This chapter shows how the well-established strategic framework of the marketing mix
can be applied by marketers to inform their Internet marketing strategy. It explores this
key issue of Internet marketing strategy in more detail than was possible in Chapter 4. As
well as the marketing mix, another major topic is covered in Chapter 5, online branding.
As part of our discussion of product we will review how the Internet can be used to sup-
port and impact the way brands are developed.
The marketing mix – widely referred to as the 4 Ps of Product, Price, Place and
Promotion – was originally proposed by Jerome McCarthy (1960) and is still used as an
essential part of formulating and implementing marketing strategy by many practition-
ers. The 4 Ps have since been extended to the 7 Ps, which include three further elements
that better reflect service delivery: People, Process and Physical evidence (Booms and
Bitner, 1981), although others argue that these are subsumed within the 4 Ps. Figure 5.1
summarises the different sub-elements of the 7 Ps.
The marketing mix is applied frequently in discussion of marketing strategy since it
provides a simple strategic framework for varying different elements of an organisation’s
product offering to influence the demand for products within target markets. For exam-
ple, if the aim is to increase sales of a product, options include decreasing the price and
changing the amount or type of promotion, or some combination of these elements.
E-commerce provides many new opportunities for the marketer to vary the marketing
mix, as suggested by Figure 5.1 and Activity 5.1. E-commerce also has far-reaching impli-
cations for the relative importance of different elements of the mix for many markets
regardless of whether an organisation is involved directly in e-commerce. Consequently,
the marketing mix is a useful framework to inform strategy development. First, it gives a
framework for comparing an organisation’s existing services with competitors’ in and
out of sector as part of the benchmarking process described in Chapter 1. As well as a
tool for benchmarking, it can also be used as a mechanism for generating alternative
strategic approaches.
Given the potential implications of the Internet on the marketing mix, a whole chap-
ter is devoted to examining its impact and strategies companies can develop to best
manage this situation.Introduction
Introduction
Marketing mix
The series of seven key
variables – Product,
Price, Place,
Promotion, People,
Process and Physical
evidence – that are
varied by marketers as
part of the customer
offering.
Online branding
How online channels
are used to support
brands that, in essence,
are the sum of the
characteristics of a
product or service as
perceived by a user.
Figure 5.1The elements of the marketing mix
Using the Internet to vary the marketing mixProduct- Quality
- Image
- Branding
- Features
- Variants
- Mix
- Support
- Customer
service - Use
occasion - Availability
- Warranties
Promotion- Marketing
communications - Personal
promotion - Sales
promotion
•PR - Branding
- Direct
marketing
Price- Positioning
- List
- Discounts
- Credit
- Payment
methods - Free or
value-
added
elements
Place- Trade
channels - Sales
support - Channel
number - Segmented
channels
People- Individuals
on marketing
activities - Individuals
on customer
contact - Recruitment
- Culture/
image - Training
and skills - Remuneration
Process- Customer
focus - Business-led
- IT-supported
- Design
features - Research
and
development
Physical evidence- Sales/staff
contact
experience
of brand - Product
packaging - Online
experience