Concepts of Luxury and Masstige

The word ‘luxury’ derives from the Latin word ‘luxus’ , which according to the Latin Oxford dictionary signifies ‘soft or extravagant living, indulgence’ and ‘sumptuousness, luxuriousness, opulence’ .

There are two aspects to consider when defining luxury, the psychological value and the value of the product/service itself. The psychological value of luxury comes from its function as a status symbol and from a highly involved consumption experience that is strongly congruent to a person’s self-concept. From a product perspective, luxury brands are frequently defined in terms of their excellent quality, high transaction value, distinctiveness, exclusivity and craftsmanship.

In his paper on International Retail Marketing, T.B.… Read the rest

Co-Branding – Meaning, Strategies and Benefits

Nowadays, one of the highly valued assets for a company are its brands, with branding being every company’s top priority. But it often costs the companies huge amount of money and takes them a long time to build their brand. Today’s market is suffering from a syndrome of sameness where all the products offered to the customers look very similar both in terms of sameness in the physical brand element and in the symbolic value proposition offered to the market. Thus it has become difficult to establish a unique position for new products with markets cluttered with competing brands. Even innovative differentiated products can be imitated quickly, leaving no strategic edge.… Read the rest

Ethical Issues in Marketing

Ethics are defined as the set of principles that guide a person’s conduct towards being morally right. When a person is faced with some moral dilemma, the choice that the person makes largely depends upon the values and ethical principles that person holds. It is over and above just being legal. Due to being dependent upon the personal values and principles a person holds, an ethical code of conduct cannot be described in absolute terms. Like in all the disciplines of life, recognizing and quantifying what is ethical in marketing and what is not is difficult. In a broader sense, ethics in marketing mean implementing standards of moral rights and wrongs and of fairness in the marketing practices of an organization.… Read the rest

What is the Difference Between Marketing and Sales?

When thinking of marketing and sales and what the difference is, we tend to scratch our heads. Both activities that go into this topic have the same result, generating an income base for the company. What is the definition of marketing?  Marketing refers to the events that take place in a company connected with buying and selling a product or service. Depending on the size of the company, typically depends on the approach in reaching its audience.  A baker in a small town just starting out may use the newspaper. Whereas a restaurant owner of a major food chain may utilize television, and the internet to reach its clientele. … Read the rest

Promotional Pricing – Meaning, Types, Advantages, and Disadvantages

Marketing includes a very important concept that is marketing mix; it has four major components that are promotion, people, price, and place. Nevertheless, in the marketing mix after the product, the second most important factor is the kind of price that is being used. This is because the distribution and the promotion mix can be modified by the kind of pricing being used. It can be an enormous job to set up the correct price for products and services while establishing a new company and it could be equally for a company that has a year of existence on the market.… Read the rest

Importance of Sound in Branding

The impact that sound creates on anyone is profound. Sound being one of the major five senses plays a vital role in everyone’s day to day activities. In a country like India, which has an extensive oral culture where even a form of medication has been passed on to the next generation orally; sound is something that matters to every single soul in one way or the other. Sound is prevalent in almost all traditional forms in India ranging from festivals to discourses. In a vast country like India, each state has its own culture and each culture has its own representation of sound in its own unique ways.… Read the rest