Measure and Mixing your Way to Marketing Success

2009 is a year that will see many changes to the business and commercial landscape. Some businesses will fail while others will grow. It's is as simple as that.

One thing that will tip or maintain your business on the growth side is marketing. Irish businesses will need to get get better at marketing.

Marketing has many definitions but essentially it comes down to attracting and retaining customers. One way in which to understand how marketing can fully help a business is through the use of the Four Ps. Way back in the swinging 60s, when Harvard Business School was delivering marketing lessons (and now Presidents!), the four Ps of marketing were born.

They are:

• Product
• Price
• Promotion
• Placement (or Distribution - they needed a P)

I would like to add in two of my own P's which I've learned through my experience as a marketer.

• Position
• People

I believe that these six Ps follow a staggered approach. It goes from Position right down to People.

This article introduces you to my 6Ps (other marketers have their own versions) and how they can have a profound effect on your business. If you work on them individually in a sequence, you will see the results for yourself. Most businesses work primarily on promotion and price and depending on the type of business, placement. The others, if truth be told, are not necessarily considered.

Over the coming months, I'll be talking a bit more about these 6Ps and introduce tools and metrics that you can use or apply yourself to achieve marketing success.

Position

I like to think that this is at the core of the marketing mix. Entrepreneurs are market-driven, they see a gap in the market and they seek to fill in. At this stage, it's important to have the 'T's crossed and the 'I's dotted. By this I mean, you should know where it is you're going, who you're marketing to, who your competitors are, what makes you different and what market entry strategy will/do you employ.

Simply put, going into 2009, you need to set marketing objectives and goals and create a marketing action plan. It need not be a 55 page report, it can be simply a two page document that you revise on a weekly or monthly basis. It's a living document so is open to change when market opportunities present themselves.

Have you written your 2009 marketing plan yet?

Product

Once you've decided where you're going, you need to focus on your product or service offering. The section deals with all aspects of your product or service, from its name to how it relates to your customers needs; how it compares to your competition and how your product is different. You also need to look at the support you need to give with your product, i.e, guarantees, tutorials, tool-kits etc

You should find out and consider relevant industry standards, legal and health and safety legislation when selling your product or service. Think about how your product or service compares to the competition? From the Position P above, you should know what your Unique Selling Point is. What makes you different?

What is the problem that you are solving or the benefits that a customer receives when they use your product?

Pricing

Pricing concerns itself with setting a price for your product or service. It's really that simple.

However, all aspects of pricing should be considered. What is the industry average price, what is the tipping point that customers can afford to pay, what are they willing to pay and what is the margin and break-even points should all be considered at this point. The process of setting a price should take into account discounts for customers, wholesalers, retail traders. If you choose to sell online, what are the additional costs that you will incur (paypal, shipping etc)

What is the price of your product or service and how did you arrive at that price?

Placement

Placement or distribution refers to how your product or service reaches your customer.

It could be through a wholesale channel, a third party intermediary, directly, online, retail or a mixture of the above. When thinking about your product or service, think about the easiest and efficient way for your customer to find you. This is one area where you should start slowly and test the market.

How did you decide on the placement of your product or service? Is it working? Could you sell anywhere else?

Promotion

This 'P' is the 'P' that is used by most businesses. It refers to how your promote your business, product or service to customers and prospects. The mediums to consider are far ranging and really are only limited by your own imagination. Some known methods are PR, advertising, personal selling, telephone selling, website and referral marketing.

Budget constraints are a huge consideration within this 'P' as is testing and measuring. My mother has a saying 'There is no point throwing good money after bad' and it applies truly to marketing and promotion. Return on investment are three words that every marketer should say when any promotional method is suggested.

What elements are in your promotional plan and what is your return on investment on them?

People

People do business with people, not businesses. It's often a forgotten P in literature but the customer is your business. The renowned Brian Tracey will always say that the purpose of being in business is to get and keep customers. Out of them come your profit, your growth, your margins.

The cornerstone to understanding people and your customers is customer data. This helps you to understand the lifetime value of a customer, their loyalty levels, their buying patterns, their expectation levels and much more.

Within this 'P' is how to communicate best with your customers. Some businesses take for granted their customers. Not you I understand but when was the last time (other than Christmas) you made contact with a customer or a past customer just to say hello or ask how their business is going (depending on the service).

Most businesses spent 80% of their time chasing new business and 20% on existing customers. It costs a lot less to sell to an existing customer (or existing customers' contact) than a new customer.

What is your customer relationship strategy (CRM) and have all your staff been trained on giving great customer service?

Summary

6Ps - six words if implemented and examined within the context of your business will bring success to your business. Irish businesses need to get better at marketing. At Achieve, we want you to get better at marketing.

Test yourself with this accompanying checklist to find out how your business is implementing the 6Ps. 

Return to the Achieve Marketing Success January Newsletter page or read our marketing musings blog.