Importance of Marketing Mix in Higher Education Institutions

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Singidunum journal 2012, 9 (1): 2941

ISSN 2217-8090

UDK 378:658.8

Original paper/Originalni nauni rad

IMPORTANCE OF MARKETING MIX

IN HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS

Jelena Gaji*

Sg uvesty, deptet f Ts Hsptty mgeet,

32 dev Steet, Bege, Seb

* E-mail: [email protected]

Abstract:

Understanding actors and circumstances that create certain marketenvironment conditions is a primary goal o any modern - orientedhigher education institution that enables harmonizing the supply withcurrent demands as well as defining appropriate marketing strategies.he process o ormulating the strategy o a higher education institution,in addition to reviewing the existing services, includes identifying newopportunities, analyzing relevant competitors and positioning against themand similar. The need for change in marketing strategy, that is marketrestructuring of a higher education institution, presents a natural con-

sequence of economic oscillations which are the result of market needsand competition dynamics. Continuous monitoringand adjustmentof moderndevelopmentswith the needsof the targetmarketaffect theoverallperceptionof service qualityandsatisfactionof users.Sincethechoice o marketing strategy involves deining the best ways o achievingthe goals, keeping in mind thatmarketing as abusiness unction, it shouldcontribute to the improvement o educational institutions o governanceprocess, orientationtowardsthe market, oraligningcurriculumwith theneedsof targetgroups. The Education Reformin Serbia has initiated alleducational institutions(privateandstate) whichmarket-oriented theiractivities, due to insufficient, inadequate application ofcurrentmarket-ing andmarketingtools. Using dierent combinations o marketing mixinstruments can lead to achieving competitive advantage in educationmarket. he main role o marketing strategy is to combine competencesand other strategies o an educational institution, coordinating the chal-lenges and limitations imposed by its environment and inding the bestways o achieving its mission and vision.

Key words:

marketing,marketing mixinstruments,higher education,marketing strategy.

INTRODUCTION

Intensive development o society and commerce

leads to expansion o the service sector, and in suchmanner it becomes a propagator and dominant orcein developed countries, which indicates the necessity

o getting to know the signicance and specic na-ture o marketing within the service sector. Consid-ering the education that represents a service activity

and its market infuenced by various circumstances,educational institution management permanentlynds itsel acing the pending problem o how to


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accord its oer and marketing strategy with ever-changing market requirements. oday, educationmanagement is considered a survival condition, aswell as a condition o modern society development.Competitive institutions are called only those, which,in the easiest way, adapt to changes o the environ-

ment and rst adopt innovations.Application o a marketing strategy enables qual-

ity improvement in the system o higher educationthrough synergistic application o marketing mixin order to create a service that corresponds to theexpectations o target market and deliver a superior

value. Competitive advantage is more and more bas-ing itsel on intangible assets (the know-how andexpertise o teaching sta, quality o lectures, teamwork, sta development, etc.), which the competi-tion cannot acquire or successully imitate in a short

period o time. Communication o a higher educa-tion institution with target market requires a specicapproach, since the decision on the choice o acultyis made once in a lie-time. It is dened by time andthe decision-making process depends on the am-ily, riends, school and media and thereore it has tobe created in a way in which a mixture o market-ing communications infuences stated segments otarget public. Communications, environment, cor-porate behavior (reputation, innovation, nancialpower, social responsibility, management quality)

shape the image o an educational institution, which,rom a long-term aspect, provides competitive ad-vantage and service user loyalty. Also, the price, asone o marketing mix instruments, should, at thesame time, be considered as a signicant element oeducational institution strategic planning, which isoen (especially in our background) crucial whendeciding which aculty to choose. When deningmarketing activities (marketing mix) or educationalinstitutions, special attention must be paid to servicedistribution, i.e. it is necessary to predene attractivegeographic rame, in which service delivery will bein accordance with the needs and requirements othe target market, respecting the actors (economic,political, sociological, technological, ecological, etc.)acting in a particular background.

Te Education Reorm in Serbia has prompted alleducational institutions to market-orient their busi-ness activities, considering insucient, inadequateapplication o marketing and marketing instrumentsso ar. Continuous monitoring and harmonization

o modern achievements with the needs o the targetmarket infuence overall perception o service qual-ity and user satisaction.

MARKETING IN EDUCATION

Te main goal o marketing in higher educa-tion institutions is to dene quality education sys-tem, market-oriented, whereby one cannot ignorethe institution primary role and unction, which is

to provide a specic type o service o general so-cial benet, in accordance with its needs. Market-ing strategies and activities o business marketingin educational system are limited, much more thanin other service and production industries, due tothe direct infuence o state regulations dening theeducational system, with established control mecha-nisms o accreditation bodies, prescribing the evalu-ation system, as well as quality control system.

