5.4 Elements of the Marketing Mix Flashcards
The marketing mix
Refers to all the activities influencing whether or not a customer buys a product. The elements of the mix can be analysed using the four Ps: price, place, product and promotion.
Product
Refers to all the factors relating to the design, the specifications and the features of the product. A business may alter its products to increase their appeal for different customers but must make sure the money they will earn will cover the costs of doing this.
Promotion
Promoting a product means communicating something about it in a way that will make people want to buy it. There are many ways of promoting eg: promoting in local newspaper, advertising online, sponsoring events (or people) or placing posters around town. The right form of promotion depends on the product. Eg: a café might advertise in the local newspaper, whereas a car manufacturer might advertise on national television.
Price
There are many different aspects to pricing. For example, there are the payment terms. Does the customer have to pay in the full amount? Can they rent/pay over time? Can they get a discount if they pay in large quantities? How does the price compare with competitors? Can they pay in instalments?
When setting prices, the business has to think about its costs. It has to cover all of its costs in order to make a profit. It must also think about the effects that the proce will have on demand. Generally increasing the price would lead to a lower demand. This could be useful when selling fashionable clothes and items of that nature, then make it seem like they’re limited in stock in order to maximise demand.
Good value for money does not mean low price. Apple sells really expensive products like the airpods, but they manage to convince their customers that the price is worth the product, which generates a lot of profit.
Place
Refers to the way in which products are distributed. Are they sold directly to customers (eg: via the internet) or through shops? Do they come directly from a factory to the shop or are they bought by a wholesaler first? What are the shops like where the products are sold? Apple has some elegant stores where its latest products are sold. Aldi has very basic, simple looking stores where it sells cheap, good value food.
Product differentiation
Making your product different to your competitors. Literally a USP
