Trends in marketing come and go, but at the core of every successful marketing strategy of the last 60 years have been specific principles. These elements focus the plan and give the business owner the best possible chance of successfully marketing their product to their ideal consumer.
The ways that these elements come together is called the “marketing mix.” The marketing mix definition is a set of actions that a company uses to promote its products or services as part of an overall marketing plan.
Developed in the 1950s and expanded and enriched over the following decades, the marketing mix has become the standard for developing and implementing an effective marketing strategy for businesses of all sizes and success levels.
Creating a marketing mix requires data and analysis across the board and the ability and expertise to put it together and see the clear picture of what your company needs. To start with, you need to consider the factors that influence your marketing mix.
What Factors Determine the Marketing Mix?
Your company has a product, and you need to find the right way to pitch it to potential customers. Before you do that, though, you need to consider the many factors that influence how your product is marketed.
The marketing mix for your product or service is going to be determined by two main factors.
Internal Factors
These factors affect the marketing mix from within the company or are primarily concerned with the company’s inner workings and atmosphere. These include:
- The nature of the products being sold
- The stages in the life cycle of the products
- The availability of funds
- The objectives of the company
External Factors
Factors outside the company that influence the marketing plans are external factors, such as:
- The degree of competition with other similar companies
- Efficiency of channel
- Consumer buying behaviors
- Government regulation
The Ps of Marketing
The marketing mix elements have expanded from the foundation of the 4 Ps of marketing to 5 Ps of marketing, 6 Ps of marketing, and as many as 8 Ps of marketing. These elements define how the world sees your business. They evaluate how you interact with your customers and how you can do so more successfully.
Large and small businesses benefit from using marketing mix elements, but small businesses especially need the critical leverage that the Ps of marketing can give you.
To understand and genuinely define marketing mix and how it applies to your business and products, you have to start with the foundational four Ps—Product, Price, Place, and Promotion, then explore the rest of the Ps of marketing.
Let’s take a look at this marketing mix example.
Product
This P is the physical product or service that your company has to offer. Your product has to fulfill a need or want of your ideal consumer. Important product aspects to consider include its characteristics, packaging, and quality.
Everything in your business begins and ends with your product, so it needs to be unique and its purpose in demand. Focusing on your product and what it needs to be marketed appropriately takes some effort, but using these questions should get you started:
- What do consumers want from me and my product?
- Who is my competition? What are they doing right with their product?
- What can my product do better than the products of my competitors?
- Could my product be better? In what way?
- What about my competition do consumers like? What don’t they like?
Pricing
Your product’s purchase price considers the cost of production, marketing and distribution, and competitor pricing. It should also consider pricing strategies and how customers will perceive the product and its benefit to them.
Pricing can have a significant effect on your product’s evolution. Pricing changes with competitors may result in updates to your products or expansion in some regard to offer consumers more opportunity to get the best value for their money.
Place
The locations where your product is produced, stored, and sold are the place. Transportation, distribution channels, and warehousing are also included here.
Accessibility denotes how your customers can get your product when they need it, and your marketing needs to convey that clearly and thoroughly. Analyzing the elements of place may tell you your products needs to be presented in an unusual venue or medium because your ideal consumers are there.
Promotion
Promotion is the most critical element because it is all about communicating your product to the consumer. It encompasses all aspects of informing the consumer about your product, including advertising, personal selling, promotional strategies, and public relations.
Promotion is about making a consumer want your product or need your product, and in some ways, it has become more complex. There is an oversaturation of images and videos online and in the media, making it all the more difficult to stand out. You must stand out, though, to sell your product successfully and in the long-term.
Three More Elements
As mentioned previously, the 4 Ps above are the core of the marketing mix. However, over time, more and more Ps have been added, with the ones listed below contributing to the 7 Ps. Keep in mind each P element of the marketing mix will vary in importance depending on a business’s size and outlook. Other notable P elements include:
- People – consumers and employees
- Packaging – presentation of the product and your company
- Positioning – consumers image and opinion of your company
The Cs of Marketing
For some marketing strategists, the more customer-oriented version of the marketing mix works best. This marketing mix mirrors the same elements of the Ps but approaches them from a customer’s angle.
Like the Ps of marketing, the Cs come in varied incarnations, including the 4 Cs of marketing, the 5 Cs of marketing, and the 7 Cs of marketing. Let’s take a look at the elements of the 7 Cs.