Basic role o a marketing strategy is to combinecompetence and other strategies o an educational

institution, to coordinate challenges and constraintso the environment and to nd best ways to real-ize its missions and visions. Tereore, in order orthe organization to be able to meet contemporaryrequirements o ever-changing business environ-ment, it is necessary that it itsel becomes subject tothe change and initiate them on its own. (orevi-Boljanovi, 2010)

Formulation o a higher education institutionalmarketing strategy includes decisions about: 1.Teinstitutions current programs and markets wheth-

er to maintain, build, or drop them. 2. Future newprogram and market opportunities. 3. Analysis ocompetitors. 4. Positioning o the institution in rela-tion to competitors. 5. Selection o target marketsand designing o the marketing mix. (Kotler andKeller, 2009). Creation o marketing mix serviceconcept needs to be realized in a way that providessynergy between marketing, process managementand human resources management. Tus, i the hearto modern strategic marketing, as indicated by Kot-ler, is comprised o market segmentation, evaluation

and selection o target market segment and position-ing, i.e. dierentiation, then their use in organizationpursuits should primarily be oriented towards gain-ing competitive advantage. Tis should especially bethe case with the oer positioning with the aim oproviding a more avorable image on a certain seg-ment in comparison to the present and potentialcompetition.

MARKETING MIX STRATEGY

Marketing mix has both communicative and op-erative unctions. Communicative unction is the

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Gaji J. Importance of marketiing mix


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need to transer to users the relevancy o services ortheir needs or preerences. Operative unction aimsto remove boundaries in transactions or exchange,so that the users, who have opted or that service,can enter the exchange process with minimal eort.Positive synergy comprehends special combination

o instruments resulting in extra eectiveness, e-ciency or both (Milosavljevi and odorovi, 2001).Complexity o all marketing mix instruments ohigher education services is shown in able 1. In-strument synergy is used to realize short-term andlong-term goals o higher education institutions.

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SErViCE PriCE diSTriBuTion PromoTion

Physc g fetes

Quality level

Accessories

Pckgg

Wes

Product lines

Brending

Fexbty

Price level

Tes

dee

Discounts

Allowances

Che type

Expse

Intermediaries

otet c

Tspt

Storage

mgg ches

P be

Sespepe

avesg

Ses p

Pbcty

iteet/Web sttegy

PEOPLE PHYSiCal EVidEnCE ProCESS

Epyees

- recg

- Tg

- mv

- Rewards

- Tewk

Cstes

- Ec

- Tg

Facility design

Eqpet

Signage

Epyee ess

othe tgbes:

- repts

- Business cards

- Statements

- Guarantees

Fw f cves

- Stze

- Cstze

nbe f steps

- Spe

- Cpex

Cste vveet

Table 1. Expanded Markeng Mix for Services

Source: adapted from Zeithaml et al. (2006)

Te act o a combination o instruments beinga complex process is evidenced by a great numbero international research studies. With a series oempirical research studies, conducted at the Singi-dunum University o Belgrade in 2008 and 2009 ontarget group o students/reshmen (504 rst yearand 305 second year), we obtained inormation onmarketing application, importance o certain mar-keting instruments and strategic concepts. In the

decision-making process when estimating alterna-tives to which aculty to choose, the students havestated: teaching process (41%), university image(23%), quality o classes/proessor attitudes (16%),good employment possibilities (13%), Belgrade asstudy location (2%), height o tuition ees (2%) andinstallment payment o tuition ee in several months(1%) (Gaji, 2010) (see Chart 1.).

Chart 1. Esmaon of student aributes in decision-making process

Source: Gaji, J. (2010)


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Dierent combinations o marketing mix instru-ments provide comparative advantage in educationmarket.

EDUCATION AS A PRODUCT

When it comes to educational oers, Kotler rst-ly reers to curricula and services.

Oering services involves special challenges be-cause most services are intangible, inseparable, vari-able, and perishable. Most services do not exist untilthe service provider perorms the service, usually inthe presence o the customer. Te limitations o ser-

vices vis--vis products also comprise the strengthso services. Te proessor can expect responses rom

students their puzzled looks during a lecture ortheir vague answers on a quiz and modiy thecourse content and explanations. (Kostadinovi,2001). Te majority o services represent combina-tions o tangible and intangible elements (they arenot completely clean, mainly containing somephysical elements) and services are analyzed onthree levels: substantial, tangible and increased. Byunderstanding these levels, marketing managerscan shape a service in a way which is attractive tothe users. Te essence o educational services can be

perceived dierently, depending on students expec-tations and wishes. Te essence o a service is notdetermined only by user experience with that ser-vice, rather their understanding/perception o theservice without experience. Tereore their decisionis also determined by other sources, such as: media,riends, associations etc. (Bruhn and Georgi, 2006).

