What Is Marketing?

2.

Understanding Consumer Behavior

ORGANIZATIONS SUCCEED BECAUSE OF THEIR ability to satisfy outside clients for their goods and services.¹ This ability depends on how well organizations understand their clients and use these insights effectively. Ultimately, the competitive advantage one firm has over another stems from its superior understanding of its customers and a superior process for thinking about and acting on this information.

This chapter introduces concepts that help in understanding clients, traditionally called “customers” or “buyers.” These concepts are also relevant to other kinds of clients such as voters, museum and symphony patrons, recipients of government services, and beneficiaries of social causes. This chapter begins with ...