Marketing Mix 2.0

Ye olde Marketing Mix or 4 Ps, courtesy of marketingteacher.com

Anybody who has studied marketing 101 will be familiar with the marketing mix. Better known as the 4 Ps of marketing, they are Product, Price, Place (distribution) and Promotion. Newer pundits championing Services Marketing have added another 3 Ps which are Process, People and Physical Evidence.

There is even an 8th P called Positioning (made famous by marketing legends Jack Trout and Al Ries) which some have alluded to in marketing books and texts.
In the new 2.0 world of social media, I have created 8 brand new Ps to complement the traditional marketing mix. You may call them Marketing Mix 2.0 or perhaps the Conversational Marketing Mix (to borrow a term from Shel Israel of Naked Conversations fame) since they are all about the new power of relationships and influence.

Personality

The first and foremost P in the new media universe is personality. Folks must be able to identify who you are, what you stand for, and how you feel. Faceless, nameless drones just don’t cut it in this new world of social networks and conversations. You need to carve out a reputation and name for yourself.

Proximity

Being there is probably more important now than ever before. With even CEOs blogging, there is really no excuse for one’s employees to hide behind veiled curtains (or worst concrete fortresses) and communicate only through press releases, TV commercials and other “one-way” communication channels. They want to hear a human voice. Go ahead and make their day.

Participation

Be plugged into the action. In the 2.0 world, there are no room for bystanders. If you want to know what a blogger, podcaster, youtuber or forumer thinks or feels, you need to be one yourself. Get down and dirty, and be one of them.

Passing It On

Spreading the word through buzz and Word Of Mouth networks is the new name of the game. Everybody is a node as they would tell you. The more connected you are, the better. So go ahead, do something buzzworthy, activate the “sneezers” and create some “Tipping Point” action.

Provocation

Having a point of view is better than being blah. The most popular social media personalities are those who tend to be a little outrageous and controversial in their views, thoughts and behaviours. Playing it safe is probably the riskiest measure as it will drag you down into the deep pit of boring, “ho-hum” obscurity.

Peer Approval

As anybody would tell you, rank counts for much less in the democratisation of information. With peer-to-peer social networks becoming the norm, you need to be credible and win the approval of your (no surprises) peers. You need to be credible and well-liked for your own sake alone. Yes, my dear, that means standing on your own two feet and not depending on the army of publicists to save your behinds when push comes to shove.

Pals

Relationships play a bigger role than ever before. In fact, I would even call the Web 2.0 movement the humanisation of the Internet. The most remarkable thing about this new age is how we are moving back towards the old model where people trade based on relationships, hearsay and referrals rather than what they just saw on prime time TV.

Play

Finally, in case you don’t know, all work and no play makes Jack a Dull 2.0 Marketer. The most popular applications – Youtube, Myspace, Friendster – are driven largely by entertainment and leisure. The biggest bloggers in Singapore’s blogosphere are all mavens of mirth like Mr Brown, Xiaxue, and Mr Miyagi. A sense of humour would probably be your greatest ally in navigating the social networks.

Any more Ps to add? Let’s have fun folks!