What Is the Importance of the Marketing Mix in the Development of a Marketing Strategy & Tactics?
The marketing mix is an integral tool in building an effective marketing
strategy and implementing it with tactics. Also known as the 4 P's of
marketing, the mix includes an assessment of the roles your product,
place or distribution, price and promotion play in your overall approach
to marketing.
Offering
Part of marketing is conveying to customers what you have to offer
and why it is different and better than alternatives. The product
element is most obvious in the offering, since your product is what
people buy. Where you offer it, whether in-store or online, also is
important, making the distribution element a factor. The price point is
part of the overall offering, because it affects your product's value.
The Target
When you market, you also have to strategize about who to target
with your messages. Your primary customer group becomes the target
customers of your marketing campaign. Your product and price offer some
direction in identifying the right audience. For instance, cutting-edge
mobile technology
ads often are targeted to young consumers. Identifying the media used
by these customers is also important, which brings the "promotion" P
into play.
Message Delivery
Tangibly, the promotion P addresses the actual process of creating
and distributing messages about your brand and products. Under the
promotion umbrella, you have to decide what messages and formats to use
to persuade your target customers to buy. Humor, sexuality, fear and
anxiety are all used to present emotional appeals in marketing.
Selecting the right media within television, radio, newspapers,
magazines, the Internet, billboards and other support media is another
critical part of successful promotion.
Value Creation
In a general sense, the marketing mix allows you to understand how
to build and sell value to your customers. Ultimately, customers buy
what they perceive is the best value for their money in a purchase
situation. Implementing marketing campaigns that show off great products
at fair prices gives you an opportunity to succeed. Finding affordable
marketing options also helps you get better return on your investment
from marketing.
