Themes 1 to 4 Edexcel A Lvel Business notes

Im a Student that is predicted an A, made theme 2 to 4 myself and stole theme 1 off someone else. if you found this and havent made notes yet, youve hit a goldmine! Enjoy!

Theme 1

The market - a place where buyers and sellers meet to exchange goods and services.

Marketing - the managerial process of identifying, anticipating and satisfying customer wants and needs profitably.

Market share - a business’s total sales within the market as a percentage

     formula - (sales / total sales) x 100

Market growth - increase in total sales within the market

    formula - (change in sales / original 1 sales) x 100

Mass market - large unspecialised market where the products are aimed at the whole market.

 advantages:

• large target audience • huge amounts of market research available • more competitiveness can lead to higher levels of efficiency as firms try to become more price competitive • economies of scale • increased brand awareness

disadvantages:

• high start-up capital costs to compete e.g. advertising • high amounts of competition • vulnerable to changes in demand • harder to meet specific needs

Niche market - small targeted / specialised market which allows the supplier to meet the individual needs of the customers.

advantages:

• less competition • higher consumer satisfaction - repeat customers/ brand loyalty • meets the market demand easier

disadvantages:

• threat from larger potential competitors • specialisation leads to smaller profits • prone to changes in trends

Brand - a unique company image that differentiates from the rest of the market / other suppliers.

• can portray quality • consumers know what to expect • brand importance can exceed the importance of the price • can be used to add value

Market research - the collection and analysis of data and information about consumers, competitors and suppliers to inform a business about its market.

Primary research - data collected first-hand about the market that didn't exist before.

Secondary research - data collected by someone else about the market / data that already existed.

Quantitative research - statistical data.

Qualitative research - non-statistical data that looks at opinions.

Segmentation - the breaking down of a large homogeneous market into smaller easily identifiable sections that have similar wants, needs and demand characteristics.

Demand - the amount a customer is willing and able to buy at a given price.

Factors affecting demand:

• price of complementary goods • price of substitute goods • trends • seasons • income • laws

Supply - the amount a producer is willing and able to sell to the market at a given price in a given period.

Factors affecting supply;

• changes in cost of production e.g. increase in the price of raw materials • laws

• changes in technology • external shocks • government subsidies

Price elasticity of demand (PED) - a measure of how quantity demanded reacts to a change in price.

formula - %change in QD / %change in price

PED…