Companies still use the strategies from each of the marketing mix principles to promote their products and services.
The term "marketing mix" was popularized in a 1964 article by Harvard professor Neil Borden called "The Concept of the Marketing Mix." Michigan State University marketing professor E. Jerome McCarthy later grouped this marketing mix into four basic marketing strategies known as the "four Ps"---product, place, price and promotion. Together, they form the basic fundamentals of what marketing represents.
Product
"Product" is the tangible, physical product or service that a company offers. Common product decisions companies make when marketing their products are brand the product, determining the target market and deciding how the product is packaged and distributed to customers. Companies must also develop strategies for the product life cycle, which is the series of events that takes place from product inception and launch through product disposal.
Place
"Place" describes the locations the product or service is manufactured, sold and consumed by the end user. Companies need to decide how they will distribute their products and services---whether through wholesale, retail, intermediate or online channels. They also must make decisions about where inventory and distribution centers will be located, how logistics and transportation will be structured and where the end user will ultimately use the product or service.
Price
"Price" refers to the prices companies decide to charge their customers for their products and service offerings. Business owners choose price their product or service based on their target audience. For example, a luxury watch manufacturer can adopt a premium pricing strategy, in which he charges a high price for a luxury product with a niche market. A fast food business, on the other hand, may choose a value pricing strategy to appeal to consumers who want to save money.
Promotion
"Promotion" is communicating information about your product or service to generate a positive response from your customer. When implementing the promotional strategy of the marketing mix, companies must decide what their selling model looks like, what advertising tactics they will use to support their promotional strategies and how they will communicate with their target audiences about company news and product or service updates.
Tags: product service, their products, they will, pricing strategy, their target
