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Chapter 8

COMMUNICATING TO MASS MARKETS

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• Role of integrated marketing communication (IMC): effective communication of message to audience

• Definitions of IMC components: advertising, personal selling, sales promotion, public relations

• Principles of effective communication and application

• Steps in designing IMC strategy

• Role and techniques of advertising, sales promotion, public relations,

personal selling

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• Systematic evaluation of communication needs and wants of the buyer

• Design a communication strategy that will:

• Provide answers to primary questions of target audience

• Facilitate customer’s ability to make correct decisions

• Increase probability that the most frequent choice will be the marketer’s brand

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• Mechanism for collecting, storing, analyzing, disseminating relevant information: customers (past, present, potential), competitors, trends in industry e.g., Kelloggs

• Communication is a dialogue; allow direct consumer feedback: desire, satisfaction, complaint; make changes

• Distinguish target market (product users) from target audience (use the message to make product decision or evaluate sponsoring business)

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Integrated Marketing Communication

Integrate functions into a collective strategy

More effective achievement of organization’s communication objectives

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• All identifiable efforts on the part of seller

• Intended to help persuade buyers to accept the seller’s message and store it in retrievable form

• Persuasion of uniqueness, goal-directed

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• Advertising: paid form of non-personal presentation of ideas, goods, services by an identified sponsor e.g., direct mail, T.V.

• Personal selling: oral presentation to one or more purchasers e.g., field, retail, door-to-door selling

• Public relations: non-personal stimulation of demand by planting commercially significant news in a published medium; obtaining favorable presentations through vehicles not paid by sponsor

• Sales promotion: add to basic value of product for a limited time period e.g., displays, exhibitions

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• Communicate ideas to target audience

• Compete consistently and effectively

• Convince consumers to take desired action by presenting useful ideas in a manner that makes them clearly understood, appear to be true, more appealing than competitor’s messages

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• Two or more persons or organizations: communicators (inputs/perception, processing/thoughts, outputs/messages verbal or nonverbal)

• Attempt to consciously or unconsciously influence each other through the use of symbols or words in order to satisfy their respective needs

• Nature of role• Environment (internal/external)

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• Interpersonal: dyadic• Organizational: large

collection of subsystems, common goals e.g., bank, factory

• Public: one person to a large group

• Mass: indirect communication by a person/organization with a large group of people; less scope of interaction

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External Target Audience:

Customers: past, present, future

Resellers Companies:

competing, non-competing

Publics: governments, agencies, groups

Internal Target Audience:

Employees Stockholders Functions

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Marketing information system

Determine objectives

Determine promotional opportunities

Select audiences

Measure results

Allocate funds

Determine budget

Select message(s)

Organize

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Intermediary response of buyers: awareness, recall, recognition, knowledge, understanding, attitude change, intention to act, trial, purchase, repurchase, commitment

Communication opportunity: move with current consumer demand e.g., IBM

Select target audience e.g, Harley Davidson Determine exactly what to say, e.g, Got Milk Money: budget through computer programs,

experience, following competition Evaluating effectiveness: establish standards,

monitor performance, compare Organize: internal, external agency

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• Manner of combination of four components of IMC; components cross-substitutable

• Marketing/IMC objectives: e.g., broad market coverage require mass advertising

• Nature of the product: e.g., technical products need demonstration

• Place in the product lifecycle: e.g., mature stage require personal selling

• Available resources: e.g., limited financial resources may restrict company to sales promotion and public relations

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• Planned, coordinated series of marketing communications efforts

• Built around single theme: unique, effective appeals e.g., “Coke is it!”

• Designed to reach predetermined goal

• Series of related, carefully placed, well-timed ads e.g., "Infect Truth”

• Local, regional, national campaign depending on funds, objectives, market scope

• Different target audience • Co-ordination of efforts of all related

groups e.g., sales force, retailers, personnel responsible for physical distribution, public relations

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• Individual placing ad in newspaper

• Full-service advertising agency

• Full-scale, in-house advertising department

• What products, institutions, ideas are to be advertised?

• Who is to prepare advertising program?• Which agency is used and what policy

and directions are given?• Who in the organization has authority to

develop advertising work or approve agency’s programs?

• Who pays advertising bills?• Who determines the extent to which ads

helped reach stated objectives?

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• Formulating the advertising program

• Implementing the program• Controlling the program• Presenting the budget• Maintaining relationships

with suppliers• Establishing internal

communication• Setting professional

standards• Selecting an advertising

agency

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Firms believe agency can:

• Produce better quality, more persuasive messages for their products

• Place these messages in the right media so that they reach greater number of prospects

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Creative strategy: what is going to be said to the audience (appeal), flows from objectives, outlines impressions for target audience

Creative tactics: means for transforming the idea into an actual ad

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Stating media objectivesStating media objectives

Evaluating mediaEvaluating media

Selecting and implementing Selecting and implementing media choicesmedia choices

Determining the media budgetDetermining the media budget

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• Reach: number of different persons or households exposed to a particular media at least once during a specific time period

