Promotional Strategies Update
Promotional Strategies Update
Promotional Strategies Update
Introduction
The Promotion Mix
the specific blend of advertising, public relations, personal selling, sales promotion, and direct-
marketing tools that the company uses to persuasively communicate customer value and build
Advertising: Any paid form of nonpersonal presentation and promotion of ideas, goods, or
service.
• Personal selling: Personal presentation by the firm’s sales force for the purpose of making
• Public relations: Building good relations with the company’s various publics by obtaining
favorable publicity, building up a good corporate image, and handling or heading off unfavorable
Direct marketing: Direct connections with carefully targeted individual consumers to both obtain
Each category involves specific promotional tools used to communicate with customers. e.g.,
advertising includes broadcast, print, Internet, outdoor, and other forms. Sales promotion
includes discounts, coupons, displays, and demonstrations. Personal selling includes sales
presentations, trade shows, and incentive programs. Public relations (PR) include press releases,
sponsorships, special events, and Web pages. And direct marketing includes catalogs, telephone
marketing, kiosks, the Internet, mobile marketing, and more. At the same time, marketing
1
communication goes beyond these specific promotion tools. The product’s design, its price, the
shape and color of its package, and the stores that sell it all communicate something to buyers.
Thus, although the promotion mix is the company’s primary communications activity, the entire
marketing mix—promotion and product, price, and place—must be coordinated for the greatest
impact.
Today, more companies are adopting the concept of integrated marketing communications
(IMC). Under this concept, the company carefully integrates its many communications channels
to deliver a clear, consistent, and compelling message about the organization and its brands.
Integrated marketing communications calls for recognizing all touchpoints where the customer
may encounter the company and its brands. Each brand contact will deliver a message—whether
good, bad, or indifferent. The company’s goal should be to deliver a consistent and positive
message to each contact. IMC leads to a total marketing communications strategy aimed at
building strong customer relationships by showing how the company and its products can help
Integrated marketing communications ties together all of the company’s messages and images.
Its television and print adverts have the same message, look, and feel as its e-mail and personal
selling communications. And its PR materials project the same image as its Web site or social
network presence. Often, different media play unique role in attracting, informing, and
persuading consumers; these roles must be carefully coordinated under the overall marketing
communications plan.
2
Carefully blended mix of promotion tools
Consistent, clear,
and compelling Public
company and relations
Sales promotion brand messages
Direct marketing
Integrated marketing communications involves identifying the target audience and shaping a
well-coordinated promotional programme to obtain the desired audience response. Too often,
target market. But this approach to communication is too shortsighted. Today, marketers are
moving toward viewing communications as managing the customer relationship over time.
segments, niches, and even individuals. And, given the new interactive communications
technologies, companies must ask not only “How can we reach our customers?” but also “How
can we let our customers reach us?” Thus, the communications process should start with an audit
of all the potential touchpoints that target customers may have with the company and its brands.
3
For example, someone purchasing a new cell phone plan may talk to others, see television
adverts, read articles and adverts in newspapers and magazines, visit various web sites for prices
and reviews, and check out plans at the shopping mall. The marketer needs to assess what
influence each communication experience will have at different stages of the buying process.
This understanding helps marketers allocate their communication budget more efficiently and
effectively.
Communication involves the nine elements. Two of these elements are the major parties in a
communication—the sender and the receiver. Another two are the major communication tools—
the message and the media. Four more are major communication functions—encoding, decoding,
For a message to be effective, the sender’s encoding process must mesh with the receiver’s
decoding process. The best messages consist of words and other symbols that are familiar to the
4
receiver. The more the sender’s field of experience overlaps with that of the receiver, the more
effective the message is likely to be. Marketing communicators may not always share their
This model points out several key factors in good communication. Senders need to know what
audiences they wish to reach and what responses they want. They must be good at encoding
messages that take into account how the target audience decodes them. They must send messages
through media that reach target audiences, and they must develop feedback channels so that they
current users or potential buyers, those who make the buying decision or those who influence it.
The audience may be individuals, groups, special publics, or the general public. The target
audience will heavily affect the communicator’s decisions on what will be said, how it will be
said, when it will be said, where it will be said, and who will say it.
