Topic: “Kotler’s 4 C’s”

Introduction
The Four Cs model of
business communications provides good
a framework for
businesses that want to increase their customer base
and attract repeat customers. The Four Cs model is a
reiteration of the Four Ps model, refined to be more
customer-centric. The Four Ps include product, price,
place and promotion, while the modern version of the
Four Cs includes consumer, cost, convenience and
communication.
 History
In 1964, Neil H. Borden coined the
term "marketing mix," which describes a number of
different ingredients that business owners should focus
on to improve their business. E. Jerome McCarthy
refined these ideas into the Four Ps. Koichi Shimizu
originally created the Four Cs in 1973, which include
commodity, cost, channel and communication. With the
publication of the book "Integrated Marketing
Communications" in 1993, Robert F. Lauterborn created
a second Four Cs model, which includes consumer, cost,
convenience and communication.
 The traditional Marketing mix is a 4 P’s
model and is business oriented. The 4 C’s model of
marketing on the other hand is more consumer oriented.
Because of its focus on consumers, the 4 C’s model is
mainly used for Niche Marketing. However, just like the
traditional marketing mix, it can also be used for mass
markets. The four variables in the 4 C’s model are

 Consumer
 Cost
 Convenience
 Communication
Consumer
The principle of four C’s of
marketing states that your customer should be your
primary focus. Unlike the traditional marketing mix where
the primary focus is on Products, in the 4 C’s model, the
primary focus is on the customer. Thus the companies
which follow this model believe in making products which
satisfy their customers. They are generally ready to offer
customizable products and because they have a general
set of target customers, this principle is only applicable
for smaller market segments and not for mass markets.
For mass markets, the traditional marketing mix can be
used.
Cost
Cost is equivalent to Pricing in
the traditional marketing mix. Cost is a very
important consideration during consumer
decision making and hence in the 4 C’s principle,
the cost variable is given special attention. The 4
C’s model generally plans on the basis of
Customers and not products.
Communication
The fourth P is promotion, which was
replaced by communication. Promoting a product via
traditional media channels is still a pathway to business
success, but communicating with customers to discover
how to improve service is essential. Businesses make
sure to learn from their customers, an experience that
provides an increased opportunity for branding and
repeat business.
Convenience
‘Place’ referred to the location of
where something would be sold, ‘Convenience for the
customer’ refers to how easy it is to find information and
purchase With e-commerce available, catalog
. sales, services, some
deliveryneed a store
barely or ‘place’ at all.
businesses (likeTherefore,
amazon.com)
convenience becomes the distribution channel.
Conclusion

All in all, the traditional marketing mix

model helps a company define its strategy more
efficiently. However, the 4 C’s model, although not much
different, really helps if you are a customer oriented firm.