Consumerism is a social and economic order that is based on the systematic creat ion and fostering of a desire to purchase

goods or services in ever greater amou nts. It also may refer to a movement seeking to protect and inform consumers by requi ring such practices as honest packaging and advertising, product guarantees, and improved safety standards. In this sense it is a movement or a set of policies aimed at regulating the pro ducts, services, methods, and standards of manufacturers, sellers, and advertise rs in the interests of the buyer. In economics, consumerism refers to economic policies placing emphasis on consum ption. In an abstract sense, it is the belief that the free choice of consumers should dictate the economic structure of a society PRODUCT In marketing, a product is anything that can be offered to a market that might s atisfy a want or need. In retailing, products are called merchandise. In manufacturing, products are purchased as raw materials and sold as finished goods. Commodities are usually raw materials such as metals and agricultural products, but a commodity can also be anything widely available in the open market. In project management, products are the formal definition of the project delive rables that make up or contribute to delivering the objectives of the project (April 2008) Merchandising is the methods, practices, and operations used to promote and sust ain certain categories of commercial activity. In the broadest sense, merchandising is any practice which contributes to the s ale of products to a retail consumer. At a retail in-store level, merchandising refers to the variety of products available for sale and the display of those pr oducts in such a way that it stimulates interest and entices customers to make a purchase. A supply chain is a system of organizations, people, technology, activities, inf ormation and resources involved in moving a product or service from supplier to customer. Supply chain activities transform natural resources, raw materials and component s into a finished product that is delivered to the end customer. In sophisticate d supply chain systems, used products may re-enter the supply chain at any point where residual value is recyclable. Supply chains link value chains.

A customer, also called client, buyer, or purchaser, is usually used to refer to a current or potential buyer or user of the products of an individual or organi zation, called the supplier, seller, or vendor. This is typically through purchasing or renting goods or services. However, in certain contexts, the term customer also includes by extension any entity that u ses or experiences the services of another. A customer may also be a viewer of t he product or service that is being sold despite deciding not to buy them. The word derives from "custom," meaning "habit"; a customer was someone who freq uented a particular shop, who made it a habit to purchase goods of the sort the shop sold there rather than elsewhere, and with whom the shopkeeper had to maint ain a relationship to keep his or her "custom," meaning expected purchases in th e future. A vendor, or a supplier, is a supply chain management term meaning anyone who pr ovides goods or services to a company. A vendor often manufactures inventoriable items, and sells those items to a customer.

Marketing Management is a business discipline which is focused on the practical application of marketing techniques and the management of a firm's marketing res ources and activities. Marketing strategy is a process that can allow an organization to concentrate its limited resources on the greatest opportunities to increase sales and achieve a sustainable compe titive advantage. A marketing strategy should be centered around the key concept that customer satisfaction is the main goal.

POSITIONING In marketing, positioning has come to mean the process by which marketers try to create an image or identity in the minds of their target market for its product , brand, or organization. Re-positioning involves changing the identity of a product, relative to the iden tity of competing products, in the collective minds of the target market. De-positioning involves attempting to change the identity of competing products, relative to the identity of your own product, in the collective minds of the ta rget market. Product lining Product lining is the marketing strategy of offering for sale several related pr oducts. Unlike product bundling, where several products are combined into one, l ining involves offering several related products individually. A line can comprise related products of various sizes, types, colors, qualities, or prices. Line depth refers to the number of product variants in a line. Line consistency refers to how closely related the products that make up the li ne are. Line vulnerability refers to the percentage of sales or profits that are derived from only a few products in the line. The number of different product lines sold by a company is referred to as width of product mix. The total number of products sold in all lines is referred to as length of produ ct mix. If a line of products is sold with the same brand name, this is referred to as f amily branding. When you add a new product to a line, it is referred to as a line extension. Whe n you add a line extension that is of better quality than the other products in the line, this is referred to as trading up or brand leveraging. When you add a line extension that is of lower quality than the other products of the line, thi s is referred to as trading down. When you trade down, you will likely reduce yo ur brand equity. You are gaining short-term sales at the expense of long term sa les.

