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Promotion
Strategy
Promotion
 Any form of communication a business/organization
uses to inform, persuade, or remind people about its
products or services.
 Types of Promotion:
o
o
o
o
Advertising
Public Relations (PR) & Publicity
Sales Promotion
Personal Selling
Advertising
 Paid form of non-personal presentation of ideas,
goods, or services directed toward a mass
audience by an identified sponsor
 Two Types:
o Print Media:
• Newspapers, magazines, direct mail, outdoor (billboards),
transit (ads on buses or subways)
o Broadcast Media:
• Radio, television, Internet web sites
Public Relations &
Publicity
 PR: any activity designed to create a favorable
image toward a business, its products, or its policies
o News release, press kits
 Publicity: The placement of newsworthy items
about a business, new products, or employees in
the media
Sales Promotion
 Use of short-term incentives or interest-building marketing
activities to stimulate traffic and encourage the buying
of a product or service
o Increase sales
 Business to Business
o Slotting Allowances: manufacturer pays retailer for costs
involved in placing a new product on shelves
o Buying Allowances: price discount given by manufacturers to
wholesalers and retailers to encourage the purchase of a
product
o Trade Shows & Conventions: designed to reach wholesalers
and retailers
• Introduce new products or increase sales of existing products
o Sales Incentives: financial awards given to managers or
employees who reach or exceed sales quotas
Sales Promotion Cont.
 Business to Consumer:
o Premiums: low-cost items
given to consumers at a
discount or for free.
• Designed to increase sales,
attract new customers, and
persuade nonusers to switch
brands
o Sponsorship: promotion of a
company in association with a
property, event, or group
o Incentives: create customer
excitement and increase sales.
• Include sweepstakes, contests,
and rebates
o Product Samples: free trial size
of a product
o Promotional Tie-Ins: involve
sales promotional
arrangements between one or
more retailers
o Product Placement: the
strategic placement of an item
will increase or enhance public
knowledge
o Visual Merchandising/Displays:
coordination of all physical
elements in a place of business
so that it projects the right
image to its customers
o Loyalty Marketing Programs:
reward customers for making
multiple purchases
Promotion Cont.
 Personal Selling: Consists of oral presentations to
one or more potential buyers with the intent of
making a sale
 Promotional Mix: refers to the combination of
different types of promotion
o A business decides on the promotional mix that will be
most effective in persuading potential customers to
purchase and support its products
• Wholesalers, retailers, and/or consumers
Promotion Policy
 Push Policy: when a manufacturer is trying to
“push” a product through a channel of distribution
o Main purpose: to convince a retailer to stock a product
o Relies heavily on personal selling and sales promotion, esp.
at trade shows
 Pull Policy: designed to create consumer interest
o Consumer demand can “pull” or encourage retailers to
carry a product
o Relies heavily on advertising
geared towards consumers in
addition to premiums,
samples, and demonstrations
Promotion Plan Process
o Keep in mind your Target Market and the 4Ps
Determine marketing objectives
Determine your promotional budget
Determine your promotional mix (what)
Create your plan (who, when)
Execute your promotional plan
Evaluate your plan & readjust accordingly
Example
 Marketing Objective
o Create awareness of baby care products among mothers
of newborns
 Promotional Budget
o $100,000.00
 Promotional Mix
o Advertise in national baby care and motherhood
magazines
o Distribute product samples to major obstetricians’ offices in
major urban areas
o Offer free baby care seminars to expectant mothers at
major hospitals
o Provide free samples to maternity wards at major hospitals
Publicity
 Placement of newsworthy items about a business,
new products, or employees in the media
o An act designed to attract public interest
o Information with news value issued as a means of gaining
public attention or support
o Involves creating demand for a
business or product by placing
news about it in publications,
radio, television, or another form
of media
o It is not paid for
Publicity
 The principal function of publicity is “building an
image”
o Image: the way a business or organization is defined in
people’s minds
 Publicity can be positive or negative
Advantages vs.
Disadvantages
 Major Advantages of Publicity:
o People are more likely to pay attention to news stories than
to advertisements
• News reporters and newspapers are viewed as more
objective than advertisers
 Major Disadvantages of Publicity:
o A business gives up control over their
message
• The content and how it is presented
Public Relations
 The business of inducing the public to have
understanding for and goodwill toward a person,
firm, or institution
o An individual or group of people who serve as public
spokespeople for an individual or an organization
• They relate information to the public
 The right kind of public relations can create a
positive image for a company and maintain or
improve that image within the community
o Example: sponsoring cultural events (concerts or art
exhibits)
o Awarding scholarships to a local high school
o Donating equipment for public use
Public Relations
 Refers to any activity designed to create goodwill
towards a business
 The goodwill benefits a business by:
o Increasing sales
o Reinforcing the firm’s good reputation
o Increasing the receptivity of
consumers to the firm’s advertising
o Conditioning customers to expect
quality products from the firm
Public Relations
Specialists
 These specialists attempt to get good publicity for
their companies by creating news events
 Examples:
o
o
o
o
o
o
The opening of a new store
An interview with a company official
Launching of a new product
Presentation of an award to an employee
A community activity that is sponsored by the business
A charitable activity that the business participates in
What Advertising Can Do
for your Business
 Remind customers and prospects about the benefits of
your product or service
 Establish and maintain your distinct identity
 Enhance your reputation
 Encourage existing customers to buy more of what you
sell
 Attract new customers and replace lost ones
 Build sales slowly
 Promote your business to customers, investors, and others
What Advertising Can’t
do for your Business
 Create an instant customer base
 Solve cash flow or profit problems
 Substitute for poor or indifferent customer base
 Sell useless or unwanted products/services
Advertising Pros
 You have complete control.
