Baral Abita

Table of Contents

Abstract

Every business organization large or small, product motive or service motive, government or non government, profit motive or non profit motive need to communicate with wide range of stakeholders (Fill, 2005). The reason to communicate may be to get materials and service, understand business or to co-operate with each other with in an organization. For communicating well, companies have to use marketing tools they do this through the communication mix (advertising, sales promotion, personal selling, public relation and direct marketing). Each of these tools plays a significant role while communicating with consumer. Marketers have to make a wise decision while choosing communication mix to communicate and consider the changes that are happen in media. Furthermore companies have to be proactive and consider the change in buyer behaviour.

Introduction

Building excellent customer relationships requires more than making a good product, pricing it effectively and making it available to target customers. (Kotler, Armstrong, Wong, Saunders, 2008) posits, companies should communicate their significance proposals to customers, and should not be left to chance what they communicate. Excellent communication plays a key role in building and continuing of good relation with customer; building a profitable consumer relationship is essential component of the company’s in which it have to focus on. (Kotler et al, 2008)

A business has to communicate not only with consumer but also with intermediaries and variety of public. The intermediaries communicate with their consumers and publics. In the meantime, each group gives comment to each individual group. Therefore, the business has to handle multifaceted marketing communication system (Kotler et al, 2008).

What is communication mix?

Promotion or communication mix is the combination and types of personal and non personal communication that an organization uses to influentially communicate with consumer and build good relationship with them (Lamb, 2008). There are five elements of communication mix; among them advertisement, sales promotion, direct marketing and public relation are impersonal and personal selling is personal.

Fig 1: Element of promotion mix

To communicate well, organizations often employ advertising departments to develop the advertising, sales promotion experts to plan sales encouragement programmes, direct marketing experts to widen database and network with consumers and projection and public relationships firm to expand cooperate images. They guide their sales people to be friendly, helpful and persuasive. (Kotler et al, 2008) assumes that for most of the organizations, the question is not whether to communicate or not; but is how much to spend and in what ways. All attempts for communication should unify into a reliable and corresponding communication programs (Kotler et al, 2008).

Fig. 2 Process of communication

Role of Promotion mix

Lamb, 2008 states that few goods and services, no matter how well developed, priced or distributed, cannot survive in the market place without effective promotion-communicated by the marketer that inform, persuades and reminds potential buyer of the products in order to influence their opinion or elicit a response. At the same time, marketer critics argue that promotion raise the price to be higher than they would be under more ‘sensible’ market (Kotler et al, 2008). For example: differentiated products- cosmetics, detergents, toiletries- consist of promotion and package cost that can amount to 40% or more prices to retailer.

According to (Peter, 2004) overall role of marketing mix are:

Informing: When a company have to introduce a new product in a market, marker used marketing communication mix to inform about the product in the market. Communication mix explain how to product work, suggest new user for a product. For example: Philip’s advertisement for Magnavox flat screen television showed that young, urban consumers trying the flat TV all over the house, including the ceiling. The ad focuses on how to use rather than its technology. (Lamb, 2008)

Persuading: Communication mix build a selective demand encourage the brand by persuading consumer that it offer the best quality for money. For example: after establishing the Sony DVD in market, it began to persuade its consumer that the brand offers the best quality their money which they spend. (Kotler et al, 2008)

Reminding: Communications mix maintains a customer relationship and keep consumers thinking about product. For Example a Nike television ad in which well recognized athletes ‘just do it’ never directly ask for sales, but remind the consumer about the product or brand. (Kotler et al, 2008)

Advertising:

Adverting is a paid form of non personal communication about an organization, its products, services or its activities that is transmitted through mass medium to a target audience.(Koekemoer, 2004) Advertising generally engage mass media such as newspapers, magazines, television, radio, and also include computerized form of communication such as web blogs, CDs, DVDs, etc ( Kurlz, 2008).

The characteristic of advertising are: it is efficient for reaching many buyers simultaneously; efficient way to create a brand loyalty; flexibility in nature; impersonal communication; variety of media to choose. (Peter, 2004)

Role of Adverting:

According to (Saunders, 2008) and (Guinn, 2008) the role of advertisement:

Advertising reach masses of geographically dispersed buyer at a low cost per exposure.

Advertising alter optimistic message about product, company, supplier, size, popularly and success.

· Advertising allow the business to dramatise its goods all the way through crafty use of visuals, print, sound and shade.

· Advertising play a significant task in brand development.

· Advertising can be used to make up a long term image for a product ( such as Mercedes- Benz cars Ads)

· Advertising prompts rapid sales.

· Advertising help the firm to implement market segment, differentiation and positioning.

Despite good advantage advertising have some weakness it reaches to many people who are not potential buyer; subject of too much criticism; people tend to screen out advertisement; and total cost may be high (Peter & Donnelly, 2004).