• Frequency: number of times of exposure

• Continuity: timing of media assertions e.g., 10% in September, 40% in December

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• Each medium has inherent strength and weakness, conduct research

• Media mix decision: putting media together in a most effective manner; evaluate media quantitatively and qualitatively

• Decide on timings: actual placement of ads during most appropriate time periods

• Determine media budget

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• Dominant form of online ads

• Graphic images in Web pages that are often animated; can have software for further interaction

• Click-through pricing ignores impressions and charges the advertiser based on number of viewers that select the ad and follow it to the linking website

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• Special offers: they are extra, specific in time or place

• Direct propositions, the acceptance forms a deal• Increases perceived value of product• Organized in terms of audience e.g., consumers,

employees, dealers (consumer vs. trade promotion)

• Important for launch of new product, high risk product, creating a repeat purchase pattern, counter strategy of competitor, pushing marginal customer to make a choice

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• Analyzes trends, predicts consequences, counsels organization leaders, implements planned programs of action, serves organization and public interest

• Influence public opinion that can range from low morale on the part of employees to product rejection by customers

• Retain and create goodwill• First do good, then take credit for it• Public addressed by the PR must be described

completely and precisely• Planned activity, intelligence behind it

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• Group of people drawn together by definite interests and opinions in certain areas

• Internal: people connected with organization which routinely communicates with them e.g., employees

• External: not necessarily closely connected with organization e.g., press members, educators

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• News release

• Press conference

• Delivering bad news

• Publicity photographs

• Company publications

• Open houses / tours

• Meetings

• Organized social activities

• Participation

• Motion pictures / slides

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• Long term success of organization depends on consistently satisfying the needs of a significant segment of the target market

• “Non-manipulative selling” builds mutual trust and respect between buyer and seller

• Service selling: focus on obtaining sales from existing customers

• Developmental selling: converts prospects to customers, requires a high degree of creativity

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• Inside order taker: waits on customers e.g., sales clerk behind the undergarments counter in women’s store

• Delivery salesperson: delivers product e.g., milk

• Route or merchandising salesperson: order taker, but also works in the field e.g., soap salesperson calling on retailers

• Missionary salesperson: build goodwill, educate actual or potential user e.g., distiller’s missionary

• Technical salesperson: technical knowledge e.g., an engineer who is a consultant to clients

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• Indirect salesperson: sale of big ticket items, particularly commodities that have no truly competitive features; highly personalized service

• Salesperson engaged in multiple sales: sale of big ticket items where presentation is made to a committee in client’s organization e.g., account executive of an ad agency to the agency selection committee; retaining is a big issue

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OTHERS

• Inside vs. outside: selling in the salesperson’s place of business vs. traveling to the customer’s place of business

• Company salespeople vs. manufacturer representative: works for a specific company and handles only the products manufactured by the company vs. an independent agent who handles related products of non-competing firms

• Direct vs. indirect: call on people who make the ultimate purchase decision vs. people in the marketing channel are contacted who can influence the purchase of a product e.g., pharmaceuticals

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• Prospecting• Pre-approach• Planning the

presentation• Delivering the

presentation• Handling objections• closing • Follow-up

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Prospecting:

• Seller’s search for and identification of qualified potential buyers

• Screening potential prospects against evaluative qualifying criteria

Pre-approach:

• Further information gathering about prospect to tailor sales presentation

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Nature of planning depends on:• Objectives of presentation• Quantity of knowledge regarding

buyer, buyer needs, buying situation

• Type of presentation to be planned and delivered

• Involvement of other people assisting the salesperson in the sales presentation

Careful planning can ensure:• Focus on important customer

needs, communication of relevant benefits

• Address potential problem areas prior to presentation

• Enjoy self-confidence

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Delivering:• Make the presentation in proper climate• Establish credibility with the prospect• Ensure clarity of content • Control within reasonable boundsHandling:• Sales objections: statements or questions that

indicate an unwillingness to buy• Identify reasons: price, product, service,

company, time, competition• View objections as selling tools

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• Ability to close sales, consistently produce profitable sales volume

• Closing attempts:

When a presentation has been completed without any objections from the prospect

When the presentation has been completed and all objections and questions have been answered

• Sales follow-up activities, provision for post-sale service; if a sale is not made, a follow-up can eventually lead to a sale

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• Flexibility• Minimizes waste effort• Measuring effectiveness

and determining return on investment more straightforward

• Can encourage customer to act

• Multiple tasks that sales force can perform

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•High cost of travel, lodging, salaries•Finding and retaining quality people •Message inconsistency •Different levels of motivation•Over-zealousness may fuzz the boundary between ethical and non-ethical

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• Technology has increased selling efficiency: track customers; assess buying patterns, profitability and changing needs more rapidly; customize

• Technology has resulted in more complex products, more sales calls are required

• Business decentralization trends has meant that sales people now have more small or mid-sized accounts to service

• Sales team approach e.g., P&G• Adjust to new forms and sources

of competition

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• Get a voice-mail advantage

• Improve your e-mail habits

• Fax casually

• Get better acquainted with your PC

• Make a sound investment

• Take a break