UNIT 5: Promotion Mix

What is Promotion? Promotion may be defined as “the co-ordination of all seller initiated efforts to set
up channels of information and persuasion to facilitate the sale of a good or service.” Thus, Promotion
refers to all the various ways in which a firm can communicate with its existing and potential customers
to make them aware of the goods and services it offers, and then persuade them to purchase. Promotion is
most often intended to be a supporting component in a marketing mix. Promotion decision must be
integrated and co-ordinated with the rest of the marketing mix, particularly product/brand decisions, so
that it may effectively support an entire marketing mix strategy.

Promotion is also used to explain the uses and benefits of a firm's products and to differentiate them from
competitors in the market. The tool box of promotional methods is known as the firm's Promotional Mix.

Objectives of Promotion
To Support Sales Increases

To Encourage Trial

To Create Awareness

To Inform about a Feature or Benefit

To Remind

To Reassure

To Create an Image

To Modify Attitudes

Promotional marketing performs certain functions:

 Informational education of the clients about a product/service

Your product or service may be outstanding and irreplaceable due to its competitive advantages, it can be
extremely innovational and advanced, but what’s the point in it if your customers are not aware of its
functionality? It seems useless until your clients don’t know about a product/service. Informing your
customers about your novelties is very important function of promotional marketing.

 Creating brand awareness

Your clients are to be aware of your brand. For example, when you hear «soda», you think about Coca
Cola, when you hear «search engine», you associate it with Google. It means that these brands managed
to be popular and aware of. Be creative and unusual while raising brand awareness.
  Products’ fame maintaining

Don’t be afraid to remind the customers about the importance and necessity of your product/service,
otherwise you will be forgotten. For example, nobody can forget about Coca Cola before New Year due
to the song «Holidays are coming».

 Expensive products promotion

Price of a product is no longer a key point while buying in case your product/service has a new and
advanced functionality of high quality. For example, housewives are informed that new frying pans by
Tefal are expensive, and they are still eager to buy them. Why? Because these frying pans are the first to
have a replaceable handle, and it keeps from thinking of enough place for them.

 Positive information about your company

If a product of middle-quality, has a high price, but bad reputation or perception among the clients,
neither sponsorship, nor any social projects will be helpful. Take care of hidden advertising.

Promotion consists of the following elements namely:

Advertising

Paid form of non personal communication about an organization or its products that is transmitted to a
target audience through a mass/broadcast medium.
Advertisement is a mass communicating of information intended to persuade buyers to by products with a
view to maximizing a company‟s profits. The elements of advertising are: (i) It is a mass communication
reaching a large group of consumers. (ii) It makes mass production possible. (iii) It is non-personal
communication, for it is not delivered by an actual person, nor is it addressed to a specific person. (iv) It
is a commercial communication because it is used to help assure the advertiser of a long business life with
profitable sales. (v) Advertising can be economical, for it reaches large groups of people. This keeps the
cost per message low. (vi) The communication is speedy, permitting an advertiser to speak to millions of
buyers in a matter of a few hours. (vii) Advertising is identified communication. The advertiser signs his
name to his advertisement for the purpose of publicizing his identity

Advantage

 Flexibility allows you to focus on a small, precisely defined segment (School newspapers) or a
mass market (general newspaper for the city)
 Cost efficient-reach a large number at a low cost per person, allows the message to be repeated,
and can improve public image.
 Allows for repeating the message-lets the buyer receive and compare the messages of various
competitors.
 Very expressive, allows for dramatization.
 Also used to build a long term image of a product.
 Trigger quick sales, Sears advertising a weekend sale.

Disadvantage
  Absolute Rupees outlay is very high, to make a national TV ad. Costs approx Rs10,00,000-
1,00,00,000.
 Rarely provides quick feedback, or necessarily any feedback, it’s a one way communication
 Less persuasive than personal selling
 Audience may or may not pay attention
 Indirect feedback (without interactivity)

Personal Selling

It occurs through personal communication in an exchange situation. Personal selling is where businesses
use people (the "sales force") to sell the product after meeting face-to-face with the customer. The sellers
promote the product through their attitude, appearance and specialist product knowledge. They aim to
inform and encourage the customer to buy, or at least trial the product.

 More specific communication aimed at one or more persons.

 Effective at building buyers preferences, convictions and actions.
 Cost per person is high, most expensive promotional tool.
 Greater impact on consumers
 Provides immediate feedback
 Allows marketers to adjust message quickly to improve communication.
 Buyer feels a great need to listen and respond.
 Long term commitment is needed to develop a sales force.