Sales promotion:

Sales promotion is an activity or a material that offers customers, personnel or reseller a direct inducement for purchasing a product. These inducements which add value or incentive for the product might be in a form of a coupon, sweepstakes, refunds or display (Peter, 2004).

(Peter, 2004) states characteristics of sales promotion which are: hold up short term drops of goods, designed to stimulate require demand of the goods, successful in altering short term performance, simple to connect to other communication; impersonal communication, short term incentives (Peter & Donnelly, 2004).

Role of Sales Promotion

According to (Kotler et al, 2008) role of sales problems are:

· Draw the consumer concentration and offer information which might direct to purchase.

· Sales promotion offer powerful motivations to buy goods by providing motivation that gives extra importance to consumers.

· Sales promotion dramatise offer for goods and enhance the drooping sales.

· Sales promotions encourage and return quick response from consumer. It offers motivation to buy in mean time.

While Donney , 2004 argue sales promotion is the risk which include brand loyal customer to stock up while not influencing other, the impact of the sales promotion may be limited to short-term, it may also hurt the brand image, etc. (Peter & Donnelly, 2004)

Personal selling

Personal selling is face to face communication with prospective consumer to inform individual and influence them to buy an organization’s product. William M Pride, 2008 assume that personal selling is the most adaptable of all the promotion mix because the people who are transforming the message can adjust it to the suit of individual buyer however it is expensive method (Peter & Donnelly, 2004). Avon is an example of personal selling.

Characteristics of personal selling are: sales people can be influential and significant in making customer to buy product; personal selling have two way communications which tolerate for the question and feedback; message can be targeted to definite consumer (Peter & Donnelly, 2004).

Roles of Personal selling

According to (Kotler et al, 2008) role of personal selling are:

· Personal selling encourages all the types of relationships to bounce up, from straightforward selling relationship to individual friendships.

· Personal selling entails communication between two or more persons, so each individual can study the other’s needs and characteristics and create rapid adjustment.

Public relation

Public relation is the non personal form of communication that look to persuade the approaches, feeling and belief of the consumers, non consumers, stock holder, dealer, workforce and political bodies about the company (Pride, 2008). A popular form of the public relation which is non paid form of the non personal communication about organization and its product is transmitted through mass media in form of news story. News (press release), events, written materials, audio visual materials, speech and cooperate identity are the form of mass media in public media (Fill, 2006).

Characteristic of public relation are: cost of public relation may be low; media generated message seen as more creditable than market sponsored message; very little control over the message; impersonal communication (Peter & Donnelly, 2004).

6.1 Role of Public relation

According to (Pride, 2008) & (Kotler, et al 2009) role of public relation are

· Public relation can used to promote people, places, activities, ideas and even countries.

· Public relation gets in touch with many audiences, who stay away from salespeople and advertisements. The message gets to customers as ‘news’ rather than as a sales-directed communication.

· Public relation play up company goods.

· Public relation centre on charming the reputation of the company by making individuals conscious of the company’s brands and by creating specific image of company such as the innovativeness or reliability. For example: Meyers, a Swiss watch company that has lend watches to celebrity like Paris Hilton at the Sundance Film Festival and afterwards auctioned off the return time piece for charity, say any resulting publicity from the attempt can be value a lot as $750,000.

Direct market

Direct marketing used the direct form of the interaction with the consumers. It can take in form of the direct mail, online marketing, catalogue, telemarketing and direct response advertising. Similar to the personal selling it make consist of the interactive, dialogs between the company and consumers. For example Dell, Amazon, DHL (service motive) are doing direct marketing.

Characteristics of the direct marketing are impersonal; flexibility, target ability, measurability, accountability and privacy, promote (Wymer, 2006).

Role of direct marketing

According to (Kotler et al, 2008) role of direct market are:

· Direct marketing is an influential tool for building customer relationship.

· Direct marketing enable company to interact with the customer directly.

· Company can get regular feedback from customer. For example: Nestlé’s baby food records a database of new parents and posts them personalised parcels of gifts and give them a guidance at key phases in baby’s life. As they get in touch with more concerned consumer at the best times.

Despite a lot of advantage direct market have some drawbacks managing and maintaining up to the date database can be costly and often low customer response give response to direct marketing.

Criteria for Selecting Right communication mix

Success of the marketing plan and strategies depends largely on the design, development and execution of effective communication strategy. Developing an effective communication is a challenging task. This task requires the technical support of many creative people. In fact, an effective marketing communication is developed with a combined effort of marketing executives, creative manpower and media personnel. (Koirala, 2005), The criteria for are selecting right communication mix:

Identify the target audience: Target audience may be an individuals, groups, specific public or general public. They critically influence the communication decisions. According to (Kotler et al, 2009) the target audience can be:

· Current buyer: Current user of the product.

