Conversations in Marketing - the first in a series

The internet was the first giant, dynamic shift in Marketing in decades. Social Media was the next frontier that marketers embraced and both have changed the way we market everything.

Marketing classes have promoted the 4 “P’s” of marketing since they were developed in the 1960’s by E. Jerome McCarthy. They are classics, still taught today in educational institutions. However many in the industry say there are more than 4 if you want to understand current marketing methods.

Times Square lit up with ads Photo Credit: winterdove from SXC

The classic 4 are:
1. Product -a physical product or a service is your "product". The product and it’s benefits are in a constant rotation of the product life-cycle and need help from the other “P’s” to compete in this hyper-competitive environment.
2. Price - in most industries this is a rotating target based upon competition, industry as a whole, current trends and predictions of sales.
3. Place - is where you sell your product, distribution channels, and now the internet (not part of the thought process in the original 1960’s model).
4. Promotion - includes public relations, advertising, sales, events, white papers, websites, ad words, press releases, sponsoring events, training events and many more, but I think you get the idea. I also lump process into the promotion category predominately because process is a lot about promotion. Proctor and Gamble is a perfect example. In December of 2010 P&G announced that they will no longer sponsor soap operas, they will continue to advertise during those time slots, but they are shifting their process of promotion to social media.

   Additional “P’s” that belong under promotion, Permission based marketing, Partnerships, and Personalization.

Contemporary approach with new “P’s”

5. Purpose - This is my favorite "P" - if you do not know the “why and what” you want from any piece of marketing material before you distribute or create it - you might be wasting a whole lot of money. With all that is available today for tracking from landing pages to unique URLS and PURLS (personalized URLS) specific to a marketing piece - why aren’t you tracking as much as possible. Know in advance - is it brand awareness or a call-to-action. What numbers are you aiming for (Predictions) - an increase in website visitors, conversion from visitor to customer, or new customer leads - I think you get the idea - know the “why and what.”
6. People - I used to think that people belonged in the promotion category - but there has been a swing in a new direction as people “evangelize” your product. They may be employees, internet bloggers, or just people that love your product talking about it. People are also key to innovation when they actually take the time to talk to a company about a like or dislike of a product. Remember what happened when Coke changed their Classic Coke - that was a people rebellion on a grand scale. Engaging with customers and their engagement with you is priceless. You can learn so much.
7. Processes - you can have a great product or service but if you don’t have the processes in place, you are likely to fail. Processes include a strategic marketing plan which feeds into the business plan for the company, and a marketing budget - all should have short and long term predictions. Process also includes A/B testing of ads, copy, who will be your social voice, and what will be your social voice. Mistakes can end up costing jobs or reputation.
8. Philosophy - it is no longer sufficient to be a company with a product or service. You also often share your philosophies with the world. Menlo Innovations- often invites groups of people, even their competition, in for up to week-long sessions - to show off their philosophy for developing software via extreme agile project management and paired programming. Green energy firms - Accio Energy, eco-friendly cars - Smart Cars, and electric bikes - Current Motor Company - all have a philosophy behind them. It is part of their company DNA, it is what they live and breathe at work.
9. Packaging - from traditional packaging to non-tactile packaging on the web for services or downloads, packaging your product or service becomes more and more important as the global market place is now your competition.

There are other “P’s” that could be added to the list, but I think this covers the main old and new “P’s” of the marketing world.

Kim Kachadoorian also known as the "Geeky Marketer" is an “in-transition” marketer looking for her next gig. In the mean time she maintains her Geeky Marketer website and blog as part of her DNA and she maintains a job hunting blog - Jobs in A2. She found that helping others was a good way to use her talents and keep her skill set fresh. She'll be sharing them with readers of AnnArbor.com's Business Review on a regular basis.