Principles of Marketing

Module 13: Promotion

The Promotion Mix

There are many different marketing communication methods that can be used in the promotion
mix. “fourth P, promotion, focuses on communicating with target audiences about something: a
product, service, organization, idea, or brand. Communication is how you let people know
about your offering (product) and why it matters, how much it costs (price), and where to find it
(place).”
Example
“A jam-squirting robot. A busy mall. Designer clothes. Facebook. No, this isn’t the plot of a sci-
fi action movie targeting “tween” girls. It was, at the time in 2011, the largest and most
interactive product demonstration ever undertaken, for a laundry detergent called Ariel Actilift.
It grabbed attention across Scandinavia and induced thousands of people to participate by
playing a silly remote-controlled game. In the process, it also proved the remarkable stain-
fighting powers of the laundry detergent at the center of it all.

https://youtu.be/tDQQlT1P_oY
Integrated marketing communication

“Integrated marketing communication encourages marketers to think about communication in a

coordinated”

“In a nutshell, IMC involves bringing together a variety of different communication tools to
deliver a common message and make a desired impact on customers’ perceptions and behavior”

“Integrated marketing communication is the the process of coordinating all this activity across
different communication methods. Note that a central theme of this definition is persuasion:
persuading people to believe something, to desire something, and/or to do something. ”
Advertising

• Advertising is any paid form of communication from an identified sponsor or source that
draws attention to ideas, goods, services or the sponsor itself
• Advertising has three primary objectives: to inform, to persuade, and to remind
Public Relations

Public relations (PR) is the process of maintaining a favorable image and building beneficial
relationships between an organization and the public communities, groups, and people it serves
Unlike advertising, public relations does not pay for attention and publicity.
 Public Relations Techniques
Corresponding Role and
Public Relations Technique Description
1. Generate positive news coverage about the organization, its products,
1. Media Relations services, people, and activities
2. Influencer / Analyst Relations 2. Maintain strong, beneficial relationships with individuals who are
thought leaders for a market or segment
3. Publications and Thought
Leadership 3. Provide information about the organization, showcase its expertise
and competitive advantages
4. Events 4. Engage with a community to present information and an interactive
5. Sponsorships “live” experience with a product, service, organization or brand
5. Raise the profile of an organization by affiliating it with specific
6. Award Programs causes or activities
7. Crisis Management 6. Generate recognition for excellence within the organization and/or
among customers
7. Manage perceptions and contain concerns in the face of an
emergency situation
Personal Selling

Personal selling uses in-person interaction to sell products and services. This type of
communication is carried out by sales representatives, who are the personal connection between
a buyer and a company or a company’s products or services.
Sales Promotion
Consumer Sales Promotions B2B Sales Promotions

Coupons Trade shows and conventions

Sweepstakes or contests Sales contests

Premiums Trade and advertising allowances

Samples Product demonstrations

Loyalty programs Training

Point-of-purchase displays Free merchandise

Digital Marketing

Digital marketing is an umbrella term for using a digital tools to promote and market products,
services, organizations and brands. Email and mobile marketing overlaps with direct marketing.
Other essential tools in the digital marketing tool kit: Web sites, content marketing and search-
engine optimization (SEO), and social media marketing.
Direct Marketing

• Direct marketing activities bypass intermediaries and communicate directly with the
individual consumer. Direct marketing can be a powerful tool for anticipating and predicting
customer needs and behaviors. Over time, as companies use consumer data to understand
their target audiences and market dynamics, they can develop more effective campaigns and
offers. Among the leading disadvantages of direct marketing are concerns about privacy and
information security.
Social Media Marketing

1. Social media marketing is the use of online applications, networks, blogs, wikis, and other
collaborative media for communicating brand messaging, conducting marketing, public
relations, and lead generation
2. The three main objectives are:
3. Creating buzz
4. Fostering community
5. Facilitating two-way communication
Social Media Tools

