By Ramnik Chhabra 27-Nov-2009 | 12:53

The first thing we are taught in marketing is the 4 Ps - Product Place Price Promotion.The first thing I was taught in advertising was the Trikaya Grey 5-10 plan.

Everyone knows the 4Ps; but the 5-10 Plan? Whats that? This is what it is:

Simply put; the 5-10 plan states that any brand communication needs to aspire towards a rating of 10.To reach the same you need to first have a strategy( or proposition/brief etc).On strategy you can either be right or wrong. Hence the strategy can either be 0 or 5.No 1/2/3/4 etc.Once you have reached a 5 on strategy it is the job of the creative product(including its execution through media) to take you towards 10. So the creative can take you to a 6 , a 7, a 8 , a 9 or a 10.

Right strategy with creative that takes you to a 6 can also work. Only; you will end up spending a lot of money to get your message through to the consumer ( eg some P&G ads).Right strategy with a creative product that takes you to a 9 or 10 can fulfill the same task. Only at a much lower cost( eg some of the CeaseFire ads of the early 90s)

So what relevance does this have to the 4Ps? Well the first P i.e the Product is like the right strategy.Either you have it...or you are a 0. The other 3 Ps i.e the Price, Promotion and Place of distribution are the elements that can take your brand from a 5 to a 10.

Simple? Or simplistic?

You decide.