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Sample Assessments

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Marketing Mix

Organizations must develop the art of knowing how to manipulate the four Ps (product, place, promotion, and price) to incite a customer’s curiosity and then develop a long-range plan to keep them coming back. The key is giving customers exactly what they want by delivering quality products or services at the right price with good customer service. Creating that bond and developing a culture to let the customer know that he or she is part of the company’s family will create customer loyalty.

The four P’s recipe mix cooperatively blends to form a balancing set of decisions, actions, and inventiveness that are meant to enhance the positive impact of the four elements individually. When designed properly, this positive impact is directed to the customers within the target market and these customers respond positively in return

Marketing Mix: Product

The first P in the four Ps of the marketing mix is product. Historically the thought was that the product would sell by itself, this might have worked when there was only one option in the marketplace. Now with all the competition, the global marketplace and the laws that have been established giving the consumers the ability to return products if unsatisfied that philosophy has changed.

Product refers to design, functionality, style, quality, packaging, warranty, and service. For example, a good product will give benefits to its customers making marketing easy. However, if a competitor has a similar product, also possessing good quality, then one has to differentiate their product from the competitor. Companies can differentiate their product for a competitor product by changing the design or offering better after purchase services or warranty benefits.

Products can range from simple every day items to high-end items such as home or vehicle purchases. If a company sells a service such as pet grooming, that may also be considered a product. Having the right product for the potential target market requires knowing what consumers need and want.

Marketing Mix: Place

The second P in the marketing mix is place. The place element is also referred to as distribution. It is imperative that one knows how to reach the customer. Placement of the product is imperative and is where you can expect to find your customer and where the sale is realized. A business needs to be able to use the proper distribution channels in order to get the product to the customer. There are several ways to get the product to the customer; for example, a retail location or an Internet based store. An organization has to find a place to sell their products, whether it is in a shopping mall, a retail store, or in a grocery store. They have to find a place where people would embrace their product.

Marketing Mix: Price

The third P in the marketing mix is price. Price refers to the pricing strategy a business should use to sell their product. A business must take into consideration things such as, competitor pricing, cost orientation, and value pricing. Often times a business will have a price already set and fit to their customer profile, but then they must concern themselves with bargaining with retailers and wholesalers. “Price setting must consider the kind of competition in the target market and the cost of the whole marketing mix” (Perreault, Cannon, & McCarthy, 2009, p.38).

Price is self-explanatory and important to the success of the business. If a company prices a product too high customers may not purchase, leading to low sales. If the price it too low the business can lose money on every sale once all the costs of doing business are calculated. The goal is to price the product low enough for the consumer to make the purchase, be satisfied, and make a profit for the company. In considering prices, the organization should consider the product, customers, competitiveness, and quality.

Marketing Mix: Promotion

The last P in the marketing mix is promotion. “Promotion is concerned with telling the target market or others in the channel of distribution about the right products” (Perreault, Cannon, & McCarthy, 2009, p. 37). The primary purpose of promotion is to affect the customer behavior in order to close the sale. Promotion includes advertisement, public relations, and sales promotions. Advertisements come in many forms, such as commercials on television or radio, ads on the Internet or newspaper, and pop-up ads on the Internet. Public relations depend a lot on one’s individual personality and developing relationships with customers. Many sales promotions come in the forms of coupons, discounts, or discounts that are linked to the sales strategy.

Microsoft and the Marketing Mix

Microsoft, the industry leader in software development and sales, became a registered trademark on November 26, 1976. Microsoft Windows and Microsoft Office have been the best-selling products for the corporation giant. In addition, Microsoft also had a hand in other markets, such as MSNBC cable television network, Microsoft multimedia encyclopedia, as well as the MSN internet portal, computer hardware, home entertainment products and gaming consoles. As of 2006, Microsoft employs over 71,000 employees and has produced fourth quarter revenues over $44 billion. Microsoft is a very diverse company due to the number of businesses that it deals with. For instance, Microsoft is a large corporation that serves the needs of many small businesses, and large businesses. They also serve the needs for not only personal home use, but they have also been involved in industries such as computer hardware, software, publishing, research and development, television and video games. The Microsoft website states (2005):

