Comparison of The 4 PS Marketing Approach Versus The Value Approach

In this essay, I will compare and contrast the 4 Ps marketing approach (price, product, place, and promotion) versus the value approach which consists of creating, communicating, and deliver plus the exchanging which is price equivalent. I also explain what should be expected of these two approaches. I will conclude my essay with a comment on the materials that are covered in my essay. the materials used in my essay are from our textbook (Tanner & Raymond, 2015), and other referenced sources.

Marketing is all about delivering value. Considering that we are in the value era at the present time, the time period between 1990s and present (Tanner & Raymond, 2015), I should put this concept in the equation with the traditional concept: Creating, the process of collaborating with suppliers and customers to create offerings that have value, versus product, goods and services (creating offerings); communicating, broadly, describing those offerings, as well as learning from customers, versus promotion, communication; delivering, getting those offerings to the consumer in a way that optimizes value, versus place, getting the product to a point where the customer can purchase it (delivering); exchanging, trading value for those offerings, versus price, the monetary amount charged for the product (exchange).

The 4Ps approach to marketing was introduced in the 1950s and is now viewed as a traditional approach to marketing. Unlike the value approach, which is more focused on delivering value to the customer, the 4Ps approach is more focused on the product itself (Tanner & Raymond, 2015).

The major components of the 4Ps approach are a product, price, place, and promotion. That means that the first step in the marketing plan is a product.

Product. Companies that follow this approach try to create a consumer product or service that is supposed to be unique or better than that of the competitor’s. Uniqueness or some upgrades in the product were believed to be a competitive advantage. In addition, such a product was supposed to be selling itself.

Price. Another aspect is the price. Under the 4Ps approach, the price could also become a competitive advantage. For instance, if the product is not unique in itself, a certain pricing strategy, such as price reduction, could potentially sell the product.

Place. The next step is placed. It involves creating or finding distribution channels through which the product would be sold. Therefore, this step in 4Ps marketing involves delivering product to the points where customers can buy it. Promotion. Finally comes promotion – informing the customer on the qualities and advantages of the product so that the potential buyer learns about the product, prefers it to those of the competitors, and has an opportunity to buy it at some place.

Though the 4Ps approach has been working for companies for years, it became less effective as the market has developed. This happened due to the fact that product, price, place, and promotion do not include all the activities that are related to marketing a product. As a result, a more efficient approach was developed – the value approach. The value approach calls for creating, communicating, and delivering value.

Creating value. The creating step of this marketing strategy is somewhat similar to the ‘product’ phase of the 4Ps approach, meaning that at this stage the product is created.

While in 4Ps only a product is created, the value approach involves creating an offering that gives value to the customer and might not be just a product. Such an offering might include a product plus post-sale service, for instance, or some additional benefits that accompany the product. So, in general, it can be said that the value approach is the selling value of the offering, not the product itself, and includes much more factors than just the product.

Communicating value. The next step is communicating. It can be compared to promotion in the 4Ps approach because it involves informing the customer on the offer. The difference is in information delivered to the customer. The 4Ps approach promotes and advertises the product, while the value approach – the value – product plus service, benefit, and enjoyment that can be received with the product. In addition, the value approach involves not only telling the customers how good the offering is but also learning from them about their preferences and desires.

Delivering value. Finally comes delivering. It may be compared to the place in the 4Ps approach. However, it is different because, while place requires just having a place where the customer can buy a product, delivering also involves making sure the customer will be able to get the most of the product.

In conclusion, it can be said that the 4Ps approach is more focused on product, while the value approach is, on the contrary, focused on the customer, it is a more customer-oriented marketing strategy, which, in some aspects, is close to one-to-one marketing. In addition, the value approach is more precise, thus helping marketing professionals in creating and marketing all the 4 types of their offerings more efficiently.

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