· Potential buyers: Have potential to buy the product in future.

· Influencers: Influence buying decision.

· Deciders: Make decision about buying product.

According to (Koirala, 2005) Effective communication can be developed through understanding of the demographic, psychographic and media graphic characteristics of the target audience. In this stage, the marketing firm needs the support of market research to conduct a detailed survey to properly develop a profile of the target audience.

Determine the communication objectives: Communication objective are desired outcomes or end result to be achieved. The marketers need to design more effective and interesting communication in order to achieved common objectives. According to (Koirala, 2005) the effectiveness of marketing communication is measured in the term of how successful it has been to meet its goal communication is measured in terms of how successful it has been to move of the following goal as prescribed in the hierarchy of communication effects model.

Hierarchy of Effective

Awareness

Knowledge

Preference

Conviction

Purchase

Fig. 4 Hierarchy model

· Brand awareness: Most marketing communications are targeted at achieving recognition and recall of the brand name by buyers. This is the most basic objectives of promotion (Koirala, 2005).

· Knowledge: The second level objective of marketing communication is to provide knowledge to the buyer about the brand’s characteristics, utilities and benefits (Koirala, 2005).

· Preference: The third level of marketing communication aims to develop a positive feeling on a brand aiming the potential buyers to have preference for the brand. (Koirala, 2005).

· Conviction: At the forth level, the marketing communication aims to develop a conviction among the buyers to purchase the brand. Such convictions are measure on buyers’ favourable purchase intention. (Koirala, 2005).

· Purchase: the final objective of the marketing communication is to make the buyers actually purchase the brand. (Kotler & Scheff, 2007).

The AIDA model

Attention

Interest

Desire

Action

Designing the message- Marketer should design the effective message to gain the attention from desired audience. The design message should obtain attention, grasp produce desire and get action (AIDA). AIDA model suggest ideal way of look and buy identify. The marketer should decide the message content and structure and format using the framework of AIDA model (Kotler et al, 2008).

Fig. 5 AIDA Model

Attention: Draw the attention of the customer.

Interest: Raise customer interest by focusing on benefits of the product.

Desire: Persuade customers about desire give confident to consumer product will satisfy their needs.

Action: Encourage the consumer to purchase the good (Koirala, 2005).

Selecting Channels: The channels are the pathways for message transmission. Effective channels should be selected to carry the message. The channel of communication should be selected in term of objectives as different media have varying effectives in meeting the various communication objectives (Koirala, 2005).

Kotler & Scheff, 2007 assumes there are varieties of communication media available to reach to the target audience, which are personnel communication and non personnel communication.

· Personnel communication: Personal communication channel are based on face to face contact, telephone or emails. Indirect personal communication includes communication through expert or communication in service marketing. For example: doctors, beautician restaurant, and opinion leaders. (Kotler & Scheff ,2007)

· Non-personnel communication: Non personal communication carry message without the personal contact or it is one way communication. Non personal communications include the Medias, events, newspaper, radio and television, blogging, etc. Most of non personal communications come from paid media. (Kotler & Scheff ,2007)

Company Philosophy: Choosing best communication mixes also depend on the company philosophy. Company philosophy refers to the company culture and beliefs, companies believe that adverting is best tool for promotion while other may believe personal selling is the best tool. For this reason the best tool for communication mix depend on company.

Skills within the company: Every company have their manpower which company good. For example some companies with well trained salesperson, can used personal selling as the promotion tool and companies with skill advertising campaign, can used advertising as the promotional tool. Depending on the skill manpower companies should choose the promotion tools (Kotler et al, 2008).

Feature of the Product: Choosing effective communication mix depend on the feature of product/ service. Some product may go well with adverting and some with other promotion tools such as sales promotion, personal selling, direct marketing and public relation. For example: For food and baggage industry advertising is best way to promote and for insurance, credit card facilities, etc personal selling is the best way to promote. And at the same for luxurious brand like Tom Ford, Paul Smith public relation may be best idea to promote.

Objective of Campaign: The communication budget is allocated to following tools of the marketing communications: advertising, personal selling, sales promotion, direct marketing and public relation (Kotler et al, 2009).

According to the objective which was determined earlier communication mix is selected. If the objective is awareness building a mixture of publicity, newspaper advertisements, displays and some informative television commercials can be very effective. If the objective is to develop consumer liking for the brand; the mixture of endorsed television advertisement magazine and electronic sign are more effective (Koirala, 2005).

