
It was 10 years ago I was sitting there contemplating on what I could do to further push my business. After a few college events, open days I decided to undertake a Diploma of Marketing from the APM College of Business and Communications, Torrens University Australia. Fast forward a decade I'm yet again at crossroads in my business. Did my Marketing Degree help the way? I have no doubt it did change a little perspective in the way I look at my design business. But knowledge and reality are too different things, and reality will always like to throw you things that theory can't comprehend. Nevertheless, the extract I wrote below, a little not long after I graduated, might give some light into why good design is not enough in surviving a design business. Yet again is Marketing? Anyway hope the short read below will give you another perspective.
So why study Marketing?
Extract from 2019:
Solid design experiences and a sound foundation in the field of creative arts certainly didn’t keep me grounded from the challenges of owning a business. The current hype of entrepreneurship and the perceived freedom of being a freelancer weren’t parallel to the long hours I was putting into my design work. Good design didn’t always mean good returns. Trying to understand the situation lead me into Marketing. I began to realise I was jumping into the deep end without having a business mindset or understanding the market environment in which I was up against.
Walking into university again after so many years was very nerve racking. I was forced to challenge my comfort zones and made to think in new ways. It was no longer about creativity and visual appearance but on logic and critical thinking. The years pursuing my creative career has certainly trained my right-brain but left my left-brain dormant. With my backpack, laptop and lecture notes, I was a student again. Walking with the rise of the Sydney sun, I began my journey at the college in the Rocks.
Sitting here again I’m not trying to tell you I have fully understood the situation but needless to say, although there is still lots to learn and change, I’m continuing my business with a new frame of mind.
Anyway I’ll leave you with some of the key points I’ve learnt during my time studying Marketing, hoping it will give some perspective for those who wish to know.

Know your business, services, products and the market environment
Know your Environment
External Macro Environment
Social-Cultural, Demographic, Political and Legal, Economic, Technological and Competitive Environment.
External Micro Environment
Suppliers, Middleman, Customers and Competitors.
Internal Environmental
Production Facilities, Financial Resources, Human Resources, Company Image and Research & Development.
Understand your Marketing Mix
Product, Price, Place (Distribution) and Promotion.
Develop your Product
Product Mix
Resonance, Judgement, Feelings, Performance and Imagery & Salience.
Product Customisation and Segmentation.
Monitor your Business
Key Performance Indicators (KPI)
Analysis your Business and Environment
SWOT
Strength, Weakness, Opportunities and Threats.
Ansoft Growth Matrix
Market Penetration, Market Development, Product Development and Diversification.
Boston Consulting Group Matrix
Stars, Cows, Questions and Dogs.
Porter’s Industry Structure
Suppliers, Buyers, Industry Competitors, Entrants and Substitutes.

Have clear objectives and goals
Have SMART Objectives
Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Timed.
Know your Target Audience.
Create a Customer Snapshot - Segmentation
Demographic, Geographic, Psychographic and Behavioral.
Create Brand Value, Positioning, Personality and Mission.
Create a Brand and Value
Unique Selling Point (USP), Brand Positioning Statement, Brand Personality, and Mission Statement.

Create a need and motivate your CUSTOMERS
Does your products or service?
Satisfy Customer's Needs
Maslow’s hierarchy of Needs
Physiological, Safety, Belonging and Love, Esteem and Self Actualisation.
Create Manifest and Latent Motivations
Limit Perceived Risks
Function, Physical, Financial, Social, Psychological and Time.
Connect with Customer's
Internal Influences
Motivation, Learning, Attitudes and Personality.
External Influences
Group Influence, Social Class, Family & Life Cycle and Culture.
Self Image
Actual, Ideal, Social and Ideal Social.

Do Market Research
Address your Marketing Problem and Objective
Contextual Background, Secondary Research and Impact to Operations.
Identify the Research Problem and Objective
Reason for Research and Key Problems from Secondary Data.
Create a sound Research Methodology
Model and Design
Questionaire Design and Method.
Application
Basic and Applied.
Objective
Explorative, Descriptive and Casual.
Enquiry Mode
Qualitative and Quantitative.
Sampling
Probability - Simple Random, Systematic, Stratified and Cluster.
Non-Probability - Convenience, Judgement, Quota and Snowballing.
Constraints and Limitations
Sampling and Non-Sampling Errors
Recruitment
Respondent Number and Mode.
Duration
Cross Sectional and Longitudinal.
Collect and Analyse Results
Measurement
Nominal, Ordinal, Interval and Ratio.
Attitudinal Scale
Summated Rating, Differential, Preferential and Likert.
Raw Data
File, Record and Field
Frequency and Relative Frequency
Bar Graph, Pie Graph and Tables.
Data Analysis
Descriptive and Inferential.
Implications and Recommendations
Relate findings to Research and Marketing Objectives.

*Information referenced from:
Laureate International Universities, Torrens University, Australia,
associated personnel and academic materials.