SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Emerging technology and changing consumer behaviors are forcing retailers to rethink their marketing strategies, according to Kay Segal and the group at Business Accelerator Team (BATeam).

“Consumers are making decisions based on more than just the traditional four P’s of marketing: product, price, place and promotion,” Segal recently wrote on the BATeam website. She referenced a study from the Harvard Business Review, among other studies and articles, explaining how retailers need to change to meet the shifting demands of today’s consumers.

The article from Harvard Business Review (HBR) asserts that relevancy, not loyalty, is today’s key traffic driver, and that brands using the four P’s of marketing today are usually targeting a very specific customer archetype that may or may not actually exist. 

The article builds on this theme, to say that every customer is different and has different needs. With today’s technology, not only do businesses have the capability to track these customers and their needs, but customers increasingly expect companies to deploy this level of marketing.

In order to keep up in this new world of retail, the HBR article proposes five instead of four P’s to follow:

• Purpose: Customers feel the company shares and advances their values.
• Pride: Customers feel proud and inspired to use the company’s products and services.
• Partnership: Customers feel the company relates to and works well with them.
• Protection: Customers feel secure when doing business with the company.
• Personalization: Customers feel their experiences with the company are continuously tailored to their needs and priorities.

Segal used Chicago-based Foxtrot as one example of a convenience-format retailer that exemplifies the new five P’s in her blog post.

This small chain of upscale c-stores carries a curated mix of local products in what Mike LaVitola, Foxtrot CEO and co-founder, called a “coffee shop vibe” when he spoke with online news source Curbed.

Segal wrote that the retailer has found success, not only because of the location of its stores but because the concept represents a curated presentation of locally-sourced products. Foxtrot also offers app-based delivery and uses its stores as a staging area to deliver items.

Scottsdale, Ariz.-based Business Accelerator Team is an outside-in catalyst assisting with insight, strategy, marketing and key industry connections. The consultancy provides business-development expertise derived from a deep understanding of what has worked with suppliers, retailers and media in retailing and foodservice.