Product, price, place, and promotion - the four standard P's of marketing. Then came the 5th "P" - packaging, and last class Professor Mourey brought up a the 6th "P" - participation. As I thought about the 6th "P," I began to drift back to our Strategic Brand Management class. Building brands centers around developing trust and evoking an emotional reaction. Isn't this exactly what participation does? It is customer participation such as blog involvement, question and answer boards, and real time customer service that build the foundation of strong brands. By having trust in a brand, customers tend to also build an emotional connection. Drawing on the Pampers example we used in class, if a mother to be turns to the Pampers site for information during her pregnancy, then when she goes to purchase diapers for her child, she has already established an emotional connection and trust with the brand - their Web site has been there for her during a stressful and exciting time in her life. This is exactly why participation is so important - it helps customers identify with a brand, develop loyalty and trust, and ultimately become a repeat purchaser of the brand.
Marcy Pontius
MSMK 3
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