Marketing Mix - H&R Block

Running head: MARKETING MIX - H&R BLOCK

Marketing Mix - H&R Block

MKT 421

Marketing Mix

As we all know, marketing is a necessary part of our daily life. Not only are products and services marketed, but we market ourselves as part of everyday business. I spent time this week speaking with a close friend of mind who is a Store Manager for H&R Block discussing the 4-Ps and how they pertain to his organization. It was very interesting to see how different industries market their products and services. Does the thought of receiving your tax return immediately grasp your attention? Well it has definitely helped H&R Block in boosting their ability to attract customers. It seems as thought immediate gratification is a promotion marketing tool that many companies are now using. After briefly describing the 4 - P's of marketing we will review how H&R Block utilizes all of the steps in their marketing mix.

Definitions

Product is/are the products or services you offer and are they unique and different, superior in quality and easier to use. In my own opinion, the product or service is one the most important aspects of a successful business. If you have an item that the customer really wants they will drive out of their way to purchase it. They are usually willing to pay a higher price if the quality justifies it. When a local popular hamburger place open up in Phoenix, people drove long distances and sat in long lines just to bite into one of their juicy hamburgers.

If you were to drive by and see the long line you would have thought they were giving something away for free.

Price is how much to sell your products for. This is based on your cost and product value to potential customers. I believe that price is important and you will definitely attract customers with the lure of cheap prices, especially at Christmas time. How many people just recently woke up at 4 a.m. just to get in line for several hours so they could get a great deal and save a few dollars? I believe that it works to motivate certain customers, but there are still consumers out there who are not interested getting stampeded during a price reduction sale.

Promotion is advertising to potential customers in and effort to create an awareness of your business. It is reasonable to believe that without the ability to advertise a company would have a difficult time generating new customers. Therefore, I would have to say that promotion comes in to a race for second in the market mix. If your customer does not know about your product it is unlikely they will purchase it.

Place - your business location or distribution place for your products. I would have to argue that a business can overcome a bad location if they are marketing the right location. My daughter worked at one of the first drive through Starbucks here in Phoenix, and their location was in this unknown little strip mall. It did not take long before word spread of the new location, and people now drive out of their way just for the convenience of the drive through. Now, I believe if the product and brand had not been strong this location could have been a disaster for any other coffee shop.

Marketing Mix and H&R Block

Background

H&R Block began on Main Street in Kansas City, Missouri in the early 1950's as United Business Company; a bookkeeping service for small businesses. In 1954, the IRS stopped the practice of completing individual taxes for citizens; this was about the same time Henry and Richard Bloch decided to open a new business - H&R Block, a for profit tax preparation service. They charged five-dollars to complete a return when they started. By 1962, they were a publicly traded organization.

Product

H&R Block has offered many products over the years, the transformed the way taxes were transmitted to the IRS in 1986 when they piloted a program that electronically checked for errors and submitted returns to the IRS in record time. They transformed the process further about a decade later when they began offering the Refund Anticipation Loan. A client now has many options to choose from when determining how quickly they want their refund. They can have it in as few as 1-2 days by applying for the Refund Anticipation Loan, 8-14 days by filing electronically, or in as little as 3-4 weeks by mailing their forms in to the IRS location assigned to their state.

Believe it or not, they also offer an online tax preparation service where the client can complete their own taxes online and submit them electronically for as little as twenty dollars for state returns and thirty dollars for federal returns.

Place

H&R Block currently has more than eleven thousand offices in the United States, with over one-hundred thousand full and part-time trained associates. First year associates are required to attend approximately one hundred and sixty hours of training prior to completing returns for clients, associates who have been with the company for more than a year are required to complete at least 40 hours of continuing education each year to keep up on new tax laws. Between the number of locations and the army of associates, H&R Block clearly has an advantage over tax preparation companies who are trying to break their way into