1. Focuses on analysing each relevant P from a theoretical perspective through way of analysis and evaluation of current marketing practices the organisation undertakes across all the relevant P’s?
2. Focuses on providing recommendations across each relevant P using both a theoretical and example based approach. You should also consider within these recommendations how contemporary issues may impact on the delivery of the P’s as well as addressing the ‘new ways’ to value add to the marketing mix?
Marketing mix is considered as the foundation for marketing. The concepts that are taken into consideration under marketing mix analysis cover all the attributes of the product that helps in analysing the long run stability and the marketing capabilities of the product (Helm & Gritsch, 2014). Professor James Culliton first discovered the phenomenon of marketing mix in the year 1940s. Initially the criteria under marketing mix analysis consist of only 4 Ps, namely, product, price, place and promotion. Later in the year, 1981, the proposal of extending the marketing mix analysis under the attributes of process, people, physical evidence and partnerships were included (Goi, 2005). Hence, the marketing mix analysis could be broadly used in the form of 7 Ps or 8 Ps. By analysing the marketing strategies of a particular product, it could be stated that the organization could improve the brand image thereby raise the value of Branding. It would help in highlighting the unique features of the products that would help in attracting better demand for the products. All these attributes helps in explaining the underlining composition of the product, thereby being beneficial for the organization to create a brand positioning and targeting for the product towards the ideal customers (Baker, 2014).
The aim of this report is to analyse the marketing mix analysis for commonwealth bank of Australia. Commonwealth bank of Australia is one of the most important banks of the country that provides a variety of financial services to the economy. This report analyses its marketing mix strategy of 8 Ps with respect product, price, place, promotion, partnerships, people, physical evidence and process. These attributes would clearly demonstrate the marketing analysis of debit and credit cards in adherence with the bank. The second part of the report deals with the ways in which contemporary issues prevailing in the country would affect the marketing analysis of the bank. Recommendations are stated that would help in reframing the marketing analysis thereby reducing the negative impact of contemporary issues on the bank.
Commonwealth bank of Australia is a multinational bank, which is referred to as commonwealth bank. This bank offers a wide variety of services to the people, which include retail business facilities, financial services, fund management, insurance, investment, broking, etc (Personal banking including accounts, 2017). By considering electronic transactions, the bank has provided the individuals with credit and debit card facilities. The facilities that are provided to the people are of high value with various facilities aligned. In order to analyse the marketing strategies to be associated with such a product of the bank, it is quite vital for the banks to analyse the marketing mix strategy. This marketing mix strategy would help the bank to provide a future projected path to analyse the future prospects associated with the product. An 8 Ps market analysis is conducted below for the commonwealth bank of Australia.
Product is considered a vital aspect of the marketing strategy. When goods or services associated with the company do not leave an effective remark on the consumers, then it does not help in generating any demand among the customers no matter how much the other aspects of the marketing mix are well executed (Ahmad, Al-Qarni, Alsharqi, Qalai, & Kadi, 2013). The product element in the marketing mix analysis is to provide those service values to the consumers that would improve their adaptability and usability. The product aspect needs to be designed using a cluster of different yet mutually reinforced elements available. In order to attain a growth in demand for the products of the organization, there must be some modifications associated to the product. Quality modifications, functional modifications and aesthetic modifications are the three kinds of modification that could have been implemented to modify the features of the product and make it indifferent to the other products in the market.
One of the basic benefits that must be analysed by the product launched in the market is that it must adhere to the current wants of the customers. The recent advancement of technologies and dependency on a fast moving life, it is quite easier for the customers of the bank to get hold of a product that could be used efficiently and easily. Debit cards and credit cards are one such products of the commonwealth Australian bank, that helps the customers in making various financial transactions online or with the help of e-money. This reduces the complicacy of carrying money, risk of outrunning the cash in hand and making safe transactions without facing any hassle. Facilities are attached to the people with respect to transaction benefits, credit transactions, usage of the cards overseas, and secured transactions with encryption done to personal mails and messages. It helps in providing flexibility to the customer’s financial resources.
Price component of marketing mix strategy plays a dual role for the Commonwealth Bank of Australia. The first role is the ability to attract customers to purchase their credit and debit card facilities and the second rule should be that the product must be capable enough of generating enough revenue for the organization (Davari & Strutton, 2014). The pricing decisions for a particular product of the organization is based upon five attributes namely, market share maximisation, profit maximisation, survival, personal objectives and social considerations. Depending upon the pricing attributes of the product, the demand for the particular product could be stated. According to the law of demand, with a rise in the price of the product, the demand for the product falls, whereas, with the fall in the price of the product, its demand increases. Hence, the customers would demand for the product depending upon the price and the value being generated by using the product.
