Key terms & definitions

A medieval unit used to express sums of money. Richard I’s total ransom was set at 150,000 marks of silver.

An arrangement through which buyers and sellers exchange goods or services. It can operate locally, nationally or internationally and does not need a physical meeting place.

The potential for a product or system to attract buyers in its intended market.

Conditions affecting sales in a market, including customer demand, competition and customers’ sensitivity to prices.

Information about the market in which a business operates, such as its size, growth, competitors’ market shares and average incomes.

The increase in total sales across a market over time.

The business activities involved in identifying and satisfying customer needs and encouraging purchases.

Activities used to promote a product and encourage purchases, such as advertising, special offers and product placement.

Activities that promote a media product and encourage audiences to pay for or engage with it.

Information collected through market research about customers and their responses to products, prices and promotion.

The combination of product, price, place and promotion decisions a business uses to meet customer needs and achieve its objectives.

A specific goal that a business wants its marketing activities to achieve, such as increasing awareness or attracting repeat purchases.

A plan for reaching target customers and achieving marketing objectives, implemented through a coordinated marketing mix.

The introduction of competition and consumer choice into education, with schools competing to attract pupils.

Introducing market-like arrangements into education, including parental choice and competition between schools for pupils.

A diagram that positions products or businesses against two characteristics so that their market positions can be compared.

The influence of buying, selling, prices and profit on decisions about what to produce and how to produce it.

How a product or business is perceived in relation to competing products or businesses.

The price at which a material is bought and sold in a market; it can change as market conditions change.

The development or improvement of a product driven by customers’ needs or desires.

The range of potential customers a business can access with its products.

Collecting information about customers’ needs, wants and preferences to help a business make decisions.

Investigation of potential customers, their needs and preferences, and competing products to inform design decisions.

A situation in which most potential customers who want a product already have it, leaving limited opportunities for further sales growth.

A group of customers within a market who share particular characteristics or similar needs.

Dividing a market into groups of customers with shared characteristics or similar needs, so a business can target them more effectively.

A business’s sales expressed as a percentage of total sales in its market, measured consistently by value or volume.

An individual’s position in a market economy, including the economic advantages associated with property ownership or the ability to sell skills and labour.

The total sales in a particular market over a given period, measured by value or volume.

Transferring dimensions, shapes and positions onto material before cutting, drilling, shaping or joining.