Sales Promotion: Sales promotion is a short term sales strategy, one level or type of marketing aimed
either at the consumer or at the distribution channel (in the form of sales-incentives). It is used to
introduce new product, clear out inventories, attract traffic, and to lift sales temporarily.

Advantages

 Increase in sales by providing extra incentive to purchase. May focus on resellers (push),
consumers (pull) or both.
 Objectives must be consistent with promotional objectives and overall company objectives.
 Balance between short term sales increase and long term need for desired reputation and brand
image.
 Attract customer traffic and maintain brand/company loyalty.
 Reminder functions-calendars, T Shirts, match books etc.
 Impulse purchases increased by displays
 Contests generate excitement esp. with high payoffs.

Limitations

 Consumers may just wait for the incentives

 May diminish image of the firm, represent decline in the product quality.
 Reduces profit margins, customers may stock up during the promotion.
 Shift focus away from the product itself to secondary factors, therefore no product differential
advantage.

Sales Promotion Methods

Consumer Sales Promotion Techniques

-encourage/stimulate customers to patronize a specific retail store or to try a specific product.

 Coupons:

Usually reduce the purchase price or offered as cash. Need to state the offer clearly and make it
easy to recognize.

Stores/marketers are honoring competitors coupons etc.

Stores often don't have enough of the couponed item in stock.

 Demonstrations:

Excellent attention getters. Labor costs are usually high.

 Frequent User Incentives:

Major airlines, helps foster customer loyalty to a specific company. Credit card companies.
Trading stamps-Co-ops back in England, foster retail loyalty.

Blockbuster's new credit card offers company products based on card usage. Cindy Crawford
"Why wait for whats coming to you" Co-Branded with immediate rewards...this is what
is veryappealing about this card...immediate reward, as opposed to having to build up points for
an air flight etc.

 Free Samples:

Stimulate trial of product. Increase sales volume at the early stage of the product life cycle and
obtain desirable distribution.
Most expensive sales promotion technique.
Not appropriate for mature products and slow turnover products.

 Money Refunds/Rebates:

Submit proof of purchase and mail specific refund, usually need multiple purchase for refund.
Helps promote trial use, due to the complexity of the refund, it has little impact.
Customers have a poor perception of rebate offered products.
Used extensively in the Auto and Computer industry.

 Premium Items:

Offered free or at minimum cost as a bonus. Used to attract competitors customers, different sizes
of established products.
Gas stations give free glasses--basics buy!! McDonalds premium items are considered collectors
items by some!
Flintstones program last year with McDonalds.
Burger King with the Lion King movie
Last summer the following tie-in premium programs.
 o Casper with Pepsi, Pizza Hut, Choice Hotels
o Congo with Taco Bell
o Batman Forever with McDonalds, Kelloggs, Six Flags, Sears
 Cents-off Offer:

Strong incentive for trying a product-very similar to coupons, but are a part of the package.

 Consumer Contests and Sweepstakes:

Consumers compete based on their analytical or creative skills. Must be accurate or you will
anger customers/retailers.
Sweepstakes are prohibited in some states.

 Allowances and Discounts:

o Merchandise...reimburse for extra retail support, i.e. advertising, shelf space
o Case...discount on cases ordered in specific period.
o Finance...Paying for financial costs/losses associated with consumer sales promo

Public Relations

 PR or publicity tries to increase positive mention of the product or brand in influential media
outlets. These could include newspapers, magazines, talk shows and new media such as social
networks and blogs. This could also mean allowing super users, or influencers to test the product
and speak positively about it to their peers. This type of advertisement may or may not be paid.
For example, sponsoring a major event and increasing brand visibility is a paid action. Sending
free samples to a blogger then depends on their discretion and opinion and is not usually swayed
by payment
 News story form about an organization or its products or both, through mass medium at no
charge.
 Sponsor does not pay (generally), may be expected/required to run advertisements in the media.
Can be positive and negative.

Integrated Marketing Communications:

The promotional function earlier in most companies was dominated by mass-media advertising.
Companies relied primarily on their advertising agencies for guidance in nearly all areas of marketing
communication. Most marketers did use additional promotional and marketing communication tools, but
sales promotion and direct-marketing agencies as well as package design firms were generally viewed as
auxiliary services and often used on a per-project basis.

IMC is mainly about coordinate and integrate all marketing communication tools, avenues, and
sources within a company into an accurate program in order to maximize the impact on target
audiences at a minimal cost. In addition, IMC is about how to use the strengths of each of those
communication tools to enhance effectiveness and reduce weakness by integrated communication
tools all together.

