Marketing Basics
The purpose of this blog is to discuss everyday marketing around us and how we can analyze it through the marketing mix. I will be commenting on items I see and notice, and since I live in NYC, where we are bombarded with marketing messages throughout the day, there should be some interesting examples. Marketing strategy and branding will also be recurring themes, so feel free to add any input you may have.
Definition of Marketing
The American Marketing Association defines marketing as “the activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large.”
4 Ps of Marketing
Product
Product refers to tangible, physical products, as well as services. Some product decisions to be made are:
- Brand name
- Functionality
- Styling
- Quality
- Safety
- Packaging
- Repairs and Support
- Warranty
- Accessories and services
Price
Price refers to how much you will charge for your product or service. Some pricing decisions to be made include:
- Overall pricing strategy (skim, penetration, etc.)
- Suggested retail price
- Volume discounts and wholesale pricing
- Cash and early payment discounts
- Seasonal pricing
- Bundling
- Price flexibility
- Price discrimination
Place
Place refers to where customers can obtain your product or service. Place decisions to be made include:
- Distribution channels
- Market coverage (inclusive, selective, or exclusive distribution)
- Specific channel members
- Inventory management
- Warehousing
- Distribution centers
- Order processing
- Transportation
- Reverse logistics
Promotion
Promotion refers to the communication of information about the product/service with the goal of generating a positive response. Promotion decisions include:
- Promotional strategy (push, pull, etc.)
- Advertising
- Personal selling & sales force
- Sales promotions
- Public relations & publicity
- Marketing communications budget
