Mastering the Marketing Mix: 4Ps, 7Ps, 4Cs, and 4As Frameworks
The Importance of Effective Marketing
Most of the time, financial success in a company is a direct result of the ability the organization has to effectively market its products and services. If done correctly, companies achieve profitability by selling their products and services at the right price. Through marketing, we strive to identify and understand what influences customers’ buying decisions.
Key Benefits of Marketing
- The ability to add perceived value to goods and services.
- Making the buying process easy and convenient for consumers.
- Offering a variety of goods and services.
- Increasing production.
- Saving time (for both the company and the consumer).
- Encouraging referrals.
- Building brand recognition.
- Establishing trust.
- Gaining and retaining customers.
- Providing essential information.
Understanding the Marketing Mix (The 4Ps)
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 traditional marketing mix is composed of the 4Ps: Product, Price, Promotion, and Place.
In essence, the marketing mix defines the tactics a business follows to sell a product, including deciding its price, the locations where it will be sold, the promotional strategies used, and how the company will differentiate itself.
Expanding the Mix: The 7Ps Framework
The 7Ps Marketing Mix extends the traditional 4Ps by adding three service-oriented elements: People, Physical Evidence, and Process. This framework is typically viewed from the marketer’s or company’s perspective.
The Seven Elements of the Marketing Mix
Product
The goods, services, or ideas used to satisfy consumer needs.
- Product Catalogue: What products does a company currently offer?
- Product Portfolio: What products has the company ever sold? What is the relationship between these products, and how successful have they been?
- Product Line: Does the company have products of the same type (e.g., cosmetics, clothes)? Is there a predominant type of product in their catalogue?
- Product Lifecycle: What are the stages in the life of a product (Introduction, Growth, Maturity, Decline)? How well did the product perform in these stages?
- Product Positioning: How is the product perceived in the market? How would a company want it to be seen?
- Product Placement: Do companies pay to have that product appear in films, TV shows, or books?
Price
How much the product is going to cost, and why that price point was chosen.
Place
Where the products are sold. Examples include:
- Chain stores
- Convenience stores
- Discounters
- Department stores
- Hypermarkets
- Supermarkets
- Shopping centers
- Franchises
Promotion
How companies promote their products, including branding elements like the name, slogan, and logo.
- Target Market: Who are we going to sell the product to, and why?
- Promotional Activities:
- Special offers
- Free samples
- Free gifts
- Cross-promotion
- Product placement
- Loyalty cards
- Social media marketing
- Sponsorship
- Competitions with prizes
- Advertising
People
Who is involved in creating and selling the product (employees, customer service, management).
Physical Evidence
Tangible elements that confirm the brand exists and operates, such as:
- Buildings and offices
- Uniforms or clothes the workers wear
- Website design
- Social network presence
Process
The protocols and procedures within the company, such as payment systems and delivery methods.
Branding and Product Recognition
To make products recognizable, companies assign them a brand or a brand name. Sometimes the name is simply the name of the company (e.g., LG); other times, companies give specific brand names to models.
This strategy sometimes leads to a specific brand name becoming the generic name for a whole product category (a process called genericide). Examples include:
- Bic (pen)
- Kleenex (tissue)
- Hoover (vacuum cleaner)
- Scottex (paper towel)
Pricing Strategies and Approaches
Companies follow various strategies when pricing their products, such as offering low-priced products, expensive/premium items, or loss-leaders.
Common Approaches to Pricing
- Cost-Plus: Adding a percentage markup to the cost to obtain a benefit/profit.
- Consumer-Led: Finding out what the customer considers a fair price.
- Competitive: Pricing products to compete directly with the competition.
- Penetration: Setting a low initial price, then increasing it once market share is gained.
- Skimming: Setting a high initial price for early adopters, then lowering it over time.
- Premium: Maintaining a high price point, often associated with luxury or high quality.
- Economy: Offering the product cheaply, focusing on volume.
Price Based on Quality Segmentation
Sometimes the price is based on quality segmentation:
- Low-end
- Mid-range
- High-end
Shifting Focus: Customer-Centric Marketing Models
Some marketers felt that the traditional 7Ps framework, being company-centric, was insufficient. Modern marketing requires taking the customer into consideration—understanding how they feel and what they think. This led to the development of customer-focused models like the 4Cs and 4As.
The 4Cs Model (Customer, Cost, Convenience, Communication)
The 4Cs model views the marketing mix from the consumer’s perspective and requires more intensive market research to truly understand the customer.
4Cs Breakdown and Comparison to 4Ps
- Product becomes Customer Needs: What needs does the customer have? Example: People don’t have time to clean their house, so companies created automatic vacuum cleaners.
- Price becomes Cost to User: The total cost incurred by the customer, not just the sticker price.
- Place becomes Convenience: How easy is it for the customer to find and purchase the product?
- Promotion becomes Communication: What is the best way to communicate with your customers (e.g., email, social networks)? The focus shifts from merely selling to understanding the customer.
The 4As Model (Acceptability, Affordability, Accessibility, Awareness)
Like the 4Cs, the 4As model is based on the consumer’s perspective and requires deep market research to ensure the product meets customer requirements across four critical dimensions.
4As Breakdown
- Acceptability (Replaces Product): How acceptable is your product? Do people approve of it? Is it socially acceptable, fashionable, or attractive? Does it comply with all legal requirements and the needs of your target market?
- Affordability (Replaces Price): Can people afford your product? Do they have enough money to buy it, and are they willing to pay the price?
- Accessibility (Replaces Place): Is your product available? Is it convenient to access? Can the general public, including people with disabilities, access your product without impediments? What problems might people encounter when trying to access your product?
- Awareness (Replaces Promotion): Are people aware of your product? Do they know it exists? How many people are aware of it, and do they have a good perception of the brand?
Summary: Key Questions Across Marketing Models
The various marketing frameworks prompt marketers to ask specific questions about their offering:
- Product (4Ps/7Ps)
- What are you selling?
- Customer Needs (4Cs)
- How does the product comply with the customers’ needs and wants?
- Acceptability (4As)
- Is your product accepted by the public?
- Price (4Ps/7Ps)
- How much does your product cost?
- Cost to User (4Cs)
- Do people think the price is fair?
- Affordability (4As)
- Can people afford to buy your product?
- Place/Convenience (4Ps/7Ps/4Cs)
- Where can people buy your product? Is it easy/convenient for the public?
- Accessibility (4As)
- Is it easy or difficult to find? Do people find problems when trying to find it?
- Promotion (4Ps/7Ps)
- How do people get to know your product?
- Communication (4Cs)
- What are the best ways to communicate with your customers?
- Awareness (4As)
- Are your customers aware that your product exists?