Formulation of a strong and successful marketing plan is of utmost importance for any marketing campaign to be a success. Marketing mix is a tool used to formulate such strategies that yield all-round, long term results.

Contents

1. Marketing Mix: Definition and Importance
2. The Four P's of Marketing
3. The Marketing Process (How to use Marketing Mix to your advantage)
4. Conclusion

Marketing Mix: Definition and Importance

Marketing Mix is a guide which can be used to form successful marketing strategies. It was developed to ensure an all-rounder approach before forming marketing tactics. The four Ps (Product, Price, Place, and Promotion) cover all functioning areas of a business, hence this tool helps businesses take a more comprehensive marketing approach.

It can be defined as the culmination of the major forces of market, namely product, price, place, and promotion. It helps achieve your marketing targets, as marketing mix functions as a monitoring variable to such goals by defining a table of progress, divided under relevant heads. For example, place mix can be used to monitor how far the reach of your product is physically, and how the expansion of the same is going.

The Four Ps of Marketing

• Product

Product is any good that a business offers for sale, or any services it is ready, willing, and qualified to provide under such circumstances deemed contractual by expression or conduct. In other words, Product is anything, real or psychological, that a business is ready to provide for monetary gain. As a marketing Mix, Product is an essential element as it is necessary to understand the product, and therefore its market conditions for any business to go about a successful marketing campaign.

• Price

Pricing decisions affects a lot of variables, from directly affecting profit margins and gains, to indirectly affecting growth, promotion, and everything up to the survival of the business. Under oligopoly market however, there is only minimum pricing liberty. Any price fluctuations and a business is bound to lose or gain customers immediately, at the price of lower sales or lower profits (respectively). Therefore a concrete understanding of the type of market along with knowledge about the industry and competition is essential before making pricing decisions.

• Place

Physical availability of the product is also very important. It is basically following the concept of being ‘at the right place, at the right time’. Ideally Place Mix should define where your potential customers are most like to wander into; this includes online shopping portals such as Amazon.

• Promotion

Through our previous articles we have always emphasised on the value of offering superior value as the key element of promotion. Promotion is basically a culmination of activities undertaken to acquire market share. Various methods such as advertisement, Public Relations, sales discounts, etc. are included under promotion. Promotion Mix looks to guide these activities, such that maximum ROI is obtained from the promotional efforts.

The Marketing Process (How to use Marketing Mix to your advantage)

To form an effective Marketing Mix that suits the requirements of your business and yields maximum results, we suggest taking the initiative for careful and constructive planning. This includes the process of industry analysis (click here), competitor analysis (click here), and advertisement analysis, as well as defining your marketing goals under the subheads of Marketing Mix and keeping a maintained checklist for the same. When implying Marketing Mix as a marketing basis, you should ask yourself the following questions:

1. What are the products I will be dealing in? (Product Mix)
2. What industry will I be working in? (Promotion/Product Mix)
3. Who are my competitors? (Product Mix)
4. What are competitors marketing strategies, and what strategies work best in my market? (Promotion Mix)
5. How will I offer superior value to the customer in order to gain market share? (Product/promotion Mix)
6. How will I make sure that my good are in stock according to demand?(Place Mix)
7. Where should my goods be distributed so that they have maximum potential customer reach? (Place Mix)
8. What will I charge for the products? How will it differ from others and what are the offers/discounts/possible loses that will be collateral to my pricing decisions? (Price Mix)

Upon answering the above questions, the best thing would be to lay down the respective goals in relevant headings and proceed with it.

Any market form is dynamic and ever changing, therefore a limitation of Marketing Mix is rigidity. You must be prepared for such changes, expected (in accordance to past changes in the industry) or unexpected.

Conclusion

While Marketing Mix is a comprehensive marketing tactic, it has some of its flaws that should be accounted for beforehand. It is a good approach for Startup businesses (click here to learn more about startup marketing). It should be used as a guide rather than as a rigid to-do list, describing your long term goals while dealing with variables as they come along.

We can help!

Symphysis believes in marketing from the ground up. With our team of dedicated experts we can help in locating your ideal market, segmentation, search engine optimization and create your own successful brand. For more information call or text @+1 (425) 390-4738 for a free initial consultation.   

Business Planning is the most important factor to consider for launching a successful startup business. Industry Analysis is that part of business planning which deals in determining which sectors of the market (industries) you will be dealing in. This brief article explains the basics of Industry Planning with a beginner’s in-depth approach.

1. What is Industry Analysis?
2. The Importance of Industry Analysis
3. Most effective industry analysis strategies (SWOT and Porter’s Five Force Analysis)
4. Things to keep in mind while choosing your industry (Industry Analysis)
5. Footnotes

What is Industry Analysis?