Once the target audience has been defined, marketers must determine the desired response. Of
course, in many cases, they will seek a purchase response. But purchase may result only after a
lengthy consumer decision-making process. The marketing communicator needs to know where
the target audience now stands and to what stage it needs to be moved. The target audience may
be in any of six buyer-readiness stages, the stages consumers normally pass through on their way
5
conviction, and purchase. The marketing communicator’s target market may be totally unaware
of the product, know only its name, or know only a few things about it. Thus, the communicator
Designing a Message
Having defined the desired audience response, the communicator then turns to developing an
effective message. Ideally, the message should get attention, hold interest, arouse desire, and
obtain action (a framework known as the AIDA model). In practice, few messages take the
consumer all the way from awareness to purchase, but the AIDA framework suggests the
desirable qualities of a good message. When putting the message together, the marketing
communicator must decide what to say (message content) and how to say it (message structure
and format).
Message Content
The marketer has to figure out an appeal or theme that will produce the desired response. There
are three types of appeals: rational, emotional, and moral. Rational appeals relate to the
audience’s self-interest. They show that the product will produce the desired benefits.
Message Structure
Marketers must also decide how to handle three message structure issues. The first is whether to
draw a conclusion or leave it to the audience. Research suggests that, in many cases, rather than
drawing a conclusion, the advertiser is better off asking questions and letting buyers come to
The second message structure issue is whether to present the strongest arguments first or last.
Presenting them first gets strong attention, but may lead to an anticlimactic ending.
6
The third message structure issue is whether to present a one-sided argument (mentioning only
the product’s strengths) or a two-sided argument (touting the product’s strengths while also
presentations—except when audiences are highly educated or likely to hear opposing claims or
Message Format
The marketing communicator also needs a strong format for the message. In a print advert, the
communicator has to decide on the headline, copy, illustration, and colors. To attract attention,
advertisers can use novelty and contrast; eye catching pictures and headlines; distinctive formats;
message size and position; and color, shape, and movement. If the message is to be carried over
the radio, the communicator has to choose words, sounds, and voices. The “sound” of an advert
If the message is to be carried on television or in person, then all these elements plus body
language must be planned. Presenters plan every detail— facial expressions, gestures, dress,
posture, and hairstyles. If the message is carried on the product or its package, the communicator
must watch texture, scent, color, size, and shape. For example, color alone can enhance message
Choosing Media
The communicator must now select the channels of communication. There are two broad types
In personal communication channels, two or more people communicate directly with each
other. They might communicate face to face, on the phone, via mail or e-mail, or even through
7
an Internet “chat.” Personal communication channels are effective because they allow for
Channels through which two or more people communicate directly with each other, including
face to face, on the phone, via mail or e-mail, or even through an Internet “chat.” Some personal
communication channels are controlled directly by the company. For example, company
salespeople contact business buyers. But other personal communications about the product may
reach buyers through channels not directly controlled by the company. These channels might
statements to buyers. Or they might be neighbors, friends, family members, and associates
talking to target buyers. This last channel, word-of mouth influence, has considerable effect in
Word-of-mouth influence
Personal communications about a product between target buyers and neighbors, friends, family
members, and associates. Personal influence carries great weight for products that are expensive,
risky or highly visible. Companies can take steps to put personal communication channels to
work for them. For example, they can create opinion leaders for their brands—people whose
opinions are sought by others—by supplying influencers with the product on attractive terms or
8
Nonpersonal communication channels are media that carry messages without personal contact or
feedback. They include major media, atmospheres, and events. Major media include print media
(billboards, signs, posters), and online media (e-mail, company Web sites, and online social and
sharing networks). Atmospheres are designed environments that create or reinforce the buyer’s
leanings toward buying a product. Thus, lawyers’ offices and banks are designed to
communicate confidence and other qualities that might be valued by clients. Events are staged
arrange grand openings, shows and exhibits, public tours, and other events.
