Editing Behavior (section)

===How the 4P's influence consumer behavior===
The [[Marketing mix]] (4 P's) are a marketing tool and stand for Price, Promotion, Product, and Placement.

Due to the significant impact of business-to-consumer marketing on consumer behavior, the four elements of the marketing mix, known as the 4 P's (product, price, place, and promotion), exert a notable influence on consumer behavior. The price of a good or service is largely determined by the market, as businesses will set their prices to be similar to that of other businesses so as to remain competitive whilst making a profit.  When market prices for a product are high, it will cause consumers to purchase less and use purchased goods for longer periods of time, meaning they are purchasing the product less often. Alternatively, when market prices for a product are low, consumers are more likely to purchase more of the product, and more often.

The way that promotion influences consumer behavior has changed over time. In the past, large promotional campaigns and heavy advertising would convert into sales for a business, but nowadays businesses can have success on products with little or no advertising. This is due to the Internet and in particular social media. They rely on word of mouth from consumers using social media, and as products trend online, so sales increase as products effectively promote themselves.  Thus, promotion by businesses does not necessarily result in consumer behavior trending towards purchasing products.

The way that product influences consumer behavior is through consumer willingness to pay, and consumer preferences. This means that even if a company were to have a long history of products in the market, consumers will still pick a cheaper product over the company in question's product if it means they will pay less for something that is very similar. This is due to consumer willingness to pay, or their willingness to part with the money they have earned. The product also influences consumer behavior through customer preferences. For example, take Pepsi vs Coca-Cola, a Pepsi-drinker is less likely to purchase Coca-Cola, even if it is cheaper and more convenient. This is due to the preference of the consumer, and no matter how hard the opposing company tries they will not be able to force the customer to change their mind.

Product placement in the modern era has little influence on consumer behavior, due to the availability of goods online.  If a customer can purchase a good from the comfort of their home instead of purchasing in-store, then the placement of products is not going to influence their purchase decision.<ref name="Clemons">{{Cite journal|last=Clemons|first=Eric|date=2008|title=How Information Changes Consumer Behavior and How Consumer Behavior Determines Corporate Strategy|journal=Journal of Management Information Systems|volume=25|issue=2|pages=13–40|doi=10.2753/MIS0742-1222250202|s2cid=16370526}}{{Dead link|date=December 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>