Marketing Mix VS Product Mix

Marketing Mix VS Product Mix. Key difference between Marketing Mix and Product Mix is that Marketing Mix is a broader term that includes the complete array of marketing tactics while product mix only refers to few elements of the product variable from the whole marketing mix.

What is Marketing Mix?

Marketing mix is a general phrase used to describe the different kinds of choices organizations have to make during the process of bringing a product or service to market.

The 4Ps is one way – probably the best-known way – of defining the marketing mix, and was first expressed in 1960 by E. J. McCarthy in his book, “Basic Marketing – A Managerial Approach.”

Read: What is Marketing Mix? Types and Importance

The marketing mix addresses factors such as:

Understanding the needs or desires of consumers
Identifying the cause of the failure of the current product offering
Finding ways to solve said problems and change public perception of the product/service
Creating distinguishing characteristics to increase competitive advantage
Understanding how the product interacts with consumers and vice versa

4 Ps of Marketing Mix

The four Ps of marketing are:

- Product: What you sell. Could be a physical good, services, consulting, etc.
- Price: How much do you charge and how does that impact how your customers view your brand?
- Place: Where do you promote your product or service? Where do your ideal customers go to find information about your industry?
- Promotion: How do your customers find out about you? What strategies do you use, and are they effective?

#1: Product:

The product is the good or service being marketed to the target audience.

Generally, successful products fill a need not currently being met in the marketplace or provide a novel customer experience that creates demand.

For example, the original iPhone filled a need in the market for a simplified device that paired a phone with an iPod.

As you are working on your product, it is essential to consider your target audience and their unique needs.

Also see: 4 Ps of Marketing Mix

#2: Price:

Price is the cost of a product or service.

When marketing a product or service, it is important to pick a price that is simultaneously accessible to the target market and meets a business’s goals.

Pricing can have a significant impact on the overall success of a product.

For example, if you price your product too high for your targeted audience, then very few of them will likely purchase it.

Similarly, if you price your product too low, then some might pass it up simply because they are concerned it might be of inferior quality and cut into your potential profit margins.

To identify a successful price, you will want to thoroughly understand your target audience and their willingness to pay for your product.

#3: Place

Place is where you sell your product and the distribution channels you use to get it to your customer.

Much like price, finding the right place to market and sell your product is a key factor in reaching your target audience.

If you put your product in a place that your target customer doesn’t visit—whether on or offline— then you will likely not meet your sales target.

The right place, meanwhile, can help you connect with your target audience and set you up for success.

For example; imagine you are selling an athletic shoe you designed. Your target market is athletes in their early twenties to late thirties, so you decide to market your product in sports publications and sell it at specialty athletics stores.

By focusing on sports stores over shoe stores in general, you are targeting your efforts to a specific place that best fits your marketing mix.

To decide the best place to market and sell your product, you should consider researching the physical or digital places where your target audience shops and consumes information.

#4: Promotion

Promotion is how you advertise your product or service. Through promotion, you will get the word out about your product with an effective marketing campaign that resonates with your target audience.

There are many different ways to promote your product. Some traditional methods include word of mouth, print advertisements, and television commercials.

In the digital age, though, there are even more marketing channels that you can use to promote your product, such as content marketing, email marketing, and social media marketing.

What is Product Mix?

Product mix is the total number of product lines a company offers to their customers. Product mix can be termed as product assortment as well.

An organization can have single or multiple product lines.

If multiple products are on offer, it may be a related or unrelated product mix.

For example, if a manufacturer offers stationery products and school bags, it is related as both are used for the same purpose.

If the company sells stationary products and detergents, it is unrelated.

Components or Dimensions of Product Mix

Product mix contains four dimensions which are as below:

Width: The number of product lines that an organization sells.

Length: The number of total products in an organization’s product mix. (For example if 5 products in two brands exist, the product length is 10).

Depth: The total number of variations for each product. The variations can be size, flavor, or any other distinguishing characteristics. (For example if the product is sold in three different weight packages and in two flavors, the particular product has a depth value of six.)

Consistency: The degree of similarity between product lines in terms of their end use, production requirements, price, supply channels, advertising media, etc.

1. Definition :

Marketing Mix: The set of planned mix of controllable, tactical marketing tools that an organization utilizes to achieve the desired results from its target audience

Product Mix: It is the total number of product lines a company offers to their customers.

2. Broadness:

Marketing Mix: Marketing Mix is a broader term that includes the complete array of marketing tactics (product, place, price & promotion).

Product Mix: Product mix only refers to few elements of the product variable from the whole marketing mix.

3. Strategic Importance:

Marketing Mix: Marketing mix is given much more important than product mix.

Product Mix: Product mix has substantially low importance and exposure for an organization compared with the marketing mix.