o You determine exactly where, when, and how often your
message will appear, how it will look, and what it will say
o You can target your audience more readily
o You can aim at very specific geographic areas
 You can be consistent, presenting your image and
sales message repeatedly to build awareness and
trust
o A distinctive identity will eventually become clearly
associated with your company
o Customers will recognize you quickly and easily
Advertising Cons
 It takes planning
o Advertising works best and costs less when planned and
prepared in advanced
 It takes time and persistence
o The effectiveness of your advertising improves gradually
over time
• Customers don’t see every one of your ads
o You must repeatedly remind prospects and customers
about the benefits of doing business with you
• The long-term effort triggers recognition and helps special
offers or direct marketing pay off
Advertising vs. Public
Relations
Advertising
Public Relations
 Space or time in the mass
media must be paid for
 Coverage in mass media, if
any, is not paid for
 You determine the message
 Interpretation of the
message is in the hands of
the media
 You control the timing
 Timing is in the hands of the
media
 One-way communication
o Using the mass media does
not allow feedback
 Two-way communication
o The company should be
listening as well as talking &
the various PR venues often
provide immediate feedback
Advertising vs. PR Cont.
Advertising
Public Relations
 Message sponsor is
identified
 Message sponsor is not
overtly identified
 The intention of most
messages is to inform,
persuade, or remind
 The intention is often to
create good will, keep
company in front of the
public, or to humanize a
company
o With the intent of making a sale
 The public may view the
message negatively,
recognizing advertising as
an attempt to persuade or
manipulate
 The public often sees PR
messages that have been
covered by the media as
more neutral or believable
Advertising vs. PR Cont.
Advertising
Public Relations
 Very powerful at creating
an image
 Can also create image, but
sometimes stray from how it
was originally intended
 Writing style is usually
persuasive, can be creative,
often taking a
conversational tone
 Writing style relies heavily on
journalism talents
o May even be grammatically
incorrect
o Any persuasion is artfully
inserted in the fact-based
content
Effective Selling
 Selling: helping customers make satisfying buying
decisions by communicating how products and
their features match customers’ needs and wants
 Goals of selling:
o Help customers decide on purchases
• Sometimes educating customers on
products
o Ensure customer satisfactions
• Happy customers mean repeat business
 Selling is a broad concept and can take place
inside or outside a firm
Inside vs Outside Selling
 Inside Sales
o Selling efforts that take place at the salesperson’s place of
business (i.e. retailers)
 Outside Sales
o Selling efforts that take place outside the salesperson’s
place of business (i.e. door-to-door salespeople)
 Insurance agents or real estate agents may sell their
consumer services through inside or outside sales
efforts
The Selling Process
Prospecting (finding potential customers)
The pre-approach (gathering info about potential customers)
The approach (why would a potential customer want to listen to you?)
The sales presentation (presenting to the potential customer)
Handling objections (responding to concerns)
The close (the handshake & agreement)
The departure and follow-up (how you deal with the potential customers next)
The Selling Process
 Prospecting: the process of finding potential
customers who could benefit from and buy a
good/service
o Potential customers are prospects
 Gathering and analyzing information about the
prospect and using it to construct the sales
presentation is the pre-approach
The Selling Process
 The way the salesperson enlists the prospect’s
willingness to hear more about a product is the
approach.
o The approach is made to gain an interview and make the
sales presentation
o Examples:
•
•
•
•
Telephone call to a business at a time, day, week, etc.
Using a business card
Direct mail
Personal visit
 During the sales presentation, the salesperson
demonstrates or explains the product and attempts
to build a desire for ownership within the prospect
The Selling Process
 An objection is an honest difference between the
customer and the salesperson
 Example of an objection:
o “I like your product, but I don’t think the school can afford
it right now”
o Salesperson could respond by stressing the benefits of
immediate ownership, while also explaining the various
credit plans offered
The Selling Process
 The close is the completion of the sale
o Avoid pressure
o Call again
o Suggest additional purchases (of same item or
related/additional items)
 The departure and follow-up
o thank prospect
o Show appreciation for prospect’s time and attention
o A good salesperson is always interested in future business
and sales
 After each sales call—examine reasons for success
or failure.
Follow a Product—
Promotion Strategy
 Discuss the different aspects of your promotion
strategy:
o What forms of advertising will you use:
• Print media
• Broadcast media
o Will there be any form of publicity or PR?
o What types of sales promotions will be used?