ROLE OF THE FOUR ELEMENTS OF MARKETING MIX IN MARKETING STRATEGY
As you already know there are four elements in the marketing mix of any product (and seven in case of services). They are product place, price and promotion and each of the four plays an important and valuable role in the marketing of that brand. While the marketing of a brand begins with its product, the other three elements too are equally important and getting them right is essential to make your marketing strategy win. A good quality product outshines its competitors easily. However, a good product also needs to be complemented with a good price and great promotions. Sometimes, having one of the four elements strong, makes up for any weakness in the other areas. Like you offer great quality and people are willing to pay higher prices. Your quality or your prices become the talk of the town and you automatically reap its benefits and do not have to struggle with the promotions part. So, a deep understanding of these elements helps you achieve the best thing - sales and revenue because after all you want to earn profits from your product and brand. Here, I will discuss the role these elements play in your marketing strategy.
Product: This is the
central element in your marketing strategy. Not just the success of your
marketing strategy but the image of your brand too depends on the success of
your product. In 21st century were competition has become only all the more
intense you need to have a great quality product to shine n the shelf.
Otherwise your product gets lost in the crowd of brands every customer comes
across in the market. So, you do not want you product to be a loser. You must
fill it with quality. Consider the example of Apple. It is its product range
that has made the brand a celebrity. The case of Starbucks also proves that
good quality products are easier to sell.
Place: Placement also
serves an important role in the marketing of a brand. If you want your product
to sell, you must place it where your customer segment is. If you product is
made for the metropolitan crowd then no use trying to sell it in rural areas.
If you have a product for the millenials, then you must sell it online because
that's where you will find the largest crowd of millenials. Moreover, you would
not like your product to be inaccessible and so you have to place it where it
is easily accessible to your target audience. Brands like IKEA have their
stores in strategic locations where they attract the highest number of footfalls.
Price: Pricing is also an
important part of a brand's marketing strategy. Many times you pricing strategy
is the most effective part of your marketing strategy. Consider Walmart. It is
the most favorite retailer of majority of Americans because it sells at the lowest
prices. Apple has priced its products high because it is marketing its products
to the upper end of customers. IKEA has a smart pricing strategy that has
helped it target the middle class customers effectively. If it was not for its
pricing strategy, its target market would shrink to less than half of its
current customer segment. So, you must keep your target market and your
competition in mind before pricing your products. This does not just help you
attract the right customers but also helps you build distinct image.
Promotion: After pricing,
it is the promotional part. Despite getting the rest elements of your marketing
mix right, you might need to do some marketing to let your customers have
better glimpse of your product and its features and quality. You have a great
product and a smart pricing strategy but still you need to reach your target
market and help it know and understand your brand and its value proposition. It
is because there is a lot of competition and you have to reach your customers
before others do. This is the importance of your promotional strategy and being
smart at it means achieving higher sales and penetrating your target market
deeper than the competitors.
Marketers must focus on
all these aspects of their marketing mix to get the desired results from their
marketing campaigns. It is not all about promotion because without a great
product all the promotion will return no results. So, focus on making all these
aspects strong and if you can truly outshine your customers in a few areas, it
might lead to a need for less investment in the others. Even an average product
can sell given your pricing, placement and promotional strategies are right.
