The Concept of Holistic Marketing

Introduction

According to Govindarajan (2007, p.10), the concept of holistic marketing entails the wider view of marketing strategies that involve the development of marketing programs, processes and activities that help in the marketing of products. He points out that the concept of holistic marketing plays an important role, especially in selecting marketing formats that help in identification of comfortable marketing strategies. For instance, he notes that the concept of holistic marketing helps in defining and harmonising various marketing complexities that might affect the market trend of various products.

Govindarajan (2007, p.10) states that the concept of holistic marketing is based on four major components that enable effective designing and implementing of marketing programs and processes. These holistic marketing components include effective relationship marketing, the integrated and internal marketing, and, furthermore, the social responsibility marketing as they are essential for effective marketing strategies (Govindarajan 2007, p.10). The write up, in highlighting the concept of holistic marketing, describes and analyses the ways in which holistic marketing can assist organisations to connect with customers. It also explains how holistic marketing can help in building brand(s). Moreover, the paper explains how holistic marketing can deliver and communicate value.

How Holistic Marketing Connects Organisations with Customers

The paper describes and analyses the four main components of holistic marketing in addressing ways in which holistic marketing helps organisations to connect with customers. According to Govindarajan (2007, p.28), holistic marketing entails the development and implementation of marketing programs and processes that promote marketing relationship. He points out that organisations can create long term relationship with their customers if they are able to provide high quality products at a fair price and at a convenient time. He observes that the holistic marketing through its relationship marketing component normally reduces both the transaction cost and time limit during product marketing.

Govindarajan (2007, p.28) states that organisations design and implement various programs to ensure that they maintain long term marketing relationship with their customers. For instance, he notes that various organisations create frequency marketing programs meant to reward customers who consistently buy their products at a convenient amount. According to Govindarajan, this holistic marketing strategy is primarily based on the Pareto Principle that acknowledges that customers have a substantial impact on organisation’s undertaking and, therefore, should be encouraged by any means. On the other hand, creating loyalty marketing program that ensures automatic customer club membership upon purchasing is another relationship marketing strategy that has helped most organisation to create long term relationship with their customers (Govindarajan 2007, p. 28).

Integrated marketing is another component of holistic marketing. It has particularly helped in connecting organisations with their customers. According to Gandhi (2012, p. 1), integrated marketing enables organisations effectively and conveniently deliver business information to their customers. He notes that holistic marketing incorporates marketing programs that are normally cost effective in enhancing valuable information delivery to customers. According to Govindarajan (2007, p.29), the primary objective of integrated marketing is to initiate various organisations’ systems that would enable effective management of resources and networks in enhancing information delivery.  For instance, he points out that organisations utilise their marketing tools such as internet to ensure that they fully communicate with and address key concerns raised by customers.

Kitchen & Burgmann (2008, p. 2) claim that in the management of integrated marketing, various communication based software are deployed. This enhances direct sales channel between the organisation and customers. They note that the integrated marketing communication helps organisations in creating coordinated and consistent information at every stage of its supply chain. This has helped these organisations to fully focus on customers’ demands thus creating a cordial business connection between organisations and customers.

According to Govindarajan (2007, p.27), internal marketing is an essential component of the holistic marketing which has enabled organisations to connect with customers. He points out that internal marketing is primarily an initiative for training and motivating various organisations’ employees with a view of effectively serving the customers. He notes that listening to customers’ views and demands, especially during the products’ supply chain, is an essential method of strengthening the business connection between organisations and customers. In this respect, most organisations encourage the formation of business groups that enables their employees to effectively address customer services. This has, in turn, enabled organisations to connect with their customers.

Himansu (2009, p.1) argues that internal marketing normally operates under two distinct levels to ensure that organisations connect with customers. First, he points out that internal marketing ensures that all marketing functions ranging from market research to advertising are effectively developed and harmonised through cordial working relation among employees. Second, he notes that internal marketing sensitise on active functional departmental participation through effective collaboration and coordination that ensures that marketing objectives are met. With the two level of internal marketing, various stakeholders including employees are able to develop marketing concepts that addresses the customer’s needs thereby enhance organisation’s contact with its customers (Himansu 2009, p.1).