Many marketers built strong barriers around the various marketing and promotional functions and
planned and managed them as separate practices, with different budgets, different views of the market,
and different goals and objectives. These companies failed to recognize that the wide range of marketing
and promotional tools must be coordinated to communicate effectively and present a consistent image to
target markets.

The Evolution of IMC

During the 1980s, many companies began taking a broader perspective of marketing communication and
seeing the need for a more strategic integration of their promotional tools. The decade was characterized
by the rapid development of areas such as sales promotion, direct marketing, and public relations, which
began challenging advertising’s role as the dominant form of marketing communication. These firms
began moving toward the process of integrated marketing communications (IMC), which involves
coordinating the various promotional elements and other marketing activities that communicate with a
firm’s customers. As marketers embraced the concept of integrated marketing communications, they
began asking their ad agencies to coordinate the use of a variety of promotional tools rather than relying
primarily on media advertising. A number of companies also began to look beyond traditional advertising
agencies and use other types of promotional specialists to develop and implement various components of
their promotional plans.

Many agencies responded to the call for synergy among the promotional tools by acquiring PR, sales
promotion, and direct-marketing companies and touting themselves as IMC agencies that offer one-stop
shopping for all their clients’ promotional needs. Some agencies became involved in these non
advertising areas to gain control over their clients’ promotional programs and budgets and struggled to
offer any real value beyond creating advertising. However, the advertising industry soon recognized that
IMC was more than just a fad. Terms such as new advertising, orchestration, and seamless
communication were used to describe the concept of integration.

The integrated marketing communications approach seeks to have all of a company’s marketing and
promotional activities project a consistent, unified image to the marketplace. It calls for a centralized
messaging function so that everything a company says and does communicates a common theme and
positioning. For example, Montblanc uses classic design and a distinctive brand name as well as high
price to position its watches, pens, and other products as high-quality, high status products. This upscale
image is enhanced by the company’s strategy of distributing its products only through boutiques, jewelry
stores, and other exclusive shops including its own stores.

Reasons for the Growing Importance of IMC

A fundamental reason is that firms understand the value of strategically integrating the various
communications functions rather than having them operate autonomously. By coordinating their
marketing communications efforts, companies can avoid duplication, take advantage of synergy among
promotional tools, and develop more efficient and effective marketing communications programs.
Advocates of IMC argue that it is one of the easiest ways for a company to maximize the return on its
investment in marketing and promotion

The move to integrated marketing communications also reflects an adaptation by marketers to a changing
environment, particularly with respect to consumers, technology, and media.
For example, travelers can use American Airlines’ AA.com website to plan flights, check for special
fares, purchase tickets, and reserve seats, as well as make hotel and car-rental reservations

In addition to the decline in audience size for many media, marketers are facing the problem of consumers
being less responsive to traditional advertising. Many consumers are turned off by advertising; they are
tired of being bombarded with sales messages. This is leading many marketers to look for alternative
ways to communicate with their target audiences. For example, marketers often hire product placement
firms or negotiate directly with major studios and production companies to get their brands into movies
and television shows.

So, IMC offers the following advantages which is why marketers are increasingly turning towards IMC:

Cost saving: It is essential and cost saving for an organization to utilize the IMC. One of the core
essences of IMC is that communications processes are efficiently linked together and all the
communication tools are integrated together so that they work in synchronization. Based on this situation,
organization could achieve associated benefits with saving money, time and stress. Moreover, by
integrating communication tools all together, more opportunities could be provided to cut communication
costs. For instance, IMC can lead to a cut in numerous agencies which bring the decrease of agency fees
by using a single agency for all communications. Apart from this, IMC improves cost-effectiveness of the
overall promotional action in value terms. This has a direct and positive performance on the expense of
sales consideration, which eventually reflects well in organization's balance sheet.

Improving management efficiency: By utilizing IMC cross the organization, all relevant marketing mix
elements are connected to corporate with the desired brand positioning, strategic consistency will be
achieved. This can contribute to a positive result that a reduction in internal conflict and improved
management efficiency in different kinds of marketing department. Improved employee participation
bringing a more flexible way to manage the employee, and managers can achieve management objectives
effortlessly

Increasing brand recognition: IMC requires a change in culture and improve a customer focus. Un-
integrated communications send disjointed messages which usually decrease the impact of the brand, and
customers may be confused by disjointed messages. There is no doubt that a jointed message has more
impact than a disjointed numerous messages. IMC delivers a jointed message around customers and helps
them move through the diverse stages of the buying process. In a busy world, a consistent, enhanced and
clear message has a better chance to stand out of hundreds of commercial messages which bothered
customers every day, and customers would start to pay attention to this message whilst the brand
recognition would be increased.

