Understanding the principal methods and techniques used in marketing and public relationships

Katie Torpey and Savannah Hardwick

Marketing:Why is it important in marketing to understanding your clients and their requirements?Companies and businesses will have to make sure that they are familiar and understand their clients, as this will affect the overall outcome of the work they produce and it can also affect the success of the client. By ensuring that you understand the client’s desires and needs, you are making sure that you are building an effective relationship with the client. The client may have a specific way in which they want the product/work to look, and it is the marketing team’s job to make sure that the client gets what they want. If the work produced is not what the client wants, then it is unlikely that the client will go forward with the work or with the marketing company.Why is understanding the market you are working in important? What techniques and tools could be used to help someone understand their market?

Understanding the market in which you are working is important because you need to be aware of any competition in this area, as well as the type of consumer you will have for the product, it will be helpful to you when figuring out where to place the product. There are many different techniques and tools that you can use to better understand their market. Specific tools and techniques are market research and analysis, getting to know the market by doing primary and secondary research. The business or the specific individual often conducts primary research. This research would be complied of interviews, questionnaires and the use of online surveys. Each of these primary research techniques are useful when trying to understand a market because each of them is a way of getting the information directly form the source (the target market). Secondary research can also be used to help understand a market; this research is based primarily on existing data, such as reports, articles, trade publications and statistics. An example of using primary research to understand your market is used by Ringgold Inc. who used it clients, including The Oxford University Press, The American Medical Association and many others, in order to understand who they were aiming their products at. What is a SWOT analysis? Why are they are they a useful tool? SWOT analysis is a way of assessing your ideas and evaluating them with a specific structure. SWOT itself stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. When conducting a SWOT analysis on your product, you should look at how strong it is, will it do its job and will it be effective? But as well as looking into the strengths, you should also always look at its weaknesses and consider what you can do about them. A useful thing to do is to look at the opportunities that come from the project and how these opportunities will affect you, both good and bad. You will also need to look into the threats that come from the project/product; a threat in this case would be anything that could affect its success. If you are aware of the weaknesses and threats of the product, then you are able to work on them, and get a handle on them before they become an issue as knowing what your weaknesses are helps to create a better product. SWOT analysis is a good tool because allows your to dissect your work, letting you know what the strengths and opportunities from the product are, but also what the weaknesses and threats are form it. An example of SWOT analysis is from Queensland Government, who conducted SWOT analysis on a business. (http://www.business.qld.gov.au/business/starting/market-customer-research/swot-analysis/example-swot-analysis)

What is audience profiling? What sort of information might be included in an audience profile? Audience profiling is a way of building knowledge about the organisations client, understanding who the client Is and what they want. Profiling your audience means finding out about their age, sex, location, life-stage, income brand, property value and lifestyle choices. You will also need to find out about how much they will interact with your product, meaning how often do they purchase it? How many times have they purchased it? And when do they purchase it? You will then need to figure out how the clients currently view the product and services, for example is the product perceived to be a necessity for the person, a luxury for them or default option. ( http://www.matrixsolutions.co.uk/products/inside-intelligence/profiling-and-segmentation/ )

Select a magazine and find their audience profile:

Cosmopolitan, a woman’s fashion and gossip magazine have a very clear idea of who their audience is. They understand that their audience are employed woman, most likely with children, A/B and aged 18-38. Because they have a clear idea of who their product is aimed at, they can tailor the product to fit their audience’s needs, making them more likely to purchase the product. (http://www.cosmomediakit.com/r5/showkiosk.asp?listing_id=360482&category_id=27810&category_code)

Explain in detail the 4 different elements of the marketing mix.

The four mains elements of the marketing mix are Price, Product, Place and Promotion. ProductWhen thinking about the product itself, you need to think about what the customer would want from the product itself, what specific features will the product need to meet the needs of the consumer, how and where will the customer be using it, what does the product look like, what size and colour should the product be, what is the name of the product, how is it going to be branded and finally how is this product different from the other competitors.

PriceWhen talking about the price of the product, you need to consider the value of the product or the service to the buyer, is there an established price for the product or service in this area, is the customer price sensitive, what types of discounts could be offered to the trade customers, and finally how will your price compare to its competitors, is it better or worse value for money? When thinking about the prices of products, they will also need to think about the demographics they are aiming at, as some people might want to buy the products but not be able to afford them. They will need to consider the price for both ABC1 and C2DE demographics, and whether they want to aim their products at both types of earner.PlaceWhen thinking about the placement of the product you need to consider where buyers go to look for the product or service, if they look in a store for the product, what kind of store is it?, would you need to use a sales force for the product, and you will also need to think about what your competitors would be doing, and how you can learn form this, or make sure that yours is different from it. The product will have to accessible to a wide variety of people, therefore they will need to make sure that the places the product are showcased is well known. For example, a product like an Iphone would be easily found in technology stores, but can also be accessed online or through some supermarkets. Which is the same from clothing lines, most clothing lines are found in stores, but also are online. PromotionWhen looking into where to promote your product, you need to think about where and when you will be able to get across your message to the target market, you need to figure out of you will reach your target market by advertising in the press, TV, radio or billboards. You will also need to think about when the best time to promote is, and also how your competitors promote their products and how this will influence your choice of promotional activities. An example of this would be how when a new film is being released, it is promoted in many different areas, such as on buses, on billboards and on posters in areas where the films target market are likely to be. (https://www.smartdraw.com/examples/view/4ps+marketing+mix/)

