Marketing
Price –
All consumers expect value for money; this means that price is always important. In many cases,
having a low price is crucial to achieving high sales, for instance when sell packet of butter and sugar.
At other times though being cheap may cause image problems. No one wants cheap baby food or cut-
price perfume.
Most products are price makers or price takers. A price-maker has the market power to set that
other must follow. This can be true of new product. E.g., innocent fruit juice for £2 for a small
bottle. Or of established ones. E.g., Channel no.5 for £75 for a small bottle. Consumers see both
these products as unique, and therefore are willing to pay a high price.
A price taker is a product or service that has to be priced with reference to others in the
marketplace. Perhaps it needs to be price below the price leader. E.g. Tesco baked beans compared
with Heinz. Or perhaps the whole market is full of similar products. E.g., esso petrol compared with
BP or Shell.
Product-
After careful market research, a firm should be able to design a product or service that will appeal
to a specific target audience. This is the heart of the mix, and the other three factors should
revolve around this. E.g., Kellogg’s special k cereal has always been targeted at weightwatchers.
Having the right product to appeal to the audience is then backed up by:
The right price- more expensive than other cereal, to help confirm that it is worth paying for.
The right place-distributed in supermarkets and grocers, but also sold at breakfast bars in health
clubs.
The right promotion- focusing on the TV advertising at women, with a voice-over emphasising health.
Place-
This is where and how is distributed, so that customers can get it when they want it. Mass market
products usually seek as much distribution as possible. Coca cola uses the phase ‘an arm’s length from
desire’ in other words they want such good distribution that customers should only need to stretch
out an arm to get a coca- cola. Coca-cola wants this because they know that the more people see coca
the more, they buy.
For other products, the same doesn’t apply. Channel hates cut price retailers such as super drug
selling its perfumes; its manager’s worry that cutting prices may damage the image of the brand.
Promotion-
This is the way a firm can promote sales of its products. It lumps together methods of promoting the
long-term image and sales of the business, using methods such as TV or cinema advertising, and short
term methods such as sales promotion e.g. buy one get one free.
Most large firms are keen to use every £ spend on advertising to promote the long-term image of the
product. Short term boosts to sales can be at the expense of the brand image. Few firms would want
to take such a risk.
Price –
All consumers expect value for money; this means that price is always important. In many cases,
having a low price is crucial to achieving high sales, for instance when sell packet of butter and sugar.
At other times though being cheap may cause image problems. No one wants cheap baby food or cut-
price perfume.
Most products are price makers or price takers. A price-maker has the market power to set that
other must follow. This can be true of new product. E.g., innocent fruit juice for £2 for a small
bottle. Or of established ones. E.g., Channel no.5 for £75 for a small bottle. Consumers see both
these products as unique, and therefore are willing to pay a high price.
A price taker is a product or service that has to be priced with reference to others in the
marketplace. Perhaps it needs to be price below the price leader. E.g. Tesco baked beans compared
with Heinz. Or perhaps the whole market is full of similar products. E.g., esso petrol compared with
BP or Shell.
Product-
After careful market research, a firm should be able to design a product or service that will appeal
to a specific target audience. This is the heart of the mix, and the other three factors should
revolve around this. E.g., Kellogg’s special k cereal has always been targeted at weightwatchers.
Having the right product to appeal to the audience is then backed up by:
The right price- more expensive than other cereal, to help confirm that it is worth paying for.
The right place-distributed in supermarkets and grocers, but also sold at breakfast bars in health
clubs.
The right promotion- focusing on the TV advertising at women, with a voice-over emphasising health.
Place-
This is where and how is distributed, so that customers can get it when they want it. Mass market
products usually seek as much distribution as possible. Coca cola uses the phase ‘an arm’s length from
desire’ in other words they want such good distribution that customers should only need to stretch
out an arm to get a coca- cola. Coca-cola wants this because they know that the more people see coca
the more, they buy.
For other products, the same doesn’t apply. Channel hates cut price retailers such as super drug
selling its perfumes; its manager’s worry that cutting prices may damage the image of the brand.
Promotion-
This is the way a firm can promote sales of its products. It lumps together methods of promoting the
long-term image and sales of the business, using methods such as TV or cinema advertising, and short
term methods such as sales promotion e.g. buy one get one free.
Most large firms are keen to use every £ spend on advertising to promote the long-term image of the
product. Short term boosts to sales can be at the expense of the brand image. Few firms would want
to take such a risk.
