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Chapter 2 Marketing Basics
Think about the last time you were shop-
ping. Were there things that you did not
purchase because of the price? Were there
items you did purchase because of the price?
Place
In marketing, place refers to the activi-
ties involved in getting a product or service
to the end users, as illustrated in Figure 2-2.
Place is also known as distribution. Physical
distribution activities include shipping,
order processing, inventory warehousing or
storage, and stocking of goods.
Place decisions involve determining
when, where, and how products get to
customers. Place includes decisions about
where to locate manufacturing plants,
warehouses, and stores. It also involves
making decisions about whether to have
a physical location or an Internet location.
Marketers try to make products available to
customers at convenient times and places.
For example, originally, gas stations sold
only gas. Then the marketers of milk
realized that it would be very convenient for
customers needing milk to buy it when they
buy gas. These marketers partnered with gas
stations to also sell milk. The result was more
convenience for customers and more sales of
milk. Today most gas stations are also
convenience stores.
The objective of place is to deliver exactly
what the end user wants—at the right time,
in the right place, and at the right price. Good
decisions about place help a business run
smoothly. When poor place decisions are
made, major problems can result. Customers
get upset because products are not available
when they want them. Customers might
express their dissatisfaction by shopping at a
competitor’s store. Continued customer loss
might eventually lead to financial problems
for the business. For example, suppose you
went to a shoe store, but they were out of the
specific pair of shoes that you wanted to buy.
This is an example of a poor place decision
because the store did not have the product
when you wanted to buy it. As a result, you
Figure 2-2 The factors that influence place are also known as distribution.
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