The Marketing Mix - the History of the Marketing Mix and the Four P's

The Marketing Mix

There are many items or situations that require a well-balanced mixture in order to be successful. For instance, a cake mix requires a specified amount of each item, otherwise the cake might be too sweet or just not good at all if the ingredients aren't mixed right. The same is true with marketing. Marketing requires a good mixture in order to be successful in the final sale of the product at a profit. The following will discuss what the marketing mix is and a brief history of the marketing mix. It will also discuss further in detail the four P's of the marketing mix, as well as, show the relation of the marketing mix to a product offered by Verizon Communications.

The History of the Marketing Mix and the Four P's

The term "marketing mix" has been dated to originate sometime in the late 1940's. Neil H. Borden, a teacher at the time, began using the term after James Culliton had described the marketing manager as a "mixer of ingredients". The term "marketing mix" gained its popularity in 1964 when Borden published his article, The Concept of the Marketing Mix. Borden's original marketing mix included product planning, pricing, branding, distribution channels, personal selling, advertising, promotions, packaging, display, servicing, physical handling, and fact finding and analysis. The ingredients of Borden's original marketing mix were later regrouped by E. Jerome McCarthy into what is known today as the 4 P's of marketing: Product, Price, Place, and Promotion (NetMBA, 2006).

The product area is the emphasis in developing the right product or service for the target market. In the case of physical products, it also refers to any services or conveniences that are part of the offering (quickmba, 2004). In the product area of the marketing mix there are certain strategy decision areas that will need to be addressed. A company needs to decide what the physical good or service is. Once the general idea of the product is decided, the company will need to address other area such as: features, benefits, quality level, accessories, installation, instructions, warranty, product lines, packaging and branding (Perreault, 2004). These are all general areas that the company will need to address in order to meet the needs and expectations of the consumer.

The price of the product or service is the next P in the marketing mix. The pricing decisions should take into account profit margins and the probable pricing response of competitors (quickmba, 2004). Pricing decisions might include: pricing strategy, suggested retail price, volume discounts and wholesale pricing, and even cash and early payment discounts. There may even be a need to make seasonal pricing decisions, as well as, decisions in relation to bundling, price flexibility and price discrimination (NetMBA, 2006). Some strategy decisions involved with the pricing aspect of the product include: objectives, flexibility, and level over product life cycle, geographic terms, discounts, and allowances (Perreault, 2004).

When a product is desired by a customer, it is important that the product is available when and where the customer wants it. Strategy decision areas for place are: objectives, channel type, market exposure, kinds of middlemen, kinds and locations of stores, how to handle transporting and storing the product, service levels, recruiting middlemen, and managing (Perreault, 2004). Distributing the product to the consumer is a decision that may include one or more channels of distribution. According to Marketing Teacher, a channel of distribution comprises a set of institutions which perform all of the activities utilized to move a product and its title from production to consumption (Marketing Teacher, 2000). Depending on the product and the consumer, there are four different types of marketing channels that may be used. A direct channel of distribution involves the consumer receiving the product directly from the manufacturer or producer. This type of distribution is common in business markets and in the marketing of services. However, the uses of direct channels of distribution are becoming more common today due to the use of the internet (Perreault, 2004). The other three types of distribution channels involve an intermediary who might be a wholesaler, agents, and/or retailers. There are even circumstances in which there may be multiple channels of distribution (Perreault, 2004). The distribution system involves transactional, logistical, and facilitating functions in which the decisions include market coverage, channel member selection, logistics, and levels of service (quickmba, 2004).

The promotion of the product is the communication and selling of the product to potential consumers. There are three types of promotion: personal selling, mass selling, and sales promotion. Personal selling can be very expensive. It involves the direct communication between sellers and potential customers. This type of selling can occur in a face-to-face setting or even over the telephone or via a video conference. The benefit of personal selling is that it allows the salesperson to adapt the firms marketing mix to each potential customer, but is rather costly and may need to be blended with mass-selling and sales promotion (Perreault, 2004).

Mass selling is simply how it states. It is the communication of a product to large numbers of customers at the same time. Mass selling has two main aspects: advertising and publicity. Advertising is any paid form of non-personal presentation of ideas, goods, or services by an identified sponsor. Publicity is the unpaid form of the same non-personal presentation of ideas, goods, or services (Perreault, 2004). Mass selling involves many types of media which may be billboards, television, newspapers, radio, or even the Internet.

The third aspect of the promotion portion of the marketing mix is sales promotion. Sales promotion refers to the other promotion activities that don't involve advertising, publicity, and personal selling. The sales promotion is an attempt to stimulate interest, trial, or purchase by the consumers or others involved in the distribution channel. S ales promotion might include: coupons, samples, signs, contests, catalogs, novelties, and circulars (Perreault, 2004).

The market mix is designed to accommodate the customer. Therefore, each aspect of the marketing mix (4 P's) has equal importance. When the marketing mix is being developed, all (final) decisions about the P's should be made at the same time (Perreault, 2004, p. 41). To summarize the marketing mix, a company develops a product to meet the needs and desires of the customers. It is then determined how the product