“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.

But just as marketing doesn’t stand still, neither does the framework. After decades of working in, consulting in, and teach marketing, our own Larry Steven Londre developed his own 9 P’s of Marketing. Others have tried to make gimmicky “P’s” of varying amounts, but as 2 Guyz Brian Hemsworth says, “Londre’s 9 P’s is the best model for teaching and understanding today’s marketing environment.”

This begins a very special 9-part series from Larry where we look at each of the 9 P’s of Marketing. This is highly recommended reading for marketing students, entrepreneurs, company presidents and CEOs, and yes, even marketing professionals.

The nine P’s of Marketing contain several valuable concepts, elements, terms and useful definitions to help explain, find problems and aid in the understanding of Marketing and related activities, including Marketing objectives, strategies and tactics.

Can your customers, clients or users tell the difference between you and your competition? The Nine P’s/9P’s of Marketing can be used successfully by product companies, service firms, for profits entities and nonprofits “selling” directly or indirectly to consumers (B2C), to marketing intermediaries (such as industrial, consumer, retail, wholesale and professional channels of distribution), and to other businesses (B2B).

The 9 P’s include:

• Planning
• People
• Product
• Promotion
• Place or Distribution
• Price or Pricing
• Partners
• Passion
• Presentation

Let’s start at the beginning with “planning,” one of the nine elements or components:

• Planning, Process or Marketing Process:
  • It starts with research and researching.
  • This element of “Planning” in the nine P’s is a method for achieving an end, and, looking at the eight other parts, can be a detailed formulation of a program of action.
  • Developing and transforming marketing objectives to marketing strategies to tactics, marketing management must make basic decisions on marketing targets (“People”), marketing mix, marketing budgets/expenditures and marketing allocations.
  • Review dividing the total marketing budget among the various tools in the marketing mix and for the various products, channels, promotion, media and sales areas.
  • The firm may offer to the target market, including variety of product mix, features, branding, designs, packaging, sizes, services, maintenance contracts, warranties and return policies.

To develop and transform marketing objectives to marketing strategies to tactics, marketing management must make basic decisions on marketing targets “People”), marketing mix, marketing budgets/expenditures and marketing allocations. It’s dividing the total marketing budget among the various tools in the marketing mix and for the various products, channels, promotion, media and sales areas.

• Research and plan.
• Marketing Research: 
• Marketing research is the function that links the consumer, customer, and public (“People”) to the marketer through information—the information used to identify and define marketing opportunities and problems; generate, refine, and evaluate marketing actions; monitor marketing performance; and improve understanding of marketing as a process. Marketing research specifies the information required to address these issues, designs the method or methods for collecting information, manages and implements the data collection process, analyzes the results, and communicates the findings and their implications.[1]

Using research applies to each component and part in the nine/9P’s of Marketing.

It’s good to note that Albert Einstein said: “Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted counts.”

Planning includes observing what to do and what not to do in the marketplace. It includes research and developing a vision for each of the remaining nine P’s.

Critical thinking thoughts from the 2 Guyz on Marketing are based on a quote by Leonardo da Vinci:  “Principles for the development of a complete mind: Study the science of art. Study the art of science. Develop your senses, especially learn how to see. Realize that everything connects to everything else.”

[1] https://www.ama.org/AboutAMA/Pages/Definition-of-Marketing.aspx

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.