THE PROMOTIONAL MIX

A company’s total promotion mix also called its marketing communications mix; consists of 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 customer relationships.

THE FIVE MAJOR PROMOTION TOOLS

The Nature of each Promotion Tool

ADVERTISING

Each promotion tool has unique characteristics and costs. Marketers must understand these characteristics in shaping the promotion mix.

Advertising: Any paid form of nonpersonal presentation and promotion of ideas, goods, or services by an identified sponsor. For example, advertising includes broadcast, print, Internet, mobile, outdoor, and other forms.

Advertising Objectives

The first step is to set advertising objectives. These objectives should be based on past decisions about the target market, positioning and marketing mix, which define the job that advertising must do in the total marketing program.

An advertising objective is a specific communication task to be accomplished with a specific target audience during a specific period of time. Advertising objectives can be classified by primary purpose – whether the aim is to inform, persuade or remind.

Informative advertising – this advertising is used to inform consumer about a new product or feature or to build primary demand.

Persuasive advertising – this type of advertising is used to build selective demand for a brand by persuading consumers that it offers the best quality for their money. Some persuasive advertising has comparative advertising

Comparative advertising – this is advertising that company directly or indirectly compares its brand with one or more brands.

Reminder advertising – this type of advertising is used to keep consumers thinking about a product. This