First, there were 4
The term “marketing mix” is a foundation model for businesses, historically centered around Product, Price, Place, and Promotion.
The marketing mix has been defined as the “set of marketing tools that the firm uses to pursue its marketing objectives in the target market. Wikipedia
The 4Ps are fairly straight forward and most business owners spend time thinking about them whether they realize it’s a component of marketing or not. Here’s how we help customers ensure they’ve got a marketing cap on when they make some of these foundational decisions…
Product (or Service)
This right here is likely why you’re in business in the first place, and you likely have a pretty good handle on what it is you’re selling. The trick from a marketing angle is to be sure you (or your verbiage) can quickly explain what problem this offering solves. What makes it different from the competition? How do guarantee it is what you say it is? These are important points to translate into your campaigns.
Have you heard of the “elevator pitch”?
The concept is, you are in the elevator with a potential investor/customer/business associate and you have 30 seconds to tell them about you/your business before they reach their floor and get off the elevator. Can you do it effectively? The idea is to grab the attention of that person so she or he will want more information by the time they reach their floor. Set a timer for 30 seconds on your phone and try it out!
Price
Formulas for pricing exist and can provide a good starting point for arriving at a competitive price for your offering. With online shopping, pricing has become a bigger consideration as customers can quickly find the same or similar products along with their advertised prices. Pay attention to this aspect, especially with products that can be delivered by another supplier. Make sure your pricing is in line, or that some other competitive advantage is clearly defined (ie free shipping, no hassle returns, same day delivery) to make sure you haven’t priced yourself out of the running. Services can be trickier to price, and listing service rates online is not always best practice. Click here to read more about the pros and cons of listing prices online.
Place
Most business owners get the idea behind a place to sell their product or service (ie retail shop, website, market, etc.); what many people overlook is the logistics involved in that placement. When considering the “places” you will sell, think about your own buying habits. Top of mind is convenience.
Promotion
Likely the “P” that is most often associated with marketing, promotion is somewhat interchangeable with advertising. Beyond the obvious “ads” though, are things like press releases, swag, SEO and special offers. When your other Ps are in a row, this piece can fall into place quite easily.
So what are the other 3 Ps?
As marketing has evolved, so has the strategy. Many firms now acknowledge that there are 7Ps of Marketing. In addition to the original 4Ps, People, Process and Physical Evidence need to be considered as well. The 7 Ps make up the necessary marketing mix that a business must have to advertise a product or service.
People
This is the area where most businesses are failing. Whether it stems from oversight or a lack of qualified candidates, this is often the component most sorely lacking when it comes to marketing.
All the people that can be associated with your company are fair game here, not just the front-line staff. We will take this a step further and suggest that AI is entering into this space. If you replace your human admin staff with automated chatbots, this is the experience your customer gets.
I recently had the pleasure of responding to a paint sale ad for Canadian Tire. I went to the swatch board that had a large ad suggesting that customers take swatches home to view paint colours in the room where they will be. This is not a new idea. I had driven in that day for exactly that reason, to grab swatches so I could check them out and buy my paint the following day before the sale ended. The people in the store were unable to locate a swatch for me, they were unable to provide me the one off the board and they were unwilling to sign out the swatch book for me. I asked them if they could make a quick swatch and they were unable to that unless I paid for it. They were MORE than happy to make me any colour off the swatch board under the fluorescent light in the store. My husband pointed out the sign above their heads that said NOT to choose off the board, and to take a swatch home to ensure satisfaction. In the end, they told me I was welcome to shop elsewhere. So I did. The point? The promotion and effort behind it put on by the retailer fell flat when the salespeople were unable to do their job. The funniest part was that they acknowledged that grey (which is what I was after) swatches has been out for weeks and the colour I wanted was the most popular range. As if this made the whole thing better. To me it signaled the complete degradation of society and the work force. If I were in charge of the paint department and we ran out of samples of our MOST POPULAR colour I would be making up small batches and creating my own swatch boards to hand out during my sale. Why else run the sale? We wrote on problem this extensively in our April Blog.
Process
We are sticklers for process. Work it and rework it.
A good process is worth its weight in gold. Beyond satisfying customers, a good process is the foundation for growth. While small fires can be put out for procedural problems when you’re small, they can quickly turn into wildfires when business booms.
Physical Evidence
This is the best one. Think of this as the paper trail, all of the touchpoints from here to there when a customer embarks on a journey with you. Is the experience seamless, branded and positioned to encourage repeat orders or referrals? A fun way to check this is to print off all your touchpoints, create a visual map with all the pieces laid out and you will quickly identify the gaps and opportunities.
Don’t be scared to take it next level
That doesn’t mean adding 28 automated emails to your blasty funnel, better is to challenge yourself to offer something new or creative. A handwritten note, a fun message on your packaging, a bonus product with large orders, or an extra service for a committed client.
Your Unique Marketing Mix
Your business will require it’s own marketing mix, your own unique take on promoting your product/service and connecting it to the people who need it. Now that you have a better understanding of the 7 P’s of marketing you can start to imagine how this will look for your business.
If you need a deeper dive into the 7 P’s and how they fit into your Marketing Mix, click here to read the article from our partners at Constant Contact. You don’t need to start off by using all 7, however, as you grow and evolve, moving towards encompassing the entire mix will help you reach your marketing and sales goals. It does not matter if you are a sole entrepreneur or a large-scale international company, these proven strategies can be used by all kinds of businesses.