Select a publication, product or audience and explain the range of marketing materials that they use.

There are many different ways that you can market your product, including interactive tools, audio, video and print. The product Only By The Night, a new album released by group The Kings Of Leon uses a range of marketing materials. The main tools for this group would be print, audio and video. They use the audio tool by promoting their product on the radio, playing small parts of sings they have produced as well as stating how much it costs and where it can be bought. They have also used video, having it played on televisions all through the day to promote their new album, the video will feature snippets of music videos the group have done, as well as the relevant information. Finally they used print as a marketing tool, they created promotional adverts to show the band and that they had released a new album. These three tools are effective for marketing this product because each of the tools will be seen by a large variety of people, having their product (the album) seen by many people. This band used socials media sites such as Face book, MySpace, Twitter and YouTube to reach out to their fans and to advertise their new album release. On sites like YouTube, an advert for

the album will appear before songs similar to theirs. They will use sites like Face book, twitter and MySpace to communicate directly with their fans; this is a useful way of marketing themselves because they can choose what they want to share with the public, and how they share it, including information about their album release.

Provide your own definition of advertising. Advertising is a way of communicating a product, person, event or company to the public. The desired effect is that the advertisement will encourage people to by the product, invest in the person, to go to the event or to support the person(s) being advertised. Sometimes advertising Is used to manipulate the audience into thinking that they want the product, or changing their opinion of something/someone. Advertisements can be found everywhere; they are often in areas where you are more likely to see the product which is being advertised, as well as constantly being on the television or radio. By having adverts constantly being shown to the public the product is constantly being shown as well. What is the purpose of sponsorship? Support your answer with detailed examples.Sponsorship Is where companies will use celebrities or well-known people to help promote their product. This can involve donations in exchange fro the company’s logo being worn by the celebrity, or having their advertising materials shown near the person. Many television shows and sports personalities will be sponsored by a specific product. A few examples of this would be:

When ‘Friends’ was running on E4, the drink ‘Appetiser’ sponsored the show, and was shown before and after, as well as during the breaks of the programme.

The glasses company ‘SpecSavers’ used celebrities to endorse their product, being seen wearing them as well as being part of advertisements for the company.

Martini is a sponsor of the F1 races. Fosters sponsors original comedy shows on Channel 4, E4 and More 4. Rimmel sponsors Fashion on E4 and Channel 4. Black XS (AFTERSHAVE) sponsors Skins. Nina L’Elixir sponsors New Girl. Bet365 Bingo is currently sponsoring Emmerdale. Impulse body spray sponsor Hollyoaks.

What is the purpose of endorsements? Explain a range of different types of endorsements and use examples.

The purpose of endorsements is to use celebrities, getting them to make positive statements, or to be seen wearing/using a specific product, in order to help influence the public’s perception of the product, with the outcome that the public will then want to go and buy this product. Usually a company will get someone who is in a similar field as what the product would be used in to endorse it. For example a company wanting to promote new sports wear would get a well known sports person to be seen in this clothing, advertising it. However it doesn’t always have to be celebrities that endorses the product, companies might chose to get expert in the field that the product would be used in, this is a way of showing the public that this expert would chose to use this product, which is a way of marketing the product effectively. There are many examples of celebrity and non celebrity endorsements:

Beyonce signed a multi-million dollar endorsement deal with Pepsi. David Beckham has a lifetime deal, worth over $150 million, with Adidas.

Jessica Simpson signed a $4 million endorsement with Weight Watchers. 50 Cent has a $100 million endorsement deal with Vitamin Water. Tiger Woods had a 5year deal with NIKE, endorsing its products. Catherine Zeta-Jones endorsed T-Mobile from 2005-2006, and again in 2009.

Why could holding an event be a good marketing strategy? What are some of the opportunities and threats of holding an event?

