Promotions, Public Relations and Advertising
Promotions,
Public Relations and Advertising
Introduction
The business of every business is to remain in
business and to do this you need to gain and maintain your customers’ trust and
confidence since sustainability is desirable to prevent the devastating and
inefficient impacts of corporate premature death (Alex & Doane 2001). All
firms seek to promote and sell their products and services profitably.
Therefore, promotions, Public Relations and Advertising are vital to the growth
and survival of such firms
1.0 PROMOTIONS
Definition: Promotions
refer to the entire set of activities, which communicate the product, brand or
service to the user. The idea is to make people aware, attract and induce to buy
the product, in preference over others. Promotion refers to raising customer
awareness of a product or brand, generating sales, and creating brand loyalty (Belch
& Belch 2009). It is one of the four basic
elements of the market
mix, which includes the four P's: price,
product, promotion, and place.
Promotion is
also defined as one of five pieces in the promotional
mix or promotional plan. These are personal
selling, advertising, sales
promotion, direct marketing, and publicity. A
promotional mix specifies how much attention to pay to each of the five factors,
and how much money to budget.
Description: There are several types of promotions. Above the line promotions include advertising, press releases, consumer promotions (schemes, discounts, contests), while below the line include trade discounts, freebies, incentive trips, awards and so on. Sales promotion is a part of the overall promotion effort.
1.1 The Marketing Mix or four Ps
The marketer E. Jerome McCarthy proposed a four Ps
classification which has since been used by marketers throughout the world.
A
product is seen as an item that satisfies what a consumer demands. It is a
tangible good or an intangible service. Tangible products are those that have
an independent physical existence. Typical examples of mass-produced,
tangible objects are the motor
car and the disposable razor.
A less obvious but ubiquitous mass-produced service is a computer operating system.
Product: Every product
is subject to a life-cycle including a growth phase
followed by a maturity phase and finally an eventual period of decline as
sales fall. Marketers must do careful research on how long the life cycle of
the product they are marketing is likely to be and focus their attention