Image anchors are highly promoted products within a line that define the image o f the whole line. Image anchors are usually from the higher end of the line's ra nge. When you add a new product within the current range of an incomplete line, this is referred to as line filling. Price lining is the use of a limited number of prices for all your product offer ings. This is a tradition started in the old five and dime stores in which every thing cost either 5 or 10 cents. Its underlying rationale is that these amounts are seen as suitable price points for a whole range of products by prospective c ustomers. It has the advantage of ease of administering, but the disadvantage of inflexibility, particularly in times of inflation or unstable prices. There are many important decisions about product and service development and mar keting. In the process of product development and marketing we should focus on s trategic decisions about product attributes, product branding, product packaging , product labeling and product support services. But product strategy also calls for building a product line.--A brand is the identity of a specific product, service, or business[1][page need ed]. A brand can take many forms, including a name, sign, symbol,color combinati on or slogan. The word brand began simply as a way to tell one person's cattle f rom another by means of a hot iron stamp. A legally protected brand name is call ed a trademark. The word brand has continued to evolve to encompass identity - i t effect the personality of a product, company or service. Brand equity refers to the marketing effects or outcomes that accrue to a produc t with its brand name compared with those that would accrue if the same product did not have the brand name [1][2][3][4]. And, at the root of these marketing ef fects is consumers' knowledge. In other words, consumers' knowledge about a bran d makes manufacturers/advertisers respond differently or adopt appropriately ade pt measures for the marketing of the brand [5][6]. The study of brand equity is increasingly popular as some marketing researchers have concluded that brands ar e one of the most valuable assets that a company has Brand equity is one of the factors which can increase the financial value of a brand to the brand owner, although not the only one Marketing mix The four main fields of the Marketing mix. The term "marketing mix" was first used in 1953 when Neil Borden, in his America n Marketing Association presidential address, took the recipe idea one step furt her and coined the term "marketing-mix". A prominent marketer, E. Jerome McCarth y, proposed a 4 P classification in 1960, which has seen wide use. The four Ps c oncept is explained in most marketing textbooks and classes. Contents [hide] 1 2 3 4 5

Four Ps Four Csd1 Four Csd2 References External links

[edit] Four Ps Elements of the marketing mix are often referred to as 'the four Ps': Product - A tangible object or an intangible service that is mass produced or ma nufactured on a large scale with a specific volume of units. Intangible products are service based like the tourism industry & the hotel industry or codes-based products like cellphone load and credits. Typical examples of a mass produced t angible object are the motor car and the disposable razor. A less obvious but ub iquitous mass produced service is a computer operating system. Packaging also ne eds to be taken into consideration. Price The price is the amount a customer pays for the product. It is determined by a number of factors including market share, competition, material costs, prod

uct identity and the customer's perceived value of the product. The business may increase or decrease the price of product if other stores have the same product . Place Place represents the location where a product can be purchased. It is ofte n referred to as the distribution channel. It can include any physical store as well as virtual stores on the Internet. Promotion represents all of the communications that a marketer may use in the ma rketplace. Promotion has four distinct elements: advertising, public relations, personal selling and sales promotion. A certain amount of crossover occurs when promotion uses the four principal elements together, which is common in film pro motion. Advertising covers any communication that is paid for, from cinema comme rcials, radio and Internet adverts through print media and billboards. Public re lations are where the communication is not directly paid for and includes press releases, sponsorship deals, exhibitions, conferences, seminars or trade fairs a nd events. Word of mouth is any apparently informal communication about the prod uct by ordinary individuals, satisfied customers or people specifically engaged to create word of mouth momentum. Sales staff often plays an important role in w ord of mouth and Public Relations (see Product above