Holding events is a good marketing strategy because you as a company have the chance to build up positive publicity about yourself, the event and the product. It is a great marketing strategy because it will draw in different types of people from different background, who are all interested in your product. Each business/company can hold an event, and the type of event will vary depending on the company and the product itself. The opportunities of holding an event are huge;

You will be advertising your product in an exciting and individual way. Your company/business will be gaining positive publicity. A wide variety of people will see/hear about the product. You are promoting your company, its products and the ability to through a successful event

all in one.As well as many different opportunities to hosting an event, there can also be many threats;

The venue of the event would have to be big enough- too little space could cause problems. Dangerous situation can arise from events, especially if the events were to be giving away

free items of value. Climate issues. Security.

An example of an event that has gone well in the industry would be Smartphone launch parties by companies such as Apple, Samsung, Nokia and Blackberry. Each of these companies has turned the release of their new product into a massive event that press, public and celebrities alike should want to be a part of. An example of an event gone wrong would be when WII hosted an event named ‘hold your wee for a wii’. The purpose of the event was to get contestants to drink as much water as they could without going to the toilet. A woman who came in second place drank 7 litres, and died the day after from water intoxication. The radio station that held the even then had to pay out $16.5 million to the woman’s family, and fired 10 employees. What is merchandising? Use detailed examples to help explain.Merchandising is a method used in marketing to gain awareness of a brand or product. Marketing has a range of different meanings. For example it can mean creating a public display of products in an organised and persuasive way. By creating a display of products this could be a technique used to interest the audience and create a curiosity from the audience about the brand or product. By creating an interesting presentation of the products this could attract the attention from the audience. Another method of using merchandising is using the brand on an item to promote recognition of the brand. An example of this is www.zomtastic.co.uk this website sells merchandised products of TV shows such as The Simpsons, Family Guy, Pepper Pig, Star Wars and Disney. On this website the fans and the audience can purchase t-shirts, posters, phone cases, toys and even calendar’s of their favourite TV show. This is an effective technique used in marketing as it will increase sales and it will also increase interest from the current audience and potential customers.

Public Relations:What is the purpose of a press release? What sort of things should a good press release contain?

A press release is a type of publication, which is often used to broadcast to the public about specific information. It is often used to state something, which is newsworthy and could take interest of the public. A press release is a type of communication between the media and the community. They used to be sent through as letters to the media however they are now often sent through a fax or email. The press release is often used to broadcast new information such as new events, performances, or organisations however they are often used by companies to announce to the audience information about their new products, offers and sales. Press releases are generally used in a journalistic, and news format which may give the impression to the audience that it is news and that it is important. As well as being published in magazines and newspapers press releases can also be seen online on news websites such as www.mirror.co.uk/news. An example of a press release website is http://www.contactmusic.com/press/pressreleases10x12x2013 A website which has all the recent press releases from the music industry. By using press releases the musicians will be able to broadcast the release of their new songs, albums, concerts and announcements the public.What is the purpose of an electronic media pack? What sort of things should a good electronic media pack contain?

This is a very effective way of sending out information instantly to a source, which could be useful to the company. A media pack is a document of information about the business and organisation. Often including a press release, biography of the company, testimonials, articles and photographs, examples of the product and also statistic of the company and business. This is a very useful way to promote and raise awareness of the business by allowing the source to get an understanding of the company. Magazines often use media packs to encourage sales to the audience and the media packs are often sent to advertisers to get an idea of the magazine, its audience, theme and subjects. For example if a magazine had a high percentage of the audience as ABC1 age from 25-40. Then the advertisers would know to create advertisements, which are aimed for this age range. An example of a media pack is on the right hand side which is HELLO!’s media pack. I have selected a section from the media pack, which has information about the audience. This is what advertisers will use to get an idea about the audience and who they aiming the advertisements at.

What is the purpose of a PR briefing? Why should you create one? Explain some of the areas a brief should cover.

A PR brief is a document which is created and analysed by the company who want to create a PR campaign. A PR brief is an important source when it comes to the start of the campaign as it will organise the company and help the company identify the main objectives and what they want to achieve. By doing this it shows a clear plan of what the company is going to complete. A PR brief should include the main points of the campaign including the goals of the campaign. By identifying the main targets for the campaign this will allow the company to work towards the aims. It will also help the company develop and understand what they need to succeed. The audience will also have to be identified within the brief as this will allow the company to understand who they are aiming their campaign at, this could eventually affect the success of the campaign and the sales. Another aspect, which will have to be considered, is the effect of the campaign. Questions will have to be answered such as how will this campaign affect the public? And also what effect will this campaign have? This is so that it is clear of what the campaign is going to do. The budget is also a very important factor, as it will determine how much money is spent on the campaign. It is important that the budget is kept during the campaign so that the campaign does not spend over the amount, which could create a negative impact on the company. There is also many more features which a PR brief should include.

Depending on the type of campaign the brief should include these main features which can be seen at http://ezinearticles.com/?The-PR-Brief---What-It-Should-Include&id=2689863.

