Marketing 101 textbooks talk about the 4 P’s of effective marketing: product, placement, promotion, price. Having taught marketing courses in B-schools for many years, I have confidently espoused the 4 P’s many times, as if they were written on stone tablets handed to me by Moses. Problem is…
Something the size of an elephant is missing here.
It is the customer!
Where in the magical marketing mix is the customer, or the value created for the customer?
Nowhere, that’s where!
In standard marketing formulas, despite the volumes of shibboleths that claim the contrary, customers are just fucking buyers, they are not people. If people factored into the ‘marketing mix’ there would be 5 fucking P’s, wouldn’t there?
So, if you add up the 4 P’s, then subtract Value (added to customers), what do you get…? You get absolute Shit! Or worse than Shit…
You get Spam, Pet Rocks, Corn Dogs, Reliant K Cars, Chia Pets, Cage Fighting, Brawndo, Salad Shooters, Hummers, 700 Club, McWeeners and loads of other things not fit for human consumption.
But create a (worthless) product, price it right, place it well, and promote it aggressively, and you can be a winner! With no money down. Brought to you by Ronco!
Fuck that.
Have a good day!
The Butcher
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