Megamarketing is a term that was originally created in 1986 by Philip Kotler, an American marketing consultant and Professor of International Marketing at the Kellogg school of management. Kotler’s marketing philosophy is one that identifies not only price as the deciding element of demand, but also factors such as sales promotion and advertising.
Kotler’s inclusive conception of demand is reflected in the definition of his original term, “megamarketing;” simply put, this term describes the marketing dimension as being made up of more than just the buying and selling parties.
Third Parties and the Megamarket
In the most bare bones model of marketing, there are two simple parties: buyers with demand, and sellers with supply. Kotler’s megamarket is a model in which the buyer/seller marketing model is made more complex with the consideration of third parties that affect demand.
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Some of the third parties affecting demand in the megamarket include banks, labor unions and governments. The megamarket philosophy does not outright deny the strongly influential relationship between the basic buyer and seller parties, but it does highlight the interaction of many more party forces than what may meet the eye at a glance.
Ways that Third Parties may Affect the Market
The government is one of the most easily observable third parties influencing market commerce. Governmental policies directly controlling the freedom that foreign business entities have to carry out business within their local markets can have a very powerful effect on the business’s chance to succeed to certain regions.
Depending on a national government’s policies regarding international trade, certain foreign companies might either flourish in oversea markets or be completely blocked out of the ability to participate in those markets altogether. Naturally, a company’s permission or inability carry out business in any given country will have an unmistakable impact on the demand for its offers within said country’s bounds.
History of Market-Impacting Legislation
Kotler’s megamarket model was built upon the observance of third party market influence in times long before the 20th century. It is common today for marketing authors to write books in protest against trade barriers, but these barriers are not a new element brought along with the free market.
Throughout history, business owners have bargained and wrestled with legislative authorities to establish policies that would be more advantageous to the success of their industries. Usually, in order for any trade obstruction to be removed, a company will have to provide evidence of substantial backing from any unions that may have originally been in favor of it.
Benefits of Megamarket Influence
Through the use of third party influence at multiple levels of society, people who are indifferent to certain businesses can potentially be swayed into supporting them. Businesses not only build credibility through the objective value of their offers, but through the societal forces that communicate value to the consumers in different avenues.
Agencies, local/national media, politicians, and other third parties may serve a strong conduits for building up the social proof that gives consumers the confidence to try new brands.
Conclusion
The simple buyer/seller conception of marketing could be considered a two-dimensional model, while megamarketing introduces additional dimensions of third party influence. The ability that a business has to benefit from third party influences is heavily contextual, but if successful, these influences could very well be some of the business’s most powerful assets.
