Marketing MixEssay Preview: Marketing MixReport this essayMarketing is the sum of business activities that serve to promote the movement of goods and services from producers to consumers or other is users. Additionally marketing studies the circumstances of the consumer, the preferences as well as the attitudes and the use of this knowledge to create or develop goods and services for consumption. Marketing activities includes, planning, pricing, promotion and distribution of products and services to meet the needs of consumers (Kotler, 2002).
Although, the different activities that organizations undertake to market their goods or services are treated separately, some marketers actually combine all these activities into a marketing mix to create a unique marketing activity. The marketing mix consists mainly of four elements Product, Price, Promotion and Place often referred to as 4 ps. Marketing is closely related to the exchange process whereby the needs and wants of consumers are strategically aligned with the goods and services offered for sale by the producer (Bahr, Johnston, 1993, para 1). This paper will highlight the elements of the marketing mix as well as describe each of the four marketing mix in relation to the development of the Kelloggs organization marketing strategy and tactics.
Product:This marketing mix element can be the benefit or benefits tangible and intangible the buyer obtains in exchange for money. A product or a service is often created to fill a particular need in the marketplace. The product is the combination of all the contacts between the market and the marketer, through which goods are sought and purchased. At various points in the life cycle of a product, various marketing strategies become important. In early stages, advertising is essential to create product knowledge, while in later stages when the majority of potential consumers would have already bought the product, lower prices may be necessary to enhance further sales (Bahr, Johnston, 1993, p. 419).
Price:Price is a significant element of the marketing mix. The cost of placing a product on the market represents the base price, for if price falls below the cost, the producer will ultimately incur a loss. Most organizations tend to keep the prices of products within a price range in order to meet the means of the consumers but at the same time to make a profit. It is difficult for price setter to estimate demand, because it is elusive and changes quite often Price setters must also take into consideration the cost of substitutes that consumers may prefer to their own product. When determining the price of a product or service factors such as wholesale price, retail, and discount price must be taken into consideration.
Price setters are aware that while quality does play a role in the price of products, this fact is rarely or only one factor (or the most important or important). The more than 400,000 individual vendors used to build and sell their own online marketing products (including many more brands) continue to sell such items in virtually all of the major US retail chains. This is a small percentage, but many consumers now think that online retail is the single most important aspect of the product choice the consumer receives, for many consumers the quality of the purchase is critical. The actual quality of a product is often more important for the price of the product than what the price of the product actually is.
Price setters who sell a product at the wholesale price cannot help but believe that there are good reasons to be dissatisfied with the quality of the product. Many prices that a setter can claim to be better than an actual price may not be. The most common examples of prices that could be best stated as lower than a higher rated product are:
A number of items may be made from the following or slightly below rated products:
The price of a coffee mug has not always been a problem, but it is still a problem to many people who work in the coffee business. If most coffee shops refuse to sell the product. However, they may have made the product available and may consider other suppliers to help improve prices for their product in the future.
Most other consumer product is much cheaper at least at the point where the person was looking at it. For many, the only thing that is cheaper is to see a set with an additional layer of a product you already own to make it better. As a result, only a large set of consumers will have access to a set without paying the price.
Some setters want to sell their products through their own suppliers but often cannot. These setters believe that many different types of suppliers such as big wholesalers or the biggest sellers in the US are able to sell their products through the same set.
Many setters do not accept foreign exchange from their consumers or in the real world of the internet. The amount and quality of money and people that sell their products in the US is very different than the value of a certain set of manufactured items.
A setter is probably most impressed when he sees products offered at various stages of development but do not know what they are or if their price is high enough or low enough. Many want to purchase products when it may be a long way off (though you can only compare one price or the other) but are not always willing to do so. The more consumers you have and the more important things you do, the more likely this is true.
There are
Some brands may continue to sell at a higher cost in the future, but the cost at the end of the lifespan of the products will not necessarily be reflected in a price setter’s projections because the costs of these products usually don’t meet the costs of a consumer. For example, some brands, such as PepsiCo, may need to buy back more than 100 percent of its original supply prior to purchasing back a new product. Even if a product’s price is set to be $200 per unit, the consumer does not necessarily have to know all the costs and benefits of such a cost by comparing with a higher cost, such as a brand’s pre-revenue marketing. As with other information.
Some brands may continue to sell at a higher cost in the future, but the cost at the end of the lifespan of the products will not necessarily be reflected in a price setter’s projections because the costs of these products usually don’t meet the costs of a consumer. For example, some brands, such as PepsiCo, may need to buy back more than 100 percent of its original supply prior to purchasing back a new product. Even if a product’s price is set to be $200 per unit, the consumer doesn’t necessarily have to know all the costs and benefits of such a cost by comparing with a higher cost, such as a brand’s pre-revenue marketing. As with other information.
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The “premium” pricing of e-commerce products does NOT include cost of distribution (that is, chargeback discounts or other forms of credit), the use of online services such as Amazon, or the cost of having the product sold on a service such as eBay or Redbox. Any “premium” price is not included in gross sales on the order form or online. If a product’s new price exceeds the price the company is offering based on delivery, it is not included in gross sales. If any of these items are sold as “premium” they are excluded from gross sales.
When determining the cost of a product or service, such as selling a new product or a product that will take a while to go to market such as a new refrigerator, a “premium” price may not mean total cost of use of equipment or parts, but just the cost of purchasing and working the product. Some brands may take “premium” as a percentage of all other costs (such as the cost of shipping, handling, and packing supplies) but not total cost which may be determined by the cost of sales of the product to other companies if at the time of the purchase the retailer did not have any of the equipment and parts required.
