Definition of Consumer: The consumer is the one who pays to consume the goods and services produced. As such, consumers play a vital role in the economic system of a nation. In the absence of effective consumer demand, producers would lack one of the key motivations to produce: to sell to consumers and the consumer also form part of the chain of distribution.

Let’s start this article by throwing at you a simple question: What would you do when you feel Hungry?  

You may go to your fridge and look for something to eat, and when you don’t find anything, you start thinking of ways to get your self something to eat, maybe order from a fast food restaurant, going for a drive-through, dine in… walk in… there are so many options to think of but one is very unlikely to be among them… “I think I’m going to starve!!”

A Cliché that used to rumble around when someone wanted to define Marketing, was similar to this: Marketing is Making the Right Product available to the Right Person, at the Right Place, at the Right Time and at the Right Price. (and the devil lies in the word Right). For the purpose of this week’s Tip, I Think this definition is the simplest one to support it! 🙂

So here it goes, and sticking to the Hungry example

• Right Product: if your consumer is vegetarian, then your product has to be suitable for them… and so on… One Word: EDIBLE 
• Right Place: Any place that is Accessible to your consumer is a Right one!
• Right Time: a Hungry person won’t be looking forward to spending 5 hours of travel to locate your restaurant… So the Right time is CLOSE enough
• Right Price: Now this is subjective, but based on who you want to target with your product, your value vs price for your customers should be attractive or in one word… Affordable

Picture this: You’re at the Mall and you pass by the food court, and you find many choices, some more attractive than the others… So you take your time and finally take the decision that suits you best… But let’s say it’s PEAK time, and EVERYONE is in that food court, there’s almost no place to sit down at your regular first choices… The Hunger keeps kicking in, and you now look for your second and 3rd choices… and you start settling and compromising for a place where you can comfortably sit…

And trust me, some 2nd or 3rd choices have positioned themselves so good at that, by being available at the right time and the right place and at the right price with the right product that they are making a very good amount of profit; I Mean wouldn’t you Drink a Pepsi if you’re at a Beach and they didn’t have Coca Cola?

That’s Marketing at a Glance! with the Devil Lying in the word “Right” 🙂

Have a great Week!
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Samer Chidiac is a Sr. Strategist, Author & an International Innovation Expert.

The Monday Tip Weekly blog is part of the “Influencing the Life of Others” project