MARKETING GLLOSSARY (M)

Macro Environment
The external factors which affect a company's planning and performance, and are beyond its control: forexample, socio-economic, legal and technological change. Compare 'micro environment'

Mailing Preference Service (MPS)
A database of individual home addresses where the occupiers have elected not to receive unsolicited direct (marketing) mail.

Market Challenger
A firm attempting to gain market leadership through marketing efforts - see also 'market follower' and 'market leader'

Market Development
The process of growing sales by offering existing products (or new versions of them) to new customer groups (as opposed to simply attempting to increase the company's share of current markets).

Market Entry
The launch of a new product into a new or existing market. A different strategy is required depending on whether the product is an early or late entrant to the market; the first entrant usually has an automatic advantage, while later entrants need to demonstrate that their products are better, cheaper and so on.

Market Follower
A firm that is happy to follow the leaders in a market place without challenging them, perhaps taking advantages of opportunities created by leaders without the need for much marketing investment of its own - see also 'market challenger' and 'market leader'
Market Leader Seller of the product or service with the largest market share in its field - see also 'market challenger' and 'market follower'

Market Penetration
The attempt to grow one's business by obtaining a larger market share in an existing market - see 'market share' and 'market development'

Market Research (or Marketing Research)
The gathering and analysis of data relating to market places or customers; any research which leads to more market knowledge and better-informed decision-making.
Market Segmentation The division of the market place into distinct subgroups or segments, each characterised by particular tastes and requiring a specific marketing mix. See also 'marketing mix'.

Market Share
A company's sales of a given product or set of products to a given set of customers, expressed as a percentage of total sales of all such products to such customers.

Market Value Added (MVA)
Market Value Added (MVA) is the difference between the equity market valuation of a listed/quoted company and the sum of the adjusted book value of debt and equity invested in the company.

Marketing
Marketing is the management process responsible for identifying, anticipating and satisfying customer requirements profitably. CIM's official definition.

Marketing Acronyms
Usually, abbreviations such as YUPPIE, BUPPIE, and GLAM. See individual acronyms for a description.

Marketing Audit
Scrutiny of an organisation's existing marketing system to ascertain its strengths and weaknesses.

Marketing Communications
All methods used by a firm to communicate with its customers and prospective customers.

Marketing Decision Support System (MDSS)
Tools for the collection and analysis of data to aid the marketing decision making process.
Marketing Information
Any information used or required to support marketing decisions - often drawn from a computerised

'Marketing Information System'.
Marketing Metrics Measurements that help with the quantification of marketing performance, such as market share, advertising spend, and response rates elicited by advertising and direct marketing.

Marketing Mix
The combination of marketing inputs that affect customer motivation and behaviour. These inputs traditionally encompass four controllable variables 'the 4 Ps': product, price, promotion and place. The list has subsequently been extended to 7 Ps, the additions being people, process and 'physical evidence'.

Marketing Myopia
Lack of vision on the part of companies, particularly in failing to spot customers' desires through excessive product focus. Term derives from the title of a seminal article by Theodore Levitt published in Harvard Business Review in 1960.

Marketing Orientation
A business strategy whereby customers' needs and wants, as identified by the marketing function, determine corporate direction.

Marketing Plan
A written plan, usually in-depth, describing all activities involved in achieving a particular marketing objective, and their relationship to one another in both time and importance.
Marketing Planning. The selection and scheduling of activities to support the company's chosen marketing strategy or goals. See also 'marketing strategy'.

Marketing Research
See 'market research' Marketing Return on Investment (MROI)
See Return on Marketing Investment (ROMI).

Marketing Strategy
The set of objectives which an organisation allocates to its marketing function in order to support the overall corporate strategy, together with the broad methods chosen to achieve these objectives.

McKinsey Seven S's of Management (or 7-S Model)
A framework for considering business strategy with reference to seven interrelated, aspects of the organisation: Systems, Structure, Skills, Style, Staff, Strategy, and Shared values.
M-Commerce (Mobile Commerce)
E-Commerce transactions using mobile or wireless devices.
See ‘E-Commerce’.

MDSS
Marketing Decision Support System.

Measurement
See 'marketing metrics'

Media Neutral Planning
A customer focussed review of media options during communications planning based on research, analysis and insight, not habit and preference

Merger/Acquisition
Merger: the formation of one company from two existing companies Acquisition: one company acquiring control of another by purchase of a majority shareholding.

Micro Environment
The immediate context of a company's operations, including such elements as suppliers, customers and competitors - compare 'macro environment'

Mission Statement
A company's summary of its business philosophy and direction

MMS
Multimedia Message Service. Text, audio, graphic and video messages sent by mobile phones, or other compatible devices, over a wireless network.

Models (or Marketing Models)
Graphical representations of a process designed to aid in understanding and/or forecasting. Computerised models allow the simulation of scenarios based on different assumptions about changes to the macro environment and micro environment. See also 'macro environment' and 'micro environment'.

Modular Training
A training programme that is studied over a period of time, delivered in modules that are linked together.

Mood Board
A visual illustration tool used either to represent the atmosphere or feel of an intended advertisement, or to research a consumer’s experience of a brand or product.

MOSAIC
Geodemographic segmentation model classifying neighbourhoods into 10 lifestyle types ie: Elite Suburbs;Average Areas; Luxury Flats.

Mystery Shopping
Employing individuals to anonymously visit or contact retailers or service providers in order to evaluate customer service, display quality, prices, etc.