Marketing strategy

Marketing strategy is a method that can permit an organization to deliberate its limited resources

on the greatest opportunity to enhance sales and accomplish sustainable competitive advantages.

Marketing strategy leverages the combination of resources and capabilities within an

organization to achieve a competitive advantage and thus enhances firm performance

(Cacciolatti & Lee, 2016).wei

A thorough marketing strategy covers the four Ps of marketing, they are product, price, place,

and promotion which are the key considerations that must be thoughtfully considered and wisely

implemented in order to successfully market a product or service.

The four Ps are often referred to as the marketing mix. They encompass a range of factors that

are considered when marketing a product, including what consumers want, how the product or

service meets or fails to meet those wants, how the product or service is perceived in the world,

how it stands out from the competition, and how the company that produces it interacts with its

customers.

Product Product

This represents an item or service designed to satisfy customer needs and wants. To effectively
market a product or service, it's important to identify what differentiates it from competing
products or services. It's also important to determine if other products or services can be
marketed in conjunction with it. https://www.investopedia.com/terms/m/marketing-mix.asp

Creating a marketing campaign starts with an understanding of the product itself. Who needs it,

and why? What does it do that no competitor's product can do? Perhaps it's a new thing

altogether and is so compelling in its design or function that consumers will have to have it when

they see it.

The job of the marketer is to define the product and its qualities and introduce it to the consumer.

Defining the product also is key to its distribution. Marketers need to understand the life cycle of

a product, and business executives need to have a plan for dealing with products at every stage of

the life cycle.

The type of product also dictates in part how much it will cost, where it should be placed, and

how it should be promoted

the Coca-Cola Company has a wide product range. It has more than 500 sparkling and still

brands and sells approximately 1.9 billion servings a day globally. portfolio of brands includes

Coca-Cola, Sprite, Fanta and other sparkling soft drinks. Our hydration, sports, coffee and tea

brands include Dasani, smartwater, vitaminwater, Topo Chico, Powerade, Costa, Georgia, Gold

Peak, Ayataka, and BodyArmor. Our nutrition, juice, dairy and plant-based beverage brands

include Minute Maid, Simply, innocent, Del Valle, fairlife and AdeS.

Coca-Cola Classic, Coca-Cola Zero Sugar, Fanta, Fanta Zero, Sprite, Sprite Zero, Diet Coke, Dr

Pepper, Dr Pepper Zero, Powerade, Powerade Zero, Schweppes Water, Schweppes Mixers,

Schweppes Lemonade, and Oasis are some of its popular products.

Over the years, the world has witnessed a growing awareness of the impact of a variety of drinks

on public health. Unsurprisingly, the Coca-Cola Company’s response to the public concerns has

been prompt. For example, some of the products are now caffeine-free. It also has a reduced or

no-sugar, no-calorie option for almost all of its products.

The Coca-Cola Company is one of the most valuable brands in the world. Its products come in

different sizes and shapes which help customers choose the right amount of drink. All of its

bottles and cans are 100% recyclable. Its net revenue for the year 2021 was $38.66 billion
2. Price

Price is the amount that consumers will be willing to pay for a product. Marketers must link the

price to the product's real and perceived value, while also considering supply costs, seasonal

discounts, competitors' prices, and retail markup.

In some cases, business decision-makers may raise the price of a product to give it the

appearance of luxury or exclusivity. Or, they may lower the price so more consumers will try it.

Marketers also need to determine when and if discounting is appropriate. A discount can draw in

more customers, but it can also give the impression that the product is less desirable than it was.

There are a number of pricing policies available to business marketers e.g. competitor pricing,

discrimination pricing, value pricing, cost-plus pricing, and, loss leader pricing. The biggest rival

of Coca-Cola worldwide is Pepsi. Both companies price their products competitively. Therefore,

it can be said that Coca-Cola’s pricing policy is a competitor pricing.

Some analysts would argue that Coca-Cola also uses value pricing as the prices of its products

are not so high that the average customers cannot afford to buy. However, the prices are not very

cheap either which would have given the customers an impression of low quality. It is worth

noting that the prices may vary from country to country, and city to city

in the sense they charge different prices for products in different segments. The beverage market

is considered to be an oligopoly in which there are few sellers and many buyers. Coca Cola and

Pepsi are the dominant players. Coke products are priced similar to that of Pepsi products in that

particular segment. If Coke prices its products too high as compared to Pepsi in a particular
segment, then the consumers might switch especially in developing countries where the

consumers are price sensitive. Hence both come to an agreement of maintaining price parity in

each segment. However, Coca Cola offers discounts on bulk purchases by sometimes even

bundling the products.

Place 

Place is the consideration of where the product should be available, in brick-and-mortar stores

and online, and how it will be displayed.

Place in the marketing mix of Coca-Cola refers to where the company’s products are available

and how they are made available to the customers. Coca-Cola’s products are sold across the

world. It has a wide network of distributors who get the products to shops, supermarkets, cafes,

restaurants, gift shops, and many other outlets across the globe.

Anyone who travels can see that Coca-Cola is available almost everywhere, including airports

and train stations. They can even find vending machines selling the products. In fact, Coca-Cola

has developed an extensive distribution network. Its distribution strategy is very intensive as

well. Therefore, customers find its products available almost everywhere across the globe

. Promotion . "the marketing communication used to make the offer known to potential

customers and persuade them to investigate it further".[24].

The goal of promotion is to communicate to consumers that they need this product and that it is

priced appropriately. Promotion encompasses advertising, public relations, and the overall media

strategy for introducing a product.

Marketers tend to tie promotion and placement elements together to reach their core audiences.

For example, In the digital age, the "place" and "promotion" factors are as much online as

offline. Specifically, where a product appears on a company's web page or social media, as well

as which types of search functions will trigger targeted ads for the product.

Promotion in the marketing mix of Coca-Cola usually refers to how the company communicates

with its customers and stakeholders. The cost of maintaining the position of the global leader in

the beverage industry is not cheap! Unsurprisingly, the Coca-Cola Company spends billions of

dollars every year in advertising globally. In fact, its yearly advertising spend is around 4 billion

dollars (Ridder, 2022).

Coca-Cola has famous slogans like ‘Open Happiness’ and ‘Catch the Wave’ that are instantly

recognisable, even to people who do not drink soft drinks. Its advertising is all about making the

company seem like a global brand which is not an exaggeration; it is a global brand indeed. The

ads use languages and images from around the world and are in many different languages

he Coca-Cola Company uses a variety of promotional strategies to take its messages to the

customers. It uses different types of media for its advertising campaigns. Media e.g. TV, the

Internet, newspapers, and social media have all been used by the company. It also makes use of

different sales promotion techniques. For example, it offers special incentives and bulk-buying

discounts to the distributors and the retailers.

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