Marketing Seminar: Week 2-Discussion Question-Responses

Discussion Answers Responses:

Please note in this assignment, your task is to post one response for each of the three answers from three different individuals. You need to refer to your answer the video you watched in the last assignment: “Marketing Seminar: Week 2-Discussion Question-“Your Marketing Mix…The 7 Ps!” and try to respond to each of the three answers pasted blow.

#1: Answer from Angela Jones

The purchase I will use for this discussion is when I bought my Apple MacAir laptop. It was one of the larger purchases I had made up to that point, other than my car and furniture, and I did extensive research on the product, price, and other attributes before deciding on the Mac.

As stated, the product was a laptop. I needed something that would allow me to do my schoolwork and simple applications and wanted something that was dependable and would last all four years. I narrowed my choices down to a Surface Pro and the Mac. The prices were comparable, with the Mac coming out just a little less when accessories and other extras were taken into consideration. While price was important, the difference of $30 to $50 was not enough to base my decision on alone. So, then I spoke to friends and went to stores like BestBuy and the Apple store to try out the laptops. While BestBuy was the only store where I was able to try out the Surface, I found several locations that allowed me try out the Mac. With that being said, the accessibility of both laptops was sufficient for my purposes.

I think the biggest factors in my decision came down to Apple’s position and other people’s opinions, reviews, and experiences with both options. Both Apple and Microsoft promote their products on a large scale, showing that their products are superior to the other. I do not take much stock into the image they try to portray, like Apple portraying itself as the “cooler” brand or Microsoft as the more diverse brand. These are not important attributes to me. But Apple’s position as having a dependable and reliable product, with superior pre-installed anti-virus protections was very important. All reviews I read, and everyone I spoke with who owned a Mac, said that this was one of, if not the best, laptop options available. Everyone I know who owns a Mac is very happy with it, with no complaints. The professional industry reviews, coupled with my personal research, made it easy for me to decide the Mac was the best product for me.

The packaging was also a factor in my decision. I liked Apple’s sleek silver design and the keyboard is easy and fun to type on. Apple also has so many options for covers and accessory designs that I knew I would never get bored with the design, as I could change it whenever I wished, which I like to do often.

I do not think marketers are simply out to get our money. I think many of them truly want to provide a product that helps someone in some way and is happy to do so and profit at the same time. I also don’t think I am manipulated in my purchases because I do a lot of research before making any considerable purchases. I don’t take anyone’s word for what is best for me, but instead do my own research based on the qualities I am looking for in the product. With all the information readily available to us 24/7, the consumer has more power and is not as easily manipulated as in the past. I believe most, but of course not all, salespeople and marketers understand this and behave accordingly.

#2: Answer from Barbara Morris

Marketing is an art and science and certainly “manipulation” is one of the crucial parts of the process. Marketers need to be very creative to catch customers attention and to build loyalty. Also, they need to use psychology and other scientific tools to understand customers’ behaviors, thinking process and physical aspects that might be relevant to the marketing research. Persuasion and manipulation, unfortunately, are necessary to attract customers and the 7 Ps are the major channels to achieve this goal.

Which one of the Ps gets me to purchase? I would say,”Product.” I’m not a big shopping person. In fact, I’ll go out to buy only what I need and usually after a long research online and in-store about the product I want to purchase. I look for a good quality, but I’m also aware of the price. “Price” is the next P that I consider after I analyze the quality of the product.

I have many examples of a product I bought based on my Ps from grocery to clothing, and art supplies. I will pick “art supplies.” I’ve been drawing and crafting all my life and when I have to buy some tools or supply for my projects I always look for quality so I will search for a specific product. Last month, I bought polymer clay on Amazon because the site was selling the product I wanted, the quality that I’m looking for, at a cheaper price than the store. As you can see, “Place” was the less relevant to my decision, in this case. Some other times, if product and price are the same, the place might be the most relevant to me. I don’t think the Ps are constant for every purchase: it depends on the product/service we want or need to buy, and the personal situation at the time of the purchase.

#3: Answer from Kelsey Donohue

Although I think off-hand, this seems like a very casual definition, but marketing definitely encompasses “the art and science of getting people to spend their money on your product rather than the other guy’s, and be happy that they did so.” The point of both Marketing and marketing is to surround the culture and actions of the company around the customer. What’s easier to draw someone into your message than making yourself look better than the other guy?

Personally, the most recent purchase I made where all of the 7 P’s made an effect on my purchase was my car. I bought back in November after living without one for over 4 years; before this I don’t think I owned a car with fewer than 150,000 miles on it. I was determined to finally get myself something that was reliable and cost effective, and to get the newest used car I could find. I started with the dream of getting a newer Toyota RAV4 and for some reason, my heart was fixed on it. Because of their resale value, best I could find was 2016s with more than 35,000 miles… not bad. But, one day leaving work, I saw one of the new Nissan Rogues and I knew I found the one I wanted. So off hand, the physical evidence and product aesthetic drew me in. After more research, I learn that the Rogue evenly matches the ability of the RAV4 for less money, probably due to Nissan’s larger production of the 2017 model and its popularity. After visiting the dealership and having a great experience with the sellers, the process of buying the car and the rebate promotion being offered on the model I purchased, the entire experience rounded out a positive effect far after I drove home.

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*For each of your three responses, it should be around 150~200 words with your own ideas and analysis towards the answer of the authors.

**Please note this is in a discussion board response, so your wording should be less formal and when you point out someone’s problem, please be euphemistic.

***Please make sure the originality and quality of your work.

****I will attach your answer and the video from the last assignment here for convenience.

*****A word document of this assignment is also attached.

The video you watched: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMZMrnNWY-A

Thank you!

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