A Comprehensive Analysis of Marketing Orientation and Product Orientation: Advantages and Disadvantages

​This research is credited to Ahmad Fuad Al Hattab

Introduction
 
There are two distinct approaches that companies apply which are market orientation approach and product orientation approach. Product orientation approach is an approach which is based on manufacturing high-quality products, while market orientation is an approach that is reliance on producing products that based on customer's needs and wants.
 
This report is intended to determine the benefits and drawbacks of product orientation and marketing orientation strategies. The report also includes SWOT analysis, and the conclusion will judge which approach is better, more efficient and achieves long term profit.
 
Advantages of Marketing Orientation:
 
“Customer orientation is based on an “outside-in”-perspective and is rooted in the cultural belief of putting the customer and his / her needs first” (Buttenberg, 2017). Through making consumer’s needs a priority, firms will have a tendency to create services which meet the needs of consumers.
 
This means consumers are going to be more satisfied with the service, which eventually raises the probability of repeating purchases and reinforce brand loyalty, and based on SWOT analysis this is considered a strength for marketing-oriented companies. With a constant consumer focus, firms could make modifications over time and are going to consider the market to improve services and products.
 
In addition, market orientation strategies necessitate a harmonized effort throughout in a business. Distinct departments like production, finance and human resources all have to work in harmony from a marketing point of view; to make sure they continue to meet client's needs. This will help identify the role of staffs in a clear way.
 
For example, marketers will execute thorough research; to discover needs and deliver messages which clarify that the product match customer’s needs. Furthermore, the production department is going to focus on modified products to match the needs of consumers.
 
In addition, support and service must be able to take feedback from consumers, then report back to production and research. Hence, this strong collaboration between departments is strength in reliance on SWOT analysis.
 
Furthermore, market-oriented companies can achieve financial sustainability. A study was made according to data collected from the biggest microfinance institution in Malaysia. It turned out that the companies which apply the market orientation approach are more likely to reach financial sustainability (Shuhidan et al., 2016). and this is a strength according to SWOT analysis.
 
Moreover, when the company offers to its customers what they really need and want in a consistent way, this will result in a long-term profit and based on SWOT analysis this is considered a strength. For example, a firm can turn the one-time consumer into a customer, with an eventual aim of gaining considerable loyal customers.
 
In addition, loyal customers consume repeatedly and in great amounts as well as they ready to pay higher costs. Moreover, they are less likely to become competitors' clients. Thus, this means that a firm has a great probability to stay viable and prosperous, as long as it applies the marketing orientation (Kokemuller, 2018).

Disadvantages of Marketing Orientation
 
Excessive commitment to clients and the market demand can lead a firm to adhere to trends, specifically for manufacturers of luxurious goods, therefore, this is going to diminish the capability of the business to distinguish its services from its rivals.
 
For instance, if the trend in women's fashion watches prefer a specific form and gold finish, watchmakers might begin to sell women’s watches in an identical appearance, as a result, they will all look alike, which leads to loss of brand identity, thus, according to SWOT analysis this is a weakness that marketing-oriented companies should be wary of. Moreover, this can obstruct brand recognition for new businesses.
 
Moreover, marketing-oriented businesses should spend a lot in research to recognize customer's needs. If a business does not have the required knowledge in-house, it might need to employ a marketing research company or consultant to do the job. In-house and consultant research are expensive as well as they consume time.  
 
Small companies cannot invest in these kinds of research, because they do not have the capital to do so, and if they want to apply this approach, it will create a problem. Hence, according to SWOT analysis, this is a weakness for small businesses (Burch, 2018).
 
Additionally, market orientation needs companies to rapidly change direction to stay with the changing demands of their clients. This suggests that companies should give up a service for which they have spent time and money improving after its launch.
 
Moreover, a company should repeatedly change its internal processes, which causes another trouble for employees, and this is considered a weakness in reliance on SWOT analysis. Thus, if a company cannot keep up, then it runs the risk of dropping market share to rivals (Joseph, n.d.).
 
Advantages of Product Orientation
 
“Product-oriented companies offer specific ranges of products, often based on a structure that allows solutions to be repeated” (Lessing and Brege, 2015).  One of the benefits of a product-orientation approach is that it enables a company to concentrate on the quality of the product.
 