• Blogs: Long- or short-form medium for communicating with audiences

• YouTube: Video-hosting social media site
• Facebook: Long-form (up to 2,000 characters per post) medium for sharing text, images,
videos, and other multimedia content
• Instagram: Image-based social network that is intended as a visual medium.
• Google+: Long-form medium for sharing text, images, videos, and other multimedia content
• Pinterest: Medium for sharing photos and visual content categorized by theme
• LinkedIn: Long- or short-form medium for sharing text, images, videos, and other multimedia
content targeted to the business community
Guerrilla Marketing

Guerrilla marketing is a relatively new marketing strategy that relies on unconventional, often
low-cost tactics to create awareness of and goodwill toward a brand, product, service, or even a
company
“Classic Guerrilla: Nike Livestrong at the Tour de France
Although this campaign was a full-blown IMC effort, at its core it was really a memorable
guerrilla marketing stunt: the spectacle of painting the streets of France during the world-
famous Tour de France bicycle race. It ran in 2008 when Lance Armstrong was still one of the
most revered athletes of his generation. Designed to generate awareness for Nike, the nonprofit
Livestrong Foundation, and the cause of fighting cancer, marketers succeeded in sharing
inspiring messages of hope with their target audiences: athletes, sports enthusiasts and people
affected by cancer, particularly young people.”
https://youtu.be/iCLdyKHxBnQ?list=PLGhn_uYiaIc8injQ6hgMPXHwmXc3l66Hx
“Volkswagen: Take the Slide!
Take a look at the following guerrilla marketing spectacle organized by Volkswagen. Notice
how the event capitalizes on a unique combination of emo“emotional appeal and surprise.”

https://youtu.be/W4o0ZVeixYU
Marketing campaign
“A campaign is a planned, coordinated series of marketing communication efforts built around a
single theme or idea and designed to reach a particular goal. ”
“A campaign revolves around a theme, a central idea, focal point, or purpose.”
Examples:
• “A theme might take the form of a slogan, such as Coca-Cola’s “Taste the Feeling” campaign or
DeBeers’ “A diamond is forever.”
• “Clear Channel is a marketing company that specializes in “outdoor advertising. For their latest
advertising campaign in Switzerland, they created a slogan-based theme, “Where Brands Meet
People,” and asked their clients to participate in dramatizing it. Dozens of Swiss companies
gave their logo to be used as individual “tiles” in three colorful mosaic portraits.[1] These
mosaics appeared on the web and on the streets of Switzerland. ”
https://www.behance.net/gallery/29879405/Clear-Channel-Where-brands-meet-people
• Marketing campaigns may also adopt themes that refer to a stage in the product life cycle, such
as McDonald’s 2015”.“All-Day Breakfast” rollout campaign
Single campaign might include:

Advertising: A series of related, well-timed, carefully placed television ads coupled with print
advertising in selected magazines and newspapers
Direct marketing: Direct-to-consumer mail pieces sent to target segments in selected
geographic areas, reinforcing the messages from the ads
Personal selling: Preparation for customer sales representatives about the campaign to equip
them to explain and demonstrate the product benefits stressed in advertising
Sales promotions: In-store display materials reflecting the same messages and design as the
ads, emphasizing point-of-sale impact
Digital marketing: Promotional information on the organization’s Web site that reflects the
same messages, design, and offers reflected in the ads;”
Standard Marketing Campaign Planning Steps:
• Determine the target market“In any case, clearly defining the audience for IMC activities is
an essential input. This is because different market segments use different types of media, and
they may have other distinctive characteristics that impact the effectiveness of a marketing
activity.”
• Determine purpose and objectives for the IMC campaign“the impact of campaign activity
on target audience .the ultimate results or outcomes that align with the organization’s
marketing strategy and corporate goals”
• Set S.M.A.R.T. goals ( separate slides for explanation)

• Define the message( separate slides for explanation)

• Select marketing communications methods and tools“-budget,timing,audience

• Determine the promotional mix: which tools to use, when, and how muchOnce marketers
have selected marketing communications methods, the next step is to decide which specific
tools to employ, when, and how much”
• Execute the campaign“provide recommendations for how to create effective
communication and marketing plans that simplify execution and follow-through.
• Measure results and refine approach, as needed“Tracking and understanding results is
how marketing teams and managers monitor progress and know when they need to adjust
course.
SMART Goals

