Active learning ideas
The marketing mix, often called the 'Four Ps', is the set of tools a business uses to achieve its marketing objectives. Students explore Product (design, features, branding), Price (strategies like skimming or penetration), Place (channels of distribution), and Promotion (advertising, PR, sales promotion). They learn how these four elements must work together to create a consistent and effective brand image.
Activity 01
Groups are given a 'mystery product' (e.g., a high-end reusable water bottle). They must develop a full 4Ps strategy for a specific target market (e.g., Irish teenagers), creating a mock-up of the product design and a promotional social media post.
How does a business determine the optimal price for a product?
Activity 02
Set up stations for different pricing strategies (Skimming, Penetration, Loss Leader). At each station, students must match a real-world Irish product to the strategy and explain why that price was chosen, then move to a station on promotional methods.
What factors influence the choice of distribution channel?
Activity 03
Students think of their favourite Irish brand (e.g., Tayto, O'Neills). They pair up to discuss what that brand 'means' to them and how the company uses its logo, packaging, and advertising to create that feeling, then share with the class.
How do promotional strategies impact consumer behaviour?
A few notes on teaching this unit
Watch Out for These Misconceptions
Marketing is just another word for advertising.
Advertising is only one part of 'Promotion', which is only one of the four Ps. Active learning tasks that force students to focus on 'Place' or 'Price' help them see that marketing involves every aspect of how a product reaches a consumer.
The lowest price is always the best pricing strategy.
Sometimes a high price (skimming) is better to create a 'premium' image or to recover R&D costs quickly. Discussion-based activities about luxury brands like Brown Thomas help students understand that price is a signal of quality, not just a cost.
Methods used in this brief
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