Te essence o a service can (but not necessar-ily) be the base or the Unique Selling Proposition,and in that case the essence o a service is a base ordierentiation and expectation, as well as the usersbehavior. In most service industries (educationalinstitutions, airline companies) the essence o a ser-

vice is a basic, but not also the characteristic/specialrequirement and in the case o dierentiation, ad-ditional services or other marketing instruments areused.

Te essence o a service is not important onlybecause o its eect on perception and the usersbehavior, particularly because it greatly denes thetask o other marketing elds. Te well-dened es-

sence o a service is a starting point or the system-atic and successul marketing service (Bruhn andGeorgi, 2006).

Te essence o an oer is always limited withsome tangible orm, even when reerring to veryintangible services. I we consider students, the es-sence o a service they are looking or is inorma-tion/knowledge. Te oer tangibility can have aorm o an amphitheatre, a classroom, a blackboard,

computer or other technical elements. Each o tan-gible oer characteristics (properties, quality level,packaging and name/brand) is signicant, consider-ing its modication in order to make the oer moreattractive or the users.

Characteristics are individual components o anoer that can be easily added-on without a changein service style or quality. If a university wishes toincrease the number o enrolled students, it shouldincrease concern or them beore and aer lectures,then increase the number o recreational acilities

and introduce ree-o-charge courses or studentsand their parents. Te usage o characteristics has alot o advantages they are also instruments or di-erentiating the service rom competitive ones. Temain advantage is that the characteristics can easilybe added-on, but also rejected.

Te most important decision, when consideringmarketing mix in educational institutions is whichcurriculum and services are to be oered to stu-dents, partners and other public. An institutionalprogram/service mix consists o all the programsand services that the institution makes available.For example, many universities oer educationalprograms (classes, library and inormation services,computer laboratory, campus lectures, etc.), recrea-tional programs (athletic acilities and clubs, lmseries, dances, etc.), personal-growth programs andservices (counseling center, advisors), curative ser-

vices (health center), and uture-planning programsand services (career counseling, placement services,etc.) (Smart, 2004).

PRIcE/TUITION fEE

Te price is one o marketing mix instruments,which, combined with other instruments, should al-low the realization o industry goals, the educationalinstitution mission, and the realization o short-term and long-term industry goals. Te price can be

viewed as an economic, but also as a psychologicalactor. From an economic point o view, the pricedetermines income and prot, and psychologically,the price determines values that a product or a ser-

vice has. It is a quality indicator and equally aects

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the image and the other elements as well. Due to thespecicity o the very service, intangibility o pricedetermination requires a special approach, since theprice is considered an important strategic elementin an attempt o service organization to achievecompetitive advantage in the market. Te price o a

service infuences users and inorms them not onlyabout the quality they can expect rom the service,but also about its costs.

As stated above, the price needs to be consideredboth rom the economic and psychological point o

view. Te price or users has multiple meanings itinfuences their perception and it inorms them onwhat they can expect rom the services in terms oquality and costs as well. Administrators-in-chargeor price ormation in higher education institutionsare not oen aware o the signicance the price has

or a user. For instance, the price, ormed by someeducational institution, does not represent the onlycost or the user. Te ollowing diagram shows somecosts and benets or the users. In addition to themonetary price, users ace other costs, such as costsor eort, physical costs and time costs.

Regardless o the universitys tuition ee (the o-cial tuition and ees printed in the catalogue), pro-spective students and their amilies and reimburs-ing companies are interested in the eective price(the amount they will actually pay or the educa-tional benet) and the value received. Te eectiveprice is the net amount actually paid aer nancialassistance and other discounts are subtracted (Kot-ler and Fox, 1995).

According to William Ihlaneldt, the institutionshould consider:

1. the eects o a given pricing policy on the na-ture and mission o the institution,

2. the eect o a given pricing policy on enroll-ment, and

3. the degree to which a particular pricing poli-cy may encourage acceleration.

In addition, the institution must weigh:

prices charged by comparable competing in-stitutions, and

the eects o its own price level and pricechanges on the actions o such competitors.

Tese considerations provide a basis or settingprices. Pricing decisions should refect the institu-tions mission, goals, and priorities (Kotler and Fox,1995).

Education represents experience that cannot beevaluated beore it has been experienced, and theresults o attending some educational institution

can be evident only aer employment and start-ing a proessional carrier. Also, one should bear inmind that the price represents only one marketingmix component, through which user choice is infu-enced. Potential students, in addition to the tuitionee, will also be interested in educational institution

program, educational service quality,location, way o communication andother characteristics. Many students,aculty students and their amilies areready to pay a higher price in order toget quality education. When decidingon the educational institution choice,location o the institution and/or its ac-ademic prestige can be crucial in mak-ing that decision, regardless o tuitionee price. Consideration and use o theprice as a marketing instrument cannotbe observed separately, rather only as apart o overall marketing strategy.