Nonpersonal communication affects buyers directly. In addition, using mass media often affects
For example, communications might first flow from television, magazines, and other mass media
to opinion leaders and then from these opinion leaders to others. Thus, opinion leaders’ step
between the mass media and their audiences and carry messages to people who are less exposed
In either personal or nonpersonal communication, the message’s impact also depends on how the
target audience views the communicator. Messages delivered by highly credible sources are
more persuasive. Thus, many food companies promote to doctors, dentists, and other healthcare
providers to motivate these professionals to recommend specific food products to their patients.
9
And marketers hire celebrity endorsers—well-known athletes, actors, musicians—to deliver their
messages.
Collecting Feedback
After sending the message, the communicator must research its effect on the target audience.
This involves asking the target audience members whether they remember the message, how
many times they saw it, what points they recall, how they felt about the message, and their past
and present attitudes toward the product and company. The communicator would also like to
measure behavior resulting from the message—how many people bought the product, talked to
others about it, or visited the store. Feedback on marketing communications may suggest
One of the hardest marketing decisions facing a company is how much to spend on promotion.
How does a company determine its promotion budget? Here, we look at four common methods
used to set the total budget for advertising: the affordable method, the percentage-of-sales
Some companies use the affordable method: They set the promotion budget at the level they
think the company can afford. Small businesses often use this method, reasoning that the
company cannot spend more on advertising than it has. They start with total revenues, deduct
operating expenses and capital outlays, and then devote some portion of the remaining funds to
advertising. Unfortunately, this method of setting budgets completely ignores the effects of
promotion on sales. It tends to place promotion last among spending priorities, even in situations
in which advertising is critical to the firm’s success. It leads to an uncertain annual promotion
Percentage-of-Sales Method
10
Other companies use the percentage-of-sales method, setting their promotion budget at a certain
percentage of current or forecasted sales. The percentage-of-sales method is simple to use and
helps management think about the relationships between promotion spending, selling price, and
profit per unit. Despite these claimed advantages, however, the percentage-of-sales method has
little to justify it. It wrongly views sales as the cause of promotion rather than as the result.
Although studies have found a positive correlation between promotional spending and brand
strength, this relationship often turns out to be effect and cause, not cause and effect. Stronger
brands with higher sales can afford the biggest advert budgets. Thus, the percentage-of-sales
budget is based on the availability of funds rather than on opportunities. It may prevent the
increased spending sometimes needed to turn around falling sales. Because the budget varies
with year-to-year sales, long-range planning is difficult. Finally, the method does not provide any
basis for choosing a specific percentage, except what has been done in the past or what
Competitive-Parity Method
Still other companies use the competitive-parity method, setting their promotion budgets to
match competitors’ outlays. They monitor competitors’ advertising or get industry promotion
spending estimates from publications or trade associations and then set their budgets based on
the industry average. Two arguments support this method. First, competitors’ budgets represent
the collective wisdom of the industry. Second, spending what competitors spend helps prevent
promotion wars. Unfortunately, neither argument is valid. There are no grounds for believing
that the competition has a better idea of what a company should be spending on promotion than
does the company itself. Companies differ greatly, and each has its own special promotion needs.
Finally, there is no evidence that budgets based on competitive parity prevent promotion.
11
Objective-and-Task Method
The most logical budget-setting method is the objective-and-task method, whereby the company
sets its promotion budget based on what it wants to accomplish with promotion. This budgeting
method entails (1) defining specific promotion objectives, (2) determining the tasks needed to
achieve these objectives, and (3) estimating the costs of performing these tasks. The sum of these
costs is the proposed promotion budget. The advantage of the objective-and-task method is that it
forces management to spell out its assumptions about the relationship between monies spent and
promotion results. But it is also the most difficult method to use. Often, it is hard to figure out
Communication programme
The basic elements in communication are the source, the message and destination(receiver)
Message Development
Clear
Correct
Concise
Promotional strategies
12
A marketer’s job is to build a marketing programme that aims at achieving a company’s
objective, organisations use promotion to communicate with customers about products they
offer. Promo is half of the communication process. A promotional strategy is an activity that is
designed to help boost the marketing of a product/service, sales, draw new customers, while also
retaining older ones. It can be done through an advert campaign, public relations activities, a free
sampling campaign, a free gift campaign, through demonstrations and exhibitions, emails etc. as
one of the 4ps of the marketing mix, promotion has an important part to play. In designing an
appropriate promotional strategy, one will need to consider such issues as what one want to
achieve (including the target audience), what then objectives of the communications are and
what ones marketing message is. From here one can proceed to the “how”. Which
communication channels will one select? What is one budget and how will it be allocated. What
is the appropriate promotional mix. As with most management processes, it is concluded with
evaluation; this involve measuring the outcome of promotional activities to ascertain whether
Promotion is a reward making activity that influences people towards buying and consuming the
adequate in bringing the desired action from the customers. Promotional activities embrace
every action on the part of the marketer to communicate their product, place, price, and
promotion to their customers to bring desired result, eg increased sales, profit and customer
satisfaction.
