Book review: Marketing management

by Philip Kotler and Kevin Lane Keller

15th Edition

Pearson India Education Services Pvt. Ltd.

2016

ISBN: 9789332557185

Review DOI 10.1108/RAMJ-01-2024-247

The Marketing Management 15th Edition is an extensive guidebook that covers a broad range of topics essential for understanding the domain of marketing. The book offers a comprehensive overview of the marketing. A major focus of the book is on the importance of research in marketing and understanding customer behavior and requirements. By analyzing and interpreting data, businesses can gain valuable insights into their target audience, allowing them to develop marketing strategies that align with customer needs and wants. The book also emphasizes the need to create value for customers and establish lasting relationships with them. Businesses that prioritize the needs of their customers and deliver products and services that provide value are more likely to build brand loyalty and retain customers in the long run. Segmentation and target marketing are two critical concepts discussed in this book. By segmenting the market and identifying target customers, businesses can initiate targeted marketing strategies that are more effective in reaching their desired audience. The book offers various tools and techniques to help businesses develop and execute effective marketing strategies. The impact of technology on the marketing landscape is another key focus of the book, including the role of digital marketing. As the world becomes digital, businesses must adapt their marketing strategies to reach customers through digital channels. This book explores the various digital marketing channels and provides practical guidance on how to leverage them effectively. Real world examples and attractive illustrations make the marketing concepts and strategies easy to understand. The book covers all relevant topics of marketing management, from the basics to more advanced concepts. With over 800 pages in length, it is a comprehensive guide for anyone seeking to develop their marketing knowledge and skills.

This book is an outstanding resource for individuals across various levels of expertise and experience. From graduate and postgraduate students to marketing professionals and practitioners, this comprehensive and well-written book offers valuable insights and practical guidance in the field of marketing management. For graduate and postgraduate students, this book has been specifically structured to address their learning objectives and questions. The authors have taken great care to ensure that the book's content is up-to-date and relevant to recent developments in the field. This makes it an excellent resource for students who seek to deepen their knowledge and understanding of marketing management. Moreover, the book also serves as an invaluable reference guide for marketing professionals who want to improve their skills and knowledge. With its user-friendly format and practical approach, the book offers valuable insights and strategies that can be applied in the workplace to enhance marketing efforts. The authors' focus on recent developments in the field is a testament to their commitment to providing timely and relevant information to their readers. They have carefully structured the book to suit the needs of different audiences, ensuring that it is accessible and useful to a wide range of individuals.

The beginning of the book features a detailed introduction to the authors spanning two full pages. This section provides essential background information about the authors, including their areas of expertise and previous works. This introduction helps the reader to understand the authors' perspectives and qualifications in the field of marketing management. Following the authors' introduction, the book is divided into sections that are structured to provide a comprehensive understanding of marketing management. The preface provides an overview of the 15th edition and highlights how it differs from previous editions. It also summarizes the structure of the contents of the entire book, giving readers a clear understanding of what they can expect to find within its pages. After the preface, the reader finds a section dedicated to acknowledging the contributions of the co-authors, contributors and reviewers who helped bring the book to life. The main content of the book is organized into 23 chapters, each of which explores different aspects of marketing management. The chapters are carefully crafted to provide readers with a deep understanding of marketing concepts and strategies. The book covers a wide range of topics, including market insights, customer connection, brand building, value creation, value communication, value delivery and responsible marketing practices. The book is organized into eight distinct parts. Each part covers a particular theme or aspect of marketing management, providing readers with clear and logical progression of ideas. The eight parts are Understanding Marketing Management, Capturing Market Insights, Connecting with Customers, Building Strong Brands, Creating Value, Communicating Value, Delivering Value and Conducting Marketing Responsibly for Long-Term Success.

Each chapter starts by outlining the key questions that will be addressed throughout the chapter. At the end of each chapter, readers will find a summary, along with applications, case studies that show how these concepts can be applied in real-world situations and a series of discussion questions that invite readers to consider the implications of the material covered in each chapter. After all the parts or chapters, the appendices are given, which include guidelines about how to conduct several marketing control procedures; marketing plan and exercises for a hypothetical start-up company and chapter wise assignments; Glossary of the terms. With this book, some supplementary materials like Instructor’s Resource Manual, PowerPoint Presentations, Computerized Test Bank and Image Library are also provided online through a website.

