Introduction to Marketing: Concepts and Basic Principles: Marketing can be defined as a set of business activities designed to plan and deliver the products or services of an organization in order to develop effective relationships with customers. So effective marketing is not a random activity, it requires careful planning and takes into account the ethical implications of all business decisions on consumers. In fact, the company must develop a marketing plan that describes the marketing activities for a given period. Continue our introduction to Marketing with the concepts and principles of this foundation.
Before discussing Marketing Mix, it is essential to discuss on marketing first. Marketing involves satisfying the needs and desires of consumers. So, understanding needs (need) and desires (want) of customers is critical to marketing success.
Need = feeling of necessity.
Desire = forces by which a person decides to satisfy his need.
To understand their needs and desires, the company must define its market. The market is the group of individuals which focuses on business in order to sell a product or service. Marketing involves an exchange of value. Marketing is based on an exchange of values between buyer and seller so that both the parties are satisfied.
Decisions on product, price, distribution and communication:
Marketing is divided into a series of interconnected decisions on product, price, place and promotion. All these decisions are commonly called the Marketing Mix. Marketing Mix is defined by four variables described below.
8 P’s of Marketing Mix:
The original 4 P’s of Marketing Mix was introduced by E. Jerome
1. Product: It represents the physical product that can be touched or the service which is intangible and requires action.
2. Price: The price represents everything the buyer agrees to give in exchange for a product.
3. Place: Place (distribution) includes all the activities necessary to get the product from point of manufacture to consumer.
4. Promotion: Promotion (communication) is the communication of product value to the customer.
Extended Marketing Mix (another 3 P’s) was added in 1981 by Booms & Bitner:
5. People : Companies rely on the people who run the business. So, having the right people is important part of the business in order to offer products/services.
6. Processes: Considering the delivery process of products or service is important because customers pay for it.
7. Physical Evidence: Almost all services include some physical elements even though the service is intangible. That may be a printed document.
8. Productivity and Quality: It asks “is what you’re offering your customer a good deal?” So, best quality with low cost should be the motto of business.
Even after 56 years (in 2016) of creating original P’s (4), the Marketing Mix is still very much applicable to a marketer’s day to day work.