Marketing Mix
13
Product Price Promotion Place
The promotional mix combines different channels or routes to communicate a promotional
message. From a range of possible tools, one will select an appropriate promotional mix.
Advertising- any paid form of non-personal presentation and promotion of ideas, goods or
Direct marketing- the use of mail, telephone or other non-personal contact tools to communicate
Sales promotion- short term incentives to encourage trial or purchase of a product or service,
Public relations/publicity- programmes designed to promote and /or protects a company’s image
or those of its products, including product literature, exhibitions and articles in professional or in-
house newsletters.
Personal selling- face to face interactions with one or more prospective users to generate
increased activity.
14
Sponsorship- financial or external support of an event or person by an unrelated organisation or
Typically, one will identify a combination of strategies. One promotional strategy may be used to
support another promotional event. Factors that will help one to choose an appropriate mix
include:
The methods and techniques of communicating with are though basically similar, vary. As
earlier mentioned, marketing communications are means by which firms attempt to inform,
persuade and remind consumers- directly or indirectly about the products (or even brands) they
sell. It embraces every kind of promotional strategies adopted by the marketer to persuade people
to buy their products and services. In general, marketing calls for more than developing a good
product, pricing it attractively and making it accessible. Companies must also communicate with
present and potential customers and the general public. Marketing communication mix consists
15
1. Advertising- is only one element of the promotion mix, but it’s often considered prominent in
the overall marketing mix design. It is highly visibility and pervasive. Advert is a mass
c. can be economical, for it reaches large group of people, this keeps the cost per message low
iii. Retaining loyalty of present and former consumers. Advert may be used to
reassure buyers that they have made the best purchase, thus building loyalty the
16
iv. Increasing support- it bolsters the morale of the sales force and of distributors,
wholesalers, retailers
v. Projecting an image- it’s used to promote overall image of respect and trust for an
organisation. This message is aimed not only at consumers, but also at the
Importance of Advertising
prospective customers.
i. It can secure leads for salesmen and middlemen by convincing customers to request
ii. It can force middlemen to stock the company’s product by building consumer interest
iii. It can help train dealers’ salesmen in product uses and applications
iv. It can build dealer and consumer confidence in the company and its products by
building familiarity
While sometimes advert alone may succeed in achieving buyer acceptance, preference or
even demand for the product, it is seldom solely relied upon. Advert is efficiently used
continue or take some new action. In latin, ad vertere means “to turn the mind toward”.
Most commonly, the desired result is to drive consumer behaviour with respect to a
17
commercial offering. Advert messages are usually paid for by sponsors and viewed via
various traditional media i .e newspaper, tv, blogs, websites etc. commercial advertisers
‘branding’ which involves associating a product or image with certain qualities in the
minds of consumers.
i. Message about the product- details about the product play a prominent role in advertising
for new and existing products. Also, can be used to inform customers of changes that take
place in existing products. E.g., if a company has purchased the brand of another
company resulting in name change, an advert message may stress- new name but same
great taste.
ii. Message about price- companies that regularly engage in price adjustments, can use
advert to let the market know of price reductions. Alternatively, ad can be used to
encourage customers to purchase now before a scheduled price increase takes place.
iii. Message about other promotions-ad often works hand in hand with other promotional
mix items. Eg special sales promotions such as contests may be announced within ab
advert. Also, ad can help salespeople gain access to new accounts, this may be especially
effective for a company entering a new market where advert may help the uncertainty a
iv. Message about distribution- within distribution channels, advert can help expand channel
18
v. Advert can also be used to let customers know locations where a product can be
purchased.