Creating competitive advantage: IMC can bring an associated competitive advantage for organization
and it is supported by sound reasons. Firstly, one of the important rationales for IMC is clear positioning.
Through clear positioning, organization could seize the targeting audiences in purpose. Nowadays,
customers are confused by mass media commercial messages every day, which provided a great
opportunity for IMC implementation. Integrated communications has a clear selling point which appeals
to organization's key customers. It can lay a solid foundation for Customer's loyalty. Moreover, a joint
message can create a long-term relationship with customers, in other words, the most powerful
competitive advantage for organization is the ability to maintain a customer in long-term which could be
brought by IMC. Finally, as organizations develop expertise in IMC planning and implementation,
organizations are more likely to practice an enhanced ability to compete and respond to competitors'
marketing efforts.
Difficulties for Organization to utilize IMC

Despite IMC has many benefits for organization, integration is not easily achieved and while the
difficulties when utilizing the IMC by organization cannot be ignored. IMC are far from reality in most
companies, there are a number of barriers stop IMC being utilized efficiently and quickly

Lack of internal communications: The structure of organizations may make it difficult to integrate the
marketing communication. Some organizational structures separate communications, data and managers
from each other. For instance, marketing department usually cannot get information from Public relation
department which regularly bring on a big issue on lack of internal communication. Lack of internal
communication would cause a detrimental influence that the sales force rarely meets the advertising or
sales promotional people and so on. IMC is based on the entire internal organization make joint efforts,
and lack of internal communications extremely stop IMC being utilized. This issue is widespread in the
common organization which has a strong barrier prevent IMC being implemented.

Limitations of manager's ability: Lack of cross-disciplinary management skills is a general issue for
managers to implement the IMC. Controlling the skill need a well-trained manager who has wide
professional knowledge. The process of IMC is usually too complicated to utilized, most of managers do
not have such skills to manage IMC. Moreover, when it comes to change the actual approach to
marketing communications, managers seems to be unconcerned about it. This can be defined as ego
problem which are important barriers to IMC. The shortsighted managers are generally conventional and
unwilling to utilize the IMC; and the fear of budget control ability forces managers to resist the change.

Lack of adequate budgets: Frequently, organizations are devoid of far-sight of more strategic and long-
term values for marketing communication. Although the brand awareness has become increasingly
important over recent years, and IMC plays an irreplaceable role on building brand awareness, budgets of
utilizing IMC on long-term values of marketing communication are rarely considered an investment.
Moreover, the universal problem is that budgets are usually planned with short-term rather than long-term
and a cost rather than investment. The result is so obvious that budgets are not adequate for those needed
of the full integration of marketing communications.

Potential barrier to IMC: Interest of conflicts between organization and agencies: IMC can lead to a cut
in a number of agencies supporting a brand. On the one hand, in order to integrating the marketing
communication, organization will employ more than one independent communications consultancy which
means one of the other agencies stands to benefits from recollected budgetary source. On the other hand,
most advertising agencies still are inclined to mass media advertising rather than other forms of a
marketing communication. In practice, it appears the greatest potential conflicts between advertising and
public relations. Given that the conflicts between organization and agencies continue to exist, the IMC
still cannot be utilized well.

TYPES OF PROMOTIONAL STRATEGIES

A company may use different strategies to promote its products. These can be broadly categorized as push
and pull strategies. Both strategies differ in how the customer is approached.

Push Strategies
As the name indicates, this is when the product is taken to the customer by the company. This is mostly
used when the product is an impulse purchase or if the company has an established relationship with the
customer base. Companies may sell directly from their showrooms or at tradeshows etc. Essentially, there
is less need to create an advertising buzz and more to make the product readily available at retail outlets
and showrooms. Push marketing may focus primarily on short term sales.

Pull Strategies
In the opposite approach, there is an attempt to pull customers towards the brand or product. Through
mass media campaigns to sales promotions and personal references, a company attempts to create brand
loyalty and attractiveness. Pull strategies may attempt to focus primarily on long term brand loyalty then
high sales in the short term. A lot of media hype and mass campaigns are required to create sufficient
interest and encourage customers to seek out the product on their own.

