1. List the importance of advertising and sales promotion.

Advertising is indeed an indispensable component of the modern market economy, and perhaps always was an integral part of any commercial transaction. The loud and shrill voice of the street hawker, the temple priest announcing the next festival, the village marriage broker going from house to house presenting the eligible young boys and girls in her care, was all selling their products and services as effectively as the highly seductive television commercials do today. It is a complex mechanism to understand completely in its totality, but probably not difficult to learn how it works. In simple terms, advertising is a persuasive communication to change or reinforce ones prior attitudes that are predictable of future behavior. We are not born with the attitudes we hold towards various objects in our environment. Rather, we acquire our attitudes and notions in our early childhood from our parents and environment. We then learn our feelings of likes and dislikes through information about the attitude objects (e.g., advertising), or direct experience with them (e.g., tasting a new brand of beer), or some combination of the two. Attitudes are not observable behavior but rather invisible, internal reactions. Once a certain type of attitudes about an object is formed and repeatedly reinforced, it is stored in consumers mind as a form of either explicit or implicit memory. Later those episodes leading to attitudes are retrieved automatically or strategically, quite often unaware and unconscious, at the time of decision making, which generate certain types of reactions. 1.1.2 How advertising works Since attitudes have traditionally been viewed as evaluations that are stored in memory and persist over time, the constructs of memory and attitude are extremely valuable to understand how advertising works. The underlying mechanisms of forming attitude and memory and a framework of "how advertising works" is shown in Figure 1.1, which starts from how consumers perceive advertising stimuli to the very last step of the impact of advertising on consumers behavior.

1.2 Defining Advertising Advertising is such a dynamic and many faceted entities that communication professionals and targets alike had been struggling to define it in understandable yet precise and brief terms for at least a century, just to get a grip on the process itself, with varying success. Advertising is defined in Webster's dictionary "as the action of calling something to the attention of the public especially by paid announcements, to call public attention by emphasizing desirable qualities so as to arouse a desire to buy or patronize: promote." Advertising is a mass media communication. For a piece of communication to be classified as advertising it must be: Paid for Delivered to an audience via mass media Attempt to persuade. In order to persuade or be effective the advertisement must communicate to the audience the message it wants to relay. If for example, the advertisement is trying to sell a particular product then it must persuade the audience that for whatever functional or emotional reason they need or want to purchase the product it is not even the best choice. It is the only choice. Not only must the advertisement effectively communicate the desired message, but also the individual audience must be willing to "buy into" the desired message. For the advertisement to be effective, the communication must be sent and received in a two way communication process.

Advertising is a non-personal form of marketing communication that is delivered through selected media outlets that, under most circumstances, require the marketer to pay for message placement. Advertising has long been viewed as a method of mass promotion in that a single message can reach an unimaginably large number of people, as is in the case of Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG). But, this mass promotion approach presents problems since many exposed to an advertising message may not be within the marketers target group and not even interested in the product category itself and thus, may be an inefficient use of promotional funds. 1.2.1 Targeted advertising However, this is changing as new advertising technologies and the emergence of new media outlets offer more options for targeted advertising. Niche marketing and narrowcasting of advertising messages through a number of innovative and imaginative communication routes are used now, due to the explosion of niche media and delivery methods that reach the targets with unerring focus. Now there are special interest magazines, blog sites, websites, radio channels and others which are as narrowly defined as the consumers who seek information. There are specialty magazines on weddings, bridal cutouts, (it is accepted that there are over six billion people in the world and still growing, most of whom will marry. But each customer ordinarily gets married only once in a lifetime and is thus a limited and temporary individual market as far as the magazine publisher is concerned. Therefore no long term consumer loyalty and sustained subscription are even planned for pets neatly segmented into cats, dogs, birds, so on, healthcare (divided into specific organs for ready access of real or potential patients, like cardiac or renal care), yachting, a whole industry of parenting magazines, car and household appliances maintenance, gardening, to textile and related machinery (at one time there were 89 publications on this alone). The bottom line is that a product can be advertised through these special media and delivered in the hands of existing or potential customers with deadly accuracy.