Before starting actual business processes it is important to find out where your business fits into the market, its growth and profit potential, and the state of competitors dealing in similar products and under similar circumstances. In other words, to target new potential customers, industry analysis can be used as a tool to break down important factors influencing your target market.

The Importance of Industry Analysis

Efficient Industry Analysis shows effective management and acts as a foundation for long-term growth and survival of the business. Industry Analysis defines the potential liquidity, solvency, and profitability for you and your competitors in the industry. It focuses on analyzing market trends and therefore also helps your business prepare for any future shift in economic patterns of the market.

Most effective industry analysis strategies (SWOT vs Porter’s Five Force Analysis)

SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) and Porter’s Five Forces (Competitive Rivalry, Supplier Power, Buyer Power, Threat of New Entry, and Threat of Substitution) are the two most talked about Industry Analysis strategies.

It is evident by their definitions that SWOT analysis focuses more on internal factors while Porter’s Five emphasizes on external forces. SWOT analysis defines the potentials and capabilities of a business, what it can and cannot do and which chain of actions that it undertakes will be most lucrative. Under this an equity analyst is expected to jot down and deal with a business’ internal Strengths and Weakness in direct relationship to its external Opportunities and Threats. Hence it tells an entity about its own competitive advantages and disadvantages. Therefore it focuses on determining profitability, along with focusing and analyzing solvency and survival potential of the organization.

Porter’s Five Forces, on the other hand, tells an analyst about competition within their industry, along with an industry's weaknesses and strengths. Professor Michael E. Porter of Harvard Business School coined this strategy as part of his book "Competitive Strategy: Techniques for Analyzing Industries and Competitors."

This strategy can be used for a more comprehensive analysis of the external factors of the industry. Its main objective is determining profitability prospects for an organization.

The five industry analysis forces that make up the industry as identified by Porter are:

• Competitive Rivalry

In the center of it all, Competitive Rivalry is the power of established businesses in an industry that your business needs to deal with. Effective and efficient analysis of Competitive Rivalry becomes a major force since such existing businesses already possess a greater fraction of market share and resources in the industry.

• Supplier Power

More supplier power is less desirable for your business. If there is greater demand for producer goods⁽¹⁾ in your industry than their availability, the suppliers are in a greater position to bargain for higher prices. Simultaneously acting forces of demand and supply, if negative, which is likely under such a scenario, leads to lower profitability prospect for the business

• Buyer Power

Buyer Power, aka demand, consists primarily of demand function:⁽²⁾ variables such as the demographic distribution, number of customers, taste and preference, price sensitivity (price elasticity), etc.

• Threat of New Entry

If you are an established firm, industry analysis is still necessary since modern market is dynamic is nature, thus entering and existing in an industry is a repetitive occurrence. Such businesses look to acquire market share from you by offering greater value in their products or their presentation, by advertising implied superiority.

• Threat of Substitution

Substitution effect is the tendency of buyers to switch from one product or a similar product’s brand to another.  A substitute product is one that may offer the same or similar benefits to a buyer as a product from another manufacturer/industry. An industry with a higher threat of substitution is less likely to yield higher rates of profitability.

Things to keep in mind while choosing your industry (Industry Analysis)

Three major variables to keep in mind before initialising an Industry Analysis are following-

• The Stakeholders

Stakeholders⁽³⁾ are parties that have something on stake with the business. For example, equity investors or the government. Their policies and preferences should be kept in interest while forming a business plan in the industry.

• Competitors

Your existing competitors and their policies/ business structures / producing or purchasing patterns greatly affect and define your own business model. For example, for a startup it is best to adhere to existing, fairly profitable practices than going overboard with experimentation. You can read more about startup marketing here.

• Distribution

Supplier power included, this defines the range of distribution, demographically targeted, and therefore the resulting buying patterns. Distribution patterns define the prospects of growth by showing the targeted market, effective distribution systems, and sales prospects.

Another factor under ‘distribution’ is the distribution of resources. How limited resources are distributed among your competitors and you, such that maximum profits could be yielded, is another factor to be kept in mind while performing Industry Analysis.

We Can Help!

Symphysis specializes in market structure and strategy. Every day we meet clients from around Greater Seattle for one-on-one training and consultation. Our marketing services extend to businesses of all sizes, family and enterprise. For more information, call or text @ +1 (425) 390-4738.

Footnotes

1.  Producer Goods are goods used in the production process (manufacturing) by the producer. These are not meant for end use and are rather a means to an end.
2. Demand Function is the culmination of various factors affecting demand for a commodity/service, like price, taste, taxation, weather, etc.
3. Primary stakeholders of a business are owners (shareholders in case of a company), customers, employees, suppliers, and government.

