Marketing Knowledge: Marketing mix and Elements of Marketing Mix for IBPS, SBI and other Competitive Exams

Marketing Mix and Elements in Marketing Mix

Marketing Mix:

Marketing mix is an important concept in modern marketing. It is the crux of marketing process. It refers to the set of actions or tactics, that a company uses to promote its brand or product in the market. It includes almost everything that a firm uses to affect consumer's perceptions favourably towards its products or services, so that the consumer and organisational objectives can be achieved.

However, the 4 P's remain the most popular classification in terms of marketing mix. In 1990, Robert F Lauterborn proposed a 4 C's classification, which is a more consumer-oriented version of the 4 P's.

Elements of Marketing Mix:

The elements or components of marketing mix may be grouped broadly under the following four heads.

• 1) Product
• 2) Price
• 3) Place
• 4) Promotion

1) Product: 

Product refers to the goods and services offered by the organisation for sale to the consumer for a price. In other words, a product is a bundle of utilities consisting of various features and accompanying services.

Product can be broadly classified as follows:

Based on Use, the products can be classified as

i) Consumer Goods: Products that are purchased for personal consumption by the households or ultimate consumers are known as "Consumer Goods". Dresses, auto-mobiles, food, Gold or other jewellery item are all examples of consumer goods. These consumer goods are classified into 3 parts they are

• Convenience Goods
• Shopping Goods
• Speciality Goods

ii) Industrial Goods: These goods are meant for use as inputs in production of other products or provision of some service and include raw materials, machinery, components and operating supplies. These are meant for non-personal and commercial use.

2) Price: 

It is the amount charged for a product or services. In other words, price is the consideration in terms of money paid by consumers for the bundle of benefits, he derives by using the product or service. It is the exchange value of goods and services in terms of money. Price is the only element in the marketing mix of a firm that generates revenue. Rest of them generate only cost. Price and volume of sales together decide the revenue of any business. Various factors that have to be kept in mind while fixing the price are demand for a product, cost involved, consumer's ability to pay, prices charged by competitors for similar products, government restrictions, etc.

3) Place: 

Goods and services are produced to be sold to the consumers. They must be made available to the consumers at a place where they can conveniently make purchase. Place is concerned with various methods of transporting and storing goods and then making available for the customer.Getting the right product, to the right place, at the right time, involves the distributions system and the choice of distribution method depends on a variety of circumstances. Making the products available, it involves a chain of individuals and institutions like distributors, wholesalers and retailers who constitute company's distribution network.

4) Promotion: 

Promotion is an important thing in marketing mix as it refers to a process of advertising, influencing a consumer to make select the product of the company is a big question. Promotion is done through selling, advertising, publicity and sales promotion. It is done mainly with a view to provide information to consumers about the quality, durability, availability and use's of the product.