PROMOTION cOMMUNIcATIONOF HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTION

WITH TARGET MARKET

Promotion is a process o communication be-tween a university and service user with an aim tocreate a positive attitude on products and services,leading to their avoring in the process o purchaseon the market. Promotion is ecient i other instru-ments as well (product, price, distribution, people,

process and environment) eciently perorm theirroles, i.e. promotion cannot compensate or weak-nesses in eciency o other instruments.

Figure 1. The consumers costs and benets

Source: Kotler and Fox (1995)

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Eective communication comprehends that auniversity understands students needs and wishes.Te university should have the know-how in cod-ing a message, which is refected in the way studentsare to decode it. It needs to send out the message viaeective medium, communicating with the target

group. It also needs to develop a eed-back channel,in order to the know-how target group reacted tothe message.

Te communications planning fow should be-gin with considering the target audience and workbackward to the communicator. Te marketing com-municator must make the ollowing decisions (Kotlerand Fox, 1995):

1. identiy the target audience,

2. clariy the sought response,

3. develop a message,

4. choose the medium or media,

5. select source attributes, and

6. collect eedback.

Tese planning steps are essential or eectivecommunications, whether advertising, marketing

publications, or public relations are used.

In order or a university to be successul, it hasto nd a way to promote its products and services.Higher education institutions should eectively

communicate with their products and public. Itsnot enough only to have good curricula and com-petitive prices, but the service user and all the in-terested need to be inormed o the goals, activities,oer o the institution and motivated to join andbecome users. Tat communication takes place inseveral orms. Faculties, schools and other educa-tional institutions are always (speaking or them-selves) sending out a message to the public on their

existence regardless o whether they ormally havea communication program or not. Also, the insti-tution must determine and get a comprehensive

insight into inormation needs o internal environ-ment (aculty, sta, existing students and others

within the internal environment, etc.).

In order to use appropriate communicationchannels it is necessary to perorm grouping o

marketing communications: personal sale, sale im-provement, advertising, publicity, public relations,and sponsorships, direct marketing, etc. Accordingto Kotler and Fox (1995), most educational institu-tions use public relations, marketing publications

and, to a lesser extent, advertising. Te best deni-tion o todays modern practice has been given byproessors Lawrence V. Long and Vincent Hazel-

ton, who have described public relations as com-municative management unction through which

the organizations adapt, change or maintain their

environment in order to reach their goals (Vilkokset al., 2006). Public relations should encourage opentwo-way communication and mutual understand-ing, whereby in such process the organization itselchanges its positions and behavior and not only thetarget group (ivkovi, 2011).

Whatever is the ormat o inormation, honestyis, to a reasonable extent, the best solution. Potentialstudents want honesty, which maximizes ecient

choice, regardless o how they are developed or

changed in enrollment process (Canterbury, 1999).O course, we should not neglect modern communi-cation media, i.e. social networks, the aim o whichis to communicate their way into a trusting rela-

tionship between the institution and its users. Teresearch has shown that people usually become mo-tivated to share important inormation with theirriends on the network, because they expect their

experience to be helpul or o any use to someone.

Higher education institutions communicate withvarious groups (students, parents, donors, employ-

ees and community), whose interests vary. Schools,universities and other educational institutions are in-terested in achieving understanding and sympathy othe public. Te public/partners are not related only tothe educational institution, they are connected alsoamong each other. Te public, particularly, can aectattitudes and behavior o other members o externalenvironment through an institution. Teir enthusi-asm will additionally motivate the teachers, proes-sors, to improve their services. In addition, alumni

can be generous donors and promoters o a aculty,and in that way students infuence the attitudes andbehavior o the remaining part o university public/partners.

In marketing we distinguish between internaland external inormation search. Since the choice

o aculty does not exist as previous experience, theinternal way is insucient and it is resorted to ex-ternal inorming.

External comprehends gathering inormation

rom various external channels (riends, advertis-ing, inormers, etc.) and the results o mentionedresearch indicate that the majority o subjects have

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made their decisions on the recommendation o ariend 72% (Gaji, 2010) (Chart 2).

Te media, as a source o inormation has hadleast infuence on orming attitudes, and personalsources have proven themselves to be the mostdominant.

Te research results (Gaji, 2010) in relation toeciency o communicative instruments indicatethat the personal contact has highest infuence touture users o educational services. Consideringthe importance o the decision to be made, 83%

o students nd the university presentation in sec-ondary schools best way o promotion, 9% statedinternet, 5% television and 1% newspaper (Gaji,2010) (Chart 3.).