Product life cycle: With the phase of product life cycle the effects of various promotion tools also differ. In introduction phase of product, advertising and sales promotion are good for creating high awareness and sales promotion is useful in reaching early trial. Personal selling effort must be used to get the trade carry to the product. In growth phase advertising and sales promotion persist to have powerful impact whereas sales promotion may not be effective tool. In mature phase, sales promotion plays a significant role relative to advertising. In this phase consumer are familiar with brand, advertising is needed to remind consumers about the product. And in decline phase public relation and personal selling are not necessary, advertising is still needed to remind and sales promotion may be effective way to continue the sales. Marketer should consider phase of product life cycle for using best promotion tool (Kotler et al, 2008).

Fig. 6 Product life cycle

Establishing Budget- Budgeting determines the ultimate limit to spend on communication. According to (Koirala, 2005) the methods for allocating communication budget can be:

· Affordable method: Budget is based on what organizations think they can afford. It is generally based on hunch. It is uncertain.

· Incremental method: A percentage is added to previous year’s expenditure.

· Percent of sales Method: Budget is set as a specified percentage of sales. This is most popular method in practice.

· Competitive parity method: Budget is based on level of competitive spending.

· Objective and task method: In this method: tasks are defined to achieve communication objective and cost are estimated to perform the tasks. (Koirala, 2005)

Change Happening in the media

The moves to segmented marketing and the unstable expansion in the information and communication technology have a remarkable impact on marketing communication. The changing pattern of communication is giving birth to new marketing communication model. The supremacy of television, radio, magazine and other mass media is failing, though they have a significant impact. Promotion mixes are adding up a broad selection of the more specialized and highly targeted media to reach the smaller customer segments with more personalized mass message. The new media scope from especially from magazines, satellites with more programmes and video games, internet catalogues, emailed and online audio sites such as podcasts, social networking sites, viral marketing (Kotler et al, 2008).

Consumers are also changing in the means they consume media. Consumer especially the young one, emerge to be turn-off from traditional media like television, radios, newspaper and other mass media. Young people spend more time online then on watching television. Many television broadcasting are steaming their channel online so that they will not reduce their customer. For example In the UK, BBC and ITV are building audience online through their .com services. (Blevins, 2005)

At the same time, mass communication is moving from internet to social networking sites like facebook, MySpace, Hi5, etc. (Ramo, 2009) assume many of the high school and college student don’t use Web anymore. They use instant messaging, SMS on cell phones, messaging in facebook and MySpace, Twitter and other tools.

This is facebook era; (Shih, 2009) each minute millions of persons are logged into the facebook and renew their status, to interact with people around the world. Companies which want to build their brand should always focus where consumers are and try to raise its number. So it is helpful to spend some time on the f social networking sites such as facebook MySpace, Hi5 etc to create loyal customers. (Shih, 2009)

Social network allows to registered user to create personal profiles and puts the blogs, video and songs, link to other users and communicate with them. Many prominent advertisers such as Toyota and Wendy’s fast food restaurant are using this site. Many more products are using sites to promote the product (Duyn & Birchall, 2006). Marmite Food Company is the first user of the facebook, which use social networking for advertising. Through facebook it has create about million fans and even create new customer. As well as, the luxurious brand like Ferrari which never used advertisement as communication, are using facebook for advertising

Barack Obama’s 2008 president campaign used facebook, MySpace, hi5 and other social networking sites for requesting millions of the supporter and raise rally by $ 1 billion on a grass root campaign contribution. According to Pew (2008) research centre 10% of American and one third of the American under age of 30 used facebook and other social networking sites to get information about the presidential election (Shih, 2009). Then it is usual that the facebook user will used facebook to learn about the product or brand. So it is beneficial to keep the link of the product in facebook or other social networking sites for creating or building brand loyalty.

Conclusion

Promotion is one element of marketing mix. Traditional tool of marketing communication mix such as advertising, personal selling, sales promotion, direct marketing and public relation played an importance role in developing the effective plan and strategies. Not only in product but also in service marketing promotion mix play an important role. Service marketing sale their service and customer service is the main element in service marketing. Promotion tool such as advertisement, sales promotion, public relation, direct marketing and personal selling are used in service marketing also.

Consumer especially the young are moving away from traditional media. They spend more time in using YouTube, using facebook, MySpace, reading instant message, texting. And at the same, they are spending more time online shopping and online booking of flight. At the same time, changes are happening service marketing, it is moving from mass marketing to individual marketing and focus loyal customer and promote them by giving discount voucher, personal selling, direct marketing. Marketer should consider these changes happening in media and used social site, blogs and other tool according to demand of customer as a promotional tool ,whether it is product/ service organization. Furthermore, along with change of technology and pattern of the communication the company should be dynamic and flexible while communicating with the consumer. And the buyer behaviour is also changing with change in technology, therefore companies should be proactive and use aggressive channel of communication and always think of new ideas to pull consumers.

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Sunday, August 7, 2011

Introduction What is communication mix? Role of Promotion mix Advertising: Sales promotion: Personal selling Public relation Direct market Criteria for Selecting Right communication mix Change Happening in the media Conclusion