Download Building an advertising plan

PROMOTION & ADVERTISING
STRATEGY
Promotion is one of the key elements of the marketing mix, and deals with any one or
two-way communication that takes place with the consumer. This article concentrates is
a high level introduction to developing a promotional strategy for your business focusing
on advertising and other 'pull' tactics.
DEVELOPING A PROMOTIONAL STRATEGY
Deciding on a marketing communications strategy is one of the primary roles of the
marketing manager and this process involves some key decisions about who the
customer is, how to contact them, and what the message should be. These questions
can be answered using a three stage process, which is equally relevant for all elements
of the marketing mix:
Segmentation
Dividing the marketing into distinct groups
Targeting
Deciding which of these groups to communicate with, and how to talk to them
Positioning
How the product or brand should be perceived by the target groups
Messaging
Delivering a specific message in order to influence the target groups
1. SEGMENTATION
Dividing potential customers into discrete groups is vital if you want to increase the
success rate of any communications message. If you don't know who you are talking to,
it's unlikely you will get much of a response. Who are the potential customers? How
many sub-groups should you divide them into? How do these groups differ? Hopefully,
most of this information will be readily available from your market research.
Once you have an idea of the customer, you should further drill down to explore them in
more detail.
What are their media consumption habits? What are their expectations and aspirations?
What are their priorities? How much disposable income do they have? What are their
buying habits? Are they likely to have children? How many holidays do they take a
year? How much money do they give to charity? How can you help them?
This information can be obtained in a variety of ways, from commissioning a specialist
market research agency, to examining sales patterns or social media interactions.
Commonly used market research methods include:
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Sales analysis and buying patterns
Questionnaires
Desk research
Website statistics, especially social media
Focus groups
Face-to-face interviews
Specialist market research companies
Once you have built up an accurate picture of your customer, it's time to get their
attention…
2. TARGETING
For the purposes of advertising, targeting is the process of communicating with the right
segment(s) and ensuring the best possible response rate. The methods you use to
target your audience must relate to your marketing plan objectives - are you trying to
generate awareness of a new product, or attract business away from a competitor?
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Related link: Writing a marketing plan
METHODS OF MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS
Advertising is just one element of the marketing communication arsenal, which can be
divided into the following areas:
ADVERTISING – A MASS MEDIA APPROACH TO PROMOTION
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Outdoor
Business directories
Magazines / newspapers
TV / cinema
Radio
Newsagent windows
SALES PROMOTION - PRICE / MONEY RELATED COMMUNICATIONS
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Coupons
Discounts
Competitions
Loyalty incentives
PUBLIC RELATIONS - USING THE PRESS TO YOUR ADVANTAGE
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Press launches
PR events
Press releases
PERSONAL SELLING – ONE TO ONE COMMUNICATION WITH A
POTENTIAL BUYER
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Salesmen
Experiential marketing
Dealer or showroom sales activities
Exhibitions
Trade shows
DIRECT MARKETING - TAKING THE MESSAGE DIRECTLY TO THE
CONSUMER
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Mail order catalogues
Bulk mail
Personalised letters
Email
Telemarketing
Point of sale displays
Packaging design
DIGITAL MARKETING – NEW CHANNELS ARE EMERGING CONSTANTLY
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Company websites
Social media applications such as Facebook or Twitter
Blogging
Mobile phone promotions using technology such as bluetooth
YouTube
E-commerce
DECIDING WHICH MEDIA CHANNEL TO USE
In nature, evolution occurs most rapidly when competition for resources is intense. The
same process is now occurring with promotional media. All traditional media channels
are now saturated, and competition for consumer attention is intense. At the same time,
the impact of any one medium is becoming diluted. There are many more TV and radio
channels, consumer have the ability to skip adverts and free information is now much
more accessible. As a result, companies are becoming increasingly innovative in their
approach to communications and a host of new media channels have emerged. As a
result, media choice is becoming a tricky task, which is why detailed segmentation is so
important - it's no use starting a Twitter campaign if none of your target market are
regular users of the site.
