Business people often categorize themselves as ‘doers,’ with great implied disdain for those who take time to carefully plan out their actions before rolling up their sleeves and diving in. Sometimes the entrepreneurial spirit fosters this mentality – “If I don’t put this in play immediately, I’ll miss my opportunity”…“I have too many ideas and not enough time to vet them all thoroughly, so I’m going for it.” And marketers are notorious for it – “Let’s get this idea out there and see if we can get some traction – we can tweak things later.”

In the world of marketing, the 4 P’s are a well-known way to define the elements used to create a strategic marketing plan. They are:

1. Product – The thing or service being sold and what makes it unique, which determines the marketing message.
2. Price – How much the thing or service will cost, which determines the target audience (e.g. a $20,000 car and a $70,000 car are marketed to very different audiences).
3. Promotion – How people can made aware of the thing or service, which determines the choice of marketing tactics (e.g. shampoo can be promoted through a free sample; a computer monitor can’t).
4. Place – Where the thing of service is available (e.g. in person, online, locally, nationally, etc.), which determines the marketing reach and media choices.