In the early days of modern marketing, E. Jerome McCarthy, an author and a professor at Michigan State University, developed the four Ps within the marketing mix. This was detailed in the influential book Basic Marketing: A Managerial Approach, which he co-authored with W Perrault Jr and JP McCann in 1960. The four Ps were pivotal in really allowing brand managers to think strategically about their organisation and distil the ingredients that separated their brand from all the others. It's that nuanced knowledge - a brand's 'secret sauce' - that continues to see one brand thrive while another merely rumbles along or fails.

The long-standing success of the four Ps in the marketing mixFor those who are unaware, the four Ps stand for:

• Product: the element that satisfies a consumer need
• Price: the cost to buy the product or service
• Place: the marketplace where people can buy your product or service
• Promotion: all advertising and promotional activities