The four P’s

Product – The product area is concerned with developing the right ‘product’ for the target market. This offering may involve a physical good, service or a blend of both. A product is not limited to a physical good. For example the product of a political party is the causes it works to achieve. The most important thing here is that the product satisfies the customers’ needs.
Place – This is concerned with all the decisions involved in getting the right product to the target market. It involves the availability of a product at a certain place when the customer wants it. A product is useless if it’s not available where the customer wants it. Usually the product reaches the customer through a channel of distribution. It is a series of businesses (or individuals) that participate in the flow of products from producer to final user or consumers.

Promotion – This involved communicating with the customers. Here you must inform the target market or others in the channel of distribution about the product. Promotion may include personal selling and other communication tools such as advertising or sales promotion. It is advised to blend these various methods.

Price – This is where the right price for the product is decided. You must consider the prices of your competition before setting the price and also must consider the cost of making the product. In addition, you should have some knowledge of the current practices involving mark-ups, discounts and other terms of sale in your region, because these vary according to regions of the country or between different countries.