Product Mix Strategy (2024)

What is a Product Mix Strategy?

A successful product mix strategy enables a company to focus efforts and resources on the products and product lines within its offerings that have the greatest potential for growth, market share, and revenue.

Product Line vs. Product Mix?

First, it’s important to note how the product line and the product mix differ.

A product line refers to a product category or brand marketed by a company. Products within a product line all perform a similar function, offer similar benefits, target similar customers, are similarly priced, and follow similar distribution channels. Important product line attributes include line stretching, line filling, line modernization, and line featuring.

A product mix is the total number of product lines and individual products or services offered by a company. Additionally referred to as product assortment or product portfolio. Product mixes vary from company to company. Some have multiple product lines with lots of products in each line. But others are much more limited.

A product mix strategy has four dimensions:

WidthTotal number of product lines a company offers.
LengthTotal number of products in a company’s product mix.
DepthTotal number of product variations in a product line.
Consistency ___
Indicates how product lines relate to one another.

Product Mix Strategy (1)

A company can have multiple product lines with lots of products in each line, but it can only have one product mix.

Key Product Mix Strategies

There are four key product mix strategies:

  1. Expansion: A company increases the number of product lines or depth (i.e., product variations) within lines.
  2. Contraction: A company narrows its product mix to eliminate lower-performing products or lines or to simplify remaining products or lines.
  3. Change an Existing Product: A company improves a current product rather than creating a completely new product.
  4. Product Differentiation: Without modifying the product in any way, a company positions it as a superior choice to a competitive product.

Additional product mix strategies include:

  • Deepening Depth: A company keeps existing lines but expands them.
  • Developing New Uses for Existing Products: A company finds and communicates new uses for current products without disturbing lines or products.
  • Trading Up: A company adds a higher-cost product to an existing line to improve brand image and increase demand for its lower-cost products.
  • Trading Down: A company adds a lower-cost product to an existing line of higher-cost products.

Using a Roadmap

A roadmap is a high-level strategic plan that defines a goal or desired outcome. It includes the major steps or milestones needed to reach it. Also, a roadmap serves as a communication tool that keeps stakeholders on the same page on all aspects of product development.

A roadmap lays out the product vision and strategy (i.e., the why.) Therefore a roadmap plays a key role in a product’s success and should be part of any product mix strategy.

Related terms: Product Vision, Product Strategy, Product Differentiation, Product Portfolio Manager, Roadmap.

Product Mix Strategy (2)

Product Mix Strategy (2024)

FAQs

What are the 4 product mix strategies? ›

Product, price, promotion, and place form the four Ps of the marketing mix. These are the key factors that are involved in introducing a product or service to the public.

What is product mix answer? ›

A product mix is the total number of product lines and individual products or services offered by a company. Additionally referred to as product assortment or product portfolio. Product mixes vary from company to company. Some have multiple product lines with lots of products in each line.

What is product mix strategy? ›

A product mix strategy is a marketing strategy that analyzes the company's existing products and allocates resources and efforts on product lines and individual products to best promote them to a specific market or audience and in this way to maximize the company's growth and market share.

Why product mix strategy is important? ›

The main function of a product mix is to provide companies with an understanding of a particular product and the methods to advertise it to as many customers as possible. A good product mix can provide detailed information about each and every product and the target customers.

What are the 5 product mix strategies? ›

Five product mix pricing situations
  • Product line pricing – the products in the product line.
  • Optional product pricing – optional or accessory products.
  • Captive product pricing - complementary products.
  • By-product pricing – by-products.
  • Product bundle pricing – several products.

What is product mix example? ›

Product Mix, another name as Product Assortment, refers to several products that a company offers to its customers. For example, a company might sell multiple lines of products, with the product lines being fairly similar, such as toothpaste, toothbrush, or mouthwash, and also other such toiletries.

What is product very short answer? ›

Definition: A product is the item offered for sale. A product can be a service or an item. It can be physical or in virtual or cyber form. Every product is made at a cost and each is sold at a price. The price that can be charged depends on the market, the quality, the marketing and the segment that is targeted.

