The Four Ps of Marketing

So you have the contacts, networking and financing for a great business and want to get going on your new venture but how are you going to come up with a marketing plan? So many business owners and entrepreneurs make the mistake of believing that because their business ideas are great, they won’t have any problems selling their product or service.
How does your business plan square up against the four p’s of marketing?

1. Product
The most important aspect of whether your marketing plan is going to succeed or not lies in your product and its saleability. If it is something that everyone wants or, even better, something that everyone needs, marketing it is going to be easy. Are you selling a tangible product or providing a service?
You have to be satisfying a niche requirement and fulfilling a consumer need to give a product the wings to take off in the marketplace.

2. Price
Where does your product feature in the market place’s price range? Who can afford to buy it? Is this viable? How many do you need to sell at this price? Is this viable? Your pricing is going to dictate, to a large degree, the target audience that can afford your product, so make sure that you get it right. Too cheap can be as damaging as too expensive so don’t forget your market research.

3. Place
What physical infrastructure do you need to run your business or offer your service? Do you need retail space to sell a product or an office from which to offer your service?

4. Promotion
The medium is the message- what form of promotion is going to best suit your target market and the product you have so accurately priced in the market place?

And here’s one more…
Your business is your best marketing tool, and it doesn’t come at any extra cost. Make sure that keep the people who keep the till rolling happy. Invest in some client relations work and make sure you are offering the best value-added service possible. This is going to help you a great deal with successfully achieving point 4 so invest wisely.

Low Cost Marketing Ideas

There’s free and there’s low cost. When you spend a bit of money your capacity to make an impact goes up; it’s something of an investment in your target audience. Here are some easy and cost-effective ways to get your brand out there.

Corporate gifts- unique and free Branding promotional goods that are unique and eye-catching is a great way to ensure you stay front of mind. The trick is to make them unique and useful.

Steal ideas from competition products and services Within reason, of course. What you are looking for is how much they appear to be investing, and where they are investing so you can compete. When it comes to marketing and creativity though, uniqueness is key.

Seek out new and different advertising platforms Look for innovative ways to get your brand out there, and look to put your business in a space that no one else or no one in your industry has ventured into.

Offer something for free- incentivise Give customers a reason to shop with you- what’s in it for them? A discount, something for free, a value-add- these are all ways your business can distinguish itself from competition products when a customer is weighing you up.

Use email to its greatest potential Use your company database actively- to communicate your specials and promotions. People you have an existing relationship with are much easier to convert into customers than people with whom you have no history. This is information you have on record, and it is free. Exercise it.

Don’t underestimate the power of client relationships Great customer service goes a very long way. Never underestimate the power of a solid relationship and exceptional communication skills.

Creating a Successful Marketing Strategy

“Satisfying needs and wants through an exchange process”- Philip Kotler on the phenomenon of marketing.

Here are some essential pointers to keep in mind when creating a successful marketing strategy for any business, regardless of its size, shape or composition.

Define the product / service Make explicitly clear what it is that you are offering, and on what terms that product or service is offered.

Know your target market Learn as much as you can about who you are targeting with your product or service and what their likes and dislikes are.

Know your competition Learn from your competition. Have a look at what they are doing and where they are most active and get some pointers. Most importantly, work out what they are doing and do it better!

Identify a niche The most successful products fulfil a need that nothing else does. Find your niche group and target it effectively.

Generate product awareness Just because your product or service has been born into the marketplace doesn’t give it a right to be known about. Find as many avenues as you can to market your business and do it with aplomb.

Engender credibility Never underestimate the power of word of mouth and make sure that your customers have nothing but the best to say about you, starting from day one. Reputations stick- make sure yours is pretty.

Keep consistent Ensure that everything about your business is consistent, from the messaging to the product you are offering, through to the service you are offering people.

Know when to step back Especially if the business is yours and let marketing professionals do what they do best! You may have conceived, carried and born this business all on your own but there comes a time when you have to let go and listen to good professional advice!