force composite method

A forecasting technique in which each salesperson estimates future sales for their own territory and these estimates are aggregated and reviewed by managers upward.

Straight commission plan

A compensation method in which a salesperson is paid only a percentage of the sales or margin generated, giving maximum incentive but little income security.

Delphi technique

A qualitative forecasting method in which a panel of experts gives anonymous estimates in successive rounds until their opinions converge into a single forecast.

Omnichannel marketing

An approach that integrates physical stores, websites, mobile apps, and social channels so customers experience one seamless, consistent brand across all touchpoints.

Customer relationship management

The use of customer data and software systems to manage interactions, personalise offers, and build long-term loyalty, retention, and customer lifetime value.

Green marketing

Designing, pricing, promoting, and distributing products that minimise environmental harm and appeal to consumers concerned with sustainability and social responsibility.