Among the different parts in the book, the sixth part, which is about communicating value to the customers, is very interesting. Marketing communications refer to the various channels that companies use to inform, persuade and remind consumers about the products and brands they offer. Through these communications, consumers can learn about the product's features and benefits, as well as the company that produces it. Additionally, marketing communications can help connect a product or brand to people, places, events, experiences, feelings and other things. In this part, there are four chapters from 17 to 20, each chapter talks about communicating the value. It is suggested that communications campaign marketers must carefully plan each step of the communications process in order to achieve success. The communication process has certain elements in it like sender, receiver, message, media, encoding, decoding, response, feedback and noise. The authors stated eight steps in developing effective communications. They also mentioned the marketing communications mix (with their characteristics), which includes advertising, sales promotion, events and experiences, public relations and publicity, online social media marketing, mobile marketing, direct and database marketing and personal selling. The authors mentioned that there are three main characteristics of effective marketing communications: relevance, engagement and implicitness. They emphasize the importance of careful planning, utilizing various marketing communication tools and the role of public relations and publicity in achieving success. Public relations and publicity are often underused, but can be very effective when used correctly.

It is important to look beyond just the traditional methods of marketing and explore the use of new technologies and techniques. This is especially important in today's digital age, when marketing is becoming increasingly complex and multi-faceted. Many businesses are now turning to digital marketing tools and techniques to reach their target audience more effectively, and it is important to understand how to use them in order to maximize their return on investment. In the 19th chapter of the book, the authors talk about managing digital communications. The benefits and disadvantages of online marketing communications, online marketing communication options, social media and mobile marketing are discussed in this chapter. Also, some other things discussed are as follows: the maximization of the marketing value of emails, social media platforms and their usage, word of mouth, its creation, different forms and its measurement. At the end of the chapter, case studies of Facebook and Unilever were also discussed.

The content is easy to understand and is full of real life examples. The authors are experts in the field of marketing; these experts have given enough importance to every aspect of the book, which makes it interesting to read. From the first chapter itself, it becomes evident why the authors are designated experts in their field, that is marketing.

One thing easily noticeable is the over-reliance on case studies. It is a topic of argument that the book relies too heavily on case studies, which may not always be applicable to every situation, and may not provide a comprehensive view of marketing theory. It lacks coverage of some contemporary issues, such as sustainability and socially responsible marketing. Some readers may find that the book is too theoretical, western-focused or lacking coverage of important contemporary issues in marketing.

This book provides an excellent primer on the basics of marketing and the principles behind it. It provides readers with the necessary knowledge to understand the concepts and apply them in a variety of business environments. The book also introduces readers to the latest marketing trends and technologies, such as digital and interactive marketing, and the use of social media. Authors give readers a thorough, yet accessible overview of the field. They explain the concepts and theories in an easy to understand manner, while also providing a wealth of practical examples and case studies. The book also provides readers with a complete set of resources, including a glossary, a list of marketing tools and a detailed section on career development. By following the guidelines outlined in the book, marketers can develop effective communication strategies that engage customers, enhance brand image and ultimately drive sales.

The book Marketing Management 15th Edition is available for as low as $₹$949 at ecommerce websites in India. Spending such an amount of money on this book is justified, because the authors made this book very much interesting for the readers.

This book is a must-read for anyone who wants to deepen their understanding of marketing and gain valuable insights from one of the most influential and respected thought leaders in the field of marketing. With its clear writing style, insightful examples and practical advice, it is no wonder that it has become a classic in the field of marketing and this book is a must in the collection of every person who is interested in learning marketing. It is an ideal book for those who are interested in gaining an understanding of the basic principles and strategies of marketing, as well as for those who are looking for the application of these concepts in their own business.

It is worth noting that this book is widely considered a classic and seminal text in the field of marketing, and has been used by countless students and professionals over the years to learn about marketing theory and practice. Ultimately, whether a book is “bad” or not may depend on the individual reader's needs and preferences.