Setting an advert objective is easy, but achieving the objective requires a well-thought-out
strategy. A key factor affecting the strategy used is to achieve advert objectives is how much
money an organisation has to spend. The funds designated for advert make up the advert budget
and it reflects the amount an org. is willing to commit to achieve its advert objectives.
i. Percentage of sales- under this approach, advert spending is set based on either a
percentage of previous sales or a percentage of forecasted sales. Eg an org may set next
years’ advert budget at 19% of this years’ sales level. Alternatively, coys may consider
allocating advert funds based on a percentage of forecasted sales. In this way advert is
viewed as a driver of future sales and spending on it is linked directly to meeting future
sales forecasts.
ii. What is affordable- many smaller coys find spending of any kind to be constraining. In
this situation, advert may just be one of a tightly allocated spending and thus, the level
spent on advert may vary over time. For these orgs. Advert may only occur when extra
iii. Best guess- companies entering new markets often lack knowledge of how much ad is
needed to achieve their objectives, in case where the market is not well understood,
marketers may rely on their best judgment on what the advert budget should be.
19
With an objective and a budget in place, the advert campaign will next need to focus on
developing the message, however, before effort is placed on developing a message, the marketer
must first determine which media outlets will be used to deliver the message since the choice of
the media outlets guides the type of message that can be created and how frequently the message
will be delivered
An advert message can be delivered via a large number of media outlets. These range from
traditional outlets, such as print, radio and tv to newly emerging outlets such as the internet and
mobile devices. However, each media outlets possess different characteristics and thus offer
marketers different advantages and disadvantages. The characteristics by which different outlets
creative options
creative cost
Length etc.
A few years ago, marketers need to be aware of only a few media outlets, today’s marketers must
technology. Lading outlets are: Tv, radio, prints, direct mail, signage, sponsorships etc. Tv advert
offers the benefit of reaching large numbers in a single exposure, also a mass communication
capable of being seen by nearly everyone, tv lacks the ability to deliver as advert to highly
targeted customers compared to other media outlets. However, tv remains an option that is best
20
Radio advert: promotion thru radio has been a viable option. Radio advertising is mostly local to
the broadcast range of a radio station. In many ways radio suffers the same problems as tv,
namely a mass medium that is not highly targeted and offers little opportunity to track responses.
audio- only advertising. For some products advertising without visual support is not effective.
Print advertising: prints such as magazines, newspapers and special issue publications offer
advertising opportunities at all geographic levels. Magazines offer the options of allowing high
quality imagery eg full colour and can also offer touch and scent experiences eg perfume.
Newspaper have also incorporated colour advert, though their main advantage rests with their
Internet advertising: the fastest growing media outlet for advertising compared to spending in
other media. The internet offers many advertising options with messages delivered thru websites
or by email.
i. Creative types
ii. Size
iii. Placement
iv. Delivery.
Email advertising-using email to deliver an advert affords marketers the advantage of low
distribution cost and potentially high reach. Email advert can take the form of a regular email
Direct mail: this method uses postal and other delivery services to ship advert materials including
21
Direct mail is most effective when it is designed in such a way that it makes it appear to be
special to the customer. Direct mail can be very cost-effective method of advertising esp. if
mailings contain printed materials, due to cost advantages obtained by printing in high volumes.
identified areas in order to capture customer’s attention. The most obvious method of using signs
is though billboards, which are generally located in high traffic areas, they come in m any sizes.
Indoor billboards are often smaller that outdoor billboards and are designed to attract attention of
foot traffic. While billboards are the most obvious example of signage advertising, there are
Mobile billboards, where signs are placed on vehicles such as buses, cars etc.
Product placement advertising: is an advertising approach that intentionally inserts products into
entertainment programmes such as tv programmes etc. placement can take several forms
including:
i. Visual imagery in which the product appears within the entertainment programme
Handheld devices such as cellphones and other wireless make up the growing mobile market.
