Defined as the crucial decisions that one must take to effectively market their product, the marketing mix is comprised of seven interrelated decisions - the 7Ps. The four most crucial of the seven are the product, price, promotion (advertising and packaging), and place (location product is sold at). The other three, very much related to marketing services, are people, process, and physical evidence.
Consumers are in need of the right products. Therefore, it may be an already existing product, an adaptation of one that already exists, or a newly designed product.
The price must also be right. Extremely high prices will be considered unaffordable, while excessively low prices will be viewed as of lower quality.
Effective promotion requires information about your product’s availability and convincing the audience of its originality. Together, they contribute to the product’s image, as well as packaging.
Place considers the product’s distribution to the customer. If the product is unavailable in the right place and right time, then even if it was the greatest product ever made, it would not reach its maximum potential.
Particularly relevant to the personal services industry, the successful sale of services requires the right people, who are able to act positively and make impressions that leave the audience inclined to buy the product.
A business’s strategy to achieve customer satisfaction reliably and in a consistent manner is an important element of the marketing services.
Physical evidence allows customers to see the quality of the service being provided for themselves. On the customer’s end, it reduces risk in their investment in the service.
While each of these may not have the same level of significance, it is vital that these elements are able to fit into a coherent and well-integrated plan. In order for a marketing mix to be appropriate, these marketing decisions must be interrelated.
key marketing decisions complement each other and work together to give customers a consistent message about the product.
If the messages consumers receive about a product are confused or lacking in focus, they may fail to recognise the true identity or ‘personality’ of the product. Consumers are likely to reject products where the marketing mix has not communicated a clear and unambiguous message, resulting in fewer long-term sales.
If just one part of the marketing is inconsistent or does not integrate with the rest, it may lead to the failure of even the best marketing plan. The most appropriate marketing mix decisions will therefore be:
based on marketing objectives that are affordable within the marketing budget
co-ordinated and consistent with each other
targeted at the appropriate consumers.