- Read Chapters 8 "Developing Channel and Logistics Strategy" and 9 "Developing Marketing Communication and Influence Strategy" in the Marketing Plan Handbook
- Watched Camtasia video on Marketing Channels and Integrated Marketing Communications
The points of discussion this week center on the following questions:
- Reflect on a firm or product you like which you believe is highly effective in bringing all the elements of the Mix together to create beautiful symphony for their consumers.
- Who are the target audience for the company's market offerings?
- What are the tangible products the company offers?
- How does the company utilize price, and place to enhance the value of its offerings and why do you think there choice work well together?
- Does the company have a unique approach to communications with their target audience? How is the approach well suited to the other elements of their mix?
When I read this, Google is the first company to pop into my mind. I really love how they have attempted to disrupt a lot of different markets. I first appreciated their efforts to make maps and navigation capabilities free on smartphones, which really hurt Garmin.
Living in Kansas City, I have anxiously been awaiting the launch of their new Google Fiber Internet and TV service (https://fiber.google.com/about/). I really think they bring the four T's together in this offering in a beautiful way. First, the product is amazing, offering the potential to have Gigabit internet speeds that far exceed anything in the market right now. Google claims 100x faster than today's average broadband speeds. Second, the price is very competitive, or even less, than the competition's flagship internet bundles. At a $120/month, it is a compelling value. It seems to be a neutral pricing strategy. What is more revolutionary is that they are giving away free broadband internet (lower tier speeds like 5 mb/s download) as long as customers pay a one-time $300 construction fee. I pay $37.99 right now for speeds not all that much faster from Time Warner. So this is going to put a lot of pressure on ISPs to lower prices, which is great for the consumer.
Next, the "place" in the marketing mix refers to whatever community in a given area has pre-registered for a "Fiberhood" in sufficient quantities to make it worth Google's time to build the network. By being exclusive and forcing customers to band together to sign up en masse to get their neighborhood connected, it is creating a lot of buzz. By only moving to selected cities and publicizing their efforts widely, it is building a lot of excitement and demand for them to expand rapidly. Right now, they are taking a very methodical approach. Kansas City, Provo, and Austin are the three pilot cities, with San Antonio, San Jose, Portland, Salt Lake City, Phoenix, Nashville, Atlanta, Charlotte, and Raleigh-Durham on tap.
Their promotion has been very effective, but understated. They know their technology is awesome, and have focused on getting out the message across various KC suburbs as to the required timeline to sign up when your area is eligible. If you pass on the first opportunity, there may never be another, because I believe they have to build right to the house. Most of the advertising is on television and is direct marketing. Word of mouth communications are very positive among the communities that already have the service too. They have focused largely on creating 'pull' demand from customers through their process of getting sufficient commitments before spending CAPEX.
Google has done well with coordinating the mix with Google Fiber. I only wish my local city council in Overland Park hadn't messed up royally and angered Google. As a result of their mismanagement of the contract process, we are on indefinite hold while the rest of KC gets the service.
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