Just like advertising, sales promotion is also a vital part of the marketing mix and all those elements pull together to make a successful sale. Effective sales promotion increases the basic value of a product for a limited time and directly stimulates consumer purchasing, selling effectiveness or the effort of the sales force. In addition, sales promotion can be an effective tool in a highly competitive market, when the objective is to convince retailers to carry a product or influence consumers to select it over those of competitors. Sales promotion has grown substantially in recent years. The emergence of computer technology has enabled manufacturers to get rapid feedback on the results of sales promotion.

Meaning of Sales Promotion Sales promotion refers to activities, materials, devices and techniques which are used to supplement the marketing and advertising operations and help to coordinate the advertising with personal selling efforts. Sweepstakes are the most well-known sales promotion tools, but there are also others like samples, in-store displays, coupons, promotional discounts, contests, trade shows, price-off deals, premiums, rebates and gift offers. Depending on the product and need of the brand at the moment, these tools are combines to sell a product or service. The American Marketing Association defines sales promotion as media and non-media marketing pressure applied to a pre-determined, limited period of time in order to stimulate trial, increase consumer demand or improve product quality. Sales promotion also increases the basic value of a product for a limited time and directly stimulates sale, selling effectiveness or the effort of the sales force. It is often used to inform, persuade, and remind target consumers about the business and its marketing mix. Businesses can target sales promotion at three levels consumers, resellers and the companys own sales force. Sales promotion is a competitive weapon which offers an extra incentive for the target to purchase one brand over another. It is particularly effective in triggering product trial and unplanned impulse purchase. Most marketers believe that a given product or service has a perceived price or value, and they use sales promotion to change this price/value relationship by increasing the value and/or lowering the price. Compared to the other components of the marketing mix, such as advertising, publicity, personal selling, sales promotion usually operates on a shorter time line, uses a more rational appeal, returns a tangible or real value, fosters an immediate sale and increases profitability. To determine the worth of a sales promotion, especially a small business should keep in mind its overall budget, stage of the product life cycle, the nature and intensity of competition in the market, the target of the promotion Advertising Management and Sales Promotion and the nature of the product. For instance, sales promotion and Direct Mail are very effective when the marketing budget is limited. National sweepstakes are very expensive, but give great exposure and image build-up.

Sales promotion may be used to convince retailers to carry the brand in a competitive market, where shelf space is limited. It reinforces the loyalty of old customers for an established brand or at the growth or maturity stage of it, and ensures that they keep buying it. Sales promotion is not recommended for a product at launch stage, when mass advertising is more effective to build awareness of the product. It works beautifully for products where impulse purchase is expected, so that the customer can check the features of a simple product, rather than one which needs demonstration or trial.

