overview of marketing

The subject I am going to study is consumer studies and marketing. It was really useful and kind of interesting. As we know all businesses need a plan and a process for marketing their products or services, and all but the smallest companies have professionals dedicated solely to this function? Marketing along with sales production and finance is a core functional area in most companies. Indeed, many businesses including some of the largest in the world rely on marketing strategy to drive company profit.
Marketing professionals interface extensively with a company's other major business functions. For example:Marketing strategy affects the company's business development strategy (and vice-versa) and the allocation of advertising resources. Marketing works closely with the company's production or service delivery departments to ensure that product or service specifications will meet consumers' demands.
Marketing professionals must understand the company's finances and the costs and profits associated with a particular product or service. Marketers have to get involved in the company's long-term strategic planning, including assessing market changes and the potential that new business alliances may bring. Given the scope of business concerns that marketing professionals interact with, it's not surprising that marketing is often thought of as a "microcosm" of the entire business enterprise. Marketing managers must have strong skills in business analysis and a broad-based appreciation for business as a whole. Therefore, many people see experience in this discipline as ideal training for general management.