Question

Q1 : write introduaction , body , conclusion and recommendation about marketing mix .

on 1000 words , please use your owen words .

Answer 1

Marketing is a customer-centered approach that aims at the satisfaction of their wants through the distribution of valuable products and services. Marketing brings together customers, products, and services. The concept of marketing is based on the identification of customer needs and their satisfaction. The marketing mix is a popular usage in the study of marketing. The basic components of the marketing mix are product, price, place, and promotion. It is also known as the 4 Ps of marketing. The marketing strategies of a firm revolve around these four elements. The varying mix of these four ingredients of influences the demand for a product and customer satisfaction. A firm has to prepare a mix of right products, right price, right place and right promotion to attain success in marketing.

Markting mix is a relevant area in the study of  marketing management. In order to attract consumers and for boosting sales, every firm has to concentrate on the four marketing variables; product, price, place and promotion. A suitable combination of these ingredients of marketing is called Marketing Mix. It is the mixture of four 4 P's which govern the whole system of marketing. The marketing mix is the tool used by a firm for attaining the goals of marketing. A brief description of the four ingredients of marketing mix is as follows;

PRODUCT- A product is something a firm offers to give satisfaction to consumers. It is the final output of a production process offered to consumers for satisfying their needs. Product is the most powerful weapon in marketing. It is considered as the soul of the marketing mix. The major decisions based on product in marketing include product development, branding, packaging, labeling and other features of the product. The product manufactured for market should be in accordance with the needs and expectations of the target market. All the marketing efforts of a firm are meaningless, if the products offered are not attractive to the consumers. Best quality product with attractive features is highly essential for ensuring success in marketing.

PRODUCT MIX- Product mix is refers to a group of products manufactured of traded by the firm to strengthen its presence in the market, increase its market share and increase the sales turnover for more profitability. It is defined as the overall products offered by a firm to its customers. According to Philip Kotler, "product mix is the set of all product lines and items that a particular seller offers for sale to buyers”.

PRICE- Price is defined as the value that is required to purchase a specific quantity of a good or service. It is the consideration given in exchange for the transfer of ownership and possession of goods and services. Price is a critical element which strongly influences the position of the product in the market. Marketing firms use pricing as a tool for achieving the targeted market share or sales volume. Pricing is also used as a strong weapon for beating competition in the market. Pricing decisions and strategies directly influence the sales volume and profits of the firm. Periodical review and adjustments in price of the product are necessary to manage the survival of the product in the target market. The price fixed should be sufficient enough generate desired profit to the firm but reasonable to consumers to purchase the product. It should be capable enough to overcome the competition posed by other similar products in the market.

PRICE MIX- Price mix is an umbrella term which is used to cover all the factors associated with pricing such as unit price level to be adopted, discount to be offered, pricing strategies, price discrimination(different prices for different groups of consumers for identical products offered by the firm) and terms of credit to be allowed to customers. A firm has to make sure that it offers a rational mix of price to the customers. A rational mix of price is one which is reasonable to the customers, gives the expected return to the firm, and effectively handles competition in the market. A firm has to consider different factors while determining the price of the product. Some of the important factors are cost of production, cost of distribution, competitors' price, expected return (profit), demand of the product, government policy, pricing regulations and economic environment of the country.

PLACE- Place is defined as the location where a firm expects to find its customers and consequently, where the sale is carried out. Place refers to the actual physical position of the customer in a geographic area. Place in marketing means the area or location of the consumers and not the place of the business. Place in marketing is also known as channel, distribution or intermediary. A firm has to understand the place of the consumers and choose adequate distribution network or channel to reach that place. Proper distribution network or channel is highly essential to deliver the goods at the place of the customers. Place strategies facilitate the movement of goods from the place of the manufacturer to the place of the consumers. For large-scale distribution, the services of wholesalers, retailers and other marketing intermediaries are required. A firm has to choose a channel which is convenient, economical and suitable for the distribution of a specific product.

PLACE MIX- Place mix refers to the combination of all decisions related with the flow of goods rom the place of manufacturers to the place of consumers. The two major components of place mix are channels of distribution and physical distribution. A Channel of distribution is the route through which a product moves from the producer to the ultimate consumer. The channel of distribution includes the original producer, the final buyer middlemen who act in between the producer and the buyer (wholesaler, retailer and other intermediaries). Physical distribution refers to the set of activities nvolved in the movement of goods from the producer to consumers via the distribution channel. The major activities of physical distribution are transportation, warehousing, inventory management and order processing.

PROMOTION- Promotion is the communication link between the firm and the consumer. Promotional measures are necessary to inform the consumers about a product and its features. Various methods of promotion influence the purchasing decision of a potential buyer. According to W.J.Stanton, "promotion encompasses all the tools in the marketing mix whose major role is persuasive communication". Generation of sales is not possible if the customers are not informed about the product and its benefits. Promotion fills the gap between the product and the customer.

PROMOTION MIX- The overall marketing communication programmes of a firm are known as promotion mix. The major elements of a promotion mix are as follows;

1. Advertising- For example, advertise-ments through television, newspapers etc.

2. Personal Selling- For example, canvassing customers personally or through telephone and other electronic means, sales presentations etc.

3. Sales Promotion- For example, gifts, scratch cards, discount offers etc.

4. Publicity- For example, articles and reports in newspapers and magazines, radio and TV presentations, charitable contributions, seminars etc,

According to Prof. Neil H. Borden, Harvard Business SC marketing mix refers to the apportionment of the esso combination, the designing and the integration of the ele marketing into a programme or mix which, on the basis appraisal of the market forces will best achieve the objective of an enterprise at a given time. Thus marketing mix is an integration of marketing elements”.

The factors influencing Marketing Mix are Availability of funds, Requirements of the target market, Size of the market, Competition and Technology.

The salient features of marketing mix are as follows;

It is a combination/integration of four important marketing variables such as product, price, place and promotion. These four variables depend on each other. It is a tool adopted by the firm to achieve marketing targets in terms of sales, profit and consumer satisfaction. The mixture or composition of the four elements is not rigid. It can be altered on the basis of the changes in the target market. Periodical adjustments and modifications in the marketing mix are necessary to improve customer satisfaction and thereby attain the desired goals of the firm. Marketing mix aims at giving maximum satisfaction to the customers. The objective of marketing mix is to give the customers the right product at the right price, in the right place through right promotional measures.