(400 words) Discussion board 

The four Ps of marketing are product, place, price, and promotion. These four elements are integrated into the business plan of all businesses. These elements are described as follows:

• Product: This is something that you can touch and feel, or a service rendered. This is the “thing” that a business is trying to market to customers.
• Price: If the price is too high, customers may look for a lower price and purchase from a competitor. If it is too low, the business may not make enough revenue to continue to grow.
• Promotion: If a business does no promotion, the word does not get out about the products for customers to purchase.
• Place: If the business does not choose the right place or manage its supply chain, the products will not get to the customers.

These four Ps of marketing have not changed over the years. The way a business manages its four Ps has to evolve with technologies. The Internet and smartphones have put the world of products in the customers’ hands to take with them wherever they go. There are Web sites, social media platforms, and information being disseminated constantly. It is important for businesses to adjust and integrate the four Ps of marketing in these platforms to meet the wants and needs of today’s tech-savvy consumers.

Read the following article to better understand the marketing mix in the digital marketing world: Digital Marketing Mix and the Four Ps: An Integrated Marketing Approach For Business Professionals

Using what you have learned, use the following questions to guide your response:

• According to the article, “A marketer’s first task is to understand what the product has to offer or its unique selling position (USP). How does unique selling position (USP) relate to the Product when using the Marketing Mix in digital marketing?
• When considering Place in the digital Marketing Mix, what are the biggest differences from traditional marketing practices when considering your marketing channels?
• Which of these differences is the most important to you and why?

(400 words) Discussion board

Data analytics plays an important role in marketing management. There are many types of data to be gathered and studied. Structured data are quantitative data that can be stored in a fixed format such as a spreadsheet or list. These data can be easily processed by computers. Examples of structured data are the following:

• E-mail address
• Home address
• Age
• Gender
• Credit card number

Unstructured data are not easily put into categories. Examples of unstructured data are the following:

• Internet search results
• Body of an e-mail
• Data from social media sites, such as Facebook or LinkedIn
• Photos
• Text messages
• Voicemails

Semi-structured data are a combination of both structured and unstructured data. An example would be an e-mail. The to and from fields would be considered structured data that are easily categorized, and the body of the e-mail would be unstructured, which is not as easily categorized. All of these data combined, along with other types, contribute to big data.

Watch the following video for more information about big data and analytics in marketing: The Importance of Big Data and Analytics in Marketing

Using what you have learned, use the following questions to guide your response:

• How are these data used by companies? For example, a company that makes video games for Xbox or PlayStation can track the common actions that their players take before making an in-game purchase.
• Describe 2 ethical dilemmas that business organizations face when using big data. For example, sharing private customer information with your best friend without the customer’s consent would be a potential ethical dilemma because that is private information held by the business.

(Individual Project)

There are many types of customers and potential customers in the market for products and services. Demographic data is the statistical information regarding a population. Examples of demographic data include age, gender, married/not married, children/no children, educational level completed, and income level to name a few. Psychographic data is the information about a customer’s interests, values, and personality traits. Examples of psychographic data categories are values, leisure activities, attitudes, and interests.

Watch this video to learn more about demographics and psychographics: Difference Between Demographics and Psychographics/Marketing

Using what you have learned, use the following questions to guide your writing:

1. Explain the purpose of demographics in marketing research.
2. Describe examples of demographics and their impact on determining the customer group for a brand.
3. What are psychographics and their purpose? Provide examples to illustrate your points.
4. Is it necessary to determine both demographics and psychographics to determine the target group of customers? Why or why not?

Please use the MKTG630_U3_IP_Template to complete this assignment.

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