This device market is beginning to become a viable advert medium, it also offers significant
22
opportunity for marketers to reach customers at any time and place. It also has the potential to
provide marketers with the ability to target customers based on their geographic location.
resources and services for the purpose of being seen as a supporter of an organisations event,
Others are:
i. Advertising through inserted materials in product packaging e.g. inside ATM cards
Creating a message
Effective communication requires the message source to create(encoding) a message that can be
message is often considered the creative aspect of carrying out an advertising campaign. And
because it’s a creative process, the number of different ways a message can be generated is
limited only by the imagination of those responsible for developing the message. When ad
The final step in an advertising campaign is to measure the results of carrying out the campaign.
In most cases, the results measure relates directly to the objectives the marketer is seeking to
achieve with the campaign. Consequently, whether a campaign I judged successful is not always
23
tied to whether product sales have increased since the beginning of the campaign. In some cases,
such as when the objectives is to build awareness, successful campaign may be measured in
In order to evaluate an advert campaign, it is necessary for two measures to take place. First
there must be a pre-campaign or pre-test measure that evaluates conditions prior to campaign
implementation. Second a post campaign or post testing can be done no matter what the
Advertising may be extensive, but ineffective in its approach, an unnecessarily large amount is
sometimes spent without any reward. An advert measurement is adopted both before and after an
advertising campaign is lunched. After campaign launched, its essential to know how far the
advert plans, strategies and programmes have been successful in achieving the objectives so that
they may be modified and redesign for better performance if needed. A process known as
measuring its effectiveness. Several questions which are to be answered e.g. was the campaign
successful, why it not successful was what the reasons for not attaining the objectives were.
II PERSONAL SELLING
This is personal presentation by the firm’s sales force for the purpose of making sales and
uncovers and satisfy the needs of a customer to the mutual benefits of both. As against advert, PS
carries the messages to the prospect directly, its more effective way of persuading people. A key
disadvantage is that it is costly and customers are dealt with one at a time. Which is differently
from advert where millions of people see the same advert, also, advert is mass selling, not PS
24
i. Order getting
Most often, no two salespeople use exactly the same selling methods, but many move through a
A. Prospecting: the first element in the selling process is developing a database of potential
customers or prospecting.
i. a sales person seeks the names of prospects from several sources, including company
ii. After developing the prospect list, a salesperson evaluates prospects to determine if they
information about each prospect’s specific product’s needs, current use of brands, feelings
about brands and personal characteristics. The most successful salespeople are thorough in
their ‘pre-approach’ which involves identifying key decision makers, reviewing account
histories and problems. The more information about a prospect a salesperson has, the more
equipped he/she is to develop a presentation that will precisely communicate with the
prospect.
C. Approach: the manner in which a salesperson contacts a potential customer is a critical step
in the sale process because the prospect’s first impression of the salesperson may be a lasting
one with long term consequence. During the initial visit, the salesperson should strive to
25
develop a relationship rather than just push a product- it may take multiple visits before a
sales is made.
In the sales approach is inappropriate, the salesperson efforts are Kiley to have poor
results.
Types of approaches
b. In the cold canvas technique, the salesperson calls on potential customers without their
prior consenting the repeat contact approach, the salesperson mentions a prior meeting Type of
approach used depends on the salesperson’s preferences. The product being sold etc.
i. During the sales presentation, the salesperson must attract and hold the prospects
ii. Sales people should match their influencing tactics to their prospects
iii. During the presentation, the salesperson must not only talk but also listen to gain info.
E. OVERCOMING OBJECTIONS
and counter them before the prospect has an opportunity to raise them; however this
approach can be risky because the salesperson may mention some objections the
26
ii. If possible, the salesperson should handle objections to answer them because these
F. Closing the sale: this stage in the selling process when the salesperson asks the prospect to
I. During the presentation, the salesperson may use a ‘trail close” by asking questions
II. A salesperson should attempt to close at several points during the presentation
because the prospect could be ready to buy. An attempt to close often serves as an
G Following up
1. If attempts to close the sales are successful, the sales person must follow up the sale.
2. In the follow-up stage, the salespersons should determine if the order was delivered on time and
was properly installed, should learn where the customer has problems or questions about the
Personal selling has become an increasingly complex process due to rapid technological
innovation
A. Team selling: this involves the salesperson joining with people from the firm’s financial,
engineering and other functional areas. This is appropriate for expensive, complex high-tech
business products. These products are so complex that a single salesperson might not be expert in
B. Relationship selling: also known as consultative selling, involves building mutually long-term
associations with a customer through regular communications over prolong periods of time. It is
27
especially used in business-to-business marketing and can be enhanced throughout technology
Effective sales force management is an important determinant of a firm’s success, because the
Salesforce is directly responsible for generating an organisation’s primary inputs i.e. revenue.
