(a) What is a market in marketing? (b) State four functions of marketing. (c) Explain the following: (i) government market; (ii) reseller market; (iii) indu...

Answer Details

(a) What is a market in marketing?

In marketing, a market is the set of all actual and potential buyers of a product or service who have the need or want for it, the money (purchasing power) to buy it, and the willingness and authority to spend that money. It is not just a physical place but the total demand made up of people or organizations able and willing to buy.

(b) Four functions of marketing

1. Buying and selling (exchange): Acquiring goods and transferring ownership from seller to buyer.
2. Transportation: Moving goods from the point of production to the point of consumption.
3. Storage (warehousing): Keeping goods safely until they are needed, creating time utility.
4. Financing and risk-bearing: Providing funds for marketing activities and accepting the risks of loss or damage.

Other acceptable functions: grading and standardisation, market information, and promotion.

(c) Explanation of the following

1. Government market: This consists of government agencies, ministries, departments and parastatals that buy goods and services to carry out their public functions, such as building roads, running hospitals and providing security.
2. Reseller market: This consists of wholesalers and retailers (middlemen) who buy goods in order to resell them at a profit rather than for their own consumption.
3. Industrial market: This consists of firms and organizations that buy goods and services to use in producing other goods and services, or in running their operations, for example a factory buying raw materials and machinery.