Namita Tiwari is a seasoned marketing professional with 20 years of experience across all marketing functions. She is an authority on marketing & passionate about convergence of digital, brand & content. She has spearheaded many tech-driven marketing initiatives in her two decades of career and has been inspired & inclined towards purpose-driven marketing. In this article, we are featuring her thoughts on Modern Marketing Mix and the emergence & importance of “Purpose driven Marketing”.

4Ps of Traditional Marketing Mix

We all remember the 4 Ps of traditional marketing ~ Product, Price, Place and Promotion which comprise the Marketing Mix.

Neil Borden, an advertising professor at Harvard, popularized the idea of the marketing mix—with the concept of the four Ps—in the 1950s. His 1964 article “The Concept of the Marketing Mix” described how companies used advertising tactics leveraging the model.

Next came 7Ps

With the changing times, 7 Ps have been spoken about in the marketing world. The three additional ones are People, Process and Physical evidence. Where, physical evidence is anything that can be touched, felt, or seen, perhaps more applicable in services.

New Ps of Modern Marketing Mix

In modern marketing today, we have some new Ps emerging strongly in conversations — Performance, Platforms but the most popular is “Purpose”.

Performance marketing is about mapping marketing efforts to directly influence business outcomes.

Platforms refer to the multiple channels available for engaging with hyper connected consumers today. They contribute directly to customer experience and are ever changing with technology.

Talking about “Purpose — “The Golden P”, which has risen to popularity as brands & companies are making their existence associated with social, environmental, inclusion and sustainable causes. Brands are finding purpose with profit, an approach of great appeal and consumers are demanding more attention to issues they care about.

Let’s look at the key factors behind the success of Purpose driven Marketing

Purpose and Profits —

The confluence of causes rising today like—a global pandemic, racial injustice, humanitarian crises, conflict and climate change—pushed some organizations into reinvent themselves with purpose as they try to navigate urgency, political divisions and rising consumer activism all at once.

Inspired organizations are taking steps to drive their efforts towards purpose or a goal towards betterment of the world, consumer health, nutrition, wellness, climate, beauty and peripherals beyond just profits. An example is Mars Petcare’s latest campaign for Pedigree, its most popular dog food brand, has the ambition of eradicating pet homelessness by 2030.

Sustainability Matters —

Sustainability is the need of the hour and  a critical trend for businesses, brands and global citizens of the world.

While, we are applauding the change brands are making for the sustainability of the planet. On the flip side, we have consumers pointing to “greenwashing” and doubting that it’s nothing more than marketing spin.

Nonetheless, brands and how sustainable they are is a topic that’s gaining traction and fuelling purpose driven marketing.

More eco-friendly brands are emerging and existing brands are endorsing purpose to contribute to the world. Burger King is working with suppliers to ban plastic in meal toys and lessen the company’s carbon footprint, with commitment that by 2025 they will remove the plastic in meal toys from all across the globe. Adidas collaboration with Parley for the Oceans, innovating to end plastic waste is another example.

Awakened Consumers —

We have wiser and sensitive consumers today who are fully awakened to the nobility of valuing global good. Consumers encourage companies to go further in addressing issues that affect wider society.

Today’s customers are more conscious of social issues, from environmental matters to charitable causes, and are more likely to respond favorably to a company that shows its commitment to being part of a larger social and environmental context, with a stated purpose of improving the lives of all its stakeholders.

Purpose-driven brands win hearts and minds rather than simply offering products and services, and that is the secret to their success.

“Brands are giving opportunities to consumers to contribute to a larger purpose. It’s a great way to engage customers”, says Namita Tiwari.

A recent 5WPR’s Consumer Culture Report mentions —

• “71% of Millennials will pay more for a product if they know some of the proceeds go to charity”.
• “For 83% of Millennials, it’s important for the companies they buy from align with their beliefs and values”.

Employee Engagement —

In today’s era, employees want to have meaning in their professional lives and they want to be doing something that benefits society, especially the younger cohort of employees in any organization.

With purpose-driven marketing, we give employees a chance to contribute to a larger cause, which offers more fulfillment and satisfaction to them for their daily hours at work. It also leads to attracting better talent and longer tenures of employees in the company.

To summarize, Namita Tiwari feels that “the popularity of purpose-driven marketing has not only broken the paradox that business can either be ‘for good’ or ‘for-profit’, but also sparkled customer and employee participation towards global good”.

To know more about Namita Tiwari, go to her website.

Stay connected with her on LinkedIn and Instagram, where she frequently shares nuggets of marketing insights & trends.