The marketing mix usually comprises of the 4 p’s: Product, place, price and promotion and is one of the most widely used concepts of marketing (McCarthy 1960). However 3 more p’s sometimes get added and discussed about: physical evidence, people and processes (Jobber 2015). When these 7 are used all together it may me referred to as the services marketing mix. or the expanded marketing mix (Booms & Bitner 1981). This model will assist companies in reviewing issues that may affect a companies products or services.
Firstly, a product can be a physical item or a service that is offered by the business and it will always follow a life cycle and a company can predict this life cycle to help give them a competitive edge. A successful product will fulfill a gap in the market and perform functionally as it is expected to.
Place, refers to where a product or service will be sold, this could be through the internet or it could be the process of moving them through distributors, wholesalers and retailers.
Pricing needs to be carefully thought out as there are many objectives that need to be met to ensure its successful, such as, profit maximization, maximize quantity and revenue maximization.
Promotion is all about communicating with the customer to help increase sales and create brand loyalty. Promotional activities do cost a substantial amount but the results usually outweigh this cost.
Physical evidence is the environment in which the product or service is experienced by the consumer, this includes a shop layout or a businesses website deign layout.
People is everyone who is involved with the product or service and they arguably one of the most important resources within a company.
Lastly, processes refers to inputs and outputs of a business and it could include things like technological processes to manufacture goods. The Jockey Club offer a service therefore we will be analyzing them with the extended marketing mix.
Product
The Jockey club offers a range of services including events, gift cards and race day hospitality packages (Thejockeyclub.co.uk, 2021). In additon to this they also offer venue hire for things such as, weddings, business meetings and conferences, which allows them to have an extra income stream when they are not hosting events (Jockey Club Venues, 2018). For the purpose of the marketing mix these are discussed under the product section. The difference between services and products is that a service is an intangible item that is formed from the output of employees and services and products usually come hand in hand (Corporate Finance Institute, 2020). The Jockey Club have multiple membership options which all offer different opportunities at prices ranging from £180 to £2,500. All of them include enclosure access and annual membership but the most expensive membership offers race horse ownership. The Jockey club and Racehorse Syndicate allow members to purchase a share in a racehorse and complimentary membership to 4 racecourses for their jump season (Thejockeyclub.co.uk, 2021). The range of memebrships mean that more people can get invloved in racing no matter their budget or what they want, it makes the Jockey Club more inclusive and makes consumers feel more included in racing. Many of the Jockey Cubs racecourses also offer hospitality packages that include a three course meal, a private tableafternoon tea and much more. Prices for these packages vary at each race course but they are a good way to generate extra money whilst also offering an experinence that make guest feel special and enhance the race day (Thejockeyclub.co.uk, 2021). Every race day is also open to anyone with an interest in racing and tickets can be purchased from their website or their mobile app.
Place
The Jockey Club sells their tickets on their website where they have a box office to see events that are happening and book tickets for these. On this website you can also buy memberships, food and drink tickets and gift cards. By having the main place for purchasing tickets be online this provides consumers with an easy to access platform and it is therefore, convenient which is essential.
The jockey club also have their own app in which customers can purchase mobile tickets which do not need to be printed out which helps to combat the problem of customers who don’t have the facilities to print out tickets and it is also more efficient and environmentally friendly. The app is free to download and mobile tickets are also the cheapest option of all the tickets they offer. One of the disadvantages to this is that some enclosures or selected fixtures are not available as mobile tickets (Thejockeyclub.co.uk, 2021).
Price
The first section is the price and this about the amount of ticket sales that get sold on race days and also how much it costs to run a race day, these both vary in numbers and costs depending on how big the race ground is and what races they are running that day. This can also vary depending on the horses that are racing and how much they are worth. For a membership to the Cheltenham Festival it costs £430.00, if you want to attend the whole week. If you were to have a general membership which lasts a year and can be bought by people between the ages of 18-28 it costs £225.00 (Thejockeyclub.co.uk, 2021). The Jockey Club hold 340+ race days and Cheltenham’s capacity limit is 67,500. The Cheltenham Festival is one of the most popular racing events and it generates more than £20 million through ticket sales, hospitality, sponsorship and more (Wilson, 2017). The Jockey club are aware that the outbreak of Covid-19 has affected their revenue, because for a period of time races were not allowed to take place and even though races are now starting up again, spectators are still not allowed to attend. to combat this, they have lowered their operating and employment costs as many employees had been furloughed. The Jockey Club’s directors have stated that in future financial forecast scenarios similar to the Covid-19 pandemic will be considered to ensure they are more prepared if this were to ever happen again (Service.gov.uk, 2021).
