Ms-06 Jan - June 2015

1 a) Distinguish Product Marketing and Service Marketing, with suitable illustrations.

Product Vs. Service Marketing:

Companies that are marketing a product face different challenges compared with those that are promoting a service. If you’re transitioning from marketing products to services or vice versa, you have to know and understand these differences to effectively promote and sell. Understanding the different challenges in product and service marketing can help you establish the right approach.

Tangibility

A product is tangible, which means the customer can touch and see the product before deciding to make a purchase. Items such as packaging and presentation may compel a customer to purchase a product. Services, on the other hand, are not tangible, which can make them more difficult to promote and sell than a product.

Relationship and Value

Products tend to fill a customer's need or want, so companies can use this to sell a product. A service is more about selling a relationship and the value of the relationship between the buyer and seller of the service. For example, a car is something a buyer can touch and see as well as use. A service, such as lifestyle coaching, for example, is not tangible. A lifestyle coach may be able to assist clients in creating a life plan and implementing steps to transform his life into one that the client wants to live, but it is not something tangible that the client can place in his home and look at every day. Therefore, the client needs to perceive the value of the service, which can be harder to get across.

Illustration of Product Marketing:

Geographic markets and types of channels used to reach end customers also can be useful in defining product markets. For example, soft drink companies like Coca-Cola and Pepsi frequently develop different offerings that satisfy the beverage preferences of different global markets. Coca-Cola and Pepsi create different packaging and delivery offerings for the quick-service...