• Specific: target a specific area for improvement

• Measurable: quantify or at least suggest an indicator of progress
• Assignable: specify who will do it
• Realistic: state what results can realistically be achieved, given available resources
• Time-related: specify when the result(s) can be achieved
• “S.M.A.R.T. goals help ensure clarity about what will be accomplished with a marketing
campaign or other activity. They also contribute to good communication between managers
and employees, so that there are clear expectations on all sides about the focus of attention,
resources, and results.”
 Making a SMART Goal
Consider the following example of a S.M.A.R.T. marketing campaign goal:
The California Campaign, implemented by the marketing team in conjunction with the California
sales lead, will use customer referrals, conference appearances, content marketing tactics,and personal
selling to identify and develop five new medium-to-large businesses to pilot our new technology
product by September 1, 2016.
This goal is:
Specific: It focuses on identifying new business opportunities to pilot a new product in California
Measurable: It specifies a goal of developing “five new medium-to-large businesses” to pilot the
new product
Assignable: It designates the ownership of this goal between the marketing team and the California
sales lead
Realistic: It states the resources and techniques that will be used to achieve the goal, and the size of
the goal appears to be well proportioned to the time and resources available
Time-related: The end date for achieving the results is clear: September 1, 2016
Using the S.M.A.R.T. format helps marketers map IMC activities directly to broader marketing goals
and strategy.”
Key Message Should:

• Express the main idea you want people to understand and remember about your offering
• Resonate with the audience you are targeting
• Articulate clearly and concisely what you need to communicate about
Traits of Good Key Messages:

• Concise
• Simple
• Strategic
• Convincing
• Relevant
• Memorable
• Tailored
Example: HighFive’s Messaging

• Brand Promise: Video conferencing you can actually love

• Positioning Statement: Highfive is the first video conferencing product designed to connect
every employee and every conference room in your entire company
• Target Audience: 1, C-level Executive (influencer); 2, Director of IT (buyer); and 3, End-
user (user)
• Mission: Our mission is to make every conversation face-to-face
• Tone of Voice: Empowering, progressive, human, and cheeky
Example continued: HighFive Elevator Pitch

• Elevator Pitch: Highfive is video conferencing you can actually love. We believe teams work
best face-to-face. That’s why we designed the first video conferencing product designed to
connect every person and room in an organization. Highfive provides an all-in-one video
conferencing hardware device that plugs into any TV screen, turning any ordinary meeting
room into a video room. Highfive also provides cloud apps, which allow employees and
guests to simply click a link from any laptop or mobile device and instantly connect face-to-
face with anyone, anywhere. The hardware device costs the same as a high-end iPad and the
cloud apps are free. We think video shouldn’t be a boardroom luxury. It should be available
everywhere.
Example continued: HighFive Brand Pillars
• Brand Pillars
• Easy
• Headline benefits: Highfive is beautifully simple video conferencing you can start or join with a
single click.
• Supporting examples: Join calls from your calendar, SMS, or email by clicking a URL, hand off
video calls from your personal device to a meeting room TV with a swipe or click—no remote
control needed. 5-minute plug and play setup.
• Everywhere
• Headline Benefits: Twenty conference rooms for the price of one Cisco or Polycom system.
• Supporting Examples: Comparable systems cost, about 15 thousand per room. At the price of an
iPad, Highfive can be deployed in every room. Free apps let people stay connected at their desks or
on the go.
• Enterprise
• Headline Benefits: Built for businesses, not social networking.
• Supporting Examples: Must sign up with work email address, domain-based security model,
enterprise reliability and security built by the same people that built Google Apps for Business.
Considerations in Selecting Marketing Communication
Methods
• Budget: What is the budget for the marketing campaign, and what resources are available to
execute it?
• Timing: Some IMC methods and tactics require a longer lead time than others
• Audience: Effective IMC methods meet audiences where they are
• Existing assets and organizational strength
The AIDA Model

