The Marketing Function

Question 1

What is a consumer profile?

Answer 1

• A representative of people in their target market.

- Give designers an understanding of people’s lifestyles and buying habits.

Question 2

How do consumer profiles help some organisations?

Answer 2

• They help determine the needs and aspirations of users they are designing for.
• They help shape the appearance and quality of the product.
• They help designers to decide on how to advertise products, including graphics and packaging; this then appeals to the lifestyle of the intended market.

Question 3

What is the marketing mix?

Answer 3

The factors that will affect the design and that will influence the success of the final product.

Question 4

What are the factors in the marketing mix? (9Ps)

Answer 4

Product
Price
Place
Promotion
Process
Physical evidence
Properties
Pleasure
People

Question 5

What issues will a consumer consider before considering to buy a product?

Answer 5

Function
Performance
Ease of use
Reliability
Aesthetics
Compatibility

Question 6

How does the price affect the designer?

Answer 6

The designer must make a compromise between designing a product that can be made as cheaply as possible and providing the user with value for money.

Question 7

What is promotion?

Answer 7

Promoting the product to the public to make it sell, e.g. advertisement, packaging.

Question 8

What is process?

Answer 8

How easily can the consumer purchase the product? The easier it is to purchase, the faster the product will diffuse into the market.

Question 9

What is physical evidence?

Answer 9

• When you buy a product you get physical evidence of making a purchase.
• If there is no physical object, for example ‘bolt-on’ services, designers create a symbol to reassure the customer that they have bought something.

Question 10

What are the two most important properties in products and why?

Answer 10

• Aesthetics - customers make a decision based on the aesthetics of a product.
• Environmental performance - Consumers are becoming more environmentally conscious about the products they are buying.

Question 11

How does pleasure affect the design?

Answer 11

• If a product gives the customer pleasure, it is is said to have ‘added value’.
• They please the customer to use the product.

Question 12

How do people affect the design?

Answer 12

If the product is to sell well, the people selling the product need to understand the benefits of the product. This is important to influence purchasers and provide a good after-sales service.