Most companies will use a mix of these two strategies at different points in time.

If the strategy adopted is to motivate and persuade the intermediaries’ to make effort to increase the sales
the strategy is called push strategy. It is personal selling along with advertising and other trade
promotional measures. The-manufacturer promotes goods to wholesalers, wholesalers in turn promote to
the retailers and retailers persuading the consumers to buy.

On the other hand, if the customer demands particular goods from the retailer and the retailers want the
same from the wholesalers and the wholesalers in turn asking the manufacturers to provide that kind of
goods. Thus here it is the customer to wholesaler who is pulling the cord. The advertising by the
manufacturer may persuade the consumer to ask for the goods to their retailers. Retailers in turn will ask
the wholesalers and the wholesalers to manufacturer. The marketing manager will have to decide whether
to use push or pull strategy.

Customer-targeted marketing communications are pull type of communications. The objectives of pull
marketing communication are to build awareness, attraction, and loyalty and to reduce search costs. When
pull communications are successful, customers will seek out certain products or services and, in essence,
by the interest they create, and pull the product through the channel.

On the other hand, push communications are directed at channel intermediaries. The objective is to
motivate channel intermediaries to carry certain products to make available to customers. If successful,
push communication strategies result into a wider range of availability, fewer stockouts, greater
merchandising (shelf space), and a greater marketing effort. It would have been achieved with little or no
push communication. However, to be more successful, a combination of the two is required.
Importance of Promotion

• Increasing Brand Awareness: Often, a product or brand may need to create an identity within
the market. For the most part, this applies to a new company, a new brand or a new product. But
often it may also be needed in times of rebranding or building up a failing product. The aim then
is to select those promotional activities that help inform the customer about the company and the
product

• Providing Information: Sometimes, a company may just need to provide necessary information
regarding the product, its benefits, features or usage to the consumer. This may be the case if
a new product is introduced into the market. Unique features or benefits may need to be
explained. In other cases, a new feature on an existing product may need to be highlighted. In
some cases, such as in instances where environmental impact or health scares may be in play,
information about a change in business practices and company policy may need to be
communicated.

• Segment Identification: If your promotional and marketing strategy is loosely structured, it

might not be successful in targeting the “right” audiences. Having a full-proof and well-thought-
out

promotional strategy and marketing plan can help you identify different segments of consumers
in the market and offer suitable solutions for your clients

• Increasing Customer Traffic: Also, promotion helps in helps in increasing customer traffic. The
more you promote your brand, the more will the customers know about you and your company
and the more will they be interested in your products. Promotion can be done even by giving out
free samples which works wonders for customers! They try your product and ultimately, come to
you and make purchases.

• Stimulate Demand: A company may seek to enhance its sales through promotion. If sales have
been lower than usual, then the aim may be to get them back up to target level by re-engaging old
customers and encouraging new ones to try a product out. In other instances, the aim may be to
increase sales further at certain times of the year such as near a major holiday. Free
demonstrations or special deals may be used to reach these ends

• Differentiate Products: In situations where there are many competitors in the market, a company
may seek to use promotional activities to differentiate its product in the market and make it stand
 out from the crowd. The focus here remains on those features, functionalities or benefits that may
not be offered by a competitor or may not be offered so well.

• Reinforce the brand One basic aim of a promotional activity may be to further strengthen the
brand and its place in the market. This helps turn a first time purchases into a life time purchaser.
This can also help create advocates for the product from within the customer base.

• Facing intense competition:

Promotion helps in facing intense competition in the market.When a manufacturer increases his

promotional spending and adopts an aggressive strategy in creating a brand image, others are also

forced to follow the suit. This leads to ‘promotional war. Without promoting the goods, the

competition is not possible in the market. So, it is necessary to face the competition in the market

with the help of promotional activities.

 More employment:

Promotion helps to create more employment opportunities. People can gain employment opportunity

with the help of promotional activities. With the help of promotional activity, many workers get

motivated towards the work. Promotional activity helps to increase more employment opportunities to

the people who are unemployed, as the promotional activities cannot be performed without the help

of an effective sales force and the specialists in various fields.

Factors affecting Promotional Mix:

1. Nature of Product: The different type of product requires different promotional tools. Such as, for
the industrial products Viz. Machinery, equipment or land personal selling is more appropriate as a
great deal of pre-sale and after-sale services is required to sell and install such products. On the other
hand, advertising and publicity are more suitable for the consumer goods, especially the convenience
goods.

