As the cornerstone to strategic marketing, the marketing mix encompasses a set of key elements that collectively shape your approach to things like product placement, price setting, distribution and promotional activities. It serves as a tone of voice for every form of communication you use.

Choosing a marketing mix is one of the first things a starting organisation should do. Don't feel upset if you've missed this step. Nevertheless you should aim to implement it at any time. Even if you did this exercise years ago, doing it again will give you a good indication whether or not you're still on track or should consider a different marketing mix.

What is the purpose of a marketing mix?

In its raw form, the purpose of a marketing mix is enabling you to enter the market. Everyone can create a business and start selling something. That's not the hard part. The hard part is actually driving business and generating sales. Understanding the core values of the marketing mix that is suitable for your organisation will enable you to make the right decisions at the right time. This will not only save you valuable time, but more importantly money!

What does a marketing mix look like?

The original marketing mix is the 4P's of marketing.

• Product:

• Price

• Place

• Promotion

These elements define how you position your company and start selling. The best way to show you how that works is through an example:

As an exemplary case, we'll have a look at a bakery. In the town where I live, I have about 2 bakeries.

Product

I actually do like to bake for real. So, let's say that my bakery will focus on pies. Who doesn't love pies, right? That in itself is a very good question. Will buyers find my product appealing? Can I survive on selling pies alone? After doing research into what similar companies offer, the conclusion is that my total product offering should be more extensive; the bakery will sell pies, bread and sandwiches.

Price

Now that I know what I'm going to offer, the next question is; what should it cost? There are various elements to consider here.

• What is my turnover target? Not just to grow the business, but what is my break-even point? This question should already be answered at this stage, but take it well into consideration when setting your price.

• What is the competition doing? Can I justify asking a dollar more than the market average for a pie? It's not uncommon that companies make the mistake of outpricing a product. There are often different strategies behind this, like being cheaper than competitors or more exclusive (read expensive).

After plenty of research, visiting local bakeries and even going to neighbouring towns, I concluded that I should aim at the market price with a 15% margin. This 15% margin is affordable and is necessary to achieve my turnover goals.

Place

This vital question is a challenge. There are already two bakeries in my town and approximately 6.000 inhabitants. With 12 km2, the town isn't massive, but both other bakeries are located on the far side of town. That leaves a beautiful opportunity for me to place my bakery either in the centre, or at the opposite side of town. By doing this, my bakery will not only be accessible for a large audience where most inhabitants live, but will also allow for some traffic from a neighbouring town. One downside to consider is the local supermarket which is located at the centre too and offers products at a very steep price.

Promotion

The last step in this marketing mix is setting up a promotion plan. With my location in place, I will need a large billboard for passing cars to see. Additionally, to start my initial sales, I will leave flyers and pamphlets in mailboxes all over town. In order to reduce costs, I will also offer a free piece of pie to all the customers on the first day. Once the launch is done, I will use social media to showcase my products to people in the neighbourhood.

Conclusion

As you can see, a marketing mix needs research. In many cases this is research you can do yourself, but if you have the funds this is something you can perfectly outsource too. Plenty of marketing agencies that offer strategic consulting can take care of this concept. Not only will doing research give you valuable insights, it will also sharpen your understanding of the future. How so? Well, take my example of the bakery. There will be three bakeries … if you even that out across my market potential that equates to 2.000 customers per bakery. Once I'm able to calculate my customer turnover, I will truly understand what the potential of the business is. This will help in staff hiring, investments, new product development, you name it.

Now that you understand the basics, it's time for you to choose a marketing mix that suits you and your organisation.

Photo by Patrick Perkins on Unsplash