Adapt Your 4 Ps to Social Media Marketing by InsideView

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Adapt Your 4 Ps to Social Media Marketing
by InsideView
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Jerome McCarthy created the basis for sales and marketing strategy 50 years ago. McCarthy's Four Ps--product, price, place, promotion--laid the groundwork for modern sales strategy and has been expanded upon in the 21st Century. For example, some sales strategists added three Ps (packaging, positioning, people) for a total of seven Ps, while others scrap the Four Ps for Cs or Es (i.e. experience or communication). No matter your affinity for one consonant over the other, the Four Ps are still worth reiterating when developing your sales strategy.
Remind yourself of these four basics while adding whatever other strategies best fit your prospect's needs.
Product
Your services or goods are your product, but your product should be more than simply understanding what you can offer prospects. Your product also includes how it's packaged and presented to your client, who has unique needs. Obviously, you can't change your product on a client-to-client basis, but you should know your products well enough to be able to adjust your recommendation to each client's unique demands.
Being attuned to your client's needs based on your product offerings not only strengthens your sales strategy, but also improves your chances of experiencing renewal business. Know the needs of your prospects so you can offer them the most relevant product.
Place
The "place" of the Four Ps has drastically changed in the past few years, given the way distribution channels have moved from traditional advertising to virtual means. For example, social customer relationship management applications grew to an estimated $1 billion industry in 2012, which means sales reps were connecting with their customers online as opposed to through traditional direct sales means.
When reviewing your sales strategy, make sure the placement of your product is relevant to your customer's experience.
Price
How low should your prices be to garner more prospects without coming across as low quality? In the Four Ps, sales representatives have to balance an attractive price without selling short their product. "Effective pricing strategy is your most powerful profit driver," according to research group Nielsen.
Increasing profit with appropriate pricing can be easily executed, too. For example, raising prices just one percent can lead to up to 11 percent in profit boosts, according to the Harvard Business Review. Most customers won't notice the bump in pricing. Sales representatives need to be aware of undiscovered areas in their pricing that offer pricing boosts to be most effective.
Promotion
In the past, the traditional means of promoting your product were limited to TV, radio and print. Now, radio and print seem nearly obsolete when promoting a product. Sales promotions should live online where the sales reps live, so make sure your online promotional strategies are not only as strong as your offline, but complimentary of each other.