The electronics industry is one of the most diversified industries in the world and it could be fragmented into a number of different sectors depending on its scale of production. The industry's principal function is to manufacture different electronic devices by assembling together basic components like capacitors, inductors, resistors and other electronic parts through a multi-step process. These devices are then further built into the various types of consumer appliances meant for personal and industrial uses to aid in development, entertainment, and further production. Once each piece is fully assembled and ready to be sold, a number of marketing tactics take place at the retail level to encourage consumers to buy these products.
Most of the growth of the electronics industry can be attributed to large-scale technological advancements and the speed at which society has accepted these changes. As a process, electronics production can be segregated into manufacturing units like factories, workshops, and industrial hubs which rely heavily on constant innovation and product research. The smaller segments within this industry create base components like microchips and motherboards which serve as the basis for any application. Larger companies purchase these parts and use them to create complex digital devices, ranging from programmable coffee makers to high-tech consumer devices like cellular phones and tablet computers.
There are electronic components in numerous consumer items, and each one of them may be created with multiple parts that were made by many different manufacturers. For example, something as simple as a television remote control usually has one company that makes the circuit board, another that makes the laser diode light, and a third company that creates the outer casing. Then, it is all assembled by a name-brand manufacturer to be sent to a retail store. Along the way, that single remote control may pass through a few distributors, several warehouses, and thousands of storefronts before it actually reaches the consumer.
Without each facet of the electronics industry driving global sales, that remote control would never reach the hands of a consumer within a reasonable time frame. That is why marketing is another huge aspect of the electronics industry; it creates a demand for consumer goods before they ever reach retail stores. By convincing worldwide customers to invest in the latest technological advancements, the electronics industry is able to continue planning new products while staying well ahead of supply and demand.