• A represents attention or awareness, and the ability to attract the attention of the consumers
• I is interest and points to the ability to raise the interest of consumers by focusing on and
demonstrating advantages and benefits (instead of focusing on features, as in traditional
advertising)
• D represents desire. The advertisement convinces consumers that they want and desire the
product or service because it will satisfy their needs
• A is action. Consumers are led to take action by purchasing the product or service
Tools of Marketing and AIDA Stages

• Advertising is particularly well-suited to awareness-building

• Public relations activities often focus on generate interest, educating prospective customers
and sharing stories that create desire for a product or brand. Similarly, experiential events
can create memorable opportunities to interact with product, brands and people.
• Personal selling typically focuses at the later stages of the model, solidifying desire and
stimulating action
• Tools for any stage of AIDA: Sales promotions, Direct marketing, Digital marketing,
Guerrilla marketing
Campaign Objectives and AIDA Model Stages
AIDA Model Stages Typical Campaign Objectives

Awareness: Develop brand awareness and recognition

Build awareness to motivate Increase traffic to physical or virtual stores, Web sites, or other channels
further action Remind customers about a brand, product, service or category

Interest:
Differentiate a product, stressing benefits and features not available from competitors
Generate interest by informing
Provide more information about the product or the service because information may be correlated with
about benefits; shaping
greater likelihood of purchase
perceptions
Increase demand for a specific product or a product category; generate enough interest to research further

Build brand equity by increasing customer perceptions of quality, desirability, and other brand attributes
Desire:
Stimulate trial, an important step in building new brands and rejuvenating stagnant brands
Create desire; move from “liking”
Change or influence customer beliefs and attitudes about a brand, product, or category, ideally creating an
to “wanting”
emotional connection

Reduce purchase risk to make prospective customers feel more comfortable buying a new or unfamiliar
product or brand
Action:
Encourage repeat purchases in the effort to increase usage and brand loyalty
Take action toward purchasing
Increase sales and/or market share, with the goal of broadening reach within a time period, product category,
or segment
Push Strategy

A push strategy places the product in front of the customer, to make sure the consumer is aware
of the existence of the product
• Push strategies also create incentives for retailers to stock products and put them in front of
the customer.
• Point-of-sale displays that make a product highly visible to consumers
• Retailer incentives to stock and sell products, such as discounted bulk pricing
Pull Strategy

• A pull strategy stimulates demand and motivates customers to actively seek out a specific
product.
• Aimed primarily at the end users, rather than retailers or other middle players in the value
chain
• Pull strategies can be particularly successful for strong, visible brands with which consumers
already have some familiarity
• Examples:
• Mass-media advertising and promotion of a product
• Marketing communications with existing customers to make them aware of new products
that will fill a specific need
• Referrals and word-of-mouth recommendations from existing customers
Engagement Strategies
Campaign Strategies Corresponding Well-suited IMC
Tactics, Tools
1. Interact 1. Social media, events, guerilla marketing efforts
2. Word-of-mouth recommendations, viral sharing, social
2. Engage media
3. Embrace 3. Brand community, social media, events, sales,
promotions, viral sharing
4. Influence
4. Public relations, thought leadership activities, personal
5. Convince selling
6. Educate 5. Case studies, testimonials, comparisons, free trials,
samples
7. Inspire 6. Advertising, thought leadership activities, public
8. Nurture relations, website and other content making
7. Testimonials, guerilla marketing, events, advertising,
case studies
8. Email marketing, content marketing, personal selling.
Quick Review
• What is integrated marketing communication (IMC)
• How do organizations develop effective messaging for marketing communications?
• What factors should you consider when selecting marketing communication methods to
execute the strategy?
• What are common methods of marketing communication, their advantages and
disadvantages?
• How do IMC tools support the sales process?
• How are Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems used for marketing
communication purposes?
• What common tools and approaches are used to measure marketing communication
effectiveness?
• How do marketers create a marketing campaign and budget using multiple IMC tools to
execute a marketing strategy?