Though the pricing strategies play an important role for companies to generate revenue in the economy, banks are accustomed to charge lesser interest rates and provide their customers with larger facilities and provisions. Their revenue depends upon the amount of product bought by the customers that would be accustomed to the minimum balance and interest charges taken for the individuals. Commonwealth bank of Australia has kept the base lending rate for their debit cards comparatively lower than the other commercial banks, hence, it provides them the incentive of attracting better customers. It would be very beneficial for the organization to improve their pricing strategies that would help them implement better availment of customers.
The element of place in a marketing mix analysis involves the availment of the preferred product to the customers through efficient medium and methods. The delivery of such products might involve both electronic and manual methods (Mansouri, Mehrani, Nargesian, Pour, & Bekr, 2016). The failure of making a product available to the customers would provide a severe negativity to the demand for the product towards that firm.
Commonwealth bank of Australia is situated in almost 1100 branches all over the country along with 4300 ATMs all over Australia. This improves fluency and availability of services to the customers. The evolvement of the credit and debit cards in the economy would increase the efficiency of the customers to use their cards for money transactions without any glitches.
The element of promotion with respect to marketing mix strategy plays an important role. Three objectives are to be kept in mind while framing the promotional strategies for the particular product (Liu, Li, Chen, & Balachander, 2017). These objectives are to gain the attention of the consumers and to provide additional information thereby persuading the customers to purchase the product. The promotional efforts of a product could be coordinated with the help of Integrated Marketing Communication. This phenomenon helps in sending a consistent message to the customer that would help in highlighting the key features of the product.
The debit and the credit cards of the commonwealth bank provide a wide variety of services associated with it. These services are always approached to the customers with the help of electronic mails and letters. The facilities are exposed to the customers who are associated with the organization (Hu & Scholtens, 2014). Yet, commonwealth bank must promote their facilities more by advertisements and new ways of approaching their customers through social media. Precision and measurability allow advertisers to evaluate advertising success – to judge, at the campaign’s end, whether the objectives have been met and, if so, how well.
Despite the advances of technology in the market, it is quite important dor the customers to attain human assistance. The interactions of the people belonging to the organization along with their customers help in raising the demand of the firm (Mallin, Farag, & Ow-Yong, 2014). It is quite vital for any financial institution to offer a seamless first line of contact to its customers.
Due to prime importance of such element in the banks, commonwealth bank offers a wide range of customer assistance, which comprises of various relationship managers. These people are accustomed to provide the best quality service to the customers and are abided to answer all the queries of the customers. They have been trained in such a manner so that while explaining the facilities of the product to their customers in the first instance, they create an effective image on the consumers.
The physical evidence associated with the product can be subsidized into two segments, namely, peripheral and essential (Mayes, McDonald, & Pini, 2014). Peripheral evidence is possessed by the consumers and has little independent value. On the other hand, the essential evidence cannot be possessed by the consumer yet has independency in it.
The peripheral evidence associated with the debit and credit card facilities of the commonwealth bank is the card itself. It provides the customers with the authority of using it in order to make their transactions easier. The essential evidence associated with the banks is their cash machines, brochures and posters.
Partnerships play an important role in sustaining the brand marketing of a particular organization. Partnerships referred to alliances or arrangements organisations are undertaking with the view to enhance their customer experience. Typically, these partnerships are formed between organisations that offer goods or services that complement each other by offering additional goods and services that will enhance customer experience. Partnerships are carried out at a strategic level, which helps in enhancing the abilities of the particular organization thereby building in more possibilities of further growth. Partnership marketing programs can also create joint sales and distribution opportunities, broader in-store merchandising, more compelling packaging and marketing material and overall offer stronger value to the consumer (Davari & Strutton, 2014).
Commonwealth bank of Australia collaborates with the other banks to build enduring, multi product reciprocal relationships. The organization has build global partnership relations that helps in developing tailored solution with a wide range of products and services.
The aspect of process in marketing mix strategy focuses on the various mechanism that is associated with the evolvement of the product. It includes various business policies, which provides the provisions, degree of mechanisms, procedures, etc (Liu, Li, Chen, & Balachander, 2017).
The debit and credit card facilities provided by the banks involve a greater extent of step by step detailed process that would assist the customers at every step and make their flow of enabling the facilities quite efficient in nature. Commonwealth bank is quite successful in achieving a step-by-step guide to its consumers with the availability of credit and debit cards. They maintain a strategically acclaimed process, which would overcome any hindrances and would improve the service.
