Marketing Mix is a combination of marketing tools that a company uses to satisfy their target customers and achieving organizational goals. McCarthy classified all these marketing tools under four broad categories: ▪ Product ▪ Price ▪ Place ▪ Promotion
These four elements are the basic components of a marketing plan and are collectively called 4 P’s of marketing. 4 P’s pertain more to physical products than services. Below is an illustration for marketing mix.
The important thing to note is that all these four P’s (variable) are controllable, subject to internal and external constraints of marketing environment. Marketers, using different blends of these variables, can target different group of customers having different needs. So, a customer may call marketing mix “the offering”.
Product
Product is the actual offering by the company to its targeted customers which also includes value added stuff. Product may be tangible (goods) or intangible (services).
While formulating the marketing strategy, product decisions include: ▪ What to offer? ▪ Brand name ▪ Packaging ▪ Quality ▪ Appearance ▪ Functionality ▪ Accessories ▪ Installation ▪ After sale services ▪ Warranty
Price
Price includes the pricing strategy of the company for its products. How much customer should pay for a product? Pricing strategy not only related to the profit margins but also helps in finding target customers. Pricing decision also influence the choice of marketing channels. Price decisions include: ▪ Pricing Strategy (Penetration, Skim, etc) ▪ List Price ▪ payment period ▪ Discounts ▪ Financing ▪ Credit terms
Using price as a weapon for rivals is as old as mankind. but it’s risky too. Consumers are often sensitive for price, discounts and additional offers. Another aspect of pricing is that expensive products are considered of good quality.
Place (Placement)
It not only includes the place where the product is