Marketing serves numerous crucial functions in driving the operations of firms. Thanks to marketing, firms are able to communicate with their customers about such issues as the prices and availability of products (Zimmerman & Blythe, 2013). Various marketing approaches are available. These approaches are intended to provide firms with the tools and insights that they need to market effectively. The 4Ps is among these approaches. This approach places focus on the product, price, place and promotion. The value approach is yet another strategy that companies can use to engage the market. There exist a number of fundamental differences that set these two approaches apart.
The 4Ps (marketing mix) is one of the most popular marketing techniques. As stated above, this approach places emphasis on price, product, promotion and place. When designing a product, a firm should take all these factors into consideration. For example, on the issue of price, a firm should ensure that the price of a product is fair and allows for a significant profit margin while making the product affordable. The 4Ps approach is primarily concerned with the affairs of the business and the product in question (Masterson & Pickton, 2010). It has very little to do with customers and their needs. The value-based approach is more customer-centric. Instead of giving much focus to such elements of a product as price and the promotional techniques to use, the value-based approach incorporates the values and ethics that customers uphold (Burns, 2014). For example, today, customers are concerned about the environment and are challenging companies to embrace environmentally-friendly practices. A business that wishes to sell to these customers would do well to adopt practices which minimize harm to the environment.
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Another difference between the 4P’s approach and the value-driven approach lies in the techniques that firms use to create awareness and interest in their products. As made clear in the discussion above, the 4Ps approach is product-centric while the value-driven approach is customer-centric. This difference influences the marketing techniques that are used when each approach is applied. The 4Ps approach focuses firms to adopt promotion techniques that focus on the product. For example, in its marketing campaign, a firm could reiterate that its product is competitively priced and possesses attractive features. The value-driven approach allows firms to employ a wide range of avenues and tools to market their products. For example, a company may exploit its corporate social responsibility initiatives to market itself and its products. The firm may also use its alliance with other businesses as a marketing tool.
It is evident that the 4Ps and the value driven marketing approaches are fundamentally different. These approaches also share some similarities. The main similarity lies in the objectives that the approaches seek to achieve. The 4Ps approach aims to promote products (Zimmerman & Blythe, 2013). In this way, this approach fuels business performance. The value-driven approach also seeks to promote the operations and performance of a firm. Through its focus on creating value for customers, this approach allows firms to attend to the needs of their customers, thereby achieving growth.
The 4Ps and value-driven approaches can be applied to the solving of routine and non-routine problems. The former approach is particularly useful in solving such non-routine problems as the implementation of change. Using the 4Ps approach, a firm is able to identify the change to be implemented, the cost of implementation, how to communicate the change to stakeholders and the employees to target with the change. This approach would also be useful in solving such a routine problem as introducing a new product. When using this approach, one begins with a definition of the key features of the product before determining the price. Next, one selects the promotional techniques to use and identifies the physical locations where the product will be made available. The value-driven approach would also allow an individual to solve the non-routine and routine problems above. Regarding the implementation of change, this approach would allow a firm to ensure that the change being implemented is in line with its values and culture. When applied to the problem of introducing a new product, the value-driven approach allows the firm to ensure that the product delivers value to customers. The two problems should display some signs that point to the problem-solving approach that was used. The value-driven approach should leave marks on the value system and culture of an organization. On the other hand, to determine that the 4Ps was used, one simply needs to examine the external traits of the problem. For example, if the product that a firm is introducing is well packaged and full of attractive features, this can be taken as evidence that the 4Ps approach was used. Overall, if a firm uses the 4Ps approach, its products and other tangible elements of its operations will be the focus. On the other hand, such issues as organizational culture, ethics and value system are the main focus of firms that use the value-driven approach. The one similarity that one should expect to observe in the two types of companies is enhanced performance since both value-driven and the 4Ps approach aim to drive business performance. In conclusion, firms should be careful when selecting the marketing approaches to use. They should employ the 4Ps if they wish to focus on the product. On the other hand, firms that are truly committed to creating value and respecting the beliefs of their customers should adopt the value-based approach.
References
Burns, P. (2014). New Venture Creation: A Framework for Entrepreneurial Start-ups. New York: Macmillan International Higher Education.
Masterson, R. & Pickton, D. (2010). Marketing: An Introduction. Thousand Oaks: SAGE.
Zimmerman, A., & Blythe, J. (2013). Business to Business Marketing Management: A Global Perspective. London: Routledge.