2. What are the various levels of customer satisfaction? Ans:

If sales are the engine that drives your business, then customer satisfaction is the fuel. Your ability to satisfy your customers is the critical determinant of your success in driving sales and growing your business. There are four levels of customer satisfaction, all based on the degree to which you meet customer expectations. The higher the level you achieve, the more you will build customer loyalty and the greater will be your success. Meet Customer Expectations The minimum requirement to simply stay in businessto surviveis to meet the expectations of your customers. At this level, your customers have no complaints. They are satisfied for the moment. But they are not loyal. If a competitor demonstrates that it can and will do more than merely meet their expectations, your customer will very quickly become ex-customers. Moreover, if you fail to meet their expectations, perhaps only one time, they will leave and find someone else who will. It can be instructive to observe your local merchantstrue entrepreneurs. Exceed Customer Expectations This higher level of customer satisfaction is reached by surprising your customers, going beyond what they expected. Fast, friendly service, followed up by a phone call to make sure everything is all right, might put you into this category. So does a product or service that is a cut above that of your competitors. The second level of customer service moves you beyond mere survival, building a measure of customer loyalty and giving you an edge over your competitors. It can also increase your profitability. Customers who experience the kind of service that exceeds their expectations are often willing to pay for it, enabling the supplier to raise prices and thus improve profit margins. Delight Your Customers Have you ever experienced a level of service that not only exceeded your expectations, but actually brought a smile to your face? A customer served at this level is truly delighted. Not only have the customers basic needs been met, or even exceeded, but they have truly been touched on an emotional level. And once customers have enjoyed this experience, it will be very difficult for a competitor to pry them away. When you delight your customers, you are on the way to creating an exceptional and highly profitable business. There are countless cost effective ways to delight your customers. Consider the difference between first-class and coach service on most airlines. To delight your customer is to show that you care-about them. No wonder it brings a smile to their face! The greater your success in delighting your customers, the greater success you will enjoy in your business. Amaze Your Customers This fourth level of customer satisfaction is what will propel your business into the stratosphere. It requires you to, not just meet or exceed your customers expectations, nor to simply delight them, but to truly amaze them. When you are able to accomplish this on a regular basis, you will be in a position to dominate the marketplace and achieve remarkable rates of revenue growth and profitability. Examine your business. How might you amaze your customers? The only limit is your own imagination. Action Exercise What do your customers expect when they purchase your products or services?

3. Describe the importance of a plan or methodology to initiate customer responses?

Far too often, we think we know what our customers think and want because -- well, we just know, that's all. Wrong! Businesses can't be successful if they don't continue to meet the needs of their customers. Period. There should be few activities as important as finding out what your customers want for products and services and finding out what they think of yours. Fortunately, there are a variety of practical methods that businesses can use to feedback from customers. The methods you choose and how you use them depend on what the type of feedback that you want from customers, for example, to find out their needs in products and services, what they think about your products and services, etc.

Employees
Your employees are usually the people who interact the most with your customers. Ask them about products and services that customers are asking for. Ask employees about what the customers complain about.

Comment Cards
Provide brief, half-page comment cards on which they can answer basic questions such as: Were you satisfied with our services? How could we provide the perfect services? Are there any services you'd like to see that don't exist yet?

Competition
What is your competition selling? Ask people who shop there. Many people don't notice sales or major items in stores. Start coaching those around you to notice what's going on with your competition. (See Competitive Analysis.)

Customers
One of the best ways to find out what customers want is to ask them. Talk to them when they visit your facility or you visit theirs. (See Questioning and Listening.)

Documentation and Records

Notice what customers are buying and not buying from you. If you already know what customers are buying, etc., then is this written down somewhere? It should be so that you don't forget, particularly during times of stress or when trying to train personnel to help you out.

Focus Groups
Focus groups are usually 8-10 people that you gather to get their impressions of a product or service or an idea. (See Focus Groups.)

Surveys by Mail
You might hate answering these things, but plenty of people don't -- and will fill our surveys especially if they get something in return. Promise them a discount if they return the completed form to your facility. (See Survey Design.)

Telephone Surveys
Hire summer students or part-time people for a few days every six months to do telephone surveys. (See Survey Design.)

Some Major Sources of Market Research Information

Census Bureau
There is a vast amount of information available to you, and much of this is online.

Chamber of Commerce
Get to know the people in your local office. Offices usually have a wealth of information about localities, sources of networking, community resources to help your business, etc.

Department of Commerce
The Department has offices in various regions across the country and publishes a wide range of information about industries, products and services.

Ask Librarians
They love to help people. See the Directory of Associations, Sales and Marketing Management magazine, American Statistics Index (ASI), Encyclopedia Of Business Information Book, Standard & Poor's Industry Survey's and Consumer's Index.

Trade and Professional Organizations

Organizations often produce highly useful newsletters for members, along with services for networking, answering questions, etc.

Trade and Professional Publications

These have become much more useful as various trades become more specialized and their expectations are increasing for timely and useful information

4. Briefly explain the five factors that influence the level of adequate service 5. Describe the various service quality dimensions with the help of relevant examples.
6. List the differences between flexible services and standard services.