Sikorsky Aircraft is among the leaders in the rotary aircraft industry. Their product is a major part of their marketing mix. Sikorsky's customers are commercial and military operations, and they have particular needs and wants in the products that they buy. Sikorsky has several types of helicopters. They are presented and outfitted with different types of trim to suit their different target audiences. This fits the company's marketing strategy because Sikorsky needs to develop different products for different missions. Sikorsky knows that their customers expect safety, quality, and good service. In accordance, Sikorsky take all of these aspects into account with their product.
Place
Place is the element of the marketing mix where an organization determines the place consumers will look to buy their product or service. “A product reaches customers through a channel of distribution. A channel of distribution is any series of firms that participate in the flow of products from producer to final user or consumer. Sometimes a channel of distribution is short and runs directly from a producer to a final user or consumer. This is common in business markets and in the marketing of services" (Perreault, 2011).
Some organizations do not sell their product directly to their customers, but they use retailers to get their products into the hands of consumers. These intermediaries can be called dealers or resellers, and the organization which is at the end of a distribution channel, before the product's end user. Retailers sell items or services to customers.
Sikorsky Aircraft sells direct, straight to the consumer. The way that customers take delivery of these products is determined by the contractual agreements made before the time of sale between the company and the customer. Commercial and private customers use freight transportation to receive their product. Some clients, especially the military, come to the Connecticut Sikorsky flight field to attain the product and fly it away.
Promotion
Another element of the marketing mix is promotion. Promotion is how the organization communicates with the different players in the distribution channel. Promotion primarily aims to tell the target market what they need to know about the product. Mass selling, personal selling, sales, and promotions are different aspects of promotion. An organization's marketing manager is in charge of ensuring the efficiency of the organization's market plan.
“Personal selling involves direct spoken communication between sellers and potential customers. Mass selling is communicating with large numbers of customers at the same time. The main form of mass selling is advertising —any paid form of non-personal presentation of ideas, goods, or services by an identified sponsor. Sales promotion refers to those promotion activities—other than advertising, publicity, and personal selling—that stimulate interest, trial, or purchase by final customers or others in the channel. This can involve use of coupons, point-of-purchase materials, samples, signs, contests, events, catalogs, novelties, and circulars" (Perreault, 2011).
Sikorsky Aircraft’s marketing mix uses promotion heavily to move their products. Sikorsky keeps their level of publicity, and their customer's opinions, high to keep people interested in his or her aircrafts. The UH-60 Blackhawk is famous for their reputation as the US Army's “workhorse” helicopter, and it is Sikorsky's flagship helicopter. Almost every advertisement for the US military features this helicopter. Each branch of the US military buys variants of the UH-40, including the Coast Guard. Sikorsky uses their ties to the armed forces, through the quality of their product, to ensure that customers are excited about their products.
The Internet is a good way for all kinds of organizations to sell their products. Sikorsky has taken advantage of this possible opportunity by launching their new website, which tells customers all of the information about the company and about the available range of their products.
Price
Last but not least, the final element of the marketing mix is price. The product's price must be set in a way that is consistent with the prices of competing products and companies as well as the overall cost of the marketing mix. For example, Sikorsky Aircraft keeps its prices at a level where they are competitive, but they can still create and market high quality products.
“A manager must also try to estimate customer reaction to possible prices. Besides this, the manager must know current practices as to markups, discounts, and other terms of sale. And if customers won’t accept the Price, all of the planning effort is wasted" (Perreault, 2011).
Conclusion
The marketing mix is how an effective marketing strategy is built, and the Four Ps are all a part of the marketing mix. None of the different aspects are more or less important than the others, as they are linked and create a coherent marketing mix together. Using the marketing mix effectively helps organizations everywhere find their customers, speak to them, and keep their existing customers excited about and loyal to their products.
References
Sikorsky Aircraft (2012). Retrieved July 12, 2012, from Sikorsky Aircraft Company Website:
www.sikorskyaircraft.com
Net MBA. (2012). The Marketing Mix (The Four P's of Marketing). Retrieved July 12, 2012,
from Net MBA: http://www.netmba.com/marketing/mix/
William D. Perreault, J. P. (2011). Basic Marketing, A Marketing Strategy Planning Approach.
New York: McGraw-Hill/Irwin, a business unit of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
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