NOTE: This is the 2nd in a special 9 part series on Larry Steven Londre’s 9 P’s of Marketing.

“People,” one of the nine elements or components of marketing, is another addition to E. Jerome McCarthy’s original 4 P’s of the Marketing Mix. Let’s look at it more closely.

  • People
    • “People” or targeting has almost always been left out of the traditional “Marketing Mix.” Almost every diagram includes the four P’s with Product, Promotion, Place and Price.
    • As a marketing professional or new to the game of marketing, look at new, existing and repeat customers.
    • Assign “consumer, “People” or “potential buyers” in the middle of a circle. Add the other components in the nine P’s. In Marketing, from my education, training, research and analysis plus testimony, there needs to be greater focus on the “Customer” or “People.”
    • “People” or market segments may utilize demographics, geographics, psychographics, behavioral characteristics and technographics, which may be a vital component or components of the 9P’s of Marketing.
    • Once a target market is chosen, the organization can develop its marketing strategies to target this market segment.
    • Defining a target market requires market segmentation; the process of segmenting the entire market as a whole and separating it into manageable units based on:
  • Demographics
  • Geographics
  • Psychographics
  • Behavior
  • Technographics or technographical characteristics. Understand your potential consumer. Remember, in the back of your mind, that the reason technology is phenomenal is because it displaces years, or centuries, of previous technology. Consumers may or may not have the skills. Think employees here too. The reason technology skills are transitory is because they will almost certainly be displaced, too.
    • Simply it’s about Segmentation and Targeting. Add Positioning and you have STP, as a major first step.

A couple of examples:

      • A unique example of targeting and reading the data. PayPal looks at segmentation and was finding a segment of their customers who were buying women’s products, men’s products, electronics, haircare product for both sexes plus dresses and tuxedoes. It was a multitude of both men’s and women’s products. From research and planning, they found out that their customers (couples/partners/husbands and wives) were using one ID and password. It was two sexes, one log in.
      • A segment of car buyers when they think of Jeep they think of running wild and free off road and driving on sand dunes. Jeep has targeted behavior and psychological needs of their target segment of Jeep buyers.
      • Facebook shows content to different users based on their preferences and demographics.
      • In early 2017, Snapchat is mostly millennials, really young people and high school and teens.

The 2 Guyz on Marketing say, “Be sure to look at competing FOR the customer more than AGAINST your competition.” The more you discover, learn, know, and understand about the people who are buying (or would potentially buy) your product, the more successful in marketing you will be!

For more Marketing insights, ideas, concepts and Marketing solutions: Go to Londremarketing.com and look under “Articles and Resources” and the 9P’s/Nine P’s ©2007. Specifically you will find them detailed at 9P’s/Nine P’s or Nine P’s/9P’s of Marketing.

*Created by Larry Steven Londre. Copyright 2007.