INTRODUCTION OF MARKETING

                       Marketing

Putting the right product in the right place, at the right price, at the right time.

Marketing mix

Marketing mix is a general phrase used to describe the different kinds of choices organizations have to make in the whole process of bringing a product or service to market.

The 4Ps is one way – probably the best-known way – of defining the marketing mix, and was first expressed in 1960 by E J McCarthy.

The 4Ps are:

·        Product (or Service).

·        Place.

·        Price.

·        Promotion

A good way to understand the 4Ps is by the questions that you need to ask to define your marketing mix.

Product/Service

·        What does the customer want from the product/service? What needs does it satisfy?

·        What features does it have to meet these needs?

·        Are there any features you've missed out?

·        Are you including costly features that the customer won't actually use?

·        How and where will the customer use it?

·        What does it look like? How will customers experience it?

·        What size(s), color(s), and so on, should it be?

·        What is it to be called?

·        How is it branded?

·        How is it differentiated versus your competitors?

·        What is the most it can cost to provide, and still be sold sufficiently profitably?

Place

·        Where do buyers look for your product or service?

·        If they look in a store, what kind? A specialist boutique or in a supermarket, or both? Or online? Or direct, via a catalog?

·        How can you access the right distribution channels?

·        Do you need to use a sales force? Or attend trade fairs? Or make online submissions? Or send samples to catalog companies?

·        What do your competitors do, and how can you learn from that and/or differentiate?

Price

·        What is the value of the product or service to the buyer?

·        Are there established price points for products or services in this area?

·        Is the customer price sensitive? Will a small decrease in price gain you extra market share? Or will a small increase be indiscernible, and so gain you extra profit margin?

·        What discounts should be offered to trade customers, or to other specific segments  of your market?

·        How will your price compare with your competitors?

Promotion

·        Where and when can you get across your marketing messages to your target market?

·        Will you reach your audience by advertising online, in the press, or on TV, or radio, or on billboards? By using direct marketing mail shot? Through PR? On the Internet?

·        When is the best time to promote? Is there seasonality in the market? Are there any wider environmental issues that suggest or dictate the timing of your market launch, or the timing of subsequent promotions?

·        How do your competitors do their promotions? And how does that influence your choice of promotional activity?

What is product?

In marketing, a product is anything that can be offered to a market that might satisfy a want or need.

Product Line

A group of related products manufactured by a single company. 

Product mix

Product mix is also known as product assortment, refers to the total number of product lines that a company offers to its customers. 

Product Line Length

The product line length shows the number of different products in a product line. 

Product Line Depth

Some of the product types in a product line may be split again into groups, the product line depth shows how many subgroups the product line contains. 

Product Mix Width

The product mix width is the number of product lines in the product mix.