Grew from James W. Culliton's marketer as a mixer of ingredients (The Management of Marketing Costs, 1948), named the marketing mix by Neil H. Borden (The Concept of the Marketing Mix, 1964), cut to four Ps by E. Jerome McCarthy (Basic Marketing, 1960), and spread by Philip Kotler (Marketing Management, 1967).
Lays out a market offer as four linked decisions (product, price, place, and promotion) and checks that each one fits the others and the customer segment.
When to reach for it
When planning a launch or campaign, or when separate teams are setting price, channel, and message without looking at each other's choices.
How it runs
- Define the product: what is offered, with what features and quality.
- Set the price, discounts, and payment terms.
- Choose the channels that will carry it to the customer.
- Plan the promotion that builds awareness and intent.
- Check the four against each other and against the target segment.
Where it sits in SOLVE eX
Go to the source
- The Management of Marketing Costs, Harvard Business School, 1948
- The Concept of the Marketing Mix, Journal of Advertising Research, 1964
- Basic Marketing: A Managerial Approach, Richard D. Irwin, 1960
- Marketing Management: Analysis, Planning, and Control, 1967