PROMOTION
Next is promotions, this includes special offers that are on during different events and these could include a family ticket to attend a race day or deals that offer discounts on food and drink services that will be available at these events. There is also lots of advertising for the jockey club in newspapers, word of mouth, online advertising, billboards but, mainly social media. They show snippets of previous events to entice the audience to want to purchase tickets and watch and to encourage them to bet on particular horses. At the moment there is a lot of coverage on Rachel Blackmore as she was the leading jockey at Cheltenham festival 2021, this promotes the Jockey Club as a progressive and inclusive club and shows young girls that there is an equal chance to be a high-level winning jockey (BBC Sport 2021) There is, of course, a disadvantage to social media being so prominent and it is that bad publicity is now more likely to occur. With one of the biggest growing concerns being horse welfare, they have to work hard to make sure all horses are being looked after to the best ability. This includes making sure all jockey, horse owners and stable staff are behaving appropriately.
PEOPLE
Then the next factor is the ‘people’ this would be firstly the people that attend the races and have memberships with an interest in horses but also include employees of the jockey club, the ground men, caterers, bar staff and security to ensure the safety of the horses and people that attend these races. For big events such as race days it is vital that management runs smoothly, therefore, a clear chain of command and hierarchy is essential to help people understand their roles and ensure clear communication. If this does not happen the races could be a disaster as the huge amount of people on site at the same time needs to be managed correctly to ensure everything is remains calm. The Jockey Club currently employs and average of 603 people, an average of 536 in administration and maintenance and and average of 67 for race days (Service.gov.uk, 2021). The Jockey club ensures that they are an ‘equal opportunity employer’ and they do not discriminate and they treat all employees equally. They also want to keep all employees up to date and this involves sending a daily email to each employee informing them of any important news or updates regarding the company. They also run company wide employee days every 18 months and there are also regular communications meetings. During this Covid-19 pandemic they have also staged remote meetings to continue the flow of information and keep up employee engagement.
There is a magazine for employees available twice a year and in this successful employees will be celebrated alongside this they also run an initiative where employees can nominate fellow employees for awards such as, Employee of the Quarter. This is a very good way of maintaining employee motivation and encouraging everyone to work harder as they know they will be recognized for their hard work and the CEO of the company send out a company wide email and they hold a local celebration. (Service.gov.uk, 2021) Newmarket racecourse also hold team building days for other business to purchase the racecourse and they believe these are important for a ‘harmonious team’. These days help to build trust, increase motivation, creativity, productivity and enhance communication (Jockey Club Venues, 2019).
Physical Evidence
Each on of the Jockey Clubs racecourse’s is where they provide their service and so the layout and standard of these is very important. At every racecourse their is a pre-parade ring which allows consumers to watch the racehorses getting prepared by their stable staff for their race, this bring a more immersive aspect to the race day. Their website suggests this is a good place to see the horses before placing any bets which can be placed in the betting ring via bookmakers, at betting shops or by using the tote. Betting is a big aspect of a race day and the Jockey Club have offered many different ways that people can do this at their racecourses. Another interactive experience that the jockey club provides is allowing people to go down to the finishing post where they can see each horse crossing the finishing line and they describe it as ‘one of the greatest feelings’ (Thejockeyclub.co.uk, 2021). Every racecourse also provides many options for food and drink which is another essential part to the day and is another thing that helps consumers feel special and enjoy their time at the races. The Jockey Club is a British company and this is reflected in their food which is primarily British produce and they also serve a range of ‘free from’ food to help accommodate allergen requirements (Thejockeyclub.co.uk, 2021)
Processes
In terms of processes the Jockey Club will want to ensure that every race day is carried out as efficiently as possible. One thing they have done to help this is mobile tickets. as discussed above these are tickets that do not have to be printed and are accessed through their app. Most people have a smart phone that they carry with them and this means that they are less likely to lose or misplace their ticket which can result in fewer delays. Each racecourse also outlines how to get to them and the best route to take whether you’re arriving by car, train, bus or plane. This will help to combat people getting lost and delaying their arrival which may lead to too many people arriving at once. They have a large team of staff at each venue that all have specific task whether it be, greeting people at the main gates and checking tickets, security or hospitality workers and this is essential to have an efficiently run race day. the availability of facilities is also very important and whether disabled access and facilities are available. Each race course has multiple disabled toilets, lifts, disabled parking spaces,accessible viewing areas and offer a complimentary ticket for carers of paying customers, they all also allow service dogs (Thejockeyclub.co.uk, 2021). This means that every one of there racecourse has the necessary facilities to help anybody with a disability and this can help their race day run more efficiently as things like disabled toilets are spread out around the racecourse. Free WiFi is also provided at each racecourse which allows people to access the mobile app, digital race cards and many other things that are very useful during a day at the races. You can also find results on the app if you missed them for any reason and this again helps with efficiency and accessibility (Thejockeyclub.co.uk, 2018).
