Marketing is simplistically defined as ‘putting the right product in the right place, at the right price, at the right time.’ Though this sounds like an easy enough proposition, a lot of hard work and research needs to go into setting this simple definition up. And if even one element is off the mark, a promising product or service can fail completely and end up costing the company substantially.

WHAT IS MARKETING MIX?

Marketing mix can be defined as a set of tactics of actions that a company uses to push their products in the market. It is referred to as a marketing mix because it consists of four different elements that have to be applied together in order to achieve positive results.

The use of a marketing mix is an excellent way to help ensure that ‘putting the right product in the right place,…’ will happen. The marketing mix is a crucial tool to help understand what the product or service can offer and how to plan for a successful product offering. The marketing mix is most commonly executed through the 4 P’s of marketing: Price, Product, Promotion, and Place.

These have been extensively added to and expanded through additional P’s and even a 4C concept. But the 4Ps serve as a great place to start planning for the product or even to evaluate an existing product offering.

Marketing Mix - 4Ps

In this article, we will look at 1) the four P’s, 2) history of the marketing mix concept and terminology, 3) purpose of the marketing mix, 4) key features of the marketing mix, 5) developing a marketing mix, 6) key challenges, and 7) marketing mix example – Nivea.

THE FOUR P’S

Product

The product is either a tangible good or an intangible service that is seem to meet a specific customer need or demand. All products follow a logical product life cycle and it is vital for marketers to understand and plan for the various stages and their unique challenges. It is key to understand those problems that the product is attempting to solve. The benefits offered by the product and all its features need to be understood and the unique selling proposition of the product need to be studied. In addition, the potential buyers of the product need to be identified and understood.

Price

Price covers the actual amount the end user is expected to pay for a product. How a product is priced will directly affect how it sells. This is linked to what the perceived value of the product is to the customer rather than an objective costing of the product on offer. If a product is priced higher or lower than its perceived value, then it will not sell. This is why it is imperative to understand how a customer sees what you are selling. If there is a positive customer value, than a product may be successfully priced higher than its objective monetary value. Conversely, if a product has little value in the eyes of the consumer, then it may need to be underpriced to sell. Price may also be affected by distribution plans, value chain costs and markups and how competitors price a rival product.

Promotion

The marketing communication strategies and techniques all fall under the promotion heading. These may include advertising, sales promotions, special offers and public relations. Whatever the channel used, it is necessary for it to be suitable for the product, the price and the end user it is being marketed to. It is important to differentiate between marketing and promotion. Promotion is just the communication aspect of the entire marketing function.

Place

Place or placement has to do with how the product will be provided to the customer. Distribution is a key element of placement. The placement strategy will help assess what channel is the most suited to a product. How a product is accessed by the end user also needs to compliment the rest of the product strategy.

HISTORY OF MARKETING MIX CONCEPT AND TERMINOLOGY

The marketing mix concept gained popularity following an article titled “The Concept of the Marketing Mix” by Neil Borden published in 1964. Borden explained how he started using the term inspired by James Culliton who in the 1940s described the marketing manager as a ‘mixer of ingredients.’ Borden’s article detailed these ingredients as product, planning, price, branding, distribution, display, packaging, advertising, promotions, personal selling among many others. Eventually E. Jerome McCarthy clustered these multiple items into four high level categories that we now know as the 4 P’s of marketing. “Its elements are the basic, tactical components of a marketing plan”. Together, elements in these four categories help develop marketing strategies and tactics.

THE FOUR PS OF MARKETING AS THE FOUR CS

Sometimes, the four Ps of marketing as expressed in an alternate model known as the four Cs of marketing. The four Cs model was developed as an alternative to the four Ps model because it puts greater focus on the interests of the customer, rather than the interests of the seller or marketer.

The four Cs of marketing are:

Customer Wants And Needs

This is the first C of the marketing mix. Its corresponding element in the Four Ps of marketing is product. Generally, customers don’t go into the market looking for products just for the sake of it. They go into the market because they have a need that they want to fulfil, or a problem that they want to solve. Therefore, it is important for marketers not to focus majorly on their product, but rather on the customer wants and needs that the product meets. Once marketers understand their customers’ wants and needs, it becomes a lot easier to come up with products that the customer will be interested in buying.

