Marketing Mix
Strategy
Unit 7
Product Strategy
Product Strategy
 Deals with the goods or services your business will
provide
 A product is anything tangible a business offers to a
market to satisfy customer needs
o A product line is a group of similar products with slight
variations in the marketing mix to satisfy
different needs in a market
o A product assortment is the complete set
of all products a business offers to its market
 How will you identify your product
and make it stand out from the competition?
Making Your Product
Stand Out
 Product features: the benefits it offers to consumers
o Including style, distinctive characteristics, color, quality,
and options
o Also includes warranties, service contracts, delivery,
installation, and instructions.
o Flexible payment options: cash, personal check, credit
cards, layaway, installment, special offers (0% down)
 Brand: the name, symbol, or design used to identify
a product
 Packaging: the physical container or wrapper that
holds it
 Label: the part of the package used to present
information
Product Positioning
 Product Positioning: refers to how consumers see
your product compared to the competition
 Positioning Strategies:
o By attribute: i.e. energy, reliability, safety, performance
o By price and quality
o By use of application: i.e. cereals as a breakfast meal
o By competitor/product class: i.e. Enterprise car rental
The Product’s Public Face
 What is packaging?
o Containers and wrapping materials used to protect,
contain, identify, promote and facilitate the use of the
product
o What is meant by “facilitate the use
of the product?”
• Example?
What do you think about
these colors?
Labels
 What is a label?
o Informative tag, wrapper, or seal attached to the product
or the product’s package.
o Presents information
 What information does it present?
o Brand name (Bold detergent)
o Ingredients, instructions (machine washable), how to open
or dispose, guarantees, danger warnings
o Who was the person who made it so they had these
labels?
Goals of the Package
 Promote a company and its image
 Give an old product a new image
 Preserve the product for a time period
 Help customers use products better
 Introduce new uses for old products
 Reduce costs, increase sales and profits
Packaging Questions
 When planning the design of a package, a few
questions must be answered:
o Must the package protect the product against moisture,
leakage, and temperature changes?
o Must the package be resealed
or closed after it has been
opened?
 Any other questions?
Functions of Packaging
 How does the package protect the product?
o Withstand humidity, puncture, damage
 How does the package protect the consumer?
o Childproof, sealed top, tamper proof
 Contains the product (easy to carry)
o What big or heavy products at a supermarket are easy to
carry? Why?
Functions of Packaging
 Identifies the product
o Lists contents, distinguishes the product
 Visibly promotes the product
o Stands out, catchy slogan, product uses, refunds
 How does McDonald’s market the packaging of its
Happy Meal?
o Toy, book, imprint of puzzle or game
Functions of Packaging
 Gives examples of how packaging make the
product easy to use?
o Cartons with spouts for easy pouring
o Butter wrappers with marked measurements
o Re-sealable bags
Packaging Materials
 Why use paper or cardboard?
o Inexpensive , lightweight, fairly
strong, and easy to print on,
recyclable, biodegradable
 Why use cellophane (transparent paper) and
plastic wrap
o See through package (meat)
 Why use glass to
hold liquids?
o Doesn’t leak or
change its smell or
taste
Packaging Materials
 Why use plastic?
o Can be shaped into jars and bottles
o Can be processed into sheets (used for toys, clothes, food
products)
o Won’t break
 Why use aluminum?
o Unbreakable, disposable, recyclable
Packaging and Ecological
Concerns
 Marketers must protect the consumer and his/her
environment from the package
 Plastic foam and the ozone layer
 Non-biodegradable material takes up more space
 Use more recyclable products
Packaging and Labeling
Laws
 Protect people against deceptive labeling
 Ban deceptive environmental claims
 Must list all nutritional
elements—not just the
benefits
 Establish strong safety
standards
Packaging and Labeling
Trends
 Clearly warn user of harmful effects
 Safer, easier to use, more convenient for the
consumer
 Recyclable
Follow a Product—
Product Strategy
 Explain in 1-2 paragraphs what makes your product
different from its competitors in relation to the
product element of the marketing mix
o Think of this as a persuasive pitch
 Then in bulleted form, outline the aspects of your
product strategy in relation to:
o
o
o
o
o
o
Color
Options
Brand/Image
Features
Packaging
Etc.