Markets and Marketing बाजार और विपणन

Markets and Marketing

The word market originated from the latin word 'marcatus' which means merchandise or trade or a place where business is conducted.

 Word 'market' has been widely and variedly used to mean: 

(a) a place or a building where commodities are bought and sold, e.g., super market; 

(b) potential buyers and sellers of a product; e.g., wheat market and cotton market; 

(c) potential buyers and sellers of a country or region, e.g., Indian market and Asian market; 

(d) an organization which provides facilities for exchange of commodities, e.g., Bombay stock exchange;  and 

(e) a phase or a course of commercial activity, e.g., a dull market or bright market.

There is an old English saying that two women and a goose may make a market. However, in common parlance, a market includes any place where persons assemble for the sale or purchase of commodities intended for satisfying human wants. Other terms used for describing markets in India are Haats, Painths, Shandies and Bazar.

A market exists when buyers wishing to exchange the money for a good or service are in contact with the sellers who are willing to exchange goods or services for money. Thus, a market is defined in terms of the existence of fundamental forces of supply and demand and is not necessarily confined to a particular geographical location. The concept of a market is basic to most of the contemporary economies, since in a free market economy, this is the mechanism by which resources are allocated.