Marketing Glossary
Here is a useful list of common marketing terms, marketing concepts and marketing words. We have also included a link to the relevant LearnMarketing.net article so that you can learn more about the marketing word in the glossary.
List of Marketing Terms A - C
AIDA Model Of Communication: A communication model which aims to create sales through Attention, Interest, Desire and Action.
Advertising Objective: The objective of your communication strategy. To inform of a new development, persuade or remind.
Benefit: The gain obtained from the use of a particular product or service. Consumers purchase product/services because of their desire to gain these built in benefits.
Benefit Segmentation: Dividing a market according to the benefit they seek from a particular product/service.
Brand Name:: Used for the identification of goods or services. Can be a name, term, sign or symbol. A well managed brand should uphold certain values and beliefs.
Brand Extension Strategy: The process of using an existing brand name to extend on to a new product/service e.g. The application of the brand name Virgin on a number of business activities.
Break-Even: A point for a business where turnover is equivalent to all costs.
Cash Cow: A product/service which generates cash for the business, used to finance other areas of the organisation. This term is from the BCG Matrix which is used to assess the performance and potential of a firm's product range.
Competitive Advantage: Offering a different benefit then that of your competitors.
Competitor Analysis: Process of understanding and analysing a competitors strengths and weaknesses, with the aim that an organisation will find a competitive positioning difference within the market.
Competition Pricing:Setting a price in comparison with competitors.
Concept Testing: Testing the idea of a new product or service with your target audience.
Brand Repositioning: An attempt to change consumer perceptions of a particular brand. For example the car manufacturer Volkswagen successfully repositioned the Skoda brand.
List of Marketing Terms D - E
Data Mining: Computers are used to analyse large volumes of information in an attempt to solve marketing problems, aid forecasting and generate useful marketing data.
Dichotomous Question: Questions which limit the responses of the respondent e.g. YES/NO.
Direct Marketing: The process of sending promotion material to a named person within an organisation.
Diversification: A growth strategy which involves an organisation to provide new products or services. The new products on offer could be related or unrelated to the organisations core activities.
Demography: A study of the population.
Demographic Segmentation. Dividing the population into age, gender, income and socioeconomic groups amongst other variables.
Early Adopter: Those who adopt a product/service in the early stages of its life cycle.
Early Majority: Those who adopt a product/service after it has been established and excepted as the standard.
Engels Law: Suggest that peoples spending patterns change as their income rises.
Exclusive Distribution: Limiting the distribution of a product to particular retail store to create an exclusive feel to the brand/product.
Econometric Modelling: Application of regression techniques in marketing analysis
List of Marketing Terms F -L
Focus Group: A simultaneous interview conducted amongst 6-8 respondents. The aim is to obtain qualitative information on the given topic.
Geographic Segmentation: Dividing the market into certain geographic regions e.g. towns, cities or neighbourhoods.
Innovator: Those consumers who are the first to adopt a product/service at the beginning of its life cycle. They are usually willing to pay a premium to have the benefit of being the first.
Intensive distribution: Distributing a product to as many retail outlets as possible.
Laggards: Those consumers who adopt the product/service as it reaches the end of its life cycle. They usually pay a competitive price for the benefit of waiting.
Lifestyle Segmentation: Analysing consumers activities, interest and opinion (AIOs) to develop a profile on the given segment.
List of Marketing Terms M - N
Market Development Strategy: Selling an existing product/service in a new and developing market.
Mass Marketing: The promotion of a product or service to all consumers.
Marketing Mix: The strategy of the organisation consisting of products, price, place and promotion strategy (also known as the 4p's)
Marketing Planning: A written document which plans the marketing activities of an organisation for a given period. The document should include an environmental analysis, marketing mix strategies and any contingency plans should an organisation not reach their given objectives.
Market Position: The perception of a product or an organisation from the view of the consumer.
Market Research: Analysing and collecting data on the environment, customers and competitors for purposes of business decision making.
Modified Rebuy: Where an organisation has to make changes to a specific buying situation.
New Buy: Where an organisation faces the task of purchasing a new product/service.
Niche Marketing: The process of concentrating your resources and efforts on one particular segment
List Of Marketing Terms O - P
Objective To Task Method: Setting a advertising budget based on the desired goals of the communication campaign.
Open Ended Questions:Questions which encourage the respondent to provide their own answers.
Paretos Law (80/20) : A rule which suggests that 80% of an organisations turnovers is generated from 20% of their customers.
Penetration Pricing: A pricing strategy where the organisation sets a low price to increase sales and market share.
Perceptual Map: Mapping a product/organisation alongside all competitors in the hope to find a ' positioning gap' in the given market.
Personal Selling: Selling a product or services one to one.
Primary Data: The process of organising and collecting data for an organisation.
Product Development Strategy: The development of a new product/service aimed at the organisation existing market. The aim is to increase expenditure within the segment.
Product Life Cycle: Under this theory the life stages of a product are introduction, growth, maturity and decline.
Product Cannibalisation: A firm increases sales of a product at the expense of another product within its product range.
Public Relations:The process of building good relations with the organisations various stakeholders.
List Of Marketing Terms R - Z
Relationship Marketing: Creating a long-term relationship with existing customers. The aim is to build strong consumer loyalty.
Sales Promotion: An incentive to encourage the sale of a product/service e.g. money off coupons, buy one, get one free.
Secondary Data: Researching information which has already been published.
Segmentation: The process of dividing a market into groups that display similar behaviour and characteristics.
Skimming Pricing: A pricing strategy where an organisation sets an initial high price and then slowly lowers the price to make the product available to a wider market.
Straight Rebuy: Where an organisation reorders without modification to the specification.
SWOT Analysis: A model used to conduct a self appraisal of an organisation. The model looks at internal strengths and weaknesses and external environmental opportunities and threats.
Test Marketing: Testing a new product or service within a specific region before national launch.
Usage segmentation: Dividing you segment into non, light, medium or heavy users.