Marketing Mix Alternatives Alex Kroll Jasmine Valenta Alexis Magray Marketing - 3 rd hr.

 Business have to offer products that are appealing  Customers often look for the lowest price/great value  Components added to simple products  Features  Options  Services  Brand names Fine-Tuning the Product

Basic Product  Most important part of the mix element  Products like:  Automobiles  Computers  Clothing  The consumer will not consider if the product doesn’t meet an important need

Product Features  Adding new resources to make the product better  Many products are sold with many additional features  Customers expect added features and will not buy those products if the features aren’t available

Options  Features which are added to improve the basic product  Some businesses make decisions about the features they give their customers  An example would be telephone service  Call waiting  Three-way calling  Call-forwarding

Associated Services  Maintenance contract  Will pay for repaired work if the appliance fails to operate properly  Computer system  May want someone to set it up and test it to make sure it works properly  Leasing a car  May have an option of purchasing a service package which provides basic maintenance for a set number of miles/years

Brand/Image  Brand - a unique name, symbol or design that identifies a product service or company  Image-unique, memorable quality of a brand  Low pricing  Innovation  For an image to be effective, it needs to match the needs of customers

Guarantee/Warranty  Guarantee - general promise or assurance of quality  Warranty - written statement of the seller’s responsibilities related to the guarantee  Companies offer warranty with products as assurance that the product will be repaired or replaced if problems occur  If they are concerned it may not work out right or wear out quickly:  May be unwilling to purchase

Packaging  Provides protection and security for the product until the consumer can use it  Can provide info that helps the customer make a better purchasing decision  Also makes the product more useful for the consumer

Uses  Final part of marketing mix  Helps make the product and service you are selling more satisfying and appealing to the customer  An example is baking soda  Consumers used this to freshen:  Refrigerators  Garbage disposals  Those uses and through promotion have helped create new products and increase sales dramatically

Distribution, Price and Promotion

Distribution  Marketing mix element that facilitates physical exchange of products and services between businesses and their customers  Important questions:  Where will the customer best able to obtain the product?  Where will the customer us it?  Are there special requirements to transport, store or display the product?  When should distribution occur?  Who should be responsible for each type of distribution activity?

Distribution cont.  Many products require physical distribution factors:  Type of transportation  Inventory control  Product handling  Protective packaging  Order processing  Customer service

Price  Defined as the amount a buyer pays as well as the methods of increasing the value of the product to the customers  Questions that need to be answered:  What the price should be based on or what people are willing to pay  If there will be a price for all customers  Will customers be able to negotiate price?  Will discounts be used?  Will the price be clearly communicated through a catalogue or price tag?

Promotion  Used to provide info about product and service choices  Helps make purchasing decisions  Includes methods and info communicated to customers  Encourages purchases and satisfaction  Many decisions need to be included involving:  Promotion  Personal selling  What money will be spent on  Specific info needed for audiences

Product Life Cycle