The 7 Functions of Marketing

For businesses to thrive, it’s important to be aware of the 7 functions of marketing. Any business that wants to be known beyond word of mouth has to have some type of marketing strategy in place. In the past, traditional marketing was strictly used with print material, flyers, posters, billboard ads, mail, etc.

Now, in the digital world we live in today, we can expand the traditional marketing into the online domain. This expands the business’ reach and widens the target audience nationally as well as globally. In order to do this well, your marketing team should follow the seven marketing functions. The seven functions of marketing are promotion, selling, product management, marketing information management, pricing, financing, and distribution.

7 Functions of Marketing Definitions

At its core, marketing is the telling of a story that connects a brand to its potential customers. There are several marketing strategies, which are often narrowed down into seven marketing functions.

Marketing Functions

To understand the marketing functions, it’s important to have a clear understanding of what marketing really is. 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. This is a great definition because it encompasses all the different aspects that can make up marketing. Not only does marketing deliver a created product or service to the customer, it provides value while doing so. Your service should be responding to a need or desire, and be successful at fulfilling that need.

In order to market your product or service well, you will also need to have clear goals and a marketing strategy in place so that you can lead your team as best as possible. Some goals to consider before venturing into the 7 core functions of marketing are:

To increase brand awareness

You want to make sure that people have the opportunity to decide whether or not they want to try your product or service. This can’t be done if they have never heard of your brand.

To generate high-quality leads

This doesn’t happen by accident. It’s up to your marketing techniques to collect customer information and potential customer information. This can be in the form of emails or simply a following on social media. This allows your business to have a touch point that can hopefully lead to a future sale.

To increase customer value

Existing customers are some of your best assets. They can generate high-quality leads like was mentioned in the previous point, but they also can and should become repeat customers. It’s important to increase your current customers’ loyalty. You can create customer value by offering new products that also meet their needs and by nurturing your existing customer relationship. Attending to your customer’s needs can be simply sending out a high value coupon, giving an upgrade to a current service, sharing their content, and giving your customer credit for a great idea.

To empower your colleagues

This can be done by involving all departments in your company to partake in giving ideas and by maximizing company output. This is a great goal because it not only empowers your fellow workers but also allows your business to be influenced from differing points of view.

Types of Marketing Strategies

After knowing the goals, your business should also be open to what the different types of marketing might look like. In the marketing world, there are . Two of the main types are content marketing and email marketing:

Content Marketing

One of the key ways to grow your web presence is by creating engaging and interesting content on social media and on your website in general. This can be done by creating videos, posts, polls, surveys, and blogs. This is what you will mainly be posting on social media while a lot of your product or service information will be posted on your website. Your business should have a scheduled plan and a way of measuring success using analytics and metrics. This will help improve your business’ engagement and overall internet presence.

7 Core Functions of Marketing

Now that we have gone over what marketing is, typical goals, and two of the most important types of marketing, let’s dive into the 7 core functions of marketing. 

1. Promotion

One of the more obvious functions of marketing includes getting your product or service in front of a customer and then for them to buy it. That’s the main function in a nutshell. If you are marketing you are promoting something. It can be your personal brand, your band, your product, or service. There’s always something that is made to catch the eye of any and all potential clients and customers. 

2. Selling

While promoting your product or service is important, if you continue to promote without a return on investment (time, labor, etc.) then your marketing has not been successful. Keep in mind that these 7 functions of marketing all work together. This can vary slightly depending on what your company or business is about. If your business is driven by awareness then maybe your goal will not be to sell anything per se but it can be to raise funds for an awareness campaign. The world moves with money, plain and simple. 

3. Product Management

While you may have a successful product or service currently, there is always room for growth. Another function of marketing that may not be thought of at first is the function of product development and management. Marketing your product or service will help you analyze what customers may want differently or what they really seem to respond well to and enjoy. This is not only in response to people’s opinions but in response to market opportunities. 

4. Marketing Information Management

Marketing information management involves gathering not only opinions but the customer information behind those opinions. This function of marketing is important in the analysis of your current target audience, your target demographics and psychographics. Success in collecting this information will allow your business to evaluate and plan better products or services and marketing strategies for the future of your business. It is important to note that marketing information management differs from market research. Market research’s purpose is to solve a specific marketing problem.

5. Pricing

Marketing also allows business to gauge how much people are willing to pay. Pricing strategy is an important function so that you can balance supply and demand in order to maximize profits. Areas to consider include the price to make the good or carry out the service versus the price that people pay for it.

