Marketing Mix (The four P's)

Marketing Mix

Marketing mix is a vital element in every marketing strategy,the concept was first explained by professor Neil Borden of Harvard University in the 1940's when he identified twelve key variables in the typical marketing programme. Theses twelve variables were later consolidated to four by later writers. The marketing mix is the particular group of variables offered to the market at a particular time. These variables are 1)Product, 2) Price,3) Promotion, 4) Distribution.

The marketing mix is the central part of an organisation's marketing tactics. It must take cognizance of crucial factors to the company's marketing strategy such as the customers,the distributors,the competitors,suppliers etc. The marketing mix must also work with time,as timing is very crucial for a marketing strategy. This is because any marketing situation can change rapidly over even a short period of time. Thus the development of the mix to meet conditions at a particular point or period in time is essentially a contingency approach to marketing management.

The four p's

The four p's represents marketing decisions that can be controlled by the marketing manager,they are 1) Product 2) Price 3) Place 4) Promotion.

Product:

The term product means anything offered to a market for its use or consumption,for a manufacturing firm,it may consist of physical items such as television sets, clothes, chocolates cosmetics. Products offered by service industries include hospital care, flight booking, dental treatment,auditing and accounting services.

The range of products offered by an organization is called the product mix. The quality and range of an an organization's products should be of top priority since the organization's revenue is going to be obtained from the sale of such products.

The product or service may provide a strategic advantage if it is the only product or service that satisfies a particular intersection of customer needs.

Some of the product decisions to be made includes: Functionality, styling,quality,safety,packaging, after service,repairs, support and warranty.

Price:

Price is important to the marketing mix because it is the only element of the mix which produces revenue,while the others all represent costs.

The price a company sets may constitute a strategic advantage in the sense that it may be set below the usual to undercut competition or above the market average to convey a premium.

Factors that affect pricing decisions include:

a) The cost of production

b) The desired market share for the product

c) The ability to generate sufficient revenue or profits.

d) The prices being offered by competitors.

Some of the pricing decisions to be made are:

a) Pricing strategy

b)suggested selling price

c) Discounts to be given and on what volume

d) Seasonal pricing

e) Price discrimination

f) Price flexibility

Promotion

Every product needs to be promoted which means that the existence of the company's products should be brought into awareness of the marketplace and its benefits identified. The principal methods of promotion are : advertising,sales promotion,publicity,personal selling.

Promotional activity can be used to create consumer awareness, open new markets or target a specific competitor.

Place (Distribution)

One of the key functions of marketing is moving the product or service to the final consumer, and the place or distribution decision takes care of this.

The physical location of a product or service can provide strategic advantage if it is superior to its competitors,if it is readily assessable by the consumers of the product and if it brings indepth awareness of its products to existing and potential consumers.

Distribution decisions include:

a) Distribution channels

b) Warehousing

c) Distribution centers

d) Order processing

e) Outbound logistics

f) Inventory management.