Talk:Marketing plan/Archives/2012

Source for IBM quote?
Is there a source for this quote, "...a too rigorous concentration on the view that 'We are in the business of making meat-scales,' as IBM was during the early 1900s."

I'm not sure there is validity to the statement, as IBM was formed from 4 businesses with a variety of business focuses, but because it is presented in quotes, it seems the statement has some history. By itself, for the purpose of this article (about marketing plans) it seems like possibly a poor choice to illustrate the point. But if the quote itself has history and does make the point well, could it be referenced somehow? Seems the quote would be interesting exactly because IBM *wasn't* simply in this business when it was formed in 1911. (Also, as described on IBM's website.) --Justapersona (talk) 12:55, 3 September 2011 (UTC)

IBM in the early 1900's?
I don't think IBM was around in the early 1900's. 1990's maybe? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 168.103.212.102 (talk) 23:10, 30 August 2009 (UTC)

Umm, yes they were - http://www-03.ibm.com/ibm/history/history/history_intro.html —Preceding unsigned comment added by 203.34.169.29 (talk) 06:01, 25 January 2010 (UTC)

Internal Marketing
i —Preceding unsigned comment added by 180.192.15.186 (talk) 08:22, 2 February 2010 (UTC)

4Ps, 7Ps, 8Ps ?
4Ps, 7 Ps and 8 Ps are being used in this article whereas in the main article marketing mix, only 4Ps are being defined. IMHO, there is a need to solve these inconsistencies. I would suggest to add a special section on beyond the 4Ps either here or either in the marketing mix article. Regarding the number of Ps, International consultant Danny Abramovich who is teaching in major business schools in Europe talks about up to ... 14 Ps in his website: marketingplannow.com Pscheimann (talk) 12:20, 17 June 2010 (UTC)

>>>> No principle of marketing, whether in the study or practice of marketing, dictates how many "P"s there should be. However, in the practice of marketing, in both B2C and B2B environments, regardless of industry or geography, whether in traditional or new media marketing, a practitioner benefits by keeping things simple (14 P's could prove unwieldly from a practical perspective and would likely encounter significant overlap or redundancies)and retaining a customer's perspective on the firm's offerings (products or services).

At the minimum, "Process" and "Packaging" constitute or are properly subsumed by "Product". In new product development, for instance, seldomly is the core product considered without also considering Process and Packaging.

Process, as suggested by the entry, includes value-added services such as warranties; after-sale service; and, in the B2B environment, product training and product updating and scaling, among other things. To many customers, these value-added services ARE the product or atleast critical components of the same that prove key in the decision making process and actually serve as a basis for differentiation among competitors. Thinking of the core product and "Process" separately may prove more limiting than beneficial.

The same may be said of Packaging. When Tylenol introduced (some time back)their flagship, analgesic in bottles with child-proof caps, that was considered a type of new product introduction - the only thing actually new was the packaging.

Finally, with regards to "People" - if Marketing cannot shape it and manage it, it should not be included as part of the marketing mix, especially if by "People" one means each of the "touchpoints" between the firm or organization and its customers and external stakeholders. Such touchpoints extend well beyond the reach of marketing to include the direct sales force, customer service, and any all front-line "representatives" of the firm including retailers (for certain products and in particular channel partner relationships). Creating touchpoints consistent with a company's marketing mix is a corporate strategic imperative.

HA Pinto @HAPinto1 >>>>>>> — Preceding unsigned comment added by 65.8.98.150 (talk) 23:21, 25 February 2012 (UTC)