The 4 Ps of Marketing

The art and science of marketing is a highly broad subject, combining traditional marketing principles with innovative practices. There is no one-size-fits-all approach to marketing businesses, as all businesses are different. When it comes to marketing your business, big or small, you must remember the 4’s Ps of marketing – product, price, place, and promotion.

In fact, the smaller your business is, the more important it is for you to leverage the 4 Ps of marketing.

You have to understand what you’re marketing, how much to charge for your product or service, who you’re marketing to, and how to effectively marketing your business online.

This may seem like a lot to take in, so we’ve made it simple for you to grasp. Let’s take a closer look at the 4 Ps of marketing and how you can apply them to your digital marketing plan.

Product

Your product is what your company sells to customers. Your product could be anything from clothing to packaged meals, electronics to robotics, and anything else in between.

Your product could also be a service, like logo designing for different company merchandise, or matchmaking! In other words, your product could be anything that you’re selling to the public. You have to know what your product is and what makes your product so unique.

Almost every type of business out there has competitors looking to stay a step ahead of the competition – and, the same goes for yours. You must figure out how to recreate your product into something that people need. Make your product a necessity rather than a luxury. This will increase the demand for your product and help you increase your conversion rates.

Price

Pricing is a simple concept, describing how much money you charge for your product. The price points of your product or service must be well-established. To establish your pricing points, you should conduct thorough research on how much your product is worth compared to how much your competitors are selling the same product for.

Although pricing is a simple concept to understand, it’s not always as easy to come up with the “right” price for your product. You want to take into account how you wish to be perceived by your customers. Do you want to sell high-priced products or a smaller group of people? Or, do you wish to sell your product at a best-valued price for a larger group of people?

These are important questions to take into consideration when establishing your price points. You also want to think about promotions, deals, and coupon offers when establishing your pricing. Bringing in new customers with free giveaways or promotional discounts will significantly improve your conversion rates. Free trials are also a great way to attract new customers, especially if your business is subscription-based.

Other questions that you want to ask include:

• What prices do current leaders in your niche market charge?
• How does your pricing compare to your competitors?
• What would be the highest price that customers would be willing to pay for your service?
• What would be the lowest price that you’d be willing to charge for your product?
• How sensitive is pricing to your customer base?

Place

The place of your product describes the location in which it’s being marketed. You must pick a location where your customers are, whether it’s in San Diego, Tokyo, London, or solely online! In other words, your customers must be able to come to you easily and without hindrance. However, you do want to make sure that you go to them as well, since you can’t always expect them to come to you all the time.

The web is an infinite virtual world where you can market your products and services endlessly on a global scale. So, since the Internet is considered “infinite,” then how do you know which “place” to market your products?

The answer lies within the right platform. Social media sites like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter are great for marketing your products in a place where everyone turns to on a daily basis.

However, these platforms are only effective if your customer base is between 18 and 59. Anyone younger or older than these will most likely not be on social media. Ask yourself the following questions to determine how to find the right place to execute your marketing plan.

• Where are your customers?
• Where are your competitors?
• Which outlets (online and offline) sell your product?
• Which distribution channels are working best for you?
• Do you sell directly to businesses (B2B) or consumers (B2C)?
• Do you have to go through a middleman to sell your products, or do you sell directly to your end customer?

Promotion

This “P” is probably the most important of all of the Ps of marketing. Promotion describes how to promote your products and services. Here, we’re discussing more about generating revenue and optimizing your ROI. There are tons of distribution channels out there to choose from. So, this begs the question – which one do you choose first?

First things first, find out what your competitors are doing. Discover how they are promoting themselves online so that you can get a foundation for how to market your products. This will also help you identify the right high-ranking keywords to improve your search engine rankings.

Also, ask yourself the following questions:

• What kind of message trends can help you to promote your products effectively?
• What is the ideal period for promoting your product?
• How do your competitors plan and carry out their promotion?
• How can you recreate your competitors’ plans and make it better?
• Which channels does your audience use the most to consume relevant information?

Using these tools and promotion tips will help you to market your product and optimize your ROI effectively. Consider online marketing, SEO, social media & content marketing, email marketing, Facebook & Google ads, and affiliate marketing strategies to develop your plan.

Leverage the 4 Ps of marketing to stay ahead of the competition and thrive in your business! If you need help leveraging these marketing tips, then call Ringo Media. We have the know-how on the 4 Ps of marketing and how to execute these strategies for your business.