Development and application o ecient promo-tion strategy is a complex task. Tere is no unique

approach that guarantees success, but key activitiesin promotion management must comprise, exceptthe analysis o potential students, identication otheir needs, as well as the analysis o competitivepromotion activities.

Chart 2. Sources of informaon


Chart 3. Student posions on communicaon instruments eciency


EDUCATIONAL SERVICE DISTRIBUTION

Te main question concerning the delivery oeducational services is How to make programs ohigher education institution more accessible andacceptable or students? When it comes to the lo-cation o the institution, we should bear in mindmultiple meanings o that term. First, the locationcan reer to the place where the institution is (e.g.

University o New York is located in New York, Sin-gidunum University in Belgrade ). Ten, it can reerto the characteristics o the area in which the insti-

tution is located. Location can also have a relativemeaning, i.e. it can be viewed in relation to wherecurrent and uture students and high school studentslive. Most educational institutions have already hadits buildings in one or more places. Usually, when aneducational institution starts to think about improv-ing eciency o its work, that is sought to be real-ized within the existing acilities. Te institutions,in the rst place, consider how to attract the users,

to the existing buildings, while the idea o gettingthe clients more amiliar with their oer is acceptedslower.

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Delivering programs and services is as importantas designing them because delivery system deter-mines who can benet rom the universities pro-grams and services. Since educational services usuallycannot be stored up, educational institutions needto consider how to make their services as conveni-

ent as practicable to their target markets in terms oboth locations and schedules. Increased convenienceand quality may include implementation o distanceeducation and/or the use o new technologies (Kotlerand Fox, 1995).

Universities should take into account physicalbuildings, including appearance, signage, unction-ality and atmosphere o service space, as well as mes-sages that the building and the environment send tothe visitors, employees and students.

PEOPLE IN EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS

People, as a key instrument in educational pro-cess, are constituted o curricular, extracurricularsta, students and other partners in the environ-ment, doing business with the university. Curricu-lar and extracurricular sta together participates inservice delivery and infuence perception o serviceusers. All the students that participate in servicedelivery infuence the decisions o a service user,

depending on the nature o that service. How theparticipants dress, their personal opinion and be-havior infuence the perception o a service user.Tose, who provide service or persons in personalcontact with uture service users, are highly impor-tant, considering that direct contact is dominantbecause the one, who delivers the service, createsthe service. Research has shown that contribution othese agents can be the key in a success o a serviceinstitution.

Staff

Internal marketing reers to management o nec-essary actions, in order to provide understandingo all organization members and in order or theirroles to be accepted in implementation o marketingstrategies. Tis means that everyone in vertical hi-erarchy rom rectors, deans to lower qualied sta,have to be aware o the signicance o the role theyperorm, as well as o their contribution to market-

ing strategy implementation. All employees have torecognize intentions and requests o the students, aswell as specic nature o services, shaped with mar-

keting concept. Sta motivation is improved withtraining and education. o maintain and developeective, riendly and inormative internal channelcommunication and interaction among employeesand departments, it is necessary to have open com-munication through the institutions. Communica-

tion is also important in development o internalrelations in the institution. Even the best intentionsare useless i they are not communicated in a properway (Dobrijevi, 2011). Te research has shown thatthere is a positive relation between a successul inter-nal communication and positive attitude o employ-ees towards the company (Dobrijevi, 2011).

Sta motivation represents a signicant elementin marketing plan implementation and internal mar-keting. People work in order to meet physical, psy-chological and social needs. o satisy employees

in marketing, managers have to detect their needsand develop motivational methods that would en-able meeting their needs (Vilijams, 2010). It is veryimportant or the motivational plan to be ethic andcomprehensible to the sta. Generally, to improvemotivation o employees, higher education institu-tions can nd out what the employees think, eeland want through internal investigations. Organi-zations can motivate their sta either nancially,promotion-wise, using fexible benet programs,etc. It is possible or the motivation to be only or

individuals, using special methods, based on indi-vidual system o values. Managers can reward theiremployees with money, plus extra benets, promo-tions, non-monetary rewards etc.

Success o a higher education institution dependson quality and dedicated sta. With the purpose ocreating the very same, it is necessary to provide mo-tivational working conditions (academic reedom,adequate nancial compensation, etc.). Successulacademic systems must oer to their teaching sta

adequate working and compensation conditions,possibility o carrier building with appropriate guar-antees or long-term specialization and employment.Without these conditions, an academic institutioncannot be successul nor think about world-widereputation.

