[0:03]Marketing's four P's. Marketing your business is about how you position it to satisfy your market's needs. There are four critical elements in marketing your products and business. They are the four P's of marketing.
[0:17]One, product, the right product to satisfy the needs of your target customer.
[0:24]Two, price, the right product offered at the right price.
[0:30]Three, place, the right product at the right price available in the right place to be bought by customers.
[0:38]Promotion, informing potential customers of the availability of the product, its price, and its place.
[0:46]Each of the four P's is a variable you control in creating the marketing mix that will attract customers to your business. Your marketing mix should be something you pay careful attention to because the success of your business depends on it. As a business manager, you determine how to use these variables to achieve your profit potential. This publication introduces the four P's of marketing and includes worksheets that will help you determine the most effective marketing mix for your business. Product refers to the goods and services you offer to your customers. Apart from the physical product itself, there are elements associated with your product that customers may be attracted to, such as the way it is packaged. Other product attributes include quality, features, options, services, warranties, and brand name. Price refers to how much you charge for your product or service. Determining your product's price can be tricky and even frightening. Many small business owners feel they must absolutely have the lowest price around. So they begin their business by creating an impression of bargain pricing. There are eight common pricing strategies. Some price decisions may involve complex calculation methods, while others are intuitive judgments. Cost plus adds a standard percentage of profit above the cost of producing a product. Accurately assessing fixed and variable costs is an important part of this pricing method. Value-based based on the buyer's perception of value, rather than on your costs. The buyer's perception depends on all aspects of the product, including non-price factors such as quality, healthfulness, and prestige. Competitive. Based on prices charged by competing firms for competing products. This pricing structure is relatively simple to follow because you maintain your price relative to your competitors' prices. In some cases, you can directly observe your competitors' prices and respond to any price changes. In other cases, customers will select vendors based on bids submitted simultaneously. In those cases, gathering information will be more difficult. Going rate. A price charged that is the common or going rate in the marketplace. Going-rate pricing is common in markets where most firms have little or no control over the market price. Skimming involves the introduction of a product at a high price for affluent consumers. Later, the price is decreased as the market becomes saturated. Discount based on a reduction in the advertised price. A coupon is an example of a discounted price. Loss leader, based on selling at a price lower than the cost of production to attract customers to the store to buy other products.
[3:24]Place refers to the distribution channels used to get your product to your customers. What your product is will greatly influence how you distribute it. If, for example, you own a small retail store or offer a service to your local community, then you are at the end of the distribution chain, and so you will be supplying directly to the customer. Promotion refers to the advertising and selling part of marketing. It is how you let people know what you've got for sale. The purpose of promotion is to get people to understand what your product is, what they can use it for, and why they should want it. You want the customers who are looking for a product to know that your product satisfies their needs.
