Demystifying Promotional Mix

Promotional Mix


The basic tools used to accomplish an organization’s marketing and communication objectives are often referred to  as the promotional mix

Advertising - Advertising is defined as any paid form of non-personal

communication about an organization,product, service, or idea by an identified sponsor.The paid aspect of this definition reflects the fact that the space or time for an advertising message generally must be bought.

Direct Marketing - In direct marketing, organizations communicate directly with target customers to generate a response and/or a transaction.Direct marketing is much more than direct mail and mailorder catalogs. It involves a variety of activities, including database management, direct selling, telemarketing, and direct response ads through direct mail, the Internet, and various broadcast and print media.

Interactive/Internet Marketing - Interactive media allow for a back-and-forth flow of information whereby users can participate in and modify the form and content of the information they receive in real time.The Internet is a medium that can be used to execute all the elements of the promotional mix. In addition to advertising on the Web, marketers offer sales promotion incentives such as coupons, contests, and sweepstakes online, and they use the Internet to conduct direct marketing, personal selling, and public relations activities more effectively and efficiently.

Sales Promotion – It is generally defined as those marketing activities that provide extra value or incentives to the sales force, the distributors, or the ultimate consumer and can stimulate immediate sales. 

Consumer-oriented sales promotion is targeted to the ultimate user of a product or service and includes couponing, sampling, premiums, rebates, contests, sweepstakes, and various point-of-purchase materials.Trade-oriented sales promotion is targeted toward marketing intermediaries such as wholesalers, distributors, and retailers. Promotional and merchandising allowances, price deals, sales contests, and trade shows are some of the promotional tools used to encourage the trade to stock and promote a company’s products.

Publicity - Publicity refers to nonpersonal communications regarding an organization, product, service, or idea not directly paid for or run under identified sponsorship. It usually comes in the form of a news story, editorial, or announcement about an organization and/or its products and services. Like advertising, publicity involves nonpersonal communication to a mass audience, but unlike advertising, publicity is not directly paid for by the company. Publicity is not always under the control of an organization and is sometimes unfavorable. Negative stories about a company and/or its products can be very damaging. 

Public Relations - It is important to recognize the distinction between publicity and public relations. When an organization systematically plans and distributes information in an attempt to control and manage its image and the nature of the publicity it receives, it is really engaging in a function known as public relations. Public relations is defined as “the management function which evaluates public attitudes, identifies the policies and procedures of an individual or organization with the public interest, and executes a program of action to earn public understanding and acceptance.”

Personal Selling - The final element of an organization’s promotional mix is personal selling, a form of person-to-person communication in which a seller attempts to assist and/or persuade prospective buyers to purchase the company’s product or service or to act on an idea. Unlike advertising, personal selling involves direct contact between buyer and seller, either face-to-face or through some form of telecommunications such as telephone sales.

Comparing Different Marketing Levers