In order or modern universities to be competi-tive in the market, they need to be marketing-ori-ented, get a thorough insight into all types o us-ers, types o potential students and their needs. It isnecessary to establish the decision-making process

based on quality, values or cost-eectiveness or thestudents and on the persons who nd importanttheir carrier, social recognition or leisure. Successul

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educational institutions in their strategic planningrely on investigations o market segments o uturestudents. Identiying target market is the startingpoint in this process and the university can opt oreither mass marketing (i it ignores the dierencesamong potential students or conronts them) or tar-

get marketing (i it respects the dierences in uturestudents).

For some universities, marketing approach cre-ates a value between university partners (stakehold-ers). University partners are uture students, exist-ing students, alumni, sta (ex-students), donors andall that provide nancial support. For state univer-sities, partner list is complemented with taxpayers,legislation and sometimes even with general public.

Te three undamental reedoms o the univer-sity to teach what they want; to whom they want;and in the way they want have constituted thekey weaponry in the armory o higher educationinstitutions. Tey have used them as benchmarksor measuring progress and indeed estimating the

extent o acceptable change in the sector. Society hasnow changed. No longer are universities seen as themost powerul organization in the society. Te cor-porate world has taken over and has begun to exertan infuence on other orms o organizations in away never imagined in the past. Higher education

now nds itsel in a situation where it increasinglyhas much to learn rom the outside world and in-deed relies heavily on others to maintain its viabil-ity. One o the new lessons universities are learningrom the business and commercial world today ishow to develop a customer perspective (Maringeand Gibbs, 2009).

In order to determine statisaction o studentsat the beginning o the academic year and the re-sults o how much students are satised with therst classes, conrms positive impression o oered

service (43%), 36% are moderately satised, 13% osubjects believe the classes could be better and 3% osubjects are not satised with oered service (Gaji,2010) (Chart 4.).

Chart 4. Safacon of students with rst classes quality


Te results conrm that marketing activities can-not be eectively implemented without cooperationwith the sta. Te sta is the key element in pro-ductivity growth, providing quality service to users

and gaining competitive advantage. Te quality rep-resents service perormance level perceived by thestudents. Service quality is especially important andcan be very variable, depending on skills, motiva-tion and mood o service deliverer (proessors andstudent service sta).

Students

Process o selecting a aculty is a key decision in

the lie o every individual and requires inormationon alternatives, as well as on how those alternativesare ranked in relation to concrete situations.

Many decisions about educational choice (andabout making signicant donations) are high-in-volvement decisions. High personal involvementusually is present when one or more o the ollowing

conditions exist (Kotler and Fox, 1995):1. Te consumers decision will refect upon his

or her sel-image and could have long-termconsequences.

2 Te cost to carry out the decision involvesmajor personal or economic sacries.

3. Te personal and social risks o making awrong decision are perceived as high.

4. Tere is considerable reerence-group pres-sure to make a particular choice or to act in

a particular way, and the target consumer isstrongly motivated to meet the expectationso these reerence groups.

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For many students, the process o studying notonly represents the acquisition o certain skills andtheoretical knowledge. It is also related to personalgrowth and social development (Jurkowitsch et al.2006).

An improper decision can be brought on the ba-

sis o the tendency or conormism or so-called t-ting in to be closer to home, minimize costs o allkinds, opt or prestigious names. Te research showsthat student services, counseling, parents, potentialstudents and higher education researchers indicatethe importance o tting in (Canterbury, 1999).

Success, quality and total outcome o universityexperience determine to which extent a service useris satised (Maringe, 2005).

When it comes to the increase o students ree-

dom o choice, research studies treating student be-havior when making a choice show that we cannotpresume the students will make a rational choice oinstitution and eld o study, even i we put themin the position to choose. Choice o type and con-

crete institution is infuenced by a complex com-bination o personal expectations, motivations andaspirations, and all o them infuenced by the amily,peers, relatives, media, teachers, idols, etc. (Gaji,2010).

Special consideration should be given to the in-

fuence o parents in the process o choosing a acultyand the eect o that process to the amily. Necessityo discussion within the amily, as primary reerencegroup, is caused by several actors: socioeconomicstatus, the act whether the child is the rst in theamily enrolling a aculty, parents education andgeographic region, among other, but none o theseelements look like those reerring to other decisionprocesses.

Having in mind that infuence o reerence groups

on decision-making process is very important andthatpeople as consumers take on certain behaviorstandardsunder their infuence, in the above-men-tioned research (Gaji, 2010) there are the ollowingresults (Chart 5).

