Unit 1: Marketing and People

Compare mass and niche markets, including characteristics, market size, market share and brands.

Explain dynamic markets, including online retailing, market change, innovation, market growth and adapting to change.

Explain how competition affects markets.

Distinguish risk from uncertainty in business decisions.

Use primary and secondary market research data, both quantitative and qualitative, to identify needs, estimate demand and understand consumer behaviour.

Evaluate surveys, questionnaires, focus groups, consumer panels, interviews, product trials and test marketing.

Use secondary sources such as websites, social media, newspapers, magazines, TV, radio, reports and databases.

Apply random, quota and stratified sampling methods.

Distinguish product orientation from market orientation.

Use market mapping to position businesses, brands or products.

Explain market segmentation and its use in targeting customers.

Explain competitive advantage for a product or service.

Explain the purpose of product differentiation.

Explain how businesses add value to products or services.

Analyse demand changes caused by substitute and complementary prices, incomes, tastes, marketing, demographics, shocks and seasonality.

Analyse supply changes caused by production costs, technology, indirect taxes, subsidies and external shocks.

Explain how demand and supply interact in a market.

Draw and interpret demand and supply diagrams to show causes and consequences of shifts.

Calculate price elasticity of demand.

Interpret numerical values of price elasticity of demand.

Explain factors that influence price elasticity of demand.

Evaluate the significance of price elasticity of demand for business pricing decisions.

Calculate and interpret the relationship between price elasticity of demand and total revenue.

Calculate income elasticity of demand.

Distinguish normal goods from inferior goods.

Interpret numerical values of income elasticity of demand.

Explain factors that influence income elasticity of demand.

Evaluate the significance of income elasticity of demand to businesses.

Analyse marketing objectives such as increasing market share, increasing revenue and building a brand.

Use the product life cycle and extension strategies.

Apply the Boston Matrix to a product portfolio.

Explain the concept of the marketing mix.

Evaluate marketing strategies for mass markets, niche markets, B2B and B2C contexts.

Explain how businesses use consumer behaviour to develop customer loyalty.

Analyse function, aesthetics and cost or economic manufacture in the design mix.

Evaluate changes to the design mix in response to resource depletion, waste minimisation, reuse, recycling and ethical sourcing.

Explain types of promotion.

Explain types of branding.

Analyse added value, premium pricing and reduced price elasticity from strong branding.

Evaluate brand building through USPs, differentiation, advertising, sponsorship and social media.

Analyse viral marketing, social media and emotional branding as responses to social trends.

Evaluate cost-plus, skimming, penetration, predatory, competitive and psychological pricing.

Assess how differentiation, PED, competition, brand strength, product life cycle stage, costs and profit needs affect pricing strategy.

Analyse changes in pricing caused by online sales and price comparison sites.

Compare four-stage, three-stage and two-stage distribution channels.

Analyse changes in distribution methods.

1.3.4.1aStaff as asset or cost

Compare treating staff as an asset with treating staff as a cost.

1.3.4.1bFlexible workforce

Evaluate multi-skilling, part-time and temporary work, zero-hour contracts, flexible hours, home working and outsourcing.

1.3.4.1cDismissal and redundancy

Distinguish dismissal from redundancy.

1.3.4.1dEmployer and employee relationships

Compare individual approaches with collective bargaining.

1.3.4.2aRecruitment and selection

Explain recruitment and selection, including internal and external recruitment.

1.3.4.2bRecruitment and training costs

Analyse the costs of recruitment, selection and training.

1.3.4.2cTypes of training

Compare induction, on-the-job and off-the-job training.

1.3.4.3aOrganisational structure

Analyse hierarchy, chain of command, span of control, centralisation and decentralisation.

1.3.4.3bTypes of structure

Compare tall, flat and matrix structures.

1.3.4.3cStructure, efficiency and motivation

Assess the impact of organisational structures on business efficiency and employee motivation.

1.3.4.4aImportance of motivation

Explain the importance of employee motivation to a business.

1.3.4.4bMotivation theories

Apply Taylor, Mayo, Maslow and Herzberg motivation theories.

1.3.4.4cFinancial motivation methods

Evaluate piecework, commission, bonus, profit share and performance-related pay.

1.3.4.4dNon-financial motivation methods

Evaluate delegation, consultation, empowerment, team working, flexible working, job enrichment, job rotation and job enlargement.

1.3.4.5aManagement and leadership

Distinguish management from leadership.

1.3.4.5bLeadership styles

Compare autocratic, paternalistic, democratic and laissez-faire leadership styles.

1.3.4.5cEntrepreneur to leader

Analyse the difficulty of moving from entrepreneur to leader.

Explain the entrepreneur role in creating and setting up a business.

Explain the entrepreneur role in running, expanding and developing a business.

Explain innovation within a business through intrapreneurship.

Analyse barriers to entrepreneurship.

Explain how entrepreneurs anticipate risk and uncertainty in the business environment.

Identify characteristics and skills required by entrepreneurs.

Compare financial motives such as profit maximisation and satisficing with non-financial motives such as ethics, social entrepreneurship, independence and home working.

Explain survival as a business objective.

Explain profit maximisation as a business objective.

Analyse sales maximisation, market share, cost efficiency, employee welfare, customer satisfaction and social objectives.

Apply opportunity cost to business choices.

Analyse trade-offs in business choices.