Concept note 1

Marketing Mix

Definition: The marketing mix refers to the set of actions, or tactics, that a company uses to promote its
brand or product in the market.

The 4P’s make up a typical marketing mix - Price, Product, Promotion and Place. The 4P’s of Marketing
was first proposed by E. Jerome McCarthy in the 1960s. The marketing 4Ps are the foundation of the
idea of marketing mix.

The 4P’s framework which was developed in the context of marketing of products, was found to be
inadequate in the context of services marketing. Hence, three more P’s became part of the marketing mix
elements.

However, nowadays, the marketing mix increasingly includes several other Ps like Packaging,
Positioning, People and even Politics as vital mix elements.

The 7Ps of marketing

Product

A product is an item that is built or produced to satisfy the needs of a certain group of people. The product
can be intangible (services: example the experience offered in a theme park) or tangible (goods e.g. a
motor car).A marketer must ensure to have the right type of product that is in demand in its target market.
A product may go through various stages during its life (known as the product life-cycle), identified as the
introduction, growth, maturity and decline stages.

It is important for marketers to reinvent their products to stimulate more demand once it reaches the sales
decline phase.They must also create the right product mix by offering variety of products. All in all,
marketers must ask themselves the question “what can I do to offer a better product to this group of
people than my competitors”.

Price

The price of the product is the amount that a customer pays to acquire the product or enjoy the service.
Price is very important because it determines the position of the product in the market with respect of
competitors and also determines the firm’s profit and survival. Price can also affect the sales and demand
for the product.

Pricing often shapes the perception of a product in consumers’ eyes. Low price may be perceived to
mean the product to be inferior with respect to the competitors’ products, while high price may be
perceived as the product being of superior quality.However, too high a price can make the costs outweigh
the benefits in customers eyes, and they therefore may not buy the product.

Place

Place or distribution is a very important part of the marketing mix. The product must be made available in
a place that is accessible to the potential buyers.In most cases the distribution function is carried out by a
firm in conjunction with independent firms and agencies known as distributors, wholesalers, and retailers.
Depending on the nature of the product and the number of customers a marketer may consider reaching,
the various strategies that the marketer may adopt include intensive distribution; exclusive distribution or
selective distribution.
Promotion

Promotion involves the use of various tools to communicate with customers about the product, brand or
company. The purpose of promotion is to boost brand recognition and sales. Promotion is comprised of
various elements like Personal Selling, Public Relations, Direct Marketing, Advertising&Sales Promotion

People

The company’s employees are important in marketing because they are the ones who deliver the service.
It is important to hire and train the right people to deliver superior service to the clients, whether they are
engaged in a support desk, customer service, copywriting, programming…etc.When a business finds
people who genuinely believe in the products or services that the particular business creates, it’s is highly
likely that the employees will perform the best they can.Additionally, they’ll be more open to honest
feedback about the business and input their own thoughts and passions which can scale and grow the
business.

Process

The systems and processes of the organization affect the execution of the service.So, the marketer has
to ensure the existence of a well-tailored process in place to minimize costs.The processes may be
related to the entire sales funnel, a pay system, distribution system and other systematic procedures and
steps to ensure a working business that is running effectively. Often the nature of processes affect
customers’ experience with the firm.

Physical evidence

In the service industry, since the offerings are intangible, often firms seek to have physical evidence as a
means of assurance of quality services. Physical evidence also influences how a business and its
products are perceived in the marketplace.For example, for FedEx the physical evidence includes the
company owned freighter aircrafts and its delivery trucks with the FedEx logo prominently displayed on
their bodies.

What is the importance of the marketing mix?

All the elements of the marketing mix influence each other. They make up the business plan for a
company and if handled right, can account for a great success. But handled wrong, the business could
take years to recover. The marketing mix needs a lot of understanding, market research and consultation
with several people, from users to trade to manufacturing and several others.

Sources:
https://www.smartinsights.com/
https://marketingmix.co.uk/
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/