Promotional Mix and Integrated Marketing Communications

The Promotional Mix

• The promotional mix includes:
  • Advertising
  • Personal selling
  • Sales promotion
  • Public relations
  • Direct marketing
  • Events/experiences

Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC)

• IMC involves consistent and unified messaging.
• It is customer-focused, carefully coordinating all promotional messages.
• The goal is to assure consistency at every touchpoint between a company and the consumer.

Snickers' IMC Example

• Snickers uses various platforms like YouTube and social media (e.g., Facebook, Twitter) to promote its brand.
• The central theme is "You're not you when you're hungry."
• They use hashtags like #EatASNICKERS.

Marketing Communication Process

• Source: The sender of the message.
• Encoding: The way a sender encodes a marketing idea and conveys it through a message and medium.
• Communications channel: The medium through which the message is sent.
• Message: The information being conveyed.
• Decoding: How the receiver interprets the message.
• Receiver: The target audience.
• Feedback: The response from the receiver.
• Noise: Interference in the communication process.

AIDA Concept

• A model outlining the process for achieving promotional goals.
• Stages of consumer involvement include:
  • Attention (Cognitive - thinking)
  • Interest (Affective - feeling)
  • Desire (Affective - feeling)
  • Action (Conative - doing)

Relation of Promotional Tools to AIDA Stages

• Awareness: Advertising, Public Relations
• Interest: Advertising, Public Relations, Personal Selling
• Desire: Personal Selling, Sales Promotions
• Action: Personal Selling, Sales Promotions

Goals and Tasks of Promotion

• Informing
  • Relevant during the introduction and early growth stages of the PLC (Product Life Cycle).
• Reminding
  • Relevant during the growth and maturity stages of the PLC.
• Persuading
  • Relevant during the maturity stage of the PLC.

Informative Promotion

• Goals include:
  • Increase awareness
  • Explain how the product works
  • Suggest new uses
  • Build company image

Persuasive Promotion

• Goals include:
  • Encourage brand switching
  • Change customers’ perceptions of product attributes
  • Influence immediate buying decisions
  • Persuade customers to call

Reminder Promotion

• Goals include:
  • Remind customers that the product may be needed
  • Remind customers where to buy the product
  • Maintain customer awareness