22CB406 - MARKETING RESEARCH AND

MARKETING MANAGEMENT

UNIT-2 & LP 4 - MARKETING MIX

Marketing mix
The marketing mix definition is simple. It is about putting the right product or a
combination thereof in the place, at the right time, and at the right price.

The difficult part is doing this well, as you need to know every aspect of your business
plan.

As we noted before, the marketing mix is predominately associated with the 4P’s of
marketing, the 7P’s of service marketing, and the 4 Cs theories developed in the 1990s.

Here are the principles used in the application of the right marketing mix starting with
the 7P's:

Marketing Mix 4P's

A marketing expert named E. Jerome McCarthy created the Marketing 4Ps in the
1960s.
The marketing mix definition is simple. It is about putting the right product or a
combination thereof in the place, at the right time, and at the right price.
The difficult part is doing this well, as you need to know every aspect of your business
plan.
 Concept of Marketing Mix:
The concept of marketing mix, according to Borden consists of:
(i) A list of the important elements or ingredients that make up the marketing
programmes, and

(ii) A list of the forces that bear on the marketing operation of a firm and to which the
marketing manager must adjust in his search for a mix or programme that can be
successful.

In brief, the four “ingredients” in the mix are interrelated. These are also known as
marketing decision variables.

Elements of marketing mix of manufacturers:

1. Product Planning comprises policies and procedures relating to:

(a) Product line to be offered-qualities and design and also services.
(b) Markets to sell: Whom, where, when and in what quantity.
(c) New product policy Research and development programmes.
2. Pricing, policies and procedures relating to:
(a) Price level to adopt.
(b) Specific prices to adopt.
(c) Price policy, for example, one price or varying prices, price maintenance, use of list
price etc.
(d) Margins to adopt, for company, for the trade.
3. Branding, policies and procedures relating to:
(a) Selection of trade marks.
(b) Brand policy individualized or family brand.
(c) Sale under private label or unbranded.
4. Channels of distribution, policies and procedures relating to:
(a) Channels to use between plant and consumer.
(b) Degree of selectivity among wholesalers and retailers.
(c) Efforts to gain cooperation of the trade.
5. Personal selling, policies and procedures relating to:
(a) Manufacturer’s organisation.
 (b) Wholesale segment of the trade.
(c) Retail segment of the trade.
6. Advertising, policies and procedures relating to:
(a) The amount to spend
(b) Copy platform to adopt:
(i) Product image desired and
(ii) Corporate image desired.
(c) Mix of advertising: to the trade, through the trade, to customers.
7. Promotions, policies and procedures relating to:
(a) Special selling plans or devices directed at or through the trade.
(b) Form of these devices for consumer promotions, for trade promotions.
8. Packing:
Packing policies and procedures relating to formulation of packages and labels
9. Display:
Display, policies and procedures relating to:
(a) Amount to be spent on display to help effect sale.
(b) Methods to adopt to secure display.
10. Servicing:
Servicing, policies and procedures relating to services needed.
11. Physical handling:
Physical handling, policies and procedures relating to:
(a) Warehousing
(b) Transportation
(c) Inventories.
12. Fact finding and analysis:
Fact finding and analysis, policies and procedures relating to: Securing, analysis and use
of facts in marketing operation
ELEMENTS OF MARKETING MIX:

7Ps of MARKETING MIX

Each of the 7Ps found in a marketing mix work together to ensure your business is a
success. The 7Ps also have an impact on your positioning, targeting, and segmentation
decisions, so it’s crucial to understand their benefits to create your own marketing mix.

PRODUCT
A marketing mix always begins with a product to sell. In the early development phase of
your product, it is extremely important to carry out extensive research on the life cycle of
the product you are creating. All products have their own life cycle including the growth
phase, the maturity phase, and the sales decline phase. Once a product reaches the sales
decline phase, marketers need to find new ways to increase sales again.

When developing the right product, it’s important to ask yourself a series of questions to
make sure your product is better than your competitors, i.e. what does the client want from
the product? Or, how, where and why the client uses the product?

PLACE

In a marketing mix, place refers to the position and distribution of the product you are
selling in a place that is accessible to your target audience, this could be a high street shop,
an online store, or mail order. Examples of distribution strategies include: intensive,
exclusive, selective and franchising.

To make sure you position your product in the best possible place, it’s vital to understand
your customer and what their shopping habits may be. Therefore, to develop a
distribution strategy, you need to ask yourself the following questions:
 Where do clients look for my product?
 Where do clients usually shop for products?
 Should I sell the product online?
PRICE
Pricing is an extremely important component to your marketing mix as it determines
your profit and costing of your product. Altering the price of a product can affect the entire
marketing strategy, whilst also affecting the sales and demand of your product.

As a newcomer to the market, it’s tempting to set your prices high, especially if you know
your product is worth the price you are asking for. However, it’s unlikely that your target
audience will be willing to pay the price, simply because your brand is only starting out
so you’re not as recognisable or trustworthy – this comes with time.

Pricing also helps consumers to determine the perception of your product. For example, a
lower priced product is deemed less inferior in terms of quality and ability, as opposed to a
highly priced product.

PROMOTION
In a marketing mix, promotion is an element that can boost sales and brand recognition
through advertising, sales promotion, sales organisation, and public relations.

When promoting a product, you may decide on all of the promotion elements above, or
simply choose the techniques that will target your audience more effectively. However,in
order to create a successful product promotion strategy, here are a number of
questions to ask yourself first:
 When is the best time to promote my product?
 What is the strategy my competitors are using?
 Should I use social media to promote the product?

 How can I send marketing messages to my target audience?

 What marketing channel is the best to promote my product for my audience?
The promotional strategy you use is also dependent on your budget, your communication
and how you want to get your message across, and your target market.

PEOPLE
Another important element in the marketing mix is people. This includes whether or not
your target audience is large enough, and if there is a large enough demand for your
product or not.

Consumers aren’t the only important people to consider in your marketing strategy, you
also have to take into the account the people who will be delivering the marketing and
sales of your product. To make sure you deliver excellent service and marketing, you’ll
need people who are fully trained for the job, whether this is customer service assistants,
copywriters, designers or a sales representative for example.

PROCESS

As for processes in the marketing mix, the process of your organisation can affect the
performance of the service you provide, involving the delivery of your product to
consumers. As a business, it’s crucial to make sure you’re easy to do business with,
meaning you’re efficient, helpful and timely.

By making sure your business has a good process in place, you will also save time and
money due to greater efficiency, and your standard of service to customers will remain
consistent, which is excellent for developing a brand reputation and customer loyalty.

PHYSICAL EVIDENCE

The final P in a marketing mix stands for physical evidence and it refers to everything
your customers sees or hears when interacting with your business. This includes your
branding, your product packaging, a physical space such as a shop, and even the way your
staff and sales representatives act and dress – it’s not all about the product! The way that
you portray your brand physically has a great impact on consumers and can either lead or
an increase, or decrease, in sales.