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Marketing Mix
What is the Marketing Mix?
Professor E Jerome McCarthy first used the term Marketing Mix in the 1960's. He suggested that it contained 4 elements, which are now commonly referred to as the 4 P's, which are used to describe the position of a product in a marketplace. They are the variables that marketing managers can control in order to best satisfy a customer in a target market. The 4 P's are:
1. Product ? The product is the physical product or service that it is offered to the consumer. Product decisions include aspects such as function, appearance, packaging, service, warranty etc.
2. Price ? The price is the amount the customer pays for a product. Pricing decisions take into account profit margins and the prices of competitors.
3. Place ? Place represents the location a product can be purchased. Place decisions are those associated with channels of distribution that serve as a means for getting the product to the target customers.
4. Promotion ? Promotion represents all the communications that a marketer may use in the marketplace. Decisions taken are those related to communicating and selling to potential customers.
The extended marketing mix consists of the 4 P's and 3 extra P's, or the 7 P's of Booms and Bitner. It is a marketing strategy tool that expands on the number of controllable variables. The original 4 P's were directed at, and useful for tangible products. The 7 P's model is more useful for service industries.
5. People ? Anyone who directly or indirectly comes into contact with the customer can have an impact on overall satisfaction. To the customer ...