2. orporate social responsibility is a form of corporate self-regulation that is integrated into a business model. Corporate social responsibility helps in maintaining the law, ethical consideration and improvement with respect the national and international norms and conditions (Hu & Scholtens, 2014). About the banking and financial sector of a country, there is an urgency for the organization to involve themselves into some additional benefits to be provided to the society. As the pricing system and the products offered by the banks of a particular country is considered almost the same, hence, it gets quite indifferent for the individuals to choose a particular company for their respective services. Individuals get attracted to only those banks, those who provide them with extra services and benefits. The bank referred must be able to maintain some amount of uniqueness in the market with the introduction of innovation (Moon, 2014). The bank must be able to generate a positive image as a brand in front of the individuals. To achieve this target, tools of socially responsible business are often used and the choice is determined by financial possibilities of banks, the level of development of the whole system, the requirements of regulators, national peculiarities and differs in many countries.
Commonwealth bank of Australia must create a positive impact on the society by implementing strategies and policies that would benefit the people and the society. In order to accomplish their vision of excelling at securing and enhancing the financial wellbeing of people, business and communities, they must actively take part in upgrading the environmental, social and economic impacts (Moon, 2014). This would influence their business and instigate ways to use their unique capabilities and resources thereby creating a positive contribution beyond their core business. The customer focus strategy prevailing in the banks must be focussed on four prime priorities, namely, people, technology, strength and productivity. They must involve integrity, accountability, collaboration, excellence and best services to their customers. The commonwealth bank of Australia must aim at maintain transparency, balance and focus towards the development and implementation of social impact thereby supporting their core business. The organization must invest in education and skills and foster innovation to enhance the financial wellbeing of the people. The bank must sponsor various social and environmental support programs that would help them in gaining a socially acclaimed response (Boulouta, 2014).
The effect of lack of corporate social responsibility to be undertaken by the commonwealth bank of Australia would throw a negative impact on the marketing strategies generated by the firm. The marketing strategies consisting of all the 8 Ps would be affected as follows :
Product: the debit and credit card of the bank would be no different from that of the other bank, thereby would not be able to generate vast amount of demand towards itself. If the bank involves itself into various social and environmental programs, there would be a remarkable difference in the products and it would be presented to the customers with transparency and balance.
Price : the pricing system in most of the banks are considered to be similar. With the objective of attracting the customers and generating more revenue from the products, the commonwealth bank of Australia would be negatively affected if their product would be indifferent to the others. The unique value should be attached to the product in order to generate demand of the consumer.
Place: the effect of the corporate social responsibility would not affect the place aspect much. This aspect would remain unchanged and unaffected.
Promotion: it is quite vital for the bank to promote their brand and products associated to the brand along with their unique features, benefits and social impact. Commonwealth bank of Australia should be quite efficient in maintaining various social and environmental programs as that would highlight their existence and would attract the people towards themselves and their products.
People: the people that are associated with the bank must be quite transparent in nature and provide the best services possible to the customers. This would help them in generating future demands of the products. Maintaining a friendly relation with the society would be regarded as quite beneficial for the bank.
Physical evidence: the physical evidence that is associated with the banks would not be affected by the corporate social responsibility scheme as the evidence of the products would be only be considered after the customers have started the use of the product.
Partnership: partnership would play a vital role for the bank in relation to their corporate social responsibility scheme. Involvement of the bank into social services would earn them a positive acclamation and response from the society. This would improve their partnership facilities and help them generate more business in the related field.
Process: the process that the financial bank undertakes must implement various steps that would be associated with the benefits improvises the society. These steps would highlight their efficiency in stabilising a better social and environmental surrounding of the country.
Conclusion
Marketing strategies are considered as quite vital aspect of analysing the long run stability and accessibility of a particular organization in a wide range of comparative market structure. Commonwealth bank of Australia is considered as one such bank in the field of financial market that is considered as one of the largest bank in the country. The bank provides a wide variety of services to the individuals among which one such service is the availability of debit and credit cards. The marketing mix strategy consisting of 8 components provides a clear image of how the product of the bank accommodates itself in order to attain stability in the future. Among the various contemporary issues faced by the firm, one of the most important aspects is the issue of corporate social responsibility. Commonwealth bank of Australia needs to improve their corporate social responsibility scheme by sponsoring and taking part in various social and environmental development programs. This would help them in promoting their products, raising their market share and generating more demand among the customers using their unique value.
Reference
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