2. Nature of Market: The number and location of customers greatly influence the promotion mix. In
case the group of potential customers is small and is concentrated in a particular locality, then personal
selling is more likely to be effective. Whereas, if the customer base is large and widespread, then the
blend of advertising, personal selling, and the sales promotion is required to sell the product.
 Also, the type of customers influences the managerial decisions of the promotion mix. The type of
promotion for the urban, educated and institutional customers would be different as compared to the
rural, illiterate and household customers.

3. Distribution channel – The organisations depend heavily on the distribution network for its products
success. In case of intermediaries, the organisation also depends on their expertise of creating
awareness about the product. The organisations adopt push or pull strategy. In Push strategy the
efforts of the organisation are promoting the product to intermediaries who then promote the product
to their customers. Manufacturers sometimes display products in retail stores where the retailer then
promotes the products. In pull strategy, a manufacturer heavily promotes the product to the end
consumers. This creates a demand in the market and consumers inquire about the product from the
intermediaries. Because of the high demand, the intermediaries are forced to buy the products from
the manufacturers and make them available to end consumers.

4. Stage of Product’s Life: The promotion mix changes as the product moves along its life
cycle. During the introduction stage, the principal objective of the promotion is to create the primary
demand by emphasizing the product’s features, utility, etc. therefore, the blend of advertising and
publicity is required. As the product reaches its maturity stage the advertising and personal selling is
required to maintain the demand of the customers.

And finally, during the decline stage the expenses on other promotional activities are cut, and more
emphasis is laid on sales promotion with the intent to push up the declining sales.

5. Objectives, Budget, Cost and Availability of Media:

Firm’s promotional objectives are the reflections of overall marketing objectives. If the objective is to
make mass awareness, the firm may go in for advertising, sales promotion and public relation. Most of
the food companies, like Nestle, HUL, PepsiCo not only go in for aggressive ad campaigning, but also
distribute free samples and go in for public relations.

If the objective is to invite the customer to the store where demonstration can be shown, then a
combination of small advertising (to inform), sales promotion (to attract) and personal selling (to
persuade) is undertaken.

Apart from objectives the promotion mix would be determined on the basis of budget made available
to marketing department. If it is small the firm it would concentrate on personal selling. If it is larger
firm, then it can advertise through regional and national media like that of HUL in India.

Cost of promotional tools is important in determining promotion mix. To reach a larger audience
advertising is used. Many a companies now a days do not buy ad slots in cricket tournaments as it has
become a very costly affair. The small entrepreneurs make use of local directories, cable TV bands,
radio, local newspapers, outdoor ads and other promotional methods.
6. Nature of Technique: Each element of the promotional mix has unique features that significantly
influences the purpose of promotion. Such as, the advertising is an impersonal mode of
communication that reaches a large group of customers. Its expression can be amplified with the use of
colors and sound that helps in developing the long lasting brand image in the minds of the customer.

The Personal selling involves face to face interaction that helps in developing cordial and personal
relations with the customers. Likewise, the sales promotion is short-term incentives given to the
customers with the intent to boost sales for a shorter period of time.

7. Competition and environmental factors – The market share of the competitor and its strategies
also force an organisation to adopt promotion tools to win customers. Sales promotion activities like
free sampling, price cut displays, events at crowded places, etc. are used to counter competition
supported by advertising campaigns.
The economic environment also has an impact on the choice of promotion tools. To influence
customers, organisations go for sales promotion like coupons, discounts on high quantity purchases,
free samples, etc. Instead of advertising and waiting for the customer to ask for the product, conditions
are created to drive customers into the stores via free gifts, samples, etc.

8. Promotional Strategy: The promotion mix largely depends on the company’s promotional
strategy, i.e. whether it accepts the Push Strategy or a Pull Strategy. In a Push strategy, the
manufacturer forces the dealers to carry the product and promote it to the customer, i.e. convince the
potential buyers to buy it. Here, personal selling and trade promotion are likely to be more effective.

In the case of a Pull Strategy, the consumers ask the dealers to carry the product, i.e. customers
themselves purchase the product. Here, advertising and consumer promotion are more appropriate.

9. Readiness of Buyer: Different promotional tools are required at different stages of buyer
readiness. Such as, at the comprehension stage, the blend of advertising and personal selling plays a
vital role. Whereas at the conviction stage, personal selling is more effective. At the time of sales
closure, the blend of sales promotion and personal selling is likely to be more effective.

Hence, the advertising and publicity are more effective at the early stages of buying decision process
while the sales promotion and personal selling are more effective during the later stages.