Difference Between Product Marketing and Services Marketing (With Table)

The Product marketing industry involves tangible marketing products, including everything that people can see, feel or touch. Thus, this allows audiences you want to sell your product to observe and understand how the tangible goods work. A product is marketed both directly to the consumer and indirectly to possible customers. Product marketing thus refers to the process of providing a product to the customer and getting their feedback, starting with a market analysis.  

The act of Services marketing involves an activity being performed for someone and being compensated for it. It is impossible to define intangible services in the same manner as tangible products since they cannot be felt, tasted or odored. This is the most noticeable difference between them. In addition, marketing services are used in production and are not made available for sale. There is nothing like a repeatable service offering, even if the same person/organization provides it. 

Comparison Table Between Product Marketing and Services Marketing 

What is Product Marketing? 

The method of aligning marketing activities with a specific product for a particular segment is called Product marketing. The Product marketing industry involves tangible marketing products, including everything that people can see, feel or touch. The process aims to find out the right market for its product and its placement to get a good customer response. A marketing campaign involves promoting and selling a product to prospective and existing customers.  

The 4Ps of marketing can explain product marketing: product, pricing, place, and promotion. This form of marketing significantly targets customers. Accordingly, product marketing encompasses the entire process, starting with market analysis and delivering the product, and obtaining feedback from the customer. As part of this process, product marketing identifies the right markets and places the products to expedite customer satisfaction.

A product is marketed both directly to the consumer and indirectly to potential customers. Analysing the market, determining consumer demand, developing a product, pricing, pitching, advertising, positioning, distributing, selling, reviewing, and getting feedback are some of the activities involved in product marketing. Some examples of tangible marketing products include books, mobile phones, clothes, etc. 

What is Services Marketing? 

The act of Services marketing involves an activity being performed for someone and being compensated for it. There can be no comparison between tangible products and intangible services since intangible products cannot be felt, odored, or tasted. However, here the services can neither be owned nor resold to a third party.  

A business or an organization that markets its services to its customers would be considered a service marketer. Services marketing provides answers to the concerns or hurdles customers face. Business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-customer (B2C) marketing are both included in this activity. Here, services cannot be returned as they are intangible services.  

Generally, services marketing consists of the 4Ps; however, it extends beyond that by including 7Ps. The 4Ps are the familiar marketing formula, including product, pricing, place, and promotion. Only process, people, and physical evidence are relevant to service marketing. The quality of services cannot be assessed in this form of marketing.

Main Differences Between Product Marketing and Services Marketing 

1. Product marketing allows the products to be easily owned and resold to a third party. On the other hand, Services marketing does not allow the services to be owned or resold to a third party. 
2. Product marketing allows the quality of products to be measured, whereas, in Services marketing, quality measurement does not take place. 
3. Product marketing will follow the common marketing 4P formula, whereas, Services marketing can extend up to the 7P marketing formula. 
4. Product marketing only markets tangible products, whereas, Services marketing markets only intangible products. 
5. Product marketing does allow the return of products. On the other hand, Services marketing does not allow the returning of services. 

Conclusion 

There are different strategies to market products and services due to the differences in their characteristics. Product marketing’s purpose is to meet the requirements and demands of the target market. As opposed to product marketing, service marketing aims to win customers’ trust by creating a good relationship. Producing or acquiring products and distributing them to customers are the two main activities of the company. Obtaining raw materials and converting them into a finished product is a simple process.  

A product is marketed both directly to the consumer and indirectly to potential customers. Analyzing the market, determining consumer demand, developing a product, pricing, pitching, advertising, positioning, distributing, selling, reviewing, and getting feedback are some of the activities involved in product marketing. As part of this process, product marketing identifies the right markets and places the products to expedite customer satisfaction.  

A business or an organization that markets its services to its customers would be considered a service marketer. Services marketing provides solutions to the issues or challenges customers face. B2B and B2C marketing are both included in this activity. Only process, people, and physical evidence are relevant to service marketing. The quality of services cannot be assessed in this form of marketing.

References 

1. https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/EUM0000000001044/full/html 
2. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/002224297704100219?journalCode=jmxa