Chart 5. Inuence of reference groups in decision-making process


In order or us to determine which o the reer-

ence groups has the key infuence on students in theprocess o making such an important decision, ourresults have conrmed that the amily, as a primaryreerence group, aected 20% o subjects. However, arather interesting data is that as many as 63% o stu-dents have responded they have made the decisionon their own. Hypothetically speaking, their prolesays they can be classied as routine users, who knowwhat they want and have no need or additional in-ormation. According to numerous research studies,it is believed that the highest infuence o commercialpropaganda is possible exactly on that target group,especially having in mind that younger population is

characterized by sophisticated inormation gathering

processes, most o them electronic, so they are oencalled natural techno proles. Tey particularly havea visual communication, resulting in a real ear thatthis could be refected in their verbal abilities in theuture.

Student satisaction is a subjective estimation o anindividual and total experience they have in relationto service characteristics, as well as between what theyhave actually received and the perception o the gapamong received and expected benets. Academic and

pedagogical quality o classes, university inrastruc-ture, and administrative sta service quality shouldbe careully organized and supervised.

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Teahing proess

Observing a service process, education alls intoa category, which comprehends treatment o mentalstimuli that reer to intangible actions oriented to-wards conscience o people. In this process, a student

needs to be mentally present, but can be located ei-ther at the very location where the service is created(amphitheatre or classroom) or at a distant locationconnected over telecommunication networks.

Considering the characteristics o a service pro-cess, managers must have a clear insight in the bene-ts o educational services, understand the students,and ormulate channel distribution strategies andshape service providing system (using inormationtechnologies). Educational services are personal and

characterized by intensive, intellectual, emotionaland/or physical participation o students in a ser-vice process. Services are oen realized in a numbero steps, which, basically, constitute the very serviceprocess. Production and consumption o education-al services take place simultaneously and studentsparticipation in it is rather important. Tey evaluateservice quality, hence the shaping o the service pro-cess detailed planning on how to provide a service is vital to maintain (improve) educational servicequality. Te process is so important that some au-

thors describe it as a real essence o service (Seniand Seni, 2008).

At the university there is clear dierentiationamong services realized in direct contact with the us-ers and various service processes taking place outsideo direct contact. From the aspect o a university,there can be several unctions and services involvedin the process o creating an educational service, butthe students (public) see them as a single integralprocess or system. Also, a student (service user) isan integral part o service system model, within the

organization and he/she interacts with other parts othe organization in the service process representinga resource or service production.

Successul schooling would have to be oundedon teaching (didactic) principles. All teaching sys-tems, methods, orms and all instruments/meanso work rely on them. Without teaching (didactic)principles, in other words, every system, method,orm and every mean o work would be incomplete.eachers skill in preparation o systems, methods,

orms and means o work with teaching principleswould be, as a result, productive and the studentswould learn with quality. (Simeunovi, 2004).

Marketing concept is a way that enables educa-tional institutions to provide their services ecient-ly with continuous communication both with thetarget market and within the organization. But mar-keting concept and culture must be, rst o all, clearto all employees, i.e. it needs to take hold within an

educational institution.

Serie enironment

Service environment gives an external pictureon what kind o service a user can expect and helpsemployees and users to make service transaction inan easier way. Also, service environment or the em-ployees and users indicates desired roles, behaviorand transactions in the service process. Using ser-

vice environments, an institution is dierentiated in

comparison with the competition and sends out themessage to the segment destined.

Only a strategic approach to understanding therole and importance o service environment allowsservice oer to be on the appropriate level and topositively infuence perceived quality. Service envi-ronment represents service package aecting crea-tion o expectations, i.e. represents a visual meta-phor o intangible service. It is also an element inimage building and in that sense it sends a message,draws attention and provokes eects/reactions inusers (Veljkovi, 2009). Service environment ele-ments, infuencing the users, include both acilityexterior and interior shown in able 2.

Web presentations and virtual display o envi-ronment through the internet are newer orms ocommunication, which institutions use in order tomake their service more tangible beore and aerpurchase (Zeithaml et al., 2006).

Physical environment can play a signicant rolein students choice. Since, it is one o the most im-

portant decisions in lie o young people and theiramilies, that has caused modern educational insti-tutions to oer virtual tours, all with the purpose oproviding uture users with a closer insight in theenvironment, beore making a decision which edu-cational institution to enroll at. Internet technologyallows the institutions to make their service and en-

vironment more amiliar to the users. angible im-age on the web creates expectations in users, posingstandards o service delivery and it is very importantor the services to meet those expectations. Presen-

tations and virtual tours in the internet also shouldsupport the position o the service/brand, as well asto be consistent with other marketing messages.

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CONCLUSION

Modern universities gain competitive advantageprimarily through attractive curricula, renownedteaching sta, which applies modern technologiesin perorming teaching process and through quickadaptation and reaction to changes or new needs oa background.

