Marketing mix - 7Ps

4. Product Life Cycle
Suppose Starbucks identifies the need to launch a new product in their cold-coffee product
category.
They will Introduce the product on an official launch, with slow growth. You might get to
know about the product one fine day while browsing their menu, or while viewing an
advertisement. Very limited and gradual popularity among a specific section of the
audience, generated by people choosing to try the new product.
The next stage, when you hear about the product through a friend who recommended you
to try it, means you’re witnessing the Growth stage, with rapid and exponential sales hike,
and more audience coming in through word of mouth. Product is set to enter the list of
mainstream offerings as we transition to the Maturity phase.
Product gains strong foothold in market in the Maturity phase, with gradual slowdown in
sales. It becomes widely available and is established as a strong competitor.
Finally, the cold-coffee no longer offers unique value to you as you begin to switch to other
similar but better products or do not feel the need to have a cold-coffee. This leads to
downward spiral of sales in the Decline phase with only limited saturated features and
outdated value-added services offered.

5. • let’s consider a concert—Taylor Swift is coming to town. One of the most popular
performers of the last decade, who’s sold more than 75 million digital single downloads,
making her one of the best-selling artists in history.)
• Swift’s concert in Boston was sold out within hours of tickets going on sale. But of
course, tickets were available in the resale or secondary market. And that’s where you
find yourself.
• Again, someone’s got an extra ticket and is giving you the first chance to buy it. You can
only make one offer and if it’s not accepted the ticket goes to someone else.
How much would you be willing to pay for a ticket to attend the Taylor Swift concert?
What would your top price be?
• The amount is a very important one in economics. It’s what we call the “willingness to
pay” . It’s the maximum price you are willing to pay for a product or service. Of course,
you’d be glad to pay less than your “willingness to pay” if you could, but the important
thing is that you wouldn’t pay more than it.

6. The use of advertising, sales
promotion, personal selling, direct
mail, trade fairs, sponsorship and
public relations to inform
consumers and persuade them to
buy.

7. Impact of Marketing Mix on Place
Properties of the product being sold will impact the distribution
channel and levels of intermediaries involved, such as
transportation and handling processes.
groceries do not allow a high margin per unit weight of
produce transported to sell, choosing lesser intermediaries in
the distribution channel will ensure higher profitability.
Perishable goods and commodities do not require a special
distribution channel since they do not require company touch
points impacting brand loyalty.
Intensive Distribution
Chips and chocolates typically have high sales and are
available across most retail chains, and hence are found
practically everywhere, from a local store to the
supermarket.
Exclusive Distribution
Automobile sales is the best example of exclusive distribution
where sale happens only through exclusive dealers and dealing
showrooms.
Internet as a Distribution Channel

8. • The 5th P in the Marketing Mix
• People Who Make the Products - Aside from the management team, there are
people down the line who are responsible for coming up with the products and
services of the company.
• People Who Bring the Products to the Customers
• People Who Talk to the Customers
• People as differentiating factors.

9. • The Value-added services that differentiate the product from the
competition
• Processes essentially have inputs, throughputs and outputs (or outcomes).
• For e.g. Going on a cruise – from the moment that you arrive at the
dockside, you are greeted; your baggage is taken to your room. You have
two weeks of services from restaurants and evening entertainment, to
casinos and shopping. Finally, you arrive at your destination, and your
baggage is delivered to you. This is a highly focused marketing process, and
is an example of the importance of process in enabling delivery of the
customer proposition.

10. • Services as we know are largely intangible when marketing. However
customers tend to rely on physical cues to help them evaluate the
product before they buy it. Therefore marketers develop what we call
physical evidence to replace these physical cues in a service. The role of
the marketer is to design and implement such tangible evidence.
1. Physical Environment
2. Ambience
3. Layout
4. Corporate branding (signs, symbols and artefacts)

11. Marketing Plan
DX, digital transformation is the integration of digital technology into all
areas of the marketing mix. Digital transformation is no longer an
option.
Undergoing DX is becoming a necessity, especially after the global
pandemic that upended business as we know it.

12. Integrated Marketing Mix
The key marketing decisions that complement each other and work together
to give customers a consistent message about the product.
The key contents of a typical marketing plan are:
• purpose of the plan and the ‘mission’ of the business
• where the firm is now – situational analysis
• where it aims to get to, in marketing terms – marketing
• objectives and how it plans to achieve these targets – marketing strategy
• turning the strategy into the appropriate marketing tactics to be followed –
the marketing mix
• the budget required to implement the plan effectively
• executive summary and a time frame for implementation of the plan.