What are the types of product mix? ›

6 types of Product Mix pricing to push products in the market
  • Product line pricing.
  • Optional feature pricing.
  • Captive product pricing.
  • Two part pricing.
  • By Product pricing.
  • Product bundling pricing.
14 Jan 2019

What is product mix and its components? ›

Product mix, also known as product assortment or product portfolio, refers to the complete set of products and/or services offered by a firm. A product mix consists of product lines, which are associated items that consumers tend to use together or think of as similar products or services.

What is product strategy example? ›

The product strategy should bridge your product vision and the tactical steps to fulfill that mission. First, your team will develop the vision for the product. For example: “We will help businesses unlock valuable information by making their data more accessible and useful.”

What are the 3 product strategies? ›

There are three standard types of product positioning strategies brands should consider: comparative, differentiation, and segmentation. Through these strategies, brands can help their product stand out by targeting the right audiences with the best message.

What is the purpose of product strategy? ›

A product strategy outlines a company's strategic vision for its product offerings by stating where the products are going, how they will get there and why they will succeed. The product strategy enables you to focus on a specific target market and feature set, instead of trying to be everything to everyone.

What are the key factors for product mix? ›

Product Mix: Top 10 Factors Affecting Product Mix
  • Profitability: Every business unit tries to maximize its profits. ...
  • Objectives and Policy of Company: Company frames its product mix to achieve its objective. ...
  • Production Capacity: ...
  • Demand: ...
  • Production Costs: ...
  • Government Rules and Restriction: ...
  • Demand Fluctuation: ...
  • Competition:

What is product mix design? ›

The definition of product design describes the process of imagining, creating, and iterating products that solve users' problems or address specific needs in a given market. The key to successful product design is understanding the end-user customer, the person for whom the product is being created.

What are 5 examples of products? ›

Examples of products
  • Magazines.
  • Toothpaste.
  • Food.
  • Candy.
  • Laundry detergent.
  • Shampoo.
3 Jan 2022

What is product mix pricing strategy? ›

A product mix pricing strategy, therefore, can be any strategy that takes the product mix into consideration. Most often, however, the product mix is segmented into the products consumers are most likely to buy together, and the strategy aims to maximize product, market share or company growth.

What are the types of product? ›

There are four types of products and each is classified based on consumer habits, price, and product characteristics: convenience goods, shopping goods, specialty products, and unsought goods.
...
Let's dive into each one in more detail.
  • Convenience Goods. ...
  • Shopping Goods. ...
  • Specialty Goods. ...
  • Unsought Goods.
19 Aug 2021

What is product and its types? ›

A product is any item or service you sell to serve a customer's need or want. They can be physical or virtual. Physical products include durable goods (like cars, furniture, and computers) and nondurable goods (like food and beverages).

What is the most important element of product mix? ›

The essential components of the product mix are Branding, Packaging, and Labelling.

What is brand in product mix? ›

It is the actual item that is held for sale in the market. A company usually sells different types of products. For example, Coca-Cola has around 3500+ product brands in its portfolio. These different product brands are also known as product lines. A combination of all these product lines makes up the product mix.

How do you answer product strategy questions? ›

There are only so many opportunities to prepare for product strategy interview questions!
  1. Step one: Set a business objective. First, we should confirm our understanding of the question and define a business objective. ...
  2. Step two: Generate solutions. ...
  3. Step three: Discuss solutions. ...
  4. Step four: Conclude.
25 Oct 2019

What is product strategy process? ›

Product strategy is the process of defining what you want to achieve and how you plan to get there. Product strategy defines the "why" behind the product and must come before the "what," "when," and "how." A goal-first approach is a product manager's best path towards innovation.

What are 2 types of strategies? ›

What Are the Three Types of Strategy- And How You Can Apply Them!
  • Business strategy.
  • Operational strategy.
  • Transformational strategy.

What are elements of product strategy? ›

The first thing is to remember that the elements of a product strategy are: a challenge, a diagnosis, a guiding policy, an action plan and short-term objectives. Recall also that a successful strategy will use our strengths to exploit the weaknesses of the competition, for example, generating asymmetric costs.

Which is one element of product mix? ›

The product mix incorporates four normal components: Length, depth, breadth, and consistency.

How does product mix increase sales? ›

Having two products to sell instead of one means you have multiple ways to generate revenue. The number of ways you can generate revenue increases with the number products you sell, thereby giving you reasons to make new ones. In short: more products usually means more sales!

