Extended Ps Of Marketing

The additional Ps have been added because

today marketing is far more customer oriented
than ever before, and because the service
sector of the economy has come to dominate
economic activity in this country.
These 3 extra Ps are particularly relevant to
this new extended service mix.
 Three extra Ps are:
• People

• Process

• Physical Evidence.
• PEOPLE are part of the marketing methodology
—everyone associated with the production and
delivery of the service plays an integral part in
the success of their business.
• Whether you manage the process, create or
package the product, deliver the final proofs or
simply answer the phone, the weakest link might
sink a service business.
• Most of us can think of a situation where
the personal service offered by individuals
has made or tainted a tour, vacation or
restaurant meal. Remember, people buy
from people that they like, so the attitude,
skills and appearance of all staff need to
be first class. Here are some ways in
which people add value to an experience,
as part of the marketing mix - training,
personal selling and customer service.
• A rude waiter at a posh restaurant can ruin
an expensive meal;
• just as an incorrectly burned DVD is an
inconvenience and delay to what might
have been an otherwise successfully
completed job.
• For that matter, your knowledge base as a
designer also plays a part in the quality of
service you deliver.
• Physical layout – in the past days for manufacturing the
physical layout of production units such as factories was
not very important to the end consumer because they
never went inside the factory.
• However, today consumers typically come into contact
with products in retail units - and they expect a high level
of presentation in modern shops –
• e.g. record stores, clothes shops etc. Not only do they
need to easily find their way around the store, but they
also often expect a good standard or presentation.
The importance of quality physical layout is important for
service providers, including:
• There are many examples of physical evidence,
including some of the following:
• Packaging.
• Paperwork (such as invoices, tickets and
despatch notes).
• Brochures.
• Furnishings.
• Uniforms.
• Business cards.
• The building itself (such as prestigious offices or
scenic headquarters).
• A sporting event is packed full of physical
evidence. Your tickets have your team's
logos printed on them, and players are
wearing uniforms. The stadium itself could
be impressive and have an electrifying
atmosphere. You travelled there and
parked quickly nearby, and your seats are
comfortable and close to restrooms and
store. All you need now is for your team to
win!
• Processes –
• associated with customer service are a number
of processes involved in making marketing
effective in an organisation
• e.g.
• 1) processes for handling customer complaints,
• 2) processes for identifying customer needs and
requirements,
• 3) processes for handling order etc
• marketing has a number of processes that
integrate together to create an overall
marketing process, for example -
telemarketing and Internet marketing can
be integrated.
• Going on a cruise - from the moment that you arrive at
the dockside, you are greeted; your baggage is taken to
your room. You have two weeks of services from
restaurants and evening entertainment, to casinos and
shopping. Finally, you arrive at your destination, and
your baggage is delivered to you. This is a highly
focused marketing process.
•
• Booking a flight on the Internet - the process begins with
you visiting an airline's website. You enter details of your
flights and book them. Your ticket/booking reference
arrive by e-mail or post. You catch your flight on time,
and arrive refreshed at your destination. This is all part of
the marketing process.
• At each stage of the process, :
• It Delivers value through all elements of the
marketing mix. Process, physical evidence and
people enhance services.
• Feedback can be taken and the mix can be
altered.
• Customers are retained, and other serves or
products are extended and marketed to them.
• The process itself can be tailored to the needs of
different individuals, experiencing a similar
service at the same time.
• The modern marketing mix that is
particularly relevant in service industry, but
is also relevant to any form of business
where meeting the needs of customers is
given priority.