References:
Cleverism. (2014). Marketing Mix | Place in Four P’s. [online] Available at: https://www.cleverism.com/place-four-ps-marketing-mix/ [Accessed 28 Mar. 2021].
Jockey Club Venues. (2018). Jockey Club Venues | World Class Events Hire since 1750. [online] Available at: https://www.jockeyclubvenues.co.uk/ [Accessed 29 Mar. 2021].
Jockey Club Venues. (2019). Team Building: What are the benefits? [online] Available at: https://www.jockeyclubvenues.co.uk/news/team-building-what-are-the-benefits/ [Accessed 28 Mar. 2021].
Other Media. (2021). The Jockey Club. [online] Available at: https://other.media/work/the-jockey-club/ [Accessed 28 Mar. 2021].
Rachael Blackmore leading Cheltenham jockey in “phenomenal” Festival. (2021). BBC Sport. [online] Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/horse-racing/56459134 [Accessed 28 Mar. 2021].
Service.gov.uk. (2021). JOCKEY CLUB RACECOURSES LIMITED – Filing history (free information from Companies House). [online] Available at: https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/02909409/filing-history [Accessed 28 Mar. 2021].
Thejockeyclub.co.uk. (2018). Free public Wi-Fi now live at all 15 Jockey Club racecourses. [online] Available at: https://www.thejockeyclub.co.uk/about-us/media-centre/press-releases/2018/03/free-public-wi-fi-now-live-at-all-15-jockey-club-racecourses/ [Accessed 29 Mar. 2021].
Thejockeyclub.co.uk. (2021a). Annual Memberships | 2021-22 Season | Cheltenham Racecourse. [online] Available at: https://www.thejockeyclub.co.uk/cheltenham/membership-and-offers/annual/ [Accessed 28 Mar. 2021].
Thejockeyclub.co.uk. (2021b). Exclusive Hospitality Offer | The Jockey Club. [online] Available at: https://www.thejockeyclub.co.uk/the-experience/dining-hospitality/#carlisle [Accessed 28 Mar. 2021].
Thejockeyclub.co.uk. (2021c). Horse Racing Syndicates | The Jockey Club. [online] Available at: https://www.thejockeyclub.co.uk/cheltenham/membership-and-offers/syndicate-ownership/ [Accessed 28 Mar. 2021].
Thejockeyclub.co.uk. (2021d). The Jockey Club App | Download | The Jockey Club. [online] Available at: https://www.thejockeyclub.co.uk/the-experience/race-on-app/ [Accessed 29 Mar. 2021].
Thejockeyclub.co.uk. (2021e). Venue Accessibility | Visitor Info | Aintree Racecourse. [online] Available at: https://www.thejockeyclub.co.uk/aintree/visitor-info/physical-accessibility/ [Accessed 29 Mar. 2021].
Thejockeyclub.co.uk. (2021f). What to See at the Races | The Jockey Club. [online] Available at: https://www.thejockeyclub.co.uk/the-experience/what-to-see/ [Accessed 28 Mar. 2021].
Wilson, B. (2017). Cheltenham Festival lines up to earn millions for horseracing. [online] BBC News. Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-39204828#:~:text=The%20event%20brings%20in%20more,to%20the%20wider%20Gloucestershire%20economy. [Accessed 28 Mar. 2021].
Jockey club Analysis 