Marketing as the foundation of efficiency in modern agricultural production

From sales to satisfying demand: why agribusiness needs marketing

Growing a high yield or producing high-quality processed products is only half the battle. If the produced product does not meet the requirements of buyers or enters the market at the wrong time, the farm risks being left without profit. The term "marketing" appeared in university course titles as early as the beginning of the 1900s. It denotes an activity that connects the producer with the consumer and facilitates the sale of the produced product.

In economic literature, there are about 25 different definitions of this category. In the classical sense, marketing is a type of activity aimed at satisfying needs and wants through exchange, or "profitable need satisfaction." The main motto of marketing efforts is "find a need and satisfy it."

In modern conditions, an agricultural producer must focus primarily on consumer demands, not just on their own technological capabilities. The main direction of work is to learn and understand the client well enough so that the product precisely matches their requests and "sells itself," minimizing sales efforts.

In practical work, enterprise marketing includes three key directions:

• forecasting changes in demand;
• promoting the product to the market;
• ensuring market needs for goods of appropriate quality in the required volume.

Principles and tasks of the marketing department in agriculture

Competent marketing activity of agricultural enterprises for the production and processing of products is based on three main principles. The first is a thorough consideration of needs, the state of demand, and market conditions when developing management decisions. The second is the maximum adaptation of agricultural production to the requirements of the market and target consumers. The third is active influence on the market and the buyer using all available tools.

A mandatory condition for making market-oriented decisions is the creation of a marketing department at the enterprise. Practice shows that this unit should be headed by a specialist capable of formulating tasks for the development of new and modernization of existing products, as well as possessing complete information about markets and buyers.

Key tasks of marketing departments of agricultural enterprises:

• collection, processing, and analysis of marketing information;
• development of strategic alternatives and tactics for the enterprise's market entry;
• analysis of the market situation and compilation of market reviews for commodity markets;
• competitor research;
• development of recommendations for organizing effective sales of agricultural products and their processing.

The main functions of marketing cover the full cycle of work with the product. Specialists identify the requests and interests of consumers, determine the necessary types of goods, and assess the possibilities of their production and delivery. The service's functionality also includes market analysis, demand forecasting, development of pricing policy, and informing buyers about the qualities and advantages of the product through advertising and sales promotion measures.