THE 4 P’S OF MARKETING IN THE AGE OF SOCIAL AND DIGITAL MEDIA MARKETING

June 29, 2021 | Fox Tales

Most entrepreneurs and business owners are familiar with the “marketing mix” (defined by Philip Kotler as a “set of marketing tools that a firm uses to pursue its marketing objectives.”) The 4 P’s of Marketing that make up a typical marketing mix are:

Product – The physical thing or service being sold and what makes it unique, which determines the marketing message.

Price – How much the product or service will cost, which determines the target audience.

Place – Where the product or service is available, which determines the marketing reach and media choices.

Promotion – How people can be made aware of the product or service, which determines the choice of marketing tactics.

These P’s were coined by Edmund Jerome McCarthy in 1960 and have been the go-to model for marketing strategies since then. But the times have changed! The advent of the Internet and smartphones has been a catalyst for the traditional marketing mix, forcing it to change and adapt to evolving technology and consumer behaviour.  So, what do the 4 P’s look like today– in the world of social media and digital marketing? Here’s our take on it:

1. Product (Product or Service or Solution): The product is still the most crucial aspect of the 4P’s. Whether it is digital marketing or traditional marketing, the attributes of the product remain the same. The difference is that in the digital world, the way a product is presented has changed. The internet has made consumers much more aware of not only their exact requirements from a product, but also the different options available to them. Therefore, in the world of social media what is most important is the description of the product and how accurately it meets the needs of the target audience. Reels, videos, photos and blogs- whatever tool or channel you use, the key is to demonstrate the attributes as well as the value of the product effectively to capture consumer attention.

2. Price: Price has always been an essential aspect of every customer’s shopping experience. Consumer behaviour research shows that consumers prefer to compare different features of products before buying them and pricing can be secondary, but pricing can also change consumer behaviour within a fraction of seconds! In the age of social media, pricing can be more flexible- businesses can change their pricing on-the-go based on competition, real-time feedback to sales, or deals or promotional activities around the product. In addition, you have real-time information about the consumer’s past record with you (up-selling, cross-selling, discount range, type of products etc.) to create a price matrix which complements your marketing campaign online. While this could also have been done with traditional marketing methods- the cost and the effort involved of keeping track of customers in real time would have been huge! Social media and digital marketing allow you to make more informed decisions about prices and allow you to update campaigns around buying or purchase habits of clients in real-time.

3. Place: Unlike before, in the digital world, products are quickly and globally available or accessible on the Internet. With social media, sellers now have many more platforms to connect with their audiences and sell their products/ services. For example- Instagram is one of the most popular social media platforms, with nearly a billion users. From gathering insights to selling products, Instagram keeps rolling out tools to help business owners succeed on the photo-sharing social media platform. Most social media platforms now have shopping features, and social commerce (the process of selling products directly on social media) is now the norm. (Read our blog on social commerce to learn more about the shopping features on each social media platform)

4. Promotion: Promotion has historically been the most challenging aspect of the 4P’s. Budget limitations and return on investments have always been areas of concern, and many businesses have struggled to figure out their promotional strategies. Social media has completely changed that! With so many free tools (social media accounts for businesses, blogs, etc.) communicating with consumers and lead generation have never been easier, and promotion has now become one of the easiest and most rewarding elements of the marketing mix. Social media and digital marketing campaigns give you the flexibility to set up promotional campaigns based on the age, gender, interest, location, and preferences of your target audience. In addition, business owners now have so many new options to utilize in their promotion strategy- influencer marketing, reels and videos, tutorials. The list is endless!

Now that you know the 4 P’s of social and digital media marketing, here are 4 more P’s to pay close attention to:

1. Personal –Always try to make a personal connection with your audience. Social media marketing is all about interaction, and it is important to continuously communicate with your consumers. Engage with your followers- respond to queries and comments, listen to and acknowledge feedback from followers, talk to your audiences, offer insight on the products, and post engaging content on your profile.

2. Patience – While the social media world is very fast paced, success rarely happens overnight! Focus on your content strategy (post interesting, relevant content) and make sure you are promoting your products effectively. Be patient- you will build an audience slowly and organically, and it will be an audience that will stick with you.

3. Persistent – Be persistent! Social media is not a one-off investment in terms of effort. Posting erratically and inconsistently will not help you build your brand online. Depending on the platform, you may want to post weekly, daily, or even a few times a day. Top of the mind recall is thegoal (to get consumers to remember your brand and think of it often), so be sure to post accordingly.

4. Paid – Don’t be shy to use paid advertising on social media! Evaluate the ROI first, but do not be hesitant to use paid ads to grow on social media. If you own a store and you are having a sale, use paid social media to promote it and grow your page followers. Paid social media not overtly expensive and can be highly targeted. Let’s face it- social media platforms want your ad money, so sponsored posts and paid ads reach a lot more people than organic posts.

So, there you have it! The 4’Ps of marketing in the social and digital media age, and 4 P’s to help you tackle them!

(The Author of this article is Nikita D’Souza, Sr. Social Media Manager, Bombay Fox)