Business: Marketing On The Up

A study conducted by The Chartered Institute of Marketing showed that workshops on the fundamentals of marketing and marketing communications are now the most popular.

“Many SMEs and small organisations are realising there is a need to get serious when it comes to marketing their products or services, or in developing relationships with stakeholders and clients. As budgets remain tight, utilising existing staff is a sensible option for many of them, but very often they have little or no marketing training,” said The Institute’s marketing director, Geoff Hurst.

“All markets are so competitive now that organisations realise accurate segmentation and targeting are vital to give a better return for their investment, but they don’t have the practical knowledge of how to put this into practice to achieve results,” said Mr Hurst. “As a result, these courses are becoming much more popular.”

The research also showed that companies are keen to get a better understanding of how e-marketing can develop their business and improve returns. “This is a key development area in marketing as it is seen as cost-effective and faster, with the opportunity to reach a wider and more diverse audience. But many companies and organisations are unsure how best to exploit this medium to get real value from their marketing investment,” concludes Mr Hurst.