Highly targeted communications often lead to better results. You can usually expect a
response rate of under 1% for a relatively generic mass mailing. However, personal
letters to a handful of your most loyal customers would lead to a dramatically increased
rate of return. When deciding which media to use consider the reach, frequency, media
impact and what you can expect for your budget but most of all, ensure your target
customer will see the message in the first place.
Media choice is a matter of compromise between volume of people versus the
personalisation of the message.
ENSURING YOUR MESSAGE REFLECTS THE STAGES OF THE
PURCHASING FUNNEL
Once you have made the audience aware of your brand, work doesn't stop there. The
customer needs to be guided through the purchasing process. This means identifying
the key stages in the customer journey and ensuring communications messages are
personalised and relevant.
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More information: The purchasing funnel
INTEGRATED MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS
Once you have decided which media channel to concentrate on, the next step is to
ensure an integrated approach is taken. Regardless of whether you are promoting a
new product or raising awareness, it's important that all ads across all media work
together towards a common goal by using similar messaging and 'look and feel'. An
integrated approach can dramatically increase the effectiveness of any campaign and
will help create your brand image.
GETTING THE BEST RESPONSE
To get the best response from your target market, you need ensuring the message is
relevant and clear – once you've managed to gain the valuable attention of your
customer the last thing you want is for them to be confused about what you're saying.
Determine the objectives of the advert and ensure these aims are addressed clearly.
Think about the next steps you would like the audience to take, whether this is visiting a
website, ringing a number, or being able to recall your brand when they are next in the
shops.
3. POSITIONING
Positioning is the process of developing an image for your company or product. This
can be achieved partially through branding, but it's important to realise that all elements
of the marketing mix combine to provide the full picture. You must ensure that all areas
of your business live up to expectations in order to successfully position yourself in the
way you hope. Positioning also considers the competition, and you need to explain why
you are unique in the marketplace and better than the other products on the shelf.
BRANDING AND MESSAGING
Branding is a powerful tool for positioning your product. Branding is used on almost all
customer facing elements of a product, from the packaging design to the style of writing
used on posters. Every communication a customer received adds up to form a mental
picture of your brand and can influence the price they are willing to pay for your
products. This ability to charge more due to the positioning of your product is known as
'brand equity'. Your branding also needs to consider your unique selling points (USPs)
and ensure these are easily recognised through your messaging – is your product the
best value, longest lasting, sweetest smelling or fastest?
CORPORATE IDENTITY
A corporate identity is a useful tool to ensure that your branding is used in a consistent
way throughout the company. This detailed document runs through almost every
conceivable customer touch point and provides guidance on the presentation and style
which should be used. This could include use of logos, colours, tag lines, uniform and
the type of coffee to serve guests. A CI guide is particularly useful if any creative work it
outsourced to agencies or freelancers or if you have many offices worldwide. The most
powerful brands can be identified by many elements of their communications material,
not just a by their logo or slogan and this is due to successful implementation of a
recognisable corporate identity. Recognition is a key part of any purchase decision so a
corporate identity should for a core element of your advertising strategy.
4. DEVELOPMENT OF THE
ADVERTISING MESSAGE
Once you have determined the positioning for your brand, it's time to develop the
message in order to influence your target groups. Advertising objectives should be
directly linked to your marketing plan, and tend to fit into the following generic
categories:
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Inform - raising awareness of your brand & products, establishing a competitive
advantage
Persuade - generating an instant response (usually driving sales)
Remind - to maintain interest and enthusiasm for a product or service
It's a documented fact that creative, well branded, distinctive advertising generates the
best results so ensure you use the best possible creative team you can get your hands
on, and give them a detailed brief. Remember that a message will only be successful if
it appeals to the target audience, so constantly refer back to the customer and tailor the
ads to them.
FINAL WORDS
Almost every business in the world will deal in advertising at some point, whether it is a
listing in the Yellow Pages, or a billboard in Times Square. Whatever you're planning,
the strategic thinking behind all advertising is essentially the same – get to know your
audience, target them efficiently and position your brand in the way that will benefit your
business.