Marketing Mix Concepts

Marketing Mix

• Marketing is the process of anticipating, identifying, and fulfilling customer needs profitably.
• Market leadership is characterized by the highest market share in a given market.
• Market orientation focuses on producing sellable products, rather than selling products that can be made.
• Market share is the percentage a firm's sales revenue holds in an industry's total revenue.
• Market size is the magnitude of an industry's value, typically measured in revenue over a specific time period.
• Product orientation concentrates on production, prioritizing what can be made over what customers want.
• Consumer profiles encompass demographic and psychographic traits of consumers in diverse markets.
• Differentiation is the act of distinguishing a product or service from competitors in the market.
• Market segmentation is the grouping of similar customer types based on shared characteristics for targeted marketing strategies.
• Convenience sampling involves selecting readily available subjects, often relying on volunteers.
• Focus groups comprise small discussion groups to gain insights into customer attitudes and behaviors.
• Interviews are in-depth discussions between an interviewer and interviewee, used to explore perceptions, attitudes, beliefs, and underlying circumstances.

Market Analysis & Research

• Market analysis identifies the characteristics and trends of a specific product or industry.
• Market research gathers data on customer opinions, beliefs, and preferences to understand and anticipate needs.
• Observation assesses customer behaviors in real-world situations or controlled settings.
• The target population comprises all potential customers in a particular market.
• Primary research collects new, original data to solve a specific problem.
• Qualitative research uses non-numerical data for insights into customer attitudes, beliefs, and preferences.
• Quantitative research utilizes numerical data to understand market behavior.
• Random sampling ensures every member of a population has an equal chance of selection.
• Sample represents a portion of the broader population, chosen for research purposes.
• The marketing mix is a combination of components used to successfully market a product, including product, price, place, and promotion.

Pricing Strategies

• Cost-plus pricing involves adding a profit margin to the cost of production per unit.
• Penetration pricing sets low initial prices to gain market share.
• Price skimming sets high initial prices for new products to maximize early revenue.
• Psychological pricing utilizes numbers ending in .99 to make prices seem lower.
• Loss leader pricing sets prices below cost to attract customers to purchase additional products.

Distribution Channels

• Distribution channels are the pathways a product takes from manufacturer to consumer.
• Distributors are independent businesses that handle product distribution in the market.
• Retailers directly sell goods or services to consumers.
• Wholesalers purchase goods in bulk from producers to sell to retailers.

Promotion Strategies

• Informative promotion provides knowledge about a product to influence customer decisions.
• Persuasive promotion aims to convince customers to buy a particular product over competitors.
• Informative and persuasive strategies target various stages of the customer journey.
• Reminder promotion keeps the brand in consumers' minds to encourage repeat purchases, especially for mature products.
• Above-the-line promotion involves mass media advertising, while below-the-line promotion uses non-mass media.
• Public relations aims to build and maintain a positive image for the firm, rather than specific product promotion.
• Sales promotion activities aim at boosting sales temporarily, featuring incentives such as discounts.

Key Terms

• Segmentation is the process of dividing a diverse market into smaller, homogeneous groups based on common traits.
• Market research, both primary and secondary, is crucial for understanding the market, informing strategic decisions, and maximizing opportunities.

Types of Research

• Primary market research involves collecting original data directly through surveys, interviews, focus groups, and observations.
• Secondary market research analyzes existing data from external sources like government reports, market reports, and academic studies.

Brand Development

• Brand awareness is the extent to which consumers recognize and remember a brand.
• Brand development involves enhancing and boosting brand image and reputation for increased consumer loyalty.
• Brand value measures the worth added by a brand beyond a product's basic functional properties.
• Packaging significantly impacts customer perceptions regarding a product.
• Brand loyalty reflects consumers' preference for a particular brand over others.