Marketing executives have to understand the logical sequence of marketing activities or marketing mix to attain the firm’s goals and maximum customer satisfaction. By marketing mix, we mean all kinds of marketing decision which provide an incentive for selling and consumer satisfaction.
An executive marketing manager has to think about some fundamental questions, such as:
- What to sell? (Product)
- What to communicate? (Promotion)
- Where to sell? (Place)
- At what price? (Price)
The answer to the above questions lies in the concept of the marketing mix, therefore, the above Ps can be termed as a logical sequence of marketing activities.
The concept of the marketing mix is a very useful concept for marketers, marketing mix can be described as a judicious mixture of the desired elements of marketing to attain profitable sales volume and maximum consumer satisfaction.
Marketing managers can formulate practical plans to integrate the external variables and internal variables with the help of a suitable marketing mix.
Primary Components of Marketing Mix with Examples
The marketing mix denotes the combination of four major elements that constitute a firm’s marketing system.
These elements can be referred to as the four Ps in marketing:
1. Product
The first element – product includes aspects of packaging and branding.
Product is a set of tangible and intangible attributes designed to satisfy any specific or general consumer needs.
Marketing activities start from the generation of an idea about the product and end with the positioning of the product in the target markets.
The success of product planning and development lies in the maximum consumer satisfaction and motivation for repeated purchase.
Customers’ needs should be identified by the company, so it could design the product or services accordingly. If the product does not satisfy the customer’s need that it has no relevance from the marketing point of view.
In the process of product planning and development, the marketer should take into account the right design, desired color and size, preferred style, appealing brand name, attractive packaging, well-informed label and effective after-sales services of the products.
The marketer should identify the important specific variable out of the above and it should be given due importance in product planning and development.
2. Place or Physical Distribution
By the second element – the place we mean the system of marketing channels through which products and services are distributed to the ultimate consumers or final buyers.
The basic object of the manufacturer in selecting and developing distribution channels, in conjunction with other elements of the marketing mix is the maximize the degree of attainment of company goals including profit, stability, and long-term growth.
Production has no meaning until and unless the product is delivered to the consumers. In this regard, the marketer should select the right distribution policy.
The marketer should take into account the factors affecting the choice of channel of distribution.
Marketing firms should take the channel of distribution very seriously.
The basic purpose of the establishment of the channel is to provide convenience in buying to the customers so that they can purchase the firm’s products or services without any harassment.
Rather, the channel should provide pleasure and joy in buying to customers.
Sales area should be divided into manageable sales territories. The location of the channel has no importance for the wholesaler, but it has its significant role for the retailers.
Inventory levels should be set up keeping in view the anticipated demand plus margin for the optimum use of capital resources.
Finally, the management of the physical distribution of products should be given top priority.
3. Promotion
The third element of the marketing mix is a promotion which includes personal selling and Advertising.
In view of the growing distance between centers of production and centers of consumption, the role of promotion is very vital.
Promotion is the communication by the marketer to its target customers regarding its product or services.
In advertising, sales promotion and publicity it is unilateral.
In personal selling, it is full bilateral, but in public relations, it is up to some extent and bilateral.
No marketer can depend 100% on any form of promotion like advertising, personal selling, self-promotion, publicity, and Public Relations.
The marketer must make a judicious mixture of three basic elements of sales promotion, advertising, personal selling, and sales promotion keeping in view the type of product, number of customers, geographical area of the market, financial and managerial resources.
Advertising is a non-personal communication of messages regarding a product or service by the media. The role of advertising is important in the case of consumer goods. Personal selling is contacting prospective buyers personally by the Salesman.
In the case of durable consumer items, products having high technical value, and industrial products the use of personal selling is more effective.
All other methods including advertising and personal selling used to boost sales of the product or services are included in sales promotion.
In sales promotion, the role of effective technique is very important.
There are several techniques to motivate consumers and dealers to purchase the company’s product in more quantum.
Public Relations also play an important role in the promotion of a product or service.
4. Pricing
The fourth element of the marketing mix is pricing. In setting the prices, manufacturers must work backward from the final or retail prices to the factory prices with the allowance for customary or required profit margins at each stage of the channel.
Price is the value of the product or service expressed in monetary terms.
From the buyer’s point of view, it is the cost which he is paying to the marketer for product or service. Price has an important role in marketing.
The price of the product is related to the affordable paying capacity of the consumer, the purpose and motive behind the purchase, etc.
While fixing the price of the product, the marketer should take into consideration the various factors affecting the price in a particular market segment.
The marketer should Explorer and design suitable price strategies to capture maximum market share.
Major price policies and strategies are geographical pricing, uniform pricing, unit pricing, price lining, resale pricing, maintenance leader pricing, follow the leader pricing, a skim the cream pricing, physiological pricing, price competition, non-price competition, and discount and allowances.
The concept of the marketing mix is dynamic in nature because marketing activities are performed in a changing environment.
The marketing mix refers to the apportionment of effort, the communication, the designing, and the integration of the elements of marketing into a program or mix which on the basis of an appraisal of the market forces will be best achieve the objectives of an enterprise at a given time. Why is marketing mix important to a business Success?
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