The Nature and Importance of the Marketing Mix within the Marketing Process
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This article discusses the concept of marketing and its types, along with the explanation of marketing mix and its importance. It also introduces Marks & Spencer and its product line, followed by the application of 4Ps marketing mix to the brand's products.
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BSc (Hons) Business Management BMP4004 Contemporary Issues in Marketing The nature and importance of the marketing mix within the marketing process Submitted by: Name: ID: 1
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Contents Introductionp An explanation of marketingp An explanation of marketing mixp A brief theoretical explanation of 4Ps marketing mix p Introduction of product/service p Application of 4Ps marketing mix to the selected product/service p-p Productp Pricep Placep Promotionp Conclusionp Referencesp 2
Introduction Marketing refers to the set of activity that takes place for promoting goods and services to the desired customer It also refers to position a product and sell it at a right price, at right place and at right time. Some of the examples of marketing are Television, magazine and newspaper commercials, discount offers, etc(Balducci and Marinova 2018). There are four P's of marketing i.e. Product, Price, Place and Promotion. Marketing are mainly of two types Online marketing and Offline Marketing. Marketing plays a vital role in branding of any product and it also enhances the growth of the business by promoting these goods and services which help in enhancing the sale of the products. Marks and Spencer commonly known as M&S is one the premium brand of UK. M&S was formed by Michael Marks and Thomas Spencer in 1884. Its headquarter is located in London, United Kingdom. The company has over 1500 stores all around the globe, including approx 1000 stores in UK and rest in other countries. The company deals inover 6000 products such as clothing, food, household and beauty products to numerous customers.It has several competitors such as Asda, Aldi, Tesco, Farm foods etc.It has a revenue of approx 1088.5 crores GBP. This file will include discussion on Marketing, Sources of marketing, Marketing mix, 4 P's etc. An explanation of marketing Marketing refers to the process for promoting products to the consumers. In simple words, we can say it is the process to reach the potential consumers. There are several processes that are involved in marketing such as planning, research, promotion, sales and distribution of goods and services. Marketing is one of the key aspect of every business enterprise(Kumar and .et.al. 2018). Marketing is a broad concept and it consists of all the strategies that are required to advertise and promote the products. Generally marketing are of two types namely OnlinemarketingaaswellasOfflineMarketing.Thereareseveraladvantagesand disadvantages of online and offline marketing. Online Marketing refers to the process of promoting goods and services through internet. Some of the advantages are expenses of creating a set up is reduced, better communication channel is created, competitive advantage, better consumer services and increase in sale. Some of the disadvantages are it is a time consuming process, High- tech is required for research, risk of internet fraudulence etc. This marketing is also known as web marketing, digital marketing or internet marketing. Offline Marketing refers to the marketing where promotion of goods and services are done through offline platforms such as radio, television, newspaper and magazine advertisement etc. Some of the advantages are it fulfill the exact customer needs, build interpersonal relation with 3
consumer, helps in easy fulfillment of consumer demand. Some of the disadvantages are it is expensive, time consuming,exact outcomes are not measured, its reach is restricted to some extent . This marketing is also known as Traditional or Old- school marketing. Marks and Spencer is a company that has aligned itself with every possible marketing tool. As M&S is a huge brand it need to diversify itself with different types of marketing strategies. This brand use different media for marketing such as newspaper, billboards ,radio, television , hoardings and many more. This brand also collaborate with celebrities to promote its product named Christine Lampard, Amanda Holden, Myleene Klass, John Sergeant and many more. These strategies helps the company to cater more targeted audience. An explanation of marketing mix Marketing mix refers to strategic actions plans that a company uses to promote its product to the targeted consumer market and sell it.. This is used by a company to evaluate the issues that affect the marketing of the companies and helps in formulation of marketing strategies for the companies. Promotional and Marketing strategies helps in formation of Marketing Mix(Pedersen,and Williams, 2021). These strategiesincludes segmentation of the market, selection of targets , building different decisions and then marketing mix is designed. There are several importance of Marketing Mix. Some of them are listed below- Marketing mix plays a vital role in development of new products. It helps in reduction of cost i.e. cost effective It helps in proper allocation of resources It helps in effective utilization of companies strength and it also helps in minimizing the internal and external threats. It also provides competitive advantages to the businesses It also helps the businesses to understand the need of the customers. Some important elements of Marketing mix are its 4ps which includes Product, Price, Place and Promotion. Marks and Spencer has a wide range product diversification such as women, men and kids clothing, beauty products, home ware, furniture, beverages and food. M&S mainly sells eco- friendly products. M&S has spread its business worldwide in countries like Egypt, Canada, India, Bangladesh,Malaysia, China, Germany and many more. M&S sells its products through both Online and Offline channels. The outlets of this brand has great ambiance which attract the consumers to visit these stores. This brand has launched its online store in 1999 and this store helps the customer in fulfilling their demands by sitting at home 4