When every market form seems to have taken a cut-throat form of competition, marketing for a startup is more hectic and trickier than ever. This brief article outlines the importance of startup marketing, as well as tips on how to start a successful marketing plan.

The following queries are tackled in this article.

1. The importance of Startup marketing.
2. The essential strategies of Startup marketing.
3. Conclusion

The importance of Startup marketing.

To establish your brand in a competitive market, brand recognition is an absolute necessity. While the product itself is a huge factor in this, a catchy and relevant brand name is the only way to gain recognition for such a product. This eventually leads to generation of the most important marketing tool for a startup: Word-of-Mouth Marketing. You can read more about branding here.

As a startup, the prospect of earning profits is more important than actually earning profits. Brand is not something you create but something you gain, by product differentiation and offering superior value to the potential customer. From now on, this article will assume the product created is of superior value to the potential customer than those already available.

Now that our valuable product or service has been finalized and ready to be launched, we will take a look at the essential strategies for Startup marketing.

The essential strategies of Startup marketing.

• Market Research (Targeted Marketing).

Choosing a specific market for targeted launch of your product is a very effective marketing strategy for a startup. Even if the product is meant for popular and generic usage, targeted launch is still preferred because it generates credible word-of-mouth marketing from those who regularly use the product/service. It is essentially identifying what market and what segment of the market has the most potential for purchasing your product, then advertising to that part of the market specifically.

• Absolute, not Comparative Presentation (Building your own Brand)

• Engagement, Not Aggressive Selling

Comparative presentation of yourself is basically calling your brand or your market inferior to another. For example, you (XYZ, an accounting firm) aren’t the Microsoft of accounting. You are XYZ. This painfully pervasive tactic appears amateur and doesn't produce long-term results, especially for startups.

Aggressive Selling (focusing on immediate sales by advertisement rather than building up a customer base) can only work for a short-term firm constituted for a particular project. It is a huge obstacle for a firm looking to acquire market share from an established market.

Customer Engagement, on the other hand, is an essential. As is evident by the ever growing need of a good Customer Support, engagement and reliability on the organization from the customer’s side helps build the brand. Occasionally this works faster than any other marketing method.

• Acquiring Customers and not Building Brand

By offering Quality Products/Services, Customer Engagement, and acquiring brand recognition, a brand builds itself. But not by aggressive brand-forcing, trademarking, advertisement, etc. A lot of failed startups make the mistake of focusing on Brand Establishment and not Brand Recognition. A brand is built once a strong, satisfied customer base has been built.

• Word-of Mouth Marketing

An extension to the previous point, word-of-mouth marketing is perhaps the most important marketing strategy for a startup. A satisfied customer has a habit of recommending products and services or running independent forums and discussions about the product/service, etc. The main focus should be for the firm and its product to be of some superior value to the potential customer.

• The Importance of Networking

Establishing a good network among your market and competition is another essential. It is basically a means of recognition in the sellers’ side of the market. This can be accomplished by attending workshops, meetups, and other networking events and joining forums on various websites like Facebook and Reddit.

• Funds Management

Do not waste money on trademarking/advertisement as a startup without proper budgeting. It is very popular among failed startups to spend thousands of dollars on unsuccessful, compulsive, and aggressive marketing. Instead, invest on methods that work best for your market following the very important market research.

• The Importance of Numbers

An extension to point one, having all the relevant, well-researched data expressed in quantitative terms is a requirement for effective startup marketing. This is often overlooked or disorganized, leading to great losses and even complete failures for startups.

• Move Fast!

Not all of these marketing tips will work for your startup. The concept of startup marketing is a dynamic, conditional, and subjective one with variables running from 0 to 100 every day based on trends and customer behavior. Therefore, if a particular method does not work for you, pivoting and redirecting efforts is the only option to stay current and moving forward.

Conclusion

At its core, Startup marketing is about customer satisfaction. We have not mentioned the obvious tips like ‘advertise’ since it is the base, hidden variables that run those surface tactics. The most important things are to understand the dynamics of your market identify your target audience. Change is the only thing that is constant, so continue researching your target demographics and pivot when necessary to continue offering valuable products.

Making a startup successful is difficult and time consuming. In fact, most startups never even report profit or success. The path of entrepreneurship is all about facing and beating challenges so do not let the failure stories discourage you. Once you understand what works for your specific market, marketing becomes easier to manage.

We Can Help!

Symphysis specializes in market structure and strategy. Every day we meet clients from around Greater Seattle for one-on-one training and consultation. Our marketing services extend to businesses of all sizes, family and enterprise. For more information, call or text @ +1 (425) 390-4738.