Affirms reputation is often determined by the ethical behaviour of its sales force making a
1. Sales objectives tell salespeople what they are expected to accomplish during a specified period.
2. Sales objectives should be stated in precise, measurable terms and be specific about the time
3. Sales objectives are usually established for both the total sales force and each individual
salesperson
i. Sales managers usually try to create territories that allow sales potential to be measured
ii. sales territories are often selected because they have similar sale performance or require
iii. Territories with equal n sales potential usually will be unequal in geographic size his
cause s salespeople with larger territories to work harder and longer to generate a specific
sale volume.
iv. Territories which require equal amount s of work will cause salespeople who are totally or
28
iv. A territory’s size and shape should also help the sales force provide the best possible
Sale promotions
Sale promotion is demand –stimulating devices designed to supplement advertising and facilitate
personal selling. In order words, sales promotion signifies all those activities that supplement,
coordinate and make the efforts of personal and advertising more effective. Whereas advert
offers reasons to buy a product/service, sales promo offers reasons to buy now. Sales promotion
consists of short –term incentives to encourage purchase or sale of a product or service. Personal
selling and advert often work closely with sale promotion. It is nonrecurring, meaning it can be
used continuously.
Sales promotion efforts are directed at final consumers and designed to motivate, persuade and
remind them of the goods and services that are offered. Sale persons adopt several techniques for
sales promotion. Its marketing manager’s responsibility to specify promotion objectives and
policies.
Sales promotion tools vary in their specific objectives. A free sample stimulates consumer trial,
while a free management advisory service cements a long-term relationship with a retailer.
Intense competition among diff. companies puts tremendous pressure on the promotional
programme of sellers. Sellers bombard the market place with hundreds of messages every day
with the hope of attracting new customers and establishing markets for new products. Given the
intense competition, even an established firm must constantly remind people about its brand to
29
i. To induce buyers to purchase a new product, free samples may be distributed
ii. New customers may be attracted through issue of free samples, premiums etc.
iii. Present customers may be induced to buy more by knowing more about a product, its
uses etc.
v. Buyers may be encouraged to use the product in off-seasons by showing them the variety
vi. Retailers may be induced to keep in stock more units of a product so that more sales can
be effected.
Are derived from broader promotion objectives, the specific objectives set sales promotion will
For consumers, objectives include encouraging purchase of larger-size units, building trails
For retailers, objectives include inducing retailers to carry new items, encouraging off-season
For sales force, objectives include encouraging support of a new product, more prospecting and
i. Samples- are offers of free amount6 of a product to consumers. Sampling is the most
30
ii. Coupons: are certificates entitling the bearer to a stated saving on the purchase of a
specific product. Coupons can be effective in stimulating sales of a mature brand and
iii. Cash refunds or rebates; these are like coupons except that the price reduction occurs
after the purchase rather than at the retail shop. The consumer sends a specified ‘proof of
purchase” to the manufacturer, who in turn’ refunds’ part of the purchase price
iv. Price packs: these are offers to consumers of savings-off the regular price of a product.
They may take the form of a reduced price pack which is single package sola at a reduced
price( such as two for the price of one) or a banded pack, which is two related products
banded together( such as tooth brush and tooth paste). Price packs are very effective in
v. Premiums or gifts: these are merchandise offered at a relatively low cost or free as an
vi. Prizes: are offers to of the chance to win cash, trips as a result of purchasing something.
Sale promotion strategy is an important element in the overall strategy. It involves identification
1. Objective: he should determine what is to be accomplished and what kind of buyer responses
are desired, should be objective oriented. The sales manager should inform consumers about
his product and should highlight its special features, not only to inform, but persuade them to
buy.it.