An example of a PR brief is… source (http://www.slideshare.net/karoline_44/brie-fslideshare)

What is the purpose of a press conference? Why might you hold one? Use specific examples to help you with your response.

A press conference is similar to an interview however it is much more open and general. In a press conference normally a person or 2 people will announce a statement, which will be held in front of journalists, reporters and the media. Sometimes press conferences may include questions from the media allowing them to ask questions directly to the speaker however sometimes questions are not permitted during the press conference if this occurs this will mean that the speaker will only make a statement which could result in a photo opportunity for the media. Press conferences are often held for a number of reasons including that it is a good way in which to get your message across to the media and the audience. They are also often help because the speaker will be able to give their opinion and also give more information than from other sources of media such as an interview or press release where the speaker may on have a limited speech amount. Another reason why a press conference may be held is because it generates notice and publicity of your opinion, which could gain attention from the public and maybe change opinions. Press conferences are held by many different people from criminal investigations, sporting events such as football, music artists and also a political press conference. An example of a recent press conference is from Barack Obama who held a press conference recently to discuss the economy of the USA as well as politics. During the press conference Obama discussed a number of issues, and also answered questions from the media at the end of he press conference. Source - http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2013/09/06/remarks-president-obama-press-conference-g20 Why could hand-outs be useful when managing a PR event? Handouts are documents, which are often given out to the audience and the media along with a press conference, press release or a media pack. The handouts are very useful for the audience as it is a tool, which can allow the audience to gain more of an understanding of the campaign and will allow the media and the audience understand the basics to the key ideas of the promotion campaign. By giving out handouts this can raise the understanding of something, which the audience may not of, understood before. Following the event handouts may include extra information, which may not have been covered in the other source. A hand out can include anything for example if a company was releasing a press release of their new product. A handout may include merchandise of the company or the information of the new product.

What are some of the advantages of holding an interview instead of a press conference? Although that an interview and a press conference is very similar they are quite different. A press conference is more open to questions and much more public however an interview is generally more personal and one to one rather than talking publically to an audience. During a press conference it is also quite one sided as there is normally only 1 speaker and they will tell the message in their opinion however an interview allows a range of different topics to be discussed and explained instead of keeping to the same subject. The advantages of holding an interview instead of a press conference is that the interviewee is talking to 1 journalist rather than a group of journalists, this means that it is much more direct and could become more in depth rather than being very general and basic. Another advantage of having an interview rather than a press conference is that it is a chance to build up a relationship with the interviewer who will more than likely be an editor, journalist or reporter. This is a huge advantage as this could provide positive benefits in the future such as interviewing them again for future promotion of products. Another advantage of having interviews is that often people will know the questions before the interview takes place. This gives them chance to get an idea on how to answer the questions rather than being at the press conference and being surprised by un expected questions. Why do people set up film and picture opportunities? Use examples to help our response. Film and picture opportunities are opportunities which are given too photographers to capture a person such as a celebrity doing something positive. This is a very effective method of promotion and people normally set up film and picture opportunities to capture a moment of a person who could influence the sales of a company by influencing the audience. People who use film and picture

opportunities can range from celebrities to politicians and even sports people. By using this technique it will gain attention from the public and generate positive publicity. An example of someone who has used picture and film opportunities in history is Franklin D. Roosevelt during the 1930’s. When he has photography sessions his press secretary told the photographers to avoid taking photographs of the president in a wheelchair but instead advised the photographers to take images when the president was without the wheelchair as this would provide positive publicity and give an encouraging impression rather than a negative one. A more modern example of where there has been a picture opportunity is with Gary Barlow. Gary Barlow often carries out charity work for a number of charities. Whilst carrying out this charity work Gary Barlow often gets photographers to capture this and sometimes to film it to broadcast on TV for Children in Need or Comic Relief. Although that he does do this charity work, by having photographs taken this does present him to be a much more friendly, helpful and caring person which gives him a positive view from the public.

Why are contacts and networking important in marketing and PR? What kinds of contacts could be useful? Provide details of a PR contact from at least one organisation.

Contacts and networking are very important within the marketing and PR industry. Making sure that a company has enough contacts of people will give the company a better opportunity. The people who are in charge of contacts are often in charge of managing the PR for a company. By having a range of different contacts and networks this is a way of developing business opportunities for promotion, advertising and sales. Dealing with requests for press releases, conferences, interviews and other tasks are just some examples, which will involve using contacts and networking. By having lots of contacts in an organisation will benefit the company, as it will allow the PR to be managed successfully. Useful contacts could include celebrities, TV bookers, editors, publishers and also bloggers, as these people will help manage the message. Corinthia is a hotel company. They have the details of their PR contact on their website for organisations to be in contact this includes…

Source: http://www.corinthia.com/media-centre/pr-contact-details/