At Microsoft, we’re motivated and inspired every day by how our customers use our software to find creative solutions to business problems, develop breakthrough ideas, and stay connected to what’s most important to them. We run our business in much the same way, and believe our seven core business units offer the greatest potential to serve our customers in the coming decade. They include: • Windows Client, including the Microsoft® Windows® XP desktop operating system, Windows 2000, and Windows Embedded operating system. • Information Worker, including Microsoft Office, Microsoft Publisher, Microsoft Visio®, Microsoft Project, and other stand-alone desktop applications. • Microsoft Business Solutions, encompassing Great Plains and Navision business process applications, and bCentral™ business services. • Server and Tools, including the Microsoft Windows Server System™ integrated server software, software developer tools, and MSDN®. • Mobile and Embedded Devices, featuring mobile devices including the Windows Powered Pocket PC, the Mobile Explorer micro browser, and the Windows Powered Smartphone software platform. • MSN, including the MSN® network, MSN Internet Access, MSNTV, MSN Hotmail® and other Web-based services. • Home and Entertainment, including Microsoft Xbox®, consumer hardware and software, online games, and our TV platform. We are committed long term to the mission of helping our customers realize their full potential. Just as we constantly update and improve our products, we want to continually evolve our company to be in the best position to accelerate new technologies as they emerge and to better serve our customers (Microsoft Corporation, 2005).

As you can see, Microsoft is not only diverse and able to provide service to customers with different needs, but they are also worldwide. To be more specific, Microsoft serves customers at sales offices, support centers, and technology centers throughout not only the United States, but also the world. Development of Microsoft’s Marketing Strategy and Tactics “To compensate for less-frequent product launches and a focus on integrated solutions rather than specific products, Microsoft now organizes its marketing efforts around annual “go-to-market” (GTM) campaigns” (DeGroot, 2005). The Microsoft Corporation has launched several products over the years, which have all been determined by the company’s marketing calendar, and updates for those products. Unfortunately, those updates have stretched as far out as five years, making the company miss out on potential opportunities to expand to other product lines or services. “GTMs address the lack of new product releases on which to hang marketing campaigns by identifying a strategic issue facing Microsoft and constructing a framework for addressing it with broad-reach advertising, sales tools for partners and the Microsoft field sales force, and customer and partner incentives” (DeGroot, 2005). A broader advertising campaign raises the awareness of specific IT problems related to operational complexities, which have limited Microsoft’s ability to respond to new opportunities. With this campaign, Microsoft will be able to generate sales leads when customers order marketing CD’s, or as they visit certain websites to learn about these types of issues.  

Conclusion

The four Ps of marketing, product, place, price, and promotion are essential elements of the marketing mix. Each of them affects the other and they should all be linked together. The marketing mix is vital to any organization and successful companies effectively use all four elements of the marketing mix.  When introducing a brand new product, companies need to consider how it will be introduced into the market, how it will be priced, how it will be promoted, and how it will be placed.

The marketing mix should be carefully designed as the major cost components of the marketing budget and the overall product plan goes into these four areas. Companies should carefully decide on the allocation of their marketing spend. The product should be appropriate in the first place. Its pricing should not be more than the utility it provides to its customers. It should be conveniently available and usable. Target customers should be informed of its presence and usage so as to persuade them and convince them of its utility. No matter how small or big the company is, the product basics and the marketing mix components remain the same. The overall size of budget changes, but the core concepts and components remain unchanged. They should be carefully looked and analyzed before launching a product or a product line.

Reference

DeGroot, P. (2005). Going to Market, Microsoft Style. Directions on Microsoft. Retrieved from http://www.directionsonmicrosoft.com/sample/DOMIS/update/2005/02feb/0205gtmms.htm

Microsoft Corporation. (2005). Our Commitment to Our Customers. Retrieved from http://www.microsoft.com/about/companyinformation/ourbusinesses/business.asp

Perrault, W.D., Cannon, J.P., & McCarthy, E.J. Jr. (2009). Basic marketing: A global-managerial approach (17th ed.). New York: McGraw Hill.

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