31
2. Communication. Sales Promotion should attract the attention of the target audience. If prices,
discounts, off-season facilities etc. are not adequately and effectively communicated, the effort
of SP would be wasted. The overall marketing objectives define the role of communication in
sales promotion. Identifying the target audience is the main task of a SP communication. The
audience response to the message source helps to determine the effectiveness of the message.
3. Medium of reach: SP may adopt diff. methods for approaching people. Strategic variables
are taken into account while deciding on a particular method of sales promotion.
Consumer promotion has been considered a very effective mode of sales promo; potential
consumes are offered samples, coupons etc. to promote sales. A showroom display makes
it easy for prospective buyers to familiarize themselves with the different features of the
product
4. Budget a difficult marketing decisions facing companies. The resources and sales
Affordable method- many companies stet promotion budget at what they think the
Completive` parity method: some companies set their promotion budget to achieve share-
32
Objective and task method: here marketers develop their promotion budgets by defining
their specific objectives, the tasks that must be performed to achieve these objectives and
Packaging: is another important form of promotion. This may carry selling messages and
information about the product. A good package design attracts the customer’s attention away
from other products. A proper blend of colour, design and shape. Packaging is meant for
serving vital purpose eg protect the product. Two main role of packaging are functional and
goods, the consumption role brings messages from producer to consumers that influence the
Purpose of packaging
Physical protection
Barrier protection
Containment or agglomeration
Information transmission
Marketing etc.
Packaging types
Primary packaging
Secondary
Tertiary
PUBLIC RELATIONS
Public relations is the deliberate planned and sustained effort to establish and maintain
mutual understanding between an organisation and its public. I.e. everything involved in
33
achieving a favourable opinion. A distinctive management function which helps establish and
Investing in public relations will help the organisation to achieve its objectives effectively
and smoothly. PR is not creating good image for a bad team, since false image cannot be
sustained for a long time. Though even if the organisation’s product is good, it need an
effective PR campaign for attracting, motivating the public to the product. It not only
encourages the involvement from the public and also resulting in better image.
nation. At the time of adverse publicity or even when the organisation is under crisis, an
effective PR can remove the “misunderstanding” and can create mutual understanding
Functions of PR
Analyses the public perception and attitude, identifies the organisation policy with public
interest.
Elements of PR
An organisation’s policies, procedures and actions as they relate to said org’s publics
Steps taken to ensure that said policies, procedures and actions are in the public interest
34
Development of rapport, goodwill, understanding and acceptance as the chief end result
PUBLIC
Relations
Propaganda
Campaigns
Lobbying
Promotional opportunity
Controversy
Adverse publicity
Catastrophe
Crisis etc.
Image Building
Image is the mental perceptions of the person related to an object, product service, individual or
organisation. The image need not necessarily be true and image is only an indication about how a
person perceived by others. Some organisation enjoys from favourable image, where some do
not. The image is beneficial for organisations for achieving their objective. There are many
35
The image building exercise start with understanding the present image and to chalk out the
desired image and to channel all the public relations towards it. The PR dept can gather
Sponsorships
or other resources that is of value to the sponsored event” tis is usually in return for advert space
Trade fairs and exhibitions shows are the integral element of the marketing communication mix
meant for meeting friends, customers, competitors, suppliers etc. the participating organisations
benefit from developing relationships, demonstrating products etc. an exhibition, in the most
exhibitions usually occur within museums, galleries and exhibition halls and fairs. Exhibition
rang from an extraordinarily large event such as a world fair exposition to small one-artist solo
show or display.
The manufacturer (marketer) provides many materials for display in the retail outlets that induce
customers visiting the shop. The attractive display of packages, hangings and standouts at retails
shop influence the customers to buy a product or service. A point of sales display is a specialized
form of sales promotion that is found near or next to a checkout counter (the point of sale). It is
intended to draw the customer’s attraction to products which may be new products or on special
offer and is also used to promote special events. POS includes displays and demonstration that
36
take place at the point of sale. Different varieties of products and services addressing varying
consumer needs are presented in an increasingly competitive market place, going beyond the
traditional efficacy claims of the lower spectra of the Maslow’s needs hierarchy.
37