Both overpricing and underpricing can kill your bottom line, so business owners must be committed to doing a tremendous amount of research in this area. As previously mentioned, all 7 marketing functions side by side. In order to know pricing you will need to know your customer information and have researched your product management information as well manage your marketing information.

6. Financing

This function serves to continue fueling marketing efforts. There are financial decisions that need to be made for how to treat customers in the finance side of service. For example, will you offer your customer credit in the form of company credit cards or regular credit cards? Will your customer be able to buy stock in your business if they felt so inclined? These questions, along with how you will pay for your marketing efforts, make this a very vital function of marketing.

7. Distribution

Depending on your business and what your product or service is, you will have to decide how to get it to your customer. If you provide a service there is still the aspect of distributing the products to carry out your service. This can be done through selling through a storefront or online. It can also be through a mass distributor such as Amazon or a drop shipping company. This is a function of marketing because it adds to the value of your product. If you can’t get your product to your customer in an easy and convenient way, then your product loses value. You can do all the marketing in the world, but if you don’t deliver your product to your audience, it won’t matter.

The Importance of the Functions of Marketing

Understanding the functions of marketing is crucial to developing a good marketing strategy and carrying it out. Before you begin any type of marketing you will want to make sure that you have marketing goals, that you know what type of marketing your company will implement, and that you are using the functions of marketing correctly.

We Can Help with Your Marketing Strategy

To get your marketing done right, there are companies that can help. SEO Design Chicago’s marketing team can help take the guesswork out of your business’ marketing efforts. We can help make sure that all 7 functions are taken into account. That’s because we know all the best digital marketing tactics. We have a team of professionals that can help with these seven marketing functions, and any other marketing functions you need. From creating full marketing campaigns to thorough marketing research, our marketing teams do it all. Let us know how we can help today!

Frequently Asked Questions About the 7 Functions of Marketing

1. Do all 7 functions of marketing need to be implemented simultaneously?

While all 7 functions work together and support each other, you don’t necessarily need to implement them all at once. Start with the most critical functions for your business stage – typically promotion, selling, and pricing for new businesses. As you grow, gradually incorporate product management, marketing information management, financing, and distribution. The key is understanding how each function connects to create a comprehensive marketing strategy.

2. What’s the difference between marketing information management and market research?

Marketing information management is the ongoing process of collecting, analyzing, and storing customer data, demographics, and psychographics to understand your target audience better. Market research, on the other hand, is conducted to solve specific marketing problems or answer particular questions. Think of marketing information management as continuous data gathering, while market research is targeted investigation for specific decisions.

3. How does pricing strategy connect to the other marketing functions?

Pricing is deeply interconnected with all other functions. Your promotional strategy must justify your price point, product management affects what customers are willing to pay, marketing information tells you what your audience can afford, selling success depends on competitive pricing, financing options can make higher prices accessible, and distribution costs impact your final pricing. Effective pricing requires input from all six other functions.

4. Can small businesses effectively use all 7 marketing functions with limited resources?

Absolutely! Small businesses can implement simplified versions of each function. Use social media for promotion, focus on direct selling, manage products based on customer feedback, collect customer information through simple surveys, research competitor pricing, offer basic payment options, and start with direct-to-customer distribution. The key is starting small and scaling each function as your business grows.

5. What’s the most important marketing function for a new business?

While all functions are important, promotion and selling are typically most critical for new businesses. You need to create awareness (promotion) and convert that awareness into revenue (selling). However, don’t neglect pricing research early on – setting the wrong price can kill even the best promotional efforts. Once you have initial traction, focus on marketing information management to understand your customers better.

6. How do digital marketing strategies fit into the 7 functions framework?

Digital marketing enhances all 7 functions rather than replacing them. Online promotion through social media and content marketing, e-commerce selling platforms, digital product management tools, customer analytics for information management, dynamic pricing software, online financing options, and digital distribution channels all strengthen the traditional functions while expanding your reach and efficiency.

7. What role does distribution play in service-based businesses?

Even service businesses need distribution strategies. This includes how you deliver your service (in-person, online, hybrid), where you provide services (your location, client’s location, virtual), what tools and materials you need to distribute to provide the service, and how you make your service accessible and convenient for customers. Poor distribution can devalue even excellent services.

8. How often should I review and adjust my approach to these 7 functions?

Review your marketing functions quarterly for strategic adjustments and monthly for tactical tweaks. Monitor key metrics like conversion rates (selling), brand awareness (promotion), customer satisfaction (product management), pricing competitiveness, distribution efficiency, and financial ROI. Market conditions, customer preferences, and competitive landscapes change regularly, so your approach to these functions should evolve accordingly while maintaining consistency in your overall strategy.