3.2 INTEGRATED MARKETING MIX
3.2.1 PRODUCT
Perreault, Cannon and McCarthy (2011) define the product as a physical good, a service, or a blend of both that is offered to the target market after extensively researching consumers’
needs. Kotler and Armstrong (2010) add that the product variable of the marketing mix includes aspects such as the quality, design, features, branding, packaging and services offered to the target consumer (Figure 3.1). McDaniel et al. (2013) further add that the warranty, after-sales service and company image can also be classified as product aspects and these scholars agree with Dibb et al. (2012) that marketers need to develop new and innovative products as well as modify existing ones, in order to maintain a satisfying offering that will help an organisation to achieve its goals. Hult et al. (2013) divide the total product offering into three interdependent elements, namely, the core product (consists of the main benefit of the product), supplementary features (that provide added value like delivery, installation and training) and symbolic and experiential benefits. Other scholars
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(Dibb et al., 2012; Fahy & Jobber, 2012; Kotler & Armstrong, 2010), however, have a slightly different classification of the total product to that of Hult et al. (2013). According to Dibb et al. (2012), there are three levels (core, actual and augmented) of a product (Figure 3.2).
Figure 3.2
The Three Levels of Product: Core, Actual and Augmented
Dibb, S., Simkin, L., Pride, W.M. & Ferrell, O.C. (2012). Marketing: Concepts and Strategies. 6th edition. China: Cengage Learning. p. 304.
The core product level comprises the perceived or real main benefits of the product or service that motivates consumers to purchase it (Dibb et al., 2012). The actual product level comprises several factors such as the brand name, packaging, quality, durability, style, features and capabilities (Fahy & Jobber, 2012). Finally, the augmented product level comprises all of the support activities that enable the consumer to make the purchase and these include delivery requirements, negotiating credit terms, installation, after-sales services and general customer care services (Kotler & Armstrong, 2010).
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Brands and packaging are crucial features of a product that can be described as the “verbal and physical cues” that assist consumers in identifying the products that they wish to purchase and these cues also influence consumers when deciding which alternatives to choose in the buying decision making process (Dibb et al., 2012:319).
A brand can be defined as a name, term, symbol, sign, design, or a combination of these that are used to identify one seller’s products and services from that of another and are especially valuable to marketers when they want to develop a brand identity that differentiates the firm’s products and services from those of competitors (Keller, 2008). In addition, brands help consumers to evaluate the quality of products, reduce the perceived risk of purchase and offers psychological rewards and status appeals that originate from owning certain brands (Dibb et al., 2012). Brands benefit organisations in that they create value for the firm, act as a pertinent barrier to competition, have a favourable influence on consumers’
perception of products, improve profits and provide the basis for brand extensions, in which new products are added to the existing brand (Jobber & Ellis-Chadwick, 2013).
Brand equity refers to the marketing and financial value of the brand and a brand that has a high level of awareness, brand loyalty and perceived quality, is likely to have high brand equity (Dibb et al., 2012; McDaniel et al., 2013). Brand loyalty is the strongly motivated or consistent decision to purchase one brand over another in the same product category and enables organisations to retain existing customers and avoid having to spend large amounts of time and money in gaining new customers (Dibb et al., 2012; McDaniel et al., 2013).
Dibb et al. (2012) outline that there are three distinct degrees of brand loyalty, namely, brand recognition, brand preference and brand insistence.
Brand recognition is the mildest degree of brand loyalty and occurs when the consumer is aware of the brand’s existence and views it as an alternative to purchase should the current preferred brand be unavailable.
Brand preference is a stronger degree of brand loyalty than brand recognition and is characterised by a situation in which the consumer displays a definite fondness for the brand over competing brands. The consumer is highly inclined to purchase the brand should it be available but if it is unavailable, the consumer will then settle for the substitutes in order to avoid expending time and effort in search of the preferred brand.
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Brand insistence is the least common degree of brand loyalty in which the consumer displays a very intense preference for a specific brand and will take extra time and effort to find and purchase the desired brand as this consumer is unwilling to settle for a substitute brand.
Packaging is an element that assists in identifying a brand and comprises those activities involved in designing and producing a wrapper or container to house the product (Jobber &
Ellis-Chadwick, 2013). The basic functions of packaging are to protect the product, offer convenience to consumers in terms of easy transport and storage of products and to offer quantity variations to those consumers (particularly single-person households) wishing to purchase smaller quantities of products (McDaniel et al., 2013). Dibb et al. (2012) add that another function of packaging is to promote the product’s features, benefits, image and uses and that marketers often utilise reusable packaging to make the product more desirable by creating the perception of a ‘2-in-1’ bargain deal in which consumers get a storage container to use after they have consumed the product. The important packaging considerations for marketers are to ensure that packaging is tamper-proof, child-proof, environmentally- friendly, recyclable and biodegradable (Dibb et al., 2012).