On the other hand, Noked (2011, p.1) states that social responsibility marketing, as a holistic marketing concept, enables organisations to connect with customers. She notes that the organisation’s social responsibility in marketing does not only portray its products’ selling capacity, but it also signifies the organisation’s social concerns, especially to its immediate environment. The concept of holistic marketing has enabled organisations to engage in marketing strategies that has promoted their social responsibility thereby improving their product marketing and connection with customers.

Noked (2011, p.1) points out that there are various driving factors that have enabled organisations to indulge into corporate social responsibility practices. She notes that some of these factors include the rising customer’s expectation, the changing trend of employees’ expectations, and the investor’s interest, especially in the organisation’s social responsibility. These factors have enabled organisations to venture into corporate social responsibility activities that range from fund donations to general business practices that are intended to enhance customer’s value (Noked 2011, p.1). She points out that organisation’s image in the society is boosted in cases where the organisations sponsor charity events. Such programs encourage customers’ loyalty towards the organisations, which in turn enable these organisations to effectively connect with their customers.

How Holistic Marketing Can Build Brand(s)

According to Kellen (2010, p.1), holistic marketing is an essential tool for building brands. She points out that holistic marketing entails marketing programs and practices that not only help in advertising the products, but also portray the organisation’s image. She notes that the current global economic decline has tremendous negative impact on organizations’ products marketing, which has seen most organisations venture into the concept of holistic marketing so as to effectively build their brands. Furthermore, she points out that the key components of holistic marketing are essential in building organisations’ brands.

Himansu (2009, p.1) states that the integrated marketing which operates under the principality of enhancing valuable communication and products delivery to customers underlines four market activities that help in devising suitable brands. First, he notes that through integrated marketing, various organisations are able to design appropriate brand name that reflects the image of products that the company deals with. Secondly, he points out that integrated marketing enables organisations to devise appropriate price policies and efficient terms of delivery that suit their customers; thereby, promoting organisation’s well-being in the market level and thus building its brand.

Third, integrated marketing allows businessmen to develop and implement effective products distribution channels that enable organisation to market their products (Himansu 2009, p.1). He notes that effective distribution channels enable organisations to market their products in different places; therefore, enhancing on their marketing flexibility, which in turn builds their brands in these regions. Furthermore, Himansu (2009, p.1) points out that integrated marketing involves marketing tools like internet product advertising. Such tools not only help in products’ advertising, but they also enhance organisation’s promotion services thereby building the organisation’s brand in sales promotions.

On the other hand, holistic marketing through its relationship marketing components enables organisations to develop long term relationship with customers’ thus building organisation’s brand relationship. According to Kellen (2010, p.1), brands can be effectively built if organisations are able to effectively interact with their customers. She points out that through holistic marketing organisations are able to create brands’ contact with their clients thereby developing their brands. For instance, she notes that frequency and loyalty marketing programs can help organisations to strengthen their business relationship with their clients; hence, building strong brand relationship.  

According to Hoeffer & Keller (2006, p.78), holistic marketing, through social responsibility marketing, has enabled organisations to build their business brands. They point out that the corporate society marketing strategies incorporate programs and practices that help in building brand awareness among customers. They term brand awareness as the ability of customers to have a long time memory and recognition for a given brand. Therefore, brand awareness plays a significant role in building brands. The corporate societal marketing entails programs that enable organisations to venture into brand building strategies such as offering business sponsorship that promotes business awareness by building business brands (Hoeffer & Keller 2006, p.78).

Hoeffer & Keller (2006, p.79) notes that corporate societal marketing, a holistic marketing strategy, incorporates programs that utilises the brand personality in building brands. According to them, the corporate societal marketing helps in assessing various consumers’ feelings and judgments that, in turn, help in building brands. They point out that through customers’ judgment, organisations are able to determine the credibility of their brand; thereby, devising appropriate brands that primarily suit the customers.

