WHAT IS A PRODUCT?

A product is often considered in a narrow sense as
something tangible that can be described in terms
of physical attributes, such as shape, dimension,
components, form, color, and so on. This is a misconception
that has been extended to international
marketing as well, because many people believe that
only tangible products can be exported. A student
of marketing, however, should realize that this
definition of product is misleading since many products
are intangible (e.g., services). Actually, intangible
products are a significant part of the American
export market. For example, American movies are
distributed worldwide, as are engineering services
and business-consulting services. In the financial
market, Japanese and European banks have been
internationally active in providing financial assistance,
often at handsome profits. Even when tangible
products are involved, insurance services and
shipping are needed to move the products into their
markets.
In many situations, both tangible and intangible
products must be combined to create a single, total
product. Perhaps the best way to define a product
is to describe it as a bundle of utilities or satisfaction.
Warranty terms, for example, are a part of this
bundle, and they may be adjusted as appropriate
(i.e., superior versus inferior warranty terms).
Purchasers of Mercedes-Benz cars expect to acquire
more than just the cars themselves. In hot and
humid countries, there is no reason for a heater to
be part of the automobile’s product bundle. In the
USA, it is customary for automatic transmission
to be included with other standard automobile
equipment.
One marketing implication that may be drawn is
that a multinational marketer must look at a product
as a total, complete offering. Consider the Beretta
shotgun. The shotgun itself is undoubtedly a fine
product, quite capable of superbly performing its
primary function (i.e., firing shotgun ammunition).
But Beretta also has a secondary function in Japan,
where the Beretta brand is perceived as a superior
status symbol. Not surprisingly, a Beretta can command $8000 for a shotgun, exclusive of the
additional amount of a few thousand dollars for
engraving. In this case, Beretta’s secondary function
conceivably overshadows its primary objective.
Therefore, a complete product should be viewed as
a satisfaction derived from the four Ps of marketing
(product, place, promotion, and pricing) – and not
simply the physical product characteristics.
Since a product can be bundled, it can also be
unbundled. One problem with a bundled product is
the increased cost associated with the extra benefits.
With the increased cost, a higher price is inevitable.
Thus a proper marketing strategy, in some cases, is
to unbundle a product instead so as to get rid of the
frills and attract price-sensitive consumers. As
an example, Serfin is a mid-tiered bank in Mexico,
and is owned by Spain’s Banco Santander Central
Hispano. Serfin has launched Serfin Light, a new
credit card that offers no points or air miles. Instead,
its key feature is an interest rate of 24 percent rather
than 40 percent charged by the main competitors.
The word “Light” is appropriate because Mexico is
the world’s largest consumer per capita of soft
drinks, and Diet Coke is sold as Coke Light. The
“light” concept has a significant meaning in Mexico.
The success of Serfin Light prompted Banorte, the
largest bank in northern Mexico, to change its
slogan to “better than a light card, a strong card.”1