Cost To Customer

This is the second C of the marketing mix. Its corresponding element in the Four Ps of marketing is price. Most marketers only focus on the price of a product, forgetting that price is only part of what it costs a customer to acquire your product. Customers also take into consideration things like other products/services they have to pay for in order to be able to use your product, the benefit of your product compared to another similar product, the opportunity cost incurred when they make the decision to purchase your product, the time it takes them to get where they can purchase your product, and so on. Therefore, if you want to market your product successfully, you also have to think about all these other customer costs, in addition to the price of your product.

Convenience

Convenience is the third C of the marketing mix. It corresponds to place on the four Ps of marketing. Whereas place only considers where the customer will be able to get your product, convenience also takes into consideration how convenient it is for the customer to place an order for your product. Smart marketers not only to make their product available in as many places as possible, but also to make the process of purchasing their product as convenient as possible. In other words, this is all about making sure that your customers don’t have to jump through any hoops in order to purchase your product.

Communication

Communication is the final C of the marketing mix, and it corresponds to promotion on the four Ps of marketing. Product promotion is a seller focused activity. Its aim is to try as much as it can to convince a customer to purchase a product, and sometimes, it can be manipulative, as long as the customer makes the purchase. Communication, on the other hand, is a more customer-focused approach to selling. Communication focuses on a two-way interaction between the seller and the customer, rather than promotion, which focuses only on pushing out messages to customers. Communication allows marketers to build relationships with their customers and is more likely to lead to brand loyalty.

THE FOUR PS VS THE SEVEN PS OF THE MARKETING MIX

At the time the four Ps model was developed, most businesses used to sell products, and only a few businesses were involved in the sale of services. Over time, however, more businesses got involved in the sale of services, and therefore, it was seen that the four Ps model did not fully address the marketing needs of such businesses. This led to the addition of three marketing mix elements to the four Ps of marketing model, with the aim of helping companies address other key issues that have an impact on its efforts of marketing its products and services. The three additional marketing mix elements are physical evidence, people (formerly participants), and processes.

Physical Evidence

Even when you are selling services, which are intangible, some part of the customer’s order will involve some physical element. For instance, when a freelance writer creates a blog post for a client, they have to deliver the file containing the finished article. When a client visits a hair salon, the completed hairdo is the physical aspect of their order. When a client purchases an insurance cover from an insurance company, they have to get printed material as evidence of their purchase. While this physical evidence is only a small part of the order, it has an impact on your brand perception, and therefore, on your marketing efforts. Therefore, all physical evidence associated with your products and services should exhibit the same qualities customers expect of your brand. Physical evidence includes things such as delivery receipts, signage, product packaging, layout of a physical store, and so on.

People

The employees (people) who have a direct interaction with your customers, such as customer service personnel, sales agents, delivery people, and so on, also have an impact on the perception of your brand. If they look professional, your brand will be seen as a professional brand. If they look like they don’t know what they are doing, that is exactly how your brand will be perceived. If your customer service people provide excellent service, this creates a positive experience for your customers, and increases the likelihood that they will come back or refer their friends and family to your business. Therefore, you need to make sure that you recruit the right people in your company, and that they are sufficiently trained.

Process

This refers to aspects of your organization that influence how your products and services are delivered to the customer. Process includes things like your website user experience, the ordering process, the order delivery process, level of customer support, in-store waiting time, and so on. These processes affect the customer experience, and therefore, they also have an impact on your customer experience. Ideally, a company should aim to consistently provide a high standard of service to its customers, and to make their processes more efficient and convenient for the customer.

PURPOSE OF MARKETING MIX

The 4P’s were formalized and developed over the years by experts to ensure the creation and execution of a successful marketing strategy. Through the use of this tool, the attempt is to satisfy both the customer and the seller. When properly understood and utilized, this mix has proven to a key factor in a product’s success.