How Holistic Marketing Can Deliver and Communicate Value

According to Penelitianku (2008, p.1), holistic marketing is an essential tool of delivering and capturing consumer value. He notes that holistic marketing components help in exploring, creating and delivering consumer value. Singh & Srivastava (2008, p. 3) also point out that relationship marketing, a significant holistic marketing component, plays an important role in delivering and communicating customer value. They note that the management of relationship marketing enhances effective relationship networks at each stage of the supply chain; therefore, building long-term relationship between companies and customers. The creation of long term relationship enables organisations to capture and utilise customer’s demands thus delivering and communicating consumer value.

Singh & Srivastava (2008, p. 3) also point out that relationship marketing enables the creation service delivery system, especially at each stage of the supply chain. They note that these service delivery systems enables active participation of customers that result in creating their confident and loyalty towards the organisations. For instance, developing effective customers’ communicating systems and sensitising the employees on the importance of such system in maintaining good relationship with customers is essential for communicating and delivering customers’ value effectively(Singh & Srivastava 2008, p. 4). They note that the primary concern of any business organistion is to create a long term relationship with its clients, to ensure that it complies with the market demand by delivering and communicating consumer value, which actually is the main objective of relationship marketing.

The integrated marketing, a holistic marketing component, is essential in delivering and communicating value. According to Rehman & Ibrahim (2011, p.188), integrated marketing communication (IMC) entails various strategic programs that enable organisation to create, communicate and deliver value to their clients. They note that the integrated marketing communication addresses four key elements of market activities, generally known as market mix, which include product, price, place, and promotion. For instance, an organisation can use integrated marketing communication to initiate a product promotion program and practice that enhances good relationship with its customers thus promoting service delivery and value.

Additionally, Rehman & Ibrahim (2011, p.188) state that integrated marketing communication is significant in enhancing various business interactions that are essential in delivering and creating values to consumers. They note that these business interactions may take the form of organisation-to-organisation interaction, marketing channel interaction, and internal communication. For instance, integrated marketing, in enhancing internal communication, operates at two distinct levels that ensure each member of the organisation is well advanced with the organisation’s product marketing strategies (Himansu 2009, p.1).  He points out that internal communication enables employees to sensitise on marketing strategies through coordinated marketing research. Moreover, in enhancing internal communication, organisations are able to illustrate distinct roles played by each employee towards product’s marketing that enables effective communicating and delivery of consumer value.

According to Himansu (2009, p.1), the internal marketing is also another component of holistic marketing that can deliver and communicate consumer value. He notes that internal marketing depicts practices that ensure full participation of each employee in an organisation to exploit the market orientation thereby integrate service delivery. He points out that through internal marketing, organisations are able to research on market complexity that involves products’ marketing channels. In the process, it identifies and devises appropriate marketing strategies that can effectively deliver and communicate consumer value. Training or hiring employees with adverse marketing knowledge also enables organisation to sensitise its internal marketing strategies that, in turn, deliver and communicate effective consumer value (Himansu 2009, p.1).

On the other hand, social marketing, which is another component of holistic marketing, entails organisation’s social responsibility that can deliver and communicate value. According to Hoeffer & Keller (2006, p.79), social marketing enables an organisation to understand the ethical, environmental and social concept of market trend. They point out that these concepts enable organisations to venture into programs and practices that address both the interest of the consumer and the entire society; therefore, enhancing effective delivery and communication of consumer value. For instance, organisation through its marketers can promote social activities such as business sponsorship that shows its social responsibility in promoting business ideas. In the process, each member of the society establishes and acknowledges the organisations’ brands thus enhancing delivery and communication of consumer value.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the write up has highlighted holistic marketing as being an essential marketing strategy that effectively design and implement programs and practices in coping with market complexity.  It has highlighted the need to utilise the four marketing components of the holistic marketing to fully address the customers’ needs. It has noted that holistic marketing has a primary role in designing and maintaining brands since it not only advertise the company’s products, but it incorporates programs and practices that help in sensitising its operation and image at the society level. Moreover, the four forms of holistic marketing need to be utilised to effectively deliver and communicate consumer values.