Marketing Paper Example: 4 P Strategies for Each of the Stages of the Lifecycle

Product lifecycle entails four stages, which have varied challenges and opportunities for marketers. Hence, the marketing strategies applied should be exclusive for a certain stage. The 4 P strategies for each of the stages of the lifecycle include price, product, promotion, and place.

The introduction stage has slow growth rates with less profits due to low volumes of sales. The marketing strategies employed are promotion and price. Through the rapid skimming tactic, the products are introduced at high promotional expenses and prices. This aims at attaining high per unit profits and convincing the market to buy the product. Consequently, high levels of market penetration are attained. The slow skimming policy can be applied whereby products are launched at low promotion costs and high prices. Hence, there will be low expenses and maximized profits. Also, the use of rapid penetration occurs when a product is introduced at a high promotion cost and low price (Meldrum, & McDonald, 2015). This helps in the attainment of a large market share. Finally, slow penetration strategy, which entails low-level promotion and low price can be applied. This encourages low expenses and product acceptance.

The growth stage is marked by fast market acceptance. The goals of marketers are to maintain market growth. The strategies put in place include improving the features and qualities of products, and enhancing styling and adding new models. Moreover, improving, designing, and spreading the places of distributing the products is also done. The promotional efforts then move from enhancing product awareness to product persuasion. Additionally, prices are reduced to capture the price-sensitive customers.

The maturity stage experiences high levels of competition. Hence, the marketing strategies used are aggressive. They can partake of product modification where an improvement and alteration of the qualities of the product is done. Consequently, the company will be termed dynamic, progressive, and a market leader.

Finally, the decline stage marks the onset of various strategies including the identification of poor products and whether to drop them or not. They can decide to maintain the original product leading to low costs of promotion. They can continue producing the product, but apply small changes to attract customers.

In conclusion, the lifecycle of products requires the 4 P marketing strategies, which include price, product, promotion, and place. The introduction stage requires the promotion and price strategies. Place, promotion, and product strategies are required in the growth stage. In the maturity stage, the product strategy which entails product modification is applied. Lastly, the decline stage involves the product strategy whereby they can opt to drop it.

Reference

Meldrum, M., & McDonald, M. (2015). Marketing in a nutshell (3rd ed.). Amsterdam: Elsevier.