Today every business student learns about the Four Ps of marketing. What few students realize, however, is that the “Four Ps” were originally 15. The concept of the Four Ps first emerged in conjunction with the term “Marketing Mix” when Neil Borden spoke before the American Marketing Association in 1953. Product, placement, promotion and price were among several of the ingredients a marketing manager should “mix” in order to control the process in marketing and service. It was only in 1960, when Edmund Jerome McCarthy – a prominent American professor – advocated for a specific, limited palette of marketing considerations did the four Ps become the “Four Ps” as we know them today.
At Beyond Philosophy, we seek to remain true to the original idea of a genuine “marketing mix,” or one that offers customers a holistic experience (as opposed to piecemeal price reductions and promotions). The Four Ps are merely a subset...
Whilst it is true that the intent to include the customer is well established within process methodologies, the measurable output remains focused on customer satisfaction and traditional research metrics. For instance, companies would qualitatively assess’ where our stakeholders want to be?’ and ‘what our customers needs are against a cost benefit analysis.’
