What are the 8 P's of services marketing?

Answer 1

Whilst for some time there were considered to be 7Ps in the services marketing mix, which included the traditional 4Ps plus Process, People and Physical evidence (the last 3Ps represent the systemic vision from the Marketing point of view), Services Marketing Academics and Experts from the sector have recently added an 8th P (Lovelock and Wirtz, 2007, pp. 22-23). Thus, the 8Ps of services marketing are defined as follows:

Product elements - the core and periphery service elements at the centre of the company's marketing strategy;

Place and Time - delivering product elements to customers can be done physically and/or electronically, depending upon the service. Speed and convenience are essential to the customer and are important value-adds;

Price and Other User Outlays - pricing is only a part of what customers may part with when purchasing a service; one must also consider time and convenience;

Promotion and Education - speaks for itself, but the marketer must make sure communications not only provide information, but also persuade the customer of the service's relevance to the customer's particular 'problem';

Process - the means by which the firm delivers product elements;

Physical Environment - the appearance of the place where the services are delivered may have a significant impact upon whether the service was satisfactory;

People - front-line staff will have a direct impact on perceptions; and

Productivity and Quality - improving productivity is a requisite in cost management; but quality, as defined by the customer, is essential for a service to differentiate itself from other providers. (Lovelock and Wirtz, 2007, pp. 23)

References:

Lovelock, C. and Wirtz, J. 2007. Services Marketing: People, Technology, Strategy. 6th Edition. New Jersey, USA: Pearson International - Pearson/Prentice Hall.