To maximize the effectiveness of a product’s sales, there are two stages of a sale process:
Buyer: Sell a product. At
Some brands may continue to sell at a higher cost in the future, but the cost at the end of the lifespan of the products will not necessarily be reflected in a price setter’s projections because the costs of these products usually don’t meet the costs of a consumer. For example, some brands, such as PepsiCo, may need to buy back more than 100 percent of its original supply prior to purchasing back a new product. Even if a product’s price is set to be $200 per unit, the consumer does not necessarily have to know all the costs and benefits of such a cost by comparing with a higher cost, such as a brand’s pre-revenue marketing. As with other information.
Some brands may continue to sell at a higher cost in the future, but the cost at the end of the lifespan of the products will not necessarily be reflected in a price setter’s projections because the costs of these products usually don’t meet the costs of a consumer. For example, some brands, such as PepsiCo, may need to buy back more than 100 percent of its original supply prior to purchasing back a new product. Even if a product’s price is set to be $200 per unit, the consumer doesn’t necessarily have to know all the costs and benefits of such a cost by comparing with a higher cost, such as a brand’s pre-revenue marketing. As with other information.
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The “premium” pricing of e-commerce products does NOT include cost of distribution (that is, chargeback discounts or other forms of credit), the use of online services such as Amazon, or the cost of having the product sold on a service such as eBay or Redbox. Any “premium” price is not included in gross sales on the order form or online. If a product’s new price exceeds the price the company is offering based on delivery, it is not included in gross sales. If any of these items are sold as “premium” they are excluded from gross sales.
When determining the cost of a product or service, such as selling a new product or a product that will take a while to go to market such as a new refrigerator, a “premium” price may not mean total cost of use of equipment or parts, but just the cost of purchasing and working the product. Some brands may take “premium” as a percentage of all other costs (such as the cost of shipping, handling, and packing supplies) but not total cost which may be determined by the cost of sales of the product to other companies if at the time of the purchase the retailer did not have any of the equipment and parts required.
To maximize the effectiveness of a product’s sales, there are two stages of a sale process:
Buyer: Sell a product. At
Some brands may continue to sell at a higher cost in the future, but the cost at the end of the lifespan of the products will not necessarily be reflected in a price setter’s projections because the costs of these products usually don’t meet the costs of a consumer. For example, some brands, such as PepsiCo, may need to buy back more than 100 percent of its original supply prior to purchasing back a new product. Even if a product’s price is set to be $200 per unit, the consumer does not necessarily have to know all the costs and benefits of such a cost by comparing with a higher cost, such as a brand’s pre-revenue marketing. As with other information.
Some brands may continue to sell at a higher cost in the future, but the cost at the end of the lifespan of the products will not necessarily be reflected in a price setter’s projections because the costs of these products usually don’t meet the costs of a consumer. For example, some brands, such as PepsiCo, may need to buy back more than 100 percent of its original supply prior to purchasing back a new product. Even if a product’s price is set to be $200 per unit, the consumer doesn’t necessarily have to know all the costs and benefits of such a cost by comparing with a higher cost, such as a brand’s pre-revenue marketing. As with other information.
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The “premium” pricing of e-commerce products does NOT include cost of distribution (that is, chargeback discounts or other forms of credit), the use of online services such as Amazon, or the cost of having the product sold on a service such as eBay or Redbox. Any “premium” price is not included in gross sales on the order form or online. If a product’s new price exceeds the price the company is offering based on delivery, it is not included in gross sales. If any of these items are sold as “premium” they are excluded from gross sales.
When determining the cost of a product or service, such as selling a new product or a product that will take a while to go to market such as a new refrigerator, a “premium” price may not mean total cost of use of equipment or parts, but just the cost of purchasing and working the product. Some brands may take “premium” as a percentage of all other costs (such as the cost of shipping, handling, and packing supplies) but not total cost which may be determined by the cost of sales of the product to other companies if at the time of the purchase the retailer did not have any of the equipment and parts required.
To maximize the effectiveness of a product’s sales, there are two stages of a sale process:
Buyer: Sell a product. At
Promotion:Promotion is a vital element of the marketing mix. Almost every aspect of aspect of marketing is a form of communication and in every marketing plan promotion is a key component. Advertising, personal selling and sales promotion all constitute promotion activity which communicates value and availability to the consumers. An organization can use various promotion strategies to promote a favorable image of its product or service to existing or potential customers (Kotler, 2002).
Place:The place refers to the actual place a customer acquires a product, whether it is a store, via the telephone or the internet. In the marketing mix theory, place means the availability of goods or service in the right amount and at the right location when customers need them. The channels of distribution are the route that the products take from the producer to the consumer (Perrault, Cannnon, McCarth, 2009). In the distribution process the product could stop en route to such intermediaries as wholesalers, agents and retailers. Likewise a producer can distribute to the product directly to the consumer as is the case in the Avon organization.
Further to the discussion of the marketing mix it is evident that for a seller to provide satisfaction to a buyer, all the elements in the marketing mix must work together in a system. Successful marketers recognize that decision based on product, price, promotion and place is an important tool for the success of the organization. Each of the 4ps is important to the marketing mix activities of the organization. Because the need for an organized, well-balanced and integrated marketing strategy cannot be overemphasized, marketers must monitor their activities.
Application of Marketing Mix at LowesThe phenomena of the marketing mix along with its various elements can be best exemplified through real life examples. A number of businesses are currently using the marketing mix methods to achieve sales goals, and one such company to use this method is Lowes