RoIe of Advertising in Marketing Mix

BY: YOGN VORA ON AUGUST 6, 2010 NO COMMENT

MurkeLIng mIx consIsL oI Iour ImporLunL vurIubIes oI murkeLIng, I.e. qPs-ProducL, PrIce, PromoLIon und PIuce. ApurL Irom LIe
LrudILIonuI qPs, LIere ure uIso oLIer vurIubIes, I.e. PuckugIng, PosLIng, und Puce.
AdverLIsIng Is un eIemenL oI promoLIon. However, IL noL onIy ussIsLs In promoLIng LIe producL, buL uIso uIIecLs LIe oLIer
vurIubIes oI murkeLIng mIx. TIIs cun be expIuIned us IoIIows:
1. Advertising und Prodoct: A producL Is normuIIy u seL oI pIysIcuI eIemenLs, sucI us quuIILy, sIupe, sIze, coIour und oLIer
IeuLures. TIe producL muy be oI very IIgI quuIILy .AL LImes, LIe producL Is so desIgned LIuL IL requIres cureIuI IundIIng und
operuLIons. Buyers musL be InIormed und educuLed on LIe vurIous uspecLs oI LIe producL. TIIs cun be eIIecLIveIy done LIrougI
udverLIsIng. TIus, udverLIsIng pIuys LIe role oI inIormution und edocution.
. Advertising und Price: TIe prIce Is LIe excIunge vuIue oI LIe producL. A murkeLer muy brIng ouL u very IIgI quuIILy
producL wILI uddILIonuI IeuLures us compured Lo compeLILors. n sucI u cuse, prIce wouId be deIInILeIy IIgI. BuL buyers muy
noL be wIIIIng Lo puy u IIgI prIce wouId be deIInILeIy IIgI. BuL buyers muy noL be wIIIIng Lo puy u IIgI prIce. Here comes
udverLIsIng. AdverLIsIng cun convInce buyers regurdIng LIe superIorILy oI LIe brund und LIus ILs vuIue Ior money. TIIs cun be
done by ussocIuLIng LIe producL wILI presLIgIous peopIe, sILuuLIons, or evenLs. AILernuLIveIy wIen u IIrm oIIers u Iow prIce
producLs LIe job oI udverLIsIng needs Lo sLress LIe prIce udvunLuge by usIng Iurd IILLIng copy. L Is noL jusL enougI Lo
convInce, buL IL Is desIrubIe Lo persuude LIe buyer. TIus udverLIsIng pIuys LIe role of conoiction ond persuosion.
. Advertising und Pluce: PIuce reIers Lo pIysIcuI dIsLrIbuLIon und LIe sLores wIere LIe goods ure
uvuIIubIe MurkeLer sIouId see Lo IL LIuL LIe goods ure uvuIIubIe uL LIe convenIenL pIuce und LIuL Loo uL LIe rIgIL LIme wIen LIe
buyers need IL. To IucIIILuLe eIIecLIve dIsLrIbuLIon und expunsIon oI murkeL, udverLIsIng Is oI greuL sIgnIIIcunce. TIus
udverLIsIng do IeIp In effectioe distribution ond morket exponsion.
. Advertising und Promotion: PromoLIon consIsLs oI udverLIsIng, pubIIcILy, personuI seIIIng und suIes promoLIon
LecInIque. BusInessmen Loduy Iuve Lo Iuce u IoL oI compeLILIon. Every seIIer needs eIIecLIve promoLIon Lo survIve und succeed
In LIIs compeLILIve busIness worId. AdverLIsIng cun pIuy u sIgnIIIcunL roIe Lo puL Iorwurd LIe cIuIm oI seIIer, und Lo counLer
LIe cIuIms oI compeLILor. TIrougI eIIecLIve udverLIsIng, seIIers cun Iuce compeLILIon und uIso IeIp Lodeoelop brond imoge
ond brond logoltg.
. Advertising und Puce: Puce reIers Lo LIe speed In murkeLIng decIsIons und ucLIons. L InvoIves umong oLIer LIIngs LIe
IuuncI oI new producLs or brund vurIuLIons uL greuLer speed LIun beIore. As und wIen new brunds ure IuuncIed, udverLIsIng
pIuys un ImporLunL role of informing, educoting ond persuoding the customers to bug the product.
. Advertising und Puckuging: TIe muIn purpose oI puckugIng Is proLecLIon oI LIe producL durIng LrunsIL, und
preservuLIon oI quuIILy und quunLILy. Now u uCduys, murkeLers Luke IoL oI eIIorLs Lo deveIop und desIgn uLLrucLIve puckuges us
LIey curry udverLIsIng vuIue. A creuLIveIy desIgn puckuge uLLrucL LIe uLLenLIon oI LIe cusLomers. L uIso currIes on ossuronce
of guolitg ond creotes confidence in the minds of customers to bug the product.
. Advertising und Positioning: ProducL posILIonIng uIms uL creuLIng und muInLuInIng u dIsLIncL Imuge oI LIe brunds In
LIe mInds oI LIe cusLomers. TIrougI udverLIsIng LIe murkeLer cun convey LIe posILIonIng oI LIe brund und uccordIngIy cun
InIIuence LIe buyIng decIsIon oI LIe LurgeL uudIence.

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 how who the customer is, how to
contact the consumer 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:
O $egmentation - dividing the marketing into distinct groups
O %argeting - deciding which of these groups to communicate with, and how to talk to them
O !ositioning - how the product or brand should be perceived by the target groups
O essaging - 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 to 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:
O Sales analysis and buying patterns
O Questionnaires
O Desk research
O Website statistics, especially social media
O Focus groups
O Face-to-face interviews
O Specialist market research companies
Once you have built up an accurate picture of your customer, it's time to get their attention.
. 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?
methods of marketing communications
O Blogging
O Mobile phone promotions using technology such as bluetooth
O YouTube
O E-commerce
Advertising is just one element of the marketing communication arsenal, which can be divided into
the following areas:
dvertising - a mass media approach to promotion
O Outdoor
O Business directories
O Magazines / newspapers
O TV / cinema
O Radio
O Newsagent windows
$ales promotion - price / money related communications
O Coupons
O Discounts
O Competitions
O Loyalty incentives
!ublic relations - using the press to your advantage
O Press launches
O PR events
O Press releases
!ersonal selling - one to one communication with a potential buyer
O Salesmen
O Experiential marketing
O Dealer or showroom sales activities
O Exhibitions
O Trade shows
irect marketing - taking the message directly to the consumer
O Mail order catalogues
O Bulk mail
O Personalised letters
O Email
O Telemarketing
O Point of sale displays
O Packaging design
igital marketing - new channels are emerging constantly
O Company websites
O Social media applications such as Facebook or Twitter
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.
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:
O Inform - raising awareness of your brand & products, establishing a competitive advantage
O Persuade - generating an instant response (usually driving sales)
O 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.