The Marketing Mix 4Ps is an analytical model used by businesses to attract customers.

It is made up of four elements which are referred to as Ps, simply because they all start with

the letter P. These are Product, Price, Place, and Promotion.

It’s important to be aware that the most effective businesses constantly adapt their

marketing mix to the changes which happen within their environment.

In this video, we will look at each P individually and apply the Marketing Mix to McDonalds to

see how they effectively use the 4Ps to attract customers.

The first P is product.

The product element of the marketing mix is focused on the products or services that a

business sells.

Products are classified as tangible items as they come in a physical form and can be

touched by the consumer.

For example, smart phones, clothing, and trainers are all classed as tangible products.

Whereas services are classed as intangible as they cannot be touched by the consumer.

Examples of services include, beauty treatments, car valeting, and pet sitting.

When developing a product to sell to the public, it’s crucially important that the business

conducts market research to identify the wants and needs of the consumers within its target

market.

Following this, where possible a business should seek to differentiate its products

and services to stand out from the competition and increase the chances of the customers

shopping with them.

This is where the USP comes into play as the business aims to make the product or service

different to what is already available elsewhere in the market.

Traditionally, McDonald’s offered fast food which was perceived by the public as predominately

unhealthy but tasty, with the core products within its portfolio including burgers, chips,

and milkshakes.

However, over the years McDonald’s has diversified its product portfolio and adapted to changing

consumer tastes.

For example, McDonald’s has introduced a wide range of diverse products such as it’s

McCafe range, a breakfast menu, salads, aswell as vegetarian and vegan meal options.

This has helped McDonald’s to attract a wider audience and meet the wants and needs

of more consumers, which in turn has helped them to increase sales.

We now move onto the second P which is Price.

Price is focused on the selling price set by the business for its products and services.

It’s a very important element of the marketing mix and one that truly impacts buyer behaviour.

Before setting a selling price, it’s important that the business understands how much the

customers within their target market are willing and able to pay.

but there are several factors which influence this.

These include: The availability of the product or service,

for example, if a product is in short supply, this typically drives up the price a business

can charge.

Competition in the market also impacts price, for example, if a business has many competitors

who offer similar products or services, it is likely that it will need to reduce its

prices to compete and attract customers within the crowded marketplace.

In addition, the brand image is a very influential factor as most customers have a preconceived

opinion about the business and its products which influences its worth to them.

A business with a very strong brand image is typically able to charge more for their

products and services as customers find the brand desirable and trustworthy.

Once a business has considered these factors and knows how much the customers within their

target market are willing and able to pay for its products and services, it’s then

able to utilise a range of pricing strategies to influence buyer behaviour.

The price of McDonald’s products could be considered as being very competitive with

many people visiting McDonald’s stores not only because of factors such as convenience

and speed but because the products are also very affordable.

They even offer customers a ‘Saver Menu’ which features fan favourites such as the

famous cheeseburger, Fries, and McFlurry’s for just 99p.

However, in recent years, McDonald’s have introduced a signature range which is focused

on what they deem to be a more premium upmarket product with a higher selling price, with

the aim of attracting customers who are willing to pay more for a better-quality product that

still comes with the convenience and familiarity of McDonalds.

The third P of the marketing mix is Place.

Place is focused on the location where customers can purchase the products or services which

the business offers.

Common examples of place include: Retail stores which customers can physically

visit.

Online such as a website or a mobile application which customers can access via the internet.

Or purchases made directly from the manufacturer.

In today’s business world, it’s very important to provide customers with the opportunity

to purchase products and services in a variety of places which are convenient to them such

as having both physical retail stores and a website.

As of 2020, McDonald’s had over 39,000 restaurants around the world, meaning customers are never

too far away from a McDonald’s or seeing those famous arches in the distance.

Traditionally, McDonald’s could only be purchased instore at their restaurants or

by utilising their drive through.

This has all changed in recent years as McDonald’s have introduced a variety of new ways for

customers to purchase their products which include:

A mobile application known as ‘My McDonald’s’ which allows customers to order online

and a delivery service which is known as ‘McDelivery’ that allows customers to have food delivered

directly to them through third party delivery services such as Uber Eats and Just Eat.

The fourth and final P is Promotion.

Promotion is focused on the activities undertaken by a business to generate interest and make

customers aware of the products and services which they sell.

Businesses often use a wide variety of promotional activities with the aim of ultimately increasing

sales.

Common methods of promotion include discounts and special offers, social media activity,

influencers, sponsorship, and advertising across a range of multimedia such as TV, radio,

billboards, online video, and website banners.

McDonald’s uses a mixture of promotional activities to bring attention to the brand

and increase sales.

Advertising is one of their most effective promotional techniques and something McDonald’s

takes very seriously, having spent over $600 million in 2020 alone to carry out campaigns

across TV, Newspaper, Radio and billboards just to name a few.

McDonald’s also use sales promotion as a short-term incentive which is designed to

encourage people to buy more of their fast-food products.

For example, the Monopoly promotion where customers receive stickers with their meal

which gives them the chance of winning free food, discounts at certain retailers or even

cash prizes for a limited time which has successfully increased sales at McDonald’s as people

buy more often and buy larger meals to increase their chances of winning.

McDonald’s also utilise direct marketing through email and app notifications by targeting

their customers with special offers and seasonal menus items designed to encourage them to

make an order online or instore.

Now that we’ve looked at each of the 4Ps with some examples of how McDonald’s utilises

them, it’s important to be aware that the 4Ps shouldn’t be used in isolation and for

the marketing mix to be truly effective in attracting customers and increasing spending,

it’s crucial that each element of the marketing mix complements the others.

Hopefully, that’s provided you with a better understanding of this analytical marketing

model and how it is used in business.

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