Differentiate with the 5th P: People

doi:10.1016/0019-8501(87)90032-0

Industrial Marketing Management

Volume 16, Issue 4, November 1987, Pages 241-247

https://doi.org/10.1016/0019-8501(87)90032-0 Get rights and content

Abstract

This article examines traditional marketing views of employees to develop a differentiated marketing strategy to gain a competitive advantage. Based on a suggested topology of employees, it is proposed that employees be recognized as a distinctive element of the marketing mix—people-power—and consequently as an integral part of marketing strategy. By managing its employees in terms of newly defined, customer-related roles, an organization can gain a competitive advantage by being perceived as distinctly different from its competitors.

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Apart from a container that protects product in transit, it acts as a “face for the product” (Sagar & Kumar, 2005) by supporting self-service, consumer affluence, company and brand recognition, and opportunity for innovation (Kotler, 2009). The gravity of the characteristics of a packaging element has made it self-claimed to be the 5th P (Judd, 1987) in the marketing mix. As per the Point of Purchase and Advertisement Institute (POPAI), 70% purchase decisions made by the consumers mostly in the point-of-sale (Clement, 2007).
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People refer to those involved in the delivery of services. Judd (1987) highlighted the importance of people in the service marketing mix. Since people are representatives of the organization, their inefficiency in effectively dealing with customers may make the entire marketing effort of banks ineffective (Anca and Daniel, 2012; Salloum and Ajaka, 2013).
The purpose of this study is to re-conceptualize the conventional marketing mix for Bottom of the Pyramid (BoP) markets and propose a revised framework by reorganizing the elements based on the customer perspective while retaining the principles of services marketing. Primary data was collected through a questionnaire with a sample size of 400 people from both urban and rural markets in the BoP. Findings indicate that the needs and perspective of the BoP members is distinct from the Middle of the Pyramid (MoP). Managers should consider this point while formulating marketing mix strategies for BoP markets. The present study is the first of its kind to present a revised marketing mix framework for customers in the BoP markets. The framework comprises five Ps, including personalization, product, place, the process of service delivery and price. Thus, a theoretical contribution is made in the context of service marketing and the BoP.
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This argument finds its roots in strategic marketing literature, where it has been stressed that people make the difference particularly in service providers, where the employees have direct contact with the service provider's customers. As Judd (1987) states: ‘it is not headcount per se which matters, but the power of customer-oriented employees which can make a significant difference’ (p. 243). Indeed, in professional service firms such as incubators, service customers seek ‘expertise, experience and efficiency’ in the professional service firm (Aaboen, 2009, p. 660).
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¹: VAUGHAN JUDD is Assistant Professor of Marketing, Auburn University Montgomery, Montgomery, Alabama.

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Differentiate with the 5th P: People

Abstract

Managerial Marketing For Industrial Firms

Principles of Marketing Management

Marketing

The Just-in-Time Mandate

Business Marketing

The Concept of the Marketing Mix

Journal of Advertising Research

The Theory of Monopolistic Competition

The Concept of the Marketing Mix

Market Segmentation, Product Differentiation, and Marketing Strategy

Journal of Marketing

Strategic Management: Concepts, Decisions, Cases

Build Customer Relationships That Last

Harvard Business Review

Winning and Keeping Industrial Customers

Megamarketing

Harvard Business Review

Marketing

After The Sale is Over

Harvard Business Review

The Marketing Imagination