8. Promotion: Integrated Marketing Communications

Question 1

Briefly describe FOUR major Consumer Sales (B2C) promotion tools (4 marks)

Answer 1

Mass communication - e.g. TV advertising
+ Good reach but expensive

Sales promotion
+ encourages trial

PR
+ helps create brand awareness/image

Direct marketing - mail shots
+ personalise approach, good control
- may be seen as junk mail

Question 2

(b) Briefly describe TWO major Trade Sales (B2B) promotion tools (2 marks)

Answer 2

Personal sales representative
+ allows tailoring to business needs

PR
+ trustworthy brand image

SEO - search engine optimization - increasing visibility of website through search engines

Question 3

Advertising

Answer 3

non-personal, mass communication

Question 4

Personal selling

Answer 4

face-to-face tailored selling

Question 5

sales promotion

Answer 5

tactical, short-term incentives that encourage a target audience to behave in a certain way

Question 6

Public relations

Answer 6

creating and maintaining good relationships with many interested groups, not just the customers (media, shareholders, trade unions)

Question 7

Direct marketing

Answer 7

creating one-to-one relationships with individual customers in mass markets e.g. mailings, telephone selling.

Question 8

What are the five elements of the promotional mix

Answer 8

Advertising
Personal selling
Sales promotion
PR
Direct marketing

The marketer makes the most of its finite resources by carefully selecting the promotional techniques that communicates the brand/product in the most effective way and integrating them

Question 9

Characteristics of B2C markets and implications for communication

Answer 9

Mass, aggregated markets
-> mass communication is most cost efficient and effective e.g. tv advertising

Standardised products
-> impersonal channels convey standard message

Low-risk, low-value, frequent purchases
-> intangible benefits emphasised, incentives

Short-time scale, impulse buying often as family unit
-> need to understand buying process

Question 10

Characteristics of B2B and implications for communication

Answer 10

Fewer, identifiable customers
-> personal communication

Complex products, tailored
-> lengthy buyer-seller relationship, personal selling

High value, high risk, infrequent purchases
-> a lot of information needed, product performance, finance

Rational decision-making process with a buyer-centre making decisions
-> Need to understand the buying centre and the best ways to communicate message

Question 11

What is integrated marketing communication?

Answer 11

Integrated marketing communications
is a process which involves the management and organisation of all agents in the analysis, planning, implementation and control of all marketing communications contacts, media, messages and promotional tools focused at selected target audiences.

Question 12

How does the buyer-readiness of the target market affect marketing communication?

Answer 12

Awareness
Interest
Desire
Action

Strong’s theory of communication:

Cognitive - sowing seeds through communication
Increase brand awareness and product knowledge

Affective - changing/influencing behaviour
Encourage linking of need to product/brand

Behaviour - enabling the consumer to buy in the most convenient way for them
Stimulate search behaviour
Encourage trial/ re-purchase

The ‘weak’ theory (Jones 1991) describes the cycle for low involvement goods such as FMCG
Awareness => Trial and then reinforcement
So straight from cognitive -> behaviour then working on the affective stage to ensure future custom

Question 13

How does the PLC affect the approach to communication?

Answer 13

Introduction

• high expenditure
• sales promotion
• viral marketing e.g. social media

Growth

• maintenance of differential advantage
• loyalty-building

Maturity

• Brand image
• mass advertising

Decline

• little marketing
• resources diverting to developing new product

Question 14

Example of Walkers adapting to PLC and environmental trends

Answer 14

Walkers is UK’s biggest crisp brand

• Publicity over the last 10 years of obesity crisis, unhealthy lifestyles
• October 2004 - walkers crisp sales down 1.9%

What did walkers do?

• food scientists worked to reduce the saturated fat content by 11%
• During 2004, there was a promotional campaign that gave free walk-o-meters to encourage healthy lifestyle
• Developed new, healthier bagged snacks
• > walkers lites
• > walkers baked