What is new product strategy? ›

An NPD strategy will help you organise your product planning and research, capture your customers' views and expectations, and accurately plan and resource your NPD project. Your strategy will also help you avoid: overestimating and misreading your target market.

What are the benefits of strategy? ›

Strategy provides a vision of the future, confirms the purpose and values of an organization, sets objectives, clarifies threats and opportunities, determines methods to leverage strengths, and mitigate weaknesses (at a minimum). As such, it sets a framework and clear boundaries within which decisions can be made.

Who owns the product strategy? ›

So business owners and senior executives are responsible for the business strategy and the business portfolio planning, and the product organization (especially the directors of product management) are responsible for the product strategy and the product portfolio planning.

What is product mix efficiency? ›

third condition that needs to hold is product mix efficiency. This means that "the optimal combinations of goods should be produced given existing production technology and consumer tastes" (Barr, 1998, p.

What is the most important factor in a product? ›

The 5 Most Important Factors to a Successful Product
  1. A comprehensive product launch plan. ...
  2. Having a quality, of value product. ...
  3. Using customer feedback to adapt your product. ...
  4. Comprehensive messaging and marketing. ...
  5. Well-developed and satisfying customer experience.
17 Aug 2022

What are the 4 product mix dimensions? ›

Product mix, also known as product assortment, refers to the total number of product lines a company offers to its customers. The four dimensions to a company's product mix include width, length, depth and consistency.

What are the 4 four strategy elements? ›

It refers to the four key elements of a marketing strategy: product, price, place, and promotion. These elements guide the marketing initiatives, wording, and positioning for a product or brand.

What are the four 4 key marketing principles strategies? ›

The 4 basic marketing principles are product, price, place and promotion.

What is importance of strategy? ›

Strategy help us define our business, gives it a set of values, and gives it purpose. It helps us understand what success actually looks like. It provides a roadmap for our business, shows us our destination and identifies useful stopping points along the way.

What are the 3 strategic methods? ›

Within the domain of well-defined strategy, there are uniquely different strategy types, here are three: Business strategy. Operational strategy. Transformational strategy.

What are the 3 D's of strategy? ›

When it comes to strategic planning businesses should keep three D's in mind: Decisions, Direction, and Dedication.

What is product mix elements? ›

The product mix incorporates four normal components: Length, depth, breadth, and consistency.

How do you create a product mix? ›

Use these 10 steps to assist you in building your perfect marketing mix for a successful product offering.
  1. Goals and Objectives. ...
  2. Establish Your Budget. ...
  3. Determine Your Unique Selling Proposition (USP) ...
  4. Who is Your Target Market? ...
  5. Ask Your Customers Advice. ...
  6. Define Your Product in Detail. ...
  7. Know Your Distribution Channels.

What is the most important P in marketing mix? ›

Price: The Most Important P in the Marketing Mix.

What is the 4Ps model? ›

The marketing mix, also known as the four P's of marketing, refers to the four key elements of a marketing strategy: product, price, place and promotion.

What are the elements of a good strategy? ›

Elements of a Good Strategy
  • Know What You Have To Do. Read the fine print. ...
  • Figure Out a Plan. Take what you know and do your best to make it happen – your way. ...
  • Confront your Setbacks. ...
  • Celebrate Progress. ...
  • Review and Evaluate. ...
  • Achieve your Goal. ...
  • Party. ...
  • Have faith in your project, but be realistic in your approach.

What is the most important out of the 4Ps? ›

I believe this highlights why the product is the most important aspect of the four P's of marketing – Product, Price, Place, and Promotion. Without a product, you cannot implement any one of the other three elements of the marketing mix. And great products are easy to market as they serve both a need and want.

What is the 4 1 rule in marketing? ›

This rule says that for every six posts you create on your social media channels, four posts should entertain or educate, one post should be a “soft sell” and one post should be a “hard sell.” Let's take a closer look at how you might use the 4-1-1 rule.

What is 4 C marketing mix? ›

The 4Cs (Clarity, Credibility, Consistency, Competitiveness) is most often used in marketing communications and was created by David Jobber and John Fahy in their book 'Foundations of Marketing' (2009).

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