Marketing Mix

Definition: The marketing mix refers to the set of actions, or tactics, that a company uses to promote its brand or product in the market. The 4Ps make up a typical marketing mix - Price, Product, Promotion and Place.

Price is defined as the amount of money charged for a product or service. In marketing terms, price is considered to be the sum of the values that consumers exchange for the benefits of having and using the product or service. Price is also the only element in the marketing mix that produces revenue—product, place, and promotion are all costs. There are three forms of pricing strategies: customer value-based, cost-based, and competition-based pricing. Customer value-based pricing uses buyers’ perceptions of value to set price and are also used to set the price ceiling for the product. Cost-based pricing uses the costs of producing, selling, and distributing products plus a fair markup for pricing. The cost of the product also sets a price floor. A competition-based pricing is one based on competitors’ strategies and prices and can help the company determine what kind of positioning it wants to take based on how it wants to compete, “such as becoming a price leader, offering the highest quality, or becoming a luxury brand”. (wiseGEEK, 2015)

Competition within the industry as well as market supply and demand conditions set the price of products sold.

An analysis is done on how the customer perceives the company’s products in comparison to the competitors’ products. Based on this understanding and the competitors’ prices the pricing is done.

As is known, pricing is one of the most important steps for business plan which needs good research, calculations and formulations. There are different pricing strategies to put into effect due to the market and product conditions, such as premium pricing, penetration pricing, economy pricing, price skimming(Voice Marketing, 2012). These four pricing strategies are main pricing policies. They form the bases for the exercise. However there are other important approaches to pricing. These pricing strategies are: Psychological pricing, product line

Competition within the industry as well as market supply and demand conditions set the price of products sold.

Marketing mix can be describes as "the use and specification of the 4 Ps describing the strategic position of a product in the marketplace… A prominent person to take centre stage was E. Jerome McCarthy in 1960; he proposed a four-P classification which was popularized. (wikipedia.com)" The marketing mix approach to marketing is a model of creating and implementing market strategies. The marketing mix stresses the mixing of different factors in a way that both organizational and consumer or target markets objectives are attained. The 4 Ps of marketing are Product, Place, Promotion and Price. Each plays a key factor in the overall successful marketing of a product or service.

The overall pricing strategy of any company depends upon the type of demand that is being made by the

Setting the right marketing mix for the product or service means that it including all of the important bases in marketing strategy. The marketing mix is generally established as the use and requirement of the 4P’s which is describing the strategic position of a product in the marketplace. One version of the beginning of the marketing mix starts in 1948 when James Culliton said that a marketing decision should be a result of something related to a methods and he described the marketing manager as a “mixer of ingredients”.

•Place – The item ought to be accessible from where your objective shopper thinks that its most effortless to shop. This might be High Street, Mail Order or the more present alternative through e-business or an online shop.

This marketing tool includes all decisions and actions of the company about the way of the product of the provider to the customer. Channels, location and transport are examples for the tool “place”. It provides the product at a customer-orientated place.

[pic][pic][pic][pic]After choosing a position, the company must take effective measures to deliver and communicate the chosen position to target consumers. Marketing mix efforts should be synchronized to back the positioning strategy. If the company wants to build a position on better quality and service, it must first take necessary action to deliver that position. Tactical details of the positioning strategy must be worked out to guide the designing of marketing mix-product, price, place and promotion. A company that chooses a “high-quality position” must produce high quality products, charges a high price, distribute through high-quality middlemen, and use high-quality media for

Place (or placement) decisions are those associated with channels of distribution that serve as the means for getting the product to the target customers. The distribution system performs transactional, logistical, and facilitating functions. Distribution decisions include market coverage, channel member selection, logistics, and levels of service.

Price is what makes profits and how customers perceive the value of a product or service. Companies will determine prices based on their financial status; quality, costs and the nature of the good. According to Armstrong, G., & Kotler, P. (2015), “price is the sum of all the values that customers give up to gain the benefit of having or using a product or service” (p. 266).

Price, which is one of the most important elements of the marketing mix, can be difficult to get right. Pricing too high, or low, can negatively impact on customer satisfaction and revenue. Adopting a pricing strategy is necessary to achieve desired sales objectives (Chan & Wong 2005).