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as the company also provides home delivery services. M&S is a brand that caters the need of high income groups. Its products are of premium quality ranging between high to low. It has a revenue of over1088.5 crores GBP and it also uses different pricing strategies such as it provide discounts to the customer during festivals, season off etc. M&S uses different marketing platform to promote its products. A brief theoretical explanation of 4Ps marketing mix The Four P's of marketing mix is the main factor that are involved in marketing of a product. These P's also affect the business plans, strategies and growth. The brand uses various market strategies such as promotion planning, pricing, innovation of products etc(Baidya, and Maity2022). These strategies help the brand tosucceed in the market. These Four P's are Product, Price, Place and Promotion. These P's are highlighted below - Product – The first P of marketing mix is Product. Itsrefers to the commodity that is manufactured or produced for the purpose of sale. In other words it refers to any kind of goods and services that helps in fulfillment of needs and desires of the customers. It could be goods whether tangible or intangible,services etc. Price – The second P of marketing mix is Price. It refers to the amount for which the product is sold. In other words,it refers to the expected values for the products. Price is the factor that decides the market value of firm. Place – The third P of marketing mix is Place. It refers to the location from where the customer can get the goods. In other words, it refers to the channel through which goods and services are sold. It is the total cost that theconsumer needs to pay for consuming the product. Place for the businesses can either be the retail store or the online market. Promotion – The fourth and last P of marketing mix is Promotion. It refers to the process of building brand image of a business or product. In other words, it refers to the technique through which seller tries to convince the buyer to purchase their product. There are several ways for promoting a product such as commercials, direct marketing, public relation etc. Introduction of product/service Marks & Spencer is a brand that deals in diversified product line . This brand offer different categories of products such as Clothing, Footwear, Home ware, Food, Beverages etc. Some of the products that the company offers has been mentioned below - 5
ClothingBlazers Sport wear Work wear Shirts skirts Cardigans etc. FootwearBoots Shoes Sandals Heels Loafers etc. AccessoriesCurtain Mirror Jewellery Watches Handbags Sunglasses etc. FurnitureSofa Bookcases Armchair Table etc. Application of 4Ps marketing mix to the selected product/service Mark & Spencer follows the 4Ps, as it helps the brand to sustain its market position by marketing its products right.The 4Ps that the brand focuses on includes; product price, place an promotion. These factors doesn't provide an easy or low switching cost to the customers which build the trust within the customers as it is known that Mark & Spenser is one of the top brands in the clothing and fashion industry. By using these four factors the company is bale to formulae business strategies which helps the company to market its products in the right way which creates an impact and penetrates the market. Product Mark &Spencer is a global brand which have a wide product portfolio which is completely customer eccentric. As the brand is dealing with a wide variety of customers of different age and preference. The marketing strategy for which should be very specific so that it can target each group of its customers. Along with the clothing section Mark & Spencer has launched its furniture and house decor range. The company is known for its quality and stylish fast 6
fashion trends, the brand very strategically designs its clothing range so that its able to fulfill the needs of people with different yet important needs. Price The matrix that is being used by the brand for its pricing policy is based on the competitive pricing trends for its wide and diverse product portfolio. The brand ha s categorized its collection between the female, male and kids sections because of the availability of the wide options and quality for each category. But the brands need sto stick with the competitive pricing policy as there are many big brands working with the same motive provide wide variety with quality, there is a constant external force from the other big retail companies both from the online as well as from the offline mediums which the company needs to strategically handle and process. Place Presently the brand is operating in 50different countries along with 1000 stores out of which 850 stores are present in the United Kingdom itself followed by 50+ stores in India and other countries such as Turkey, Spain,France, Ireland, Hungary,Finland, etc. Along with the physical stores present in different nations(Parmer and Lin 2021). Mark & Spenser has also launched its online website through which customers can order and buy clothes online for which the company has installed an effective and manageable delivery system which is responsible for reaching to the customers within the expected delivery time while mainlining the quality standards of the product. Promotion In the present era digital marketing is in its full force, many companies have been benefited from it and are still sustaining on the facilities provided by the digital marketing(Akopova and et.al. 2020). Mark & Spencer strategically align its advertising motive with digital marketing which helps the brand to reach to a very large number of customers within relatively lesser time and expense as compared to the traditional marketing. The brand is using different social media platforms and different marketing strategies including influence marketing etc which has boost-en up the profit margins of the company. The brand also releases special offers for its loyal customers. 7
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Conclusion Mark & Spencer is among the top players of the retail business, the bran dis constantly developing and producing customer eccentric products which are aiming towards the needs of the customers. With the wide range of product portfolio the brand is executing it business in several nations with the presence of its physical outlets along with it the company has launched its online website through which the sales of the company. Throughout the years the company is proving its standards to its customers and has been able to build the trust and loyalty towards them. 8
References Akopova, E.S., and et.al. 2020. Marketing of organizations: technologies of public-private partnership. IAP. Baidya, M.K. and Maity, B., 2022. Managing marketing mix competition dynamics. International Journal of Business Forecasting and Marketing Intelligence, 7(3), pp.277-294. Balducci, B. and Marinova, D., 2018. Marketing. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 46(4), pp.557-590. Kumar, V and .et.al. G.S., 2018. Marketing research. John Wiley & Sons. Magnani, G., 2022. Managing the “4Ps” in Culturally Distant Countries: From Theory to Business Practice. In Marketing in Culturally Distant Countries (pp. 131-184). Springer, Cham. Mintz, O., Gilbride, T.J., Lenk, P. and Currim, I.S., 2021. The right metrics for marketing- mix decisions. International Journal of Research in Marketing, 38(1), pp.32-49. Parmer, L.L., Dillard Jr, J.E. and Lin, Y.C., 2021. The 8Ps Marketing Mix and the Buyer Decision-Making Process. Journal of Marketing Development and Competitiveness, 15(4), pp.32-44. Pedersen, Z.P. and Williams, A.S., 2021. Marketing mix. In Encyclopedia of Management (pp. 302-303). Edward Elgar Publishing. 9