Unit 5: Product: Goods And Services PDF

UNIT 5: PRODUCT: GOODS AND SERVICES 1. Product concept: attributes, levels and hierarchy. Product: anything that can be offered in a market for attention, acquisition, use or consumption that might satisfy a need or a want. Services: a form of product that consist of activities, benefits or...

UNIT 5: PRODUCT: GOODS AND SERVICES 1. Product concept: attributes, levels and hierarchy. Product: anything that can be offered in a market for attention, acquisition, use or consumption that might satisfy a need or a want. Services: a form of product that consist of activities, benefits or satisfactions and that is essentially intangible and does not result in the ownership of anything. Products and services are becoming more commoditized: Companies are now creating and managing customer experiences with their brands or company. Remember: positioning maps show customer perceptions of marketer´s brands versus competing products on important buying dimensions. Consumer products are products and services bought by final consumers for personal consumption. 1. Convenience products: Consumer products and services that the customer usually buys frequently, immediately and with a minimum comparison and buying effort (candy, bottled water, food…). 2. Shopping products: Less frequently purchased consumer products and services that the customer compares carefully on suitability, quality, price and style (clothing, furniture, appliances…). 3. Specialty products: Consumer products and services with unique characteristics or brand identification for which a significant group of buyers is willing to make a special purchase effort (high end products). 4. Unsought products: Consumer products that the consumer does not know about or knows about but does not normally think of buying (blood donation, funeral services, insurance…). Industrial products are those products purchased for further processing or for use in conducting a business. 1. Materials and parts: Include raw materials and manufactured materials and parts (wood, screws…). 2. Capital items: Industrial products that aid in the buyer´s production or operations (cranes for lifting heavy materials). 3. Supplies and services: Include operating supplies, repair and maintenance items and business services (office stationery like pens and paper (operating supplies), a contract with a cleaning service (business service) and spare parts for office equipment (repair and maintenance items)).  7Ps of service marketing Price, place, promotion, product, people, process and physical evidence. Marketing Strategies for Service Firms: In addition to traditional marketing strategies, service firms often require additional strategies: 1. Service-profit chain links service firm profit with employee and customer satisfaction. a. Internal service quality b. Satisfied and productive service employees c. Greater service value d. Satisfied and loyal customers e. Healthy service profits and growth Services marketing requires more than just traditional external marketing using the four Ps. 2. Internal marketing 3. Interactive marketing 2. Intangible aspects: the brand Brand Equity and Brand Value Brand Equity is the differential effect that knowing the brand name has on customer response to the product or its marketing. Brand value is the total financial value of a brand. 3. Tangible aspects: packaging and labelling Individual Product and Service Decisions Packaging involves designing and producing the container or wrapper for a product. The packaging designs and protects the product but is also used as a differentiation tool. Labels identify the product or brand, describe attributes and provide promotion. It has to identify and describe but also helps to promote. 4. Product portfolio management A product line is a group of products from a company that are closely related because they function in a similar manner, are sold to similar customer groups, serve similar customer needs, are marketed through the same type of outlets or fall within certain price ranges. Product line decision include product line length, product line filling or stretching. - Product line length refers to the number of items in the product line. o Too long: increase revenue by dropping items. o Too short: increase revenue by adding items. - Product line filling means adding more items within the present range of the line. - Product line stretching means lengthening current lines beyond their current range. Product mix/product portfolio is the set of all product lines that a seller offers for sale. - Length is the total number of products that a company carries within the line. - Width is the number of different product lines. - Depth is the number of versions offered of each product. - Consistency refers to how closely related the products are in end use, production requirements, distribution channels or other ways.