The Four Pos Of Marketing According To The 4 Ps Of Marketing

The 4 Ps of marketing refers to the terms product, price, promotion and place. These four components make up what is known as the ‘marketing mix’. Each of the Ps focuses on a different element of the marketing mix. Product refers to the actual good or service on offer from a business. Price refers to the price set for the aforementioned product, and the particular pricing strategy that the firm has chosen to implement. Promotion refers to the promotional strategies that are used to sell the product, and the communication that is undertaken to persuade customers to purchase the product. Finally, place refers to the method of distribution used to get the good and/or service from the firm to the customer. The 4 Ps marketing mix is commonly

These elements are: creating, communicating, delivering and exchanging. Creating “involves collaboration with suppliers and customers in order to generate offerings of value to customers” (Tanner, & Raymond, 2011, p.5). It can be argued that this has some similarities to the ‘product’ component of the traditional marketing mix, but a more extended action is seen in the value approach. This extension may include things such as after-sales care and warranties (4Ps versus Value Marketing Strategy, 2014). Communicating refers to informing the customer of the offerings available. This correlates with the promotion element of the traditional marketing mix but, in the value approach, consideration is also given to the learnings that can be had from customers. That is, communicating is a two-way exchange between the business and the customer, as opposed to the one-way stream of communication from the firm to the customer seen in the traditional marketing mix. Delivering is closest in meaning to the ‘place’ element of the 4 Ps, as it refers to getting the offering from the business to the customer. The difference, however, is that in the value approach, the focus is of course on this process being undertaken in a way that maximises value, rather than simply achieving the task. Finally, the element of exchanging in the value approach to marketing refers to ‘trading value

However, the key difference between the traditional marketing mix and the value approach is the focus on the customer, and the notion of creating value for the customer. It can be asserted that firms today are working harder than ever to create value for customers. Firms are now operating in the ‘value era’: “a time when companies emphasize creating value for customers” (Tanner, & Raymond, 2011, p.7), or even in the ‘one to one era’: “building relationships with customers one at a time and seeking to serve each customer’s needs individually” (Tanner, & Raymond, 2011, p.7). A firm using the value approach to marketing is likely to be market orientated, meaning that they follow the marketing concept of meeting (and exceeding) customers’ wants and needs. This contrast with a firm which may undertake the traditional marketing approach (4ps), and is likely to be more product orientated, meaning that the focus is more on product innovation rather than customer needs and