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28.15: Components of the Marketing Mix

  • Page ID
    45623
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    Learning Objectives
    • Define product
    • Define promotion
    • Define place
    • Define price

    Product

    Purple hexagon with the following text in the center: Product: What solution does the customer want and need. Outside the hexagon, to the right, is a list of considerations: features, design, user experience, naming, branding, differentiation
    Figure \(\PageIndex{1}\): Product

    In the marketing mix, the term “product” means the solution that the customer wants and needs. In this context, we focus on the solution rather than only on the physical product. Examples of the product include:

    • The Tesla Model S, a premium electric car
    • A Stay at a Holiday Inn Express, a low-price national hotel chain
    • Doritos Nachos Cheese, a snack food
    • Simple, an online banking service

    Each of these products has a unique set of features, design, name, and brand that are focused on a target customer. The characteristics of the products are different from competitors’ products.

    Screenshot from Simple.com "All your finances, in your pocket or on the web, whenever you need it." The website shows the convenience of the banking services they offer: the Simple Visa card, ATM access, “Powerful Reporting," which provides the customer with personalized data about their spending, and photo check deposits.

    Promotion

    Green hexagon with the following text in the center: Promotion: What is the dialogue between customer and company? Outside the hexagon, to the right, is a list of considerations: Message; method of delivering message, timing of delivery; communications by customers and influencers; competitor promotions.
    Figure \(\PageIndex{2}\): Promotion

    In the marketing mix, the term “promotion” refers to the communications that occur between the company and the customer. Promotion includes both the messages sent by the company and messages that customers send to the public about their experience. Examples of promotion include:

    • An advertisement in Cooking Light magazine
    • A customer’s review of the product on YouTube
    • A newspaper article in the local paper quoting a company employee as an expert
    • A text message sent to a list of customers or prospects

    Marketing professionals have an increasingly difficult job influencing promotions that cannot be controlled by the company. The company’s formal messages and advertising are only one part of promotions.

    facebook logo plus their slogan: "Like us on facebook."
    Figure \(\PageIndex{3}\): Marketers often run social media campaigns, rewarding customers who “Like” the company on Facebook.

    Place

    Orange hexagon with the following text: Place: how does the customer act or buy? Outside the hexagon, at the right, is a list of considerations: location of purchase, ease of transaction, access to distribution channels, sales force, competitor approaches
    Figure \(\PageIndex{4}\): Place

    In the marketing mix, the term “place” refers to the distribution of the product. Where does the customer buy the product? “Place” might be a traditional brick-and-mortar store, or it could be online. Examples include:

    • Distribution through an online retailer such as Amazon.com
    • Use of a direct sales force that sells directly to buyers
    • Sales through the company’s Web site, such as the shoe purchases at Nike.com
    • Sales by a distributor or partner, such as the purchase of a Samsung phone from Best Buy or from a Verizon store

    In today’s world, the concept of “place” in the marketing mix rarely refers to a specific physical address. It takes into account the broad range of distribution channels that make it easy for the target customer to buy.

    Price

    Turquoise hexagon with the following text in the middle: Price: what is the cost to the consumer? Outside the hexagon, at the right, is a list of considerations: value to buyer, price sensitivity, existing price points, discounts, competitor pricing
    Figure \(\PageIndex{5}\): Copy and Paste Caption here. (Copyright; author via source)

    In the marketing mix, the term “price” refers to the cost to the customer. This requires the company to analyze the product’s value for the target customer. Examples of price include:

    • The price of a used college textbook in the campus bookstore
    • Promotional pricing such as Sonic Drive-In’s half-price cheeseburgers on Tuesdays
    • Discounts to trade customers, such as furniture discounts for interior designers

    Marketing professionals must analyze what buyers are willing to pay, what competitors are charging, and what the price means to the target customer when calculating the product’s value. Determining price is almost always a complicated analysis that brings together many variables.

    Figure \(\PageIndex{6}\): Sonic offers discounts on cheeseburgers on Tuesday, which is typically a low sales day of the week. Source: www.sonicdrivein.com

    Contributors and Attributions

    CC licensed content, Original
    • Components of the Marketing Mix. Provided by: Lumen Learning. License: CC BY: Attribution
    • Practice Questions. Authored by: Robert Danielson. Provided by: Lumen Learning. License: CC BY: Attribution
    All rights reserved content
    • Screenshot of Simple Banking. Provided by: Simple Banking. Located at: https://www.simple.com/banking. License: All Rights Reserved. License Terms: Fair Use
    • Screen Shot of Facebook Logo. Provided by: Facebook. Located at: http://facebook.com. License: All Rights Reserved. License Terms: Fair Use
    • Screen Shot of Sonic Burger Ad. Provided by: Sonic. Located at: www.sonicdrivein.com. License: All Rights Reserved. License Terms: Fair Use

    28.15: Components of the Marketing Mix is shared under a not declared license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by LibreTexts.

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