KEY FEATURES OF MARKETING MIX

Interdependent variables

The marketing mix is made up of four unique variables. These four variables are interdependent and need to be planned in conjunction with one another to ensure that the action plans within all four are complimentary and aligned.

Help Achieve Marketing Targets

Through the use of this set of variables, the company can achieve its marketing targets such as sales, profits, and customer retention and satisfaction.

Flexible Concept

The marketing mix is a fluid and flexible concept and the focus on any one variable may be increased or decreased given unique marketing conditions and customer requirements.

Constant Monitoring

It is vital to keep an eye on changing trends and requirements, within the company as well as in the market to ensure that the elements in marketing mix stays relevant and updated.

Role of Marketing Manager

A mature, intelligent and innovative marketing manager needs to be at the helm of the marketing mix. This pivotal role means that this manager is responsible for achieving desired results through the skill manipulation of these variables.

Customer as a focal point

A vital feature of the marketing mix is that the customer is the focal point of the activity. The value of the product is determined by customer perceptions and the goal is to achieve a satisfied and loyal customer.

This video shows how you can create value by using the marketing mix.

DEVELOPING A MARKETING MIX

Intuition and creative thinking are essential job requirements for a marketing manager. But relying on just these can lead to inaccurate assumptions that may not end up delivering results. To ensure a marketing mix that is based in research and combines facts with innovation, a manager should go through the following systematic process:

Step 1: Defining Unique Selling Proposition

The first item on the marketing manager’s agenda should be to define what the product has to offer or its unique selling proposition (USP). Through customer surveys or focus groups, there needs to be an identification of how important this USP is to the consumer and whether they are intrigued by the offering. It needs to be clearly understood what the key features and benefits of the product are and whether they will help ensure sales. This applies to physical goods, services, and online businesses.

Step 2: Understanding the Consumer

The second step is to understand the consumer. The product can be focused by identifying who will purchase it. All other elements of the marketing mix follow from this understanding. Who is the customer? What do they need? What is the value of the product to them? This understanding will ensure that the product offering is relevant and targeted.

Step 3: Understanding the Competition

The next step is to understand the competition. The prices and related benefits such as discounts, warranties and special offers need to be assessed. An understanding of the subjective value of the product and a comparison with its actual manufacturing distribution cost will help set a realistic price point.

Step 4: Evaluating Placement Options

At this point the marketing manager needs to evaluate placement options to understand where the customer is most likely to make a purchase and what are the costs associated with using this channel. Multiple channels may help target a wider customer base and ensure east of access. On the other hand, if the product serves a niche market then it may make good business sense to concentrate distribution to a specific area or channel. The perceived value of the product is closely tied in with how it is made available.

Step 5: Developing Communication / Promotion strategy

Based on the audience identified and the price points established, the marketing communication strategy can now be developed. Whatever promotional methods are finalized need to appeal to the intended customers and ensure that the key features and benefits of the product are clearly understood and highlighted.

Step 6: Cross-check of the Marketing Mix

A step back needs to be taken at this point to see how all the elements identified and planned for relate to each other. All marketing mix variables are interdependent and rely on each other for a strong strategy. Do the proposed selling channels reinforce the perceived value of the product? Is the promotional material in keeping with the distribution channels proposed? The marketing plan can be finalized once it is ensured that all four elements are in harmony and there are no conflicting messages, either implicit or explicit.

Marketing Mix Development

[slideshare id=8625244&doc=marketingmixdevelopment-110718090426-phpapp02&w=710&h=500]

KEY CHALLENGES

Over the years, marketing managers have felt that the traditional marketing mix has its limitations in how it is structured. Several important elements have been grouped within four larger categories thereby belittling their true importance amid several factors. Two main criticisms and their solutions:

Lack of Focus on Services

The conventional marketing mix tends to be applicable to tangible goods i.e. the traditional definition of products. Services or intangible goods are also a vital customer offering and can be planned for in much the same way as physical products. To cater to the unique challenges of services, the 4P model has been supplemented with 3 additional categories which are:

  • Physical Evidence is proof and a reassurance that a service was performed
  • People are the employees who deliver the service
  • Processes are the methods through which a service is executed and delivered to the customer