Credibility
Today’s consumers want to be sure that what they see is what they get. With access to the internet and a host of research and review sites, people check out businesses and their feedback more than ever.
If your business is online, you automatically have more credibility with your potential consumers because they can quickly get online and check out your product or service.
Cost-Effective
The more cost-effective your business is, the more that translates to the products you promote. Production, advertising, and other costs become part of your product’s price, so when you can keep those costs lower, it reflects lower prices for your products. Consumers look for that and are loyal to it.
Creating a website is easier and cheaper than ever before. Online advertising has provided a way for your business to promote products and services more effectively and economically.
Customers
Today, a great deal of business happens online, and that includes customers purchasing products. Having an online presence that your customers can reach easily and engage with entirely is the best way to dominate your product niche.
A website filled with great SEO-optimized content and the ability to connect through social media are crucial elements to meet the customers’ needs.
Connections
Social media platforms are beneficial for this C. Once you have gotten your customer’s attention, you want to engage with them and begin building the relationship you need to keep them coming back for your product. The ability to engage with them on social media platforms through posts and photos keeps your products and your company constantly in their minds.
Increasing traffic on your social media pages can increase traffic in your store, whether it is online or brick-and-mortar. You can offer special deals and coupons for products, build up customer loyalty, gain reviews, and even expand your reach through shares and list building.
Close
The ability to be “a click away” is a great attraction for many consumers. Being available to your ideal customers when they require their needs met gives you an advantage over your peers and competitors. Rather than maintain static websites, use them to interact actively and engage with customers, getting you to close the deal quickly.
Customer Service
Customer service is critical, and by interacting as directly as possible with your ideal consumers, you can address their concerns more quickly and efficiently. Customers remember businesses that care, and they’re more likely to return for future business if the experience is a positive and proactive one.
Cash
Every business wants to make more money. Whether you have a physical store or operate entirely online, the additional revenue of online business can not be overstated. An online business opens up an additional revenue stream that reaches beyond the local to a global enterprise. Your business becomes scalable, and your income potential unlimited.
Benefits of an Effective Marketing Mix Strategy
Once you have an effective marketing mix strategy assembled and up and running, what are the benefits? How does it positively affect your business beyond what has already been discussed?
A properly blended marketing mix:
- Creates synergy within your business and the right pitch for your products
- Promotes brand loyalty and product value by earning the customers’ respect and satisfaction
- Serves as a link between the customer and your company that is fostered and encouraged by the promotional aspects
- Enables the proper and effective integration when merged correctly, creating a unique signature for your business and products in the customer’s mind
A compelling marketing mix shows the interdependence of elements within your company. Appreciating those connections helps guide you in your decision-making, whether about product development, product placement, marketing, promotions, or pricing.
For example, suppose the promotional outlets and ideas you choose are expensive. In that case, you will have to price your product accordingly and cater to customers that have the means to purchase it. Your product must be quality-based to justify the pricing. Channels of distribution and location will also be guided by the content of the marketing mix.
What are the results of all this effort and organization? Higher customer satisfaction. And the more satisfied your customers are, the more sales your company will make.
Bringing It All Together
Whether you choose to embrace some or all of the Ps of Marketing or the Cs of Marketing, developing a marketing mix strategy means analyzing your business and products’ various elements and determining how they best apply to your marketing needs.
You have to know your product inside and out. It also helps to understand and appreciate how the public sees your product, especially your ideal consumer.
You need to evaluate how best to present and display your product to reach the customers who will want it the most. You must price it to earn their respect and repeat purchases.
You have to maintain a consistent relationship with your customers, one that will reward your business with long-term success.
The modern marketing mix strategy provides you with the best possible plan for promoting your product, targeting your customers, and giving them real value in promotion and development. No matter the size of your business, the marketing mix can deliver the results you desire.
Marketing Mix Modeling
Gold Promotion of Boston, MA, understands digital marketing and the importance of creating a solid marketing mix to support and grow your business. Our experienced team can work with any business model, analyze the data, and determine the best course for your business and products.
Whether your business is local or global, online or in a storefront, we can work with you to optimize your marketing strategies and deliver quality, professional results. We serve the Boston area and surrounding communities. We are ready to evaluate your products and services and find the best marketing strategy for you and your business.
Ready to help you take your business to new heights? Gold Promotion can help! For more information or to schedule a consultation about what we can do for your business, visit our website or give us a call today at 800-476-3094.
We built a performance marketing system for small business owners. Cutting-edge technology and tactics power revenue-focused digital marketing
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