Marketing Mix

MARKETING MIX

Marketing refers to the activity by means of which a product or service is introduced to the public. While marketing a product, there are few things, which must be kept in view, or else the entire marketing strategy would fail to produce the desired results and might even prove very costly. For example, when you have a new product or service that your firm intends to launch in a month's time, it will be important to do some marketing for it before it actually appears of the shelves. This is because without any marketing, no one would even know that such a product is available in the market. Therefore marketing activity is planned and carried out. No matter what your marketing strategy is, there are some factors or elements, which are always essential to every marketing strategy. These are the key ingredients of a general marketing mix and are commonly known as the four Ps. These four Ps are price, product, promotion and place. How a firm develops its marketing strategy depends on a great deal on the strategic planners and other factors. However without paying attention to these four Ps, it is absolutely impossible to create a successful marketing strategy. These are the four absolutely essential elements of a marketing mix and are discussed in detail below:

Product:

A final product is an asset for any firm that can make or break the company's revenue situation at least in the short run. Therefore success of the product is very important. But success doesn't depend solely upon the quality; there are some other things that must be taken care of. The product must meet the needs of the target section of consumers. If a vehicle is designed as a family car, it must meet the needs of an average American family. Do not assign a description to the product that it absolutely doesn't fit. Secondly, design and packaging are important too. A food product would certainly attract customers more if it has an attractive packaging, similarly a luxury car would attract more customers if its design were exclusive and reflects the taste and class of the target market. Warranties also play an important role. If the company includes some kind of warranty, it gives the customer more confidence to purchase the product. A warranty reflects the confidence of the manufacture in his/her product or service. Last but not the least, it pays to remember that quality is and will always be the overriding factor. It is a must to bring quality product to the product. Unfinished or underdeveloped product must not be hurried to the market.

Price:

Once the product is ready and has reached its final stage, it is important to determine your pricing strategy for the same, product must be priced according to the class and market it targets. Secondly price should mostly be competitive. In other words, one must determine the price after carefully studying the general pricing trends for similar products in the market. This helps in determining a competitive price for your product. Cheap pricing is usually the method adopted by firms in order to penetrate the market and get some market share. However too low a price makes the product 'cheap' in the customer's mind and gives rise to doubts and suspicions. Therefore if low price is the desired strategy, make sure the pricing is still competitive. For example if everyone is selling a TV set for $1000, lower your price to $950 instead of opting for something drastically low like $700. This will help in market penetration while at the