Lack of True Customer Focus

Though a total focus on the customer and what they desire is a vital element of the 4P model, this truth is often in danger of being overlooked by enthusiastic marketing teams. To counter this, Robert F. Lauterborn put forward his customer centric four Cs classification in 1990. This model converts the four P’s into more customer oriented four C’s:

  • Product to Customer Solution
  • Price to Customer Cost
  • Promotion to Customer Communication
  • Place to Customer Convenience

MARKETING MIX EXAMPLE – NIVEA

The Company

NIVEA is a well-known company that is in the high quality skin and beauty care product market. NIVEA is one the brands manufactured and sold by Beiersdorf, which was established in 1882. In UK, the company has always focused on ensuring availability of their products to as many people as possible. In addition, the company has always strived to understand the varied needs of its vast consumer base and bring as many specific products to market as possible.

Marketing mix for Nivea’s new product line

Market research revealed an opportunity in the market for a younger customer base. This led to the launch of Nivea Visage Young in 2005. This product was developed for girls in the 13 to 19 year age range.

For the eventual launch of the product, the company needed to develop a balanced and relevant marketing mix to appeal to its young audience. Through its initial launch in 2005 to a subsequent re launch in 2007, the company focused closely on the marketing mix balance to help ensure that all elements of the product appeal to the target audience to achieve success.

Product

The company put significant importance in ongoing research to understand the constantly evolving market and consumer dynamics. This knowledge has helped the company develop more innovative new products that fulfill consumer needs. Through this research, it became clear that younger consumers wished for a more specific product that addressed the skin needs of their age category. The need was for a product that offered a beautifying regime for daily use rather than a medicated product that targeted specific skin problems. The latter were abundantly being offered by competition. The product was subsequently redesigned to meet these specialized requirements.

From the company’s perspective, some of the changes helped meet its commitment to the environment which included more efficient packaging to reduce waste, the use of more natural products and the use of recyclable plastic.

Price

An effective pricing strategy takes into account the product’s perceived and actual values. The final price should be based on both these in order to make the product attractive to both buyer and seller. After its relaunch, Nivea Visage Young was priced a little higher than before to account for the new formula, better packaging and extended range of products. Since the product as being bought by mothers for their daughters, it remained low enough to remain good value for money. Effective pricing means that sales from this product account for nearly 7 percent of all Nivea Visage sales.

Place

As mentioned, Nivea aims to have a wide reach for its products to ensure that it is easily available wherever needed by the extensive target market. The primary channels used are retail stores. High Street stores such as Boots and Superdrug account for nearly 65 percent of all sales. Another portion comes from grocery chain stores such as ASDA or Tesco. This covers young people making their own purchases (mostly high street), as well as their mothers buying for them (mostly grocery stores). These stores ensure a cost effective distribution channel that has a wide reach. The company manages its own cost by selling to wholesalers rather than directly to smaller stores. It also does not sell online directly, but the product is sold through stockists.

Promotion

Nivea’s has always tried to base its promotions on the actual lifestyle of its target market. The company does not find above the line promotions to be very effective as these are one way communications through TV for example. Instead, the promotion is more consumer led through different below the line solutions. Sample sales are a key activity that allows consumers to try out the actual product. There is also an interactive online magazine FYI (fun, young, independent) to increase product visibility and association. The company has also maintained a strong social media presence on popular social media networks. This used of new media has ensured a better brand awareness and association among target audience.

CONCLUSION

Through its successful use of a balanced marketing mix, Nivea Visage Young has managed to create a clear position in the market. It addresses a need felt by a specific niche segment. Traditional distribution methods are balanced by a unique product and updated promotional strategies. This ensures that the brand message reaches the right people at the right time in the right way.

As we see from the Nivea example, it is vital for any company to focus equally on all elements of the marketing mix while planning for a product. Eventually, there may be a need to divert more resources towards one variable such as strong distribution channels over promotional activities. But this needs to come after a clear plan and strategy has been decided upon. An effective marketing mix can mean the difference between a flash in the pan product or one that is bound to become a well-loved classic.

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