In addition to consideration o students needs,higher education institutions must also take intoconsideration wishes o other groups such as sta,alumni, parents and the state. A great challenge oran educational institution is to synchronize interestso dierent groups, and to maintain balance in orderto satisy interests o the society and service users atthe same time.

Higher education institutions in Serbia have un-derstood the importance o marketing application,as well as its contribution to improvement o many

aspects o university activities, such as internal andexternal communication, improvement in the pro-cess o educational service delivery, nancing issueand determining height o tuition ee, teaching pro-cess quality, but in the rst place user satisaction.

Analyzing certain marketing mix instruments wecome to a conclusion that the communication withhigher education target market requires a specicapproach and that successul higher education insti-tutions with good image should build a synergetic

communication system which would make realiza-tion o communication goals possible. Te Te re-search results show that the most ecient instrument

in the communication with target public is the pres-entation in schools and, we can conclude that this isthe best way o persuasive propaganda which createsstudents opinions in a most direct way. Price is alsoa good indicator o quality and it plays an importantrole when creating the image o a higher educationinstitution. Consequently, it is considered at the sametime as a signicant element in strategic planningo an educational institution when deciding which

aculty to choose. Since the quality o service is oparticular importance and it can be rather variabledepending on skills, motivation and mood o the de-liverer, in that same sense the rst encounter with theservice can signicantly infuence ormation o theoverall satisaction. Te satisaction o students withthe rst classes speaks o a positive impression o theoered service. It can be concluded that universitiesrealize competitive advantage improving intangibleassets.

When it comes to marketing strategy concept oremerging markets, there must be a lot o uncertain-ties in terms o speed and development, in relation tocompetition behavior, with appropriate combinationo characteristics o marketing mix instruments. Onlythe one, which has developed a system o monitoringand deciphering signals o a background, can have atimely reaction to new opportunities and risks. Newtechnologies create new markets and new possibili-ties improve marketing mix, develop and introducenew products/services into the market. New ways o

communication and service processes, only with thehelp o new technologies, allow more ecient deliv-ery o educational services.

Facility exterior Facility interior othe tgbes

Exterior design

Signage

Pkg

lscpe

Surrounding environment

Interior design

Eqpet

Signage

Layout

a qty/tepete

Business cards

Sty

Billing statements

repts

Epyee ess

Uniforms

Bches

Web pges

Vt sevcescpe

Table 2. Elements of Phisical Evidence

Source: Zeithaml et al. (2006)

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receve: jy 16th, 2012

Cec: Feby 21st, 2012

accepte: mch 10th, 2012

ZNAAJ MARKETING MIKSA U vISOKOOBRAZOvNIM INSTITUcIJAMA

Rezime:

Razumevanje aktora i okolnosti koji kreiraju trinu atmoseru je primarni ciljsavremeno orijentisane visokoobrazovne institucije, kako bi uskladila ponudusa aktuelnom tranjom i deinisala odgovarajuu marketing strategiju. Procesormulisanja strategije visokoobrazovnih institucija, pored sagledavanja postojeihusluga, predstavlja i identiikovanje novih mogunosti, analizu i pozicioniranjeprema relevantnoj konkurenciji i sl. Potreba za promenom marketing strategije,odnosno trinog restrukturiranja visokoobrazovne institucije javlja se kao pri-rodna posledica pulsiranja sistema privreivanja koja je zasnovana na dinamicitrinih potreba i konkurencije. Kontinuirano praenje i usklaivanje savremenih

dostignua sa potrebama ciljnog trita utiu na ukupnu percepciju kvaliteta uslugei na satisakciju korisnika. Shodno tome, izbor marketing strategije podrazumevadeinisanje najboljih naina ostvarivanja ciljeva, imajui u vidu da marketingkao poslovna unkcija treba da doprinese poboljanju upravljakih procesaobrazovne institucije, orijentisane ka tritu, odnosno usklaivanjem nastavnihprograma sa potrebama ciljnih grupa i trita rada. Reorma obrazovanja u Srbijiinicirala je sve obrazovne institucije (privatne ali i dravne) da trino orijentiusvoje poslovne aktivnosti, s obzirom na nedovoljnu i neadekvatnu dosadanjuprimenu marketinga i marketing instrumenata. Pomou razliitih kombinacijainstrumenata marketing miksa mogu se ostvariti komparativne prednosti natritu obrazovanja. Osnovna uloga marketing strategije je da kombinuje kompe-tentnosti i druge strategije obrazovne institucije, usklauje izazove i ogranienjaiz okruenja i pronalazi najbolje naine za ostvarivanje misije i vizije.

Kljune rei:

marketing,instrumenti marketing miksa,

visoko obrazovanje,marketing strategija.

SINGIDUNUM J 2012 9 (1) 29-41


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Importance of Marketing Mix in Higher Education Institutions