“In production-oriented businesses, provider and customer communicate between each other by the products themselves” (Gebauer, Joncourt and Saul, 2016). For instance, with the product-orientation approach, companies are not concerned about customer’s wants, Instead, the whole concentration is on producing a perfect product.
 
A small company could concentrate its capital and energy on the service’s quality, and according to SWOT analysis, this is a strength of a product-oriented company. Moreover, it improves the technology. For instance, one of the product-oriented companies is Sony, and it has produced the Walkman which was produced as an innovative product.
 
Sony did not produce it according to consumers’ needs. However, Walkman has succeeded, then Sony used the technology to produce other music listening gadgets (Bender, n.d.), thus, if a company has an advanced technology, it considered a strength based on SWOT analysis.
 
A third benefit is that economies of scale could be developed readily when using this approach. Companies which apply product orientation approach concentrate on specific services, hence, the higher the number of manufactured products the less the cost will be.
 
That way a business could produce its products in large amounts. More amounts could be made at a lesser price, which is going to raise the number produced, and this is also considered a strength in reliance on SWOT analysis.
 
Applying the product orientation approach allows a company to outsource products easily. For example, a company could concentrate merely on manufacturing one service to make it the perfect service possible.
 
The design will be transferred to a production company when it is finished, which saves costs. A small business might be able to explore another firm, which could manufacture the product on a huge amount at less cost (Bender, n.d.).
 
Disadvantages of Product Orientation
 
If a company focus its selling message and brand on its product’s, quality and features, a new rival that might reduce company’s current product’s selling point and might put this company out of business, and this is a threat according to SWOT analysis.
 
For example, without an image which tells customers that a company provide a benefit, consumers will doubt if this company can react to customers wants and needs. In addition, businesses which apply market orientation approach usually get chances for add-on sales to current consumers.
 
Pleased consumers predominantly value opportunities to suggest solutions to businesses which they know, trust and love. If a business is a product-oriented, it might not even give opportunities for add-on sales. Moreover, a limited concentration on the solution needs of clients might lead to a decrease in the number of customers who love this brand, and this is considered a weakness based on SWOT analysis.
 
One of the greatest drawbacks of applying the product orientation strategy is that if a company major project loses or turn out to be less relevant, the company may fall apart, therefore, they neglect market changes and customer wants and needs, and if a service cannot sell itself, a product-oriented company will have a tough time selling it (Kokemuller, n.d.).
 
Conclusion
 
In conclusion, “the contention that firms must identify and satisfy customer needs more effectively than their competitors has long been a hallmark of the marketing concept” (Line and Wang, 2015). Market ordination approach is more effective than product orientation approach, therefore, it increases the possibility of repeating purchases, boosts brand loyalty and it considers the market to enhance products.
 
In addition, it can reach finical sustainability, and it results in long term profit. However, a company may need to apply some level of all approaches to reach a comprehensive effective marketing strategy, (KENTON, 2018), Nevertheless, a business should concentrate on the market orientation approach and make it a primary concern above the others.
 

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Resources
 
Bender, J. (n.d.). The Advantages of Product-Oriented Businesses. Chron.
Burch, J. (2018). Advantages & Disadvantages of Having a Marketing Orientation in an Organization.
Buttenberg, K. (2017). Development of customer orientation, brand orientation, and business performance within the first ten years of the firm.
Gebauer, H., Joncourt, S., and Saul, C. (2016). Services in product-oriented companies: past, present, and future.
Joseph, C. (n.d.). Disadvantage of Market Orientation. Chron.
KENTON, W. (2018). Market Orientation. Investopedia.
Kokemuller, N. (n.d.). The Disadvantages of Product Orientation to a Business.
Lessing, J., and Brege, S. (2015). Business models for product-oriented housebuilding companies.
Line, N. and Wang, Y. (2015). Market-oriented destination marketing: An operationalization. 
Shuhidan, S., Said, J., Mokri, S. and Kazemian, S. (2016). Market Orientation within Technological Companies: Risk Based Approach.