As we continue our marketing management series, this week’s topic is going to be The 4 P’s of Marketing: Product, Price, Place, and Promotion. We are going to talk about what each one means in plain English, and how they can apply to your business.

Let me give you an example. When I first started working for Walmart, I would get really frustrated with my team because we were constantly having to promote ourselves and our company. It seems like every few hours, someone needed to say “Why should people buy from us instead of another brand?” or “What products do we offer that others don’t?” Or even “This is why people will shop at our store!”

It took me a while to realize that these questions make sense only if you understand the concept of the 4Ps. Once I did, it made more sense why promoting yourself and your product/service is so important.

How will you reach your customers?

Even though technology has completely changed how we live our lives, that does not mean it can erase the need to connect with other people or to place importance in marketing that touches the heart rather than the mind.

In fact, using tools and technologies to connect with others is what made the first few generations of marketers famous!

Think about all those TV commercials where someone talks directly into the camera for several minutes while promoting a product. Or how about those rousing speeches during presidential debates, complete with dramatic music and voice modulation?

We have now entered an era where anyone with a smartphone can create their own media channel and promote themselves as a “professional” marketer.

What I refer to as “mobile marketing” is very much like traditional forms of advertising except instead of being discrete, it goes hand-in-hand with online social networking sites and platforms.

It is also scalable and repeatable – something that was not always the case for older types of advertisements.

What are your unique selling propositions?

A few years ago, there was a lot of talk about how marketing departments were getting bigger and bigger. More people were being hired to handle all of the tasks that marketers must perform to succeed.

At this time, however, there was little talk about what kind of services these people were actually performing.

Many times, they would be given an internal product or service and asked to promote it. Or, they would be assigned to create an advertisement or direct mail piece for a product already known to most people.

It is not enough to have a good marketing department anymore. You need more than just people in charge of advertisements, billboards, and brochures!

You need people who can develop products, launch campaigns, manage social media, design logos, produce promotional materials, and so much more!

What we refer to as modern day “marketing management” positions require special skills that go beyond advertising. They take us beyond simply telling others what to do to achieve a goal.

These professionals work with other individuals in their organization to ensure success by helping them identify their goals and creating strategies to help them reach those goals.

They also look at the long term- not only short term- when planning tactics and strategies. This gives them room to think outside the box and come up with new ways to accomplish things.

That is why it is important to know what types of services your company offers so that you can position yourself professionally.

Do your products meet the needs of your customers?

Recent studies show that as few as one in three smartphone users actually use all features their phone has! This means that if you are trying to market a new feature or function for your product, most people you talk to will not know what you are talking about.

If you want to see true success with your mobile device, focus more on which functions people are missing than what ones they have. It is much better to be the best voice chat app than the next-biggest thing than being the biggest Snapchat account.

The same goes for marketing products. Find out which functions your current competitors do not offer and then make sure yours include those things.

This way, you will connect with your audience more effectively and promote growth for your company.

What are your customer service policies?

As mentioned before, having a great company culture is one of the most important things to influence how well you do business. But what kind of culture are you creating with your customers?

You should always aim to go above and beyond for your customers at all times!

This includes offering friendly mobile phone services, responding quickly to emails and messages, and offering them discounts or freebies if they’re buying something related.

Never stop putting in effort into helping others!”

Your time spent doing these things will pay off as word-of-mouth marketing which can boost traffic to your site and sales.

If you're reading this article then you've already done some of the groundwork to create an amazing customer experience - giving back through donations, supporting charities, sharing information about health and wellness, and so on.

Are you online marketing ready?

Online marketing is constantly changing. What works today may not work tomorrow. For that reason, it is important to have a constant level of preparation when engaging in social media marketing, search engine optimization (SEO), website design, influencer recruitment, and digital advertising.

As we know, staying prepared can be difficult at times because technology changes so quickly. With that said, here are some things you should be able to do by this article’s end!

Interact with other marketers via social media

Research ideas to improve your business's efficiency and effectiveness

Create content people are willing to share for your product or service

Build solid relationships with others who help promote your company

The first two points mentioned above relate mostly to social media, but unfortunately, too many entrepreneurs fail to take full advantage of this medium.

Too often, marketers spend time talking about products, services, and companies they like instead of interacting with others who use similar strategies. This is totally fine if you're just starting out, but as your business grows you will need to actively participate in various communities to keep up with the demands.

Reading through posts and comments made by individuals related to your industry can also give you great insights into how others conduct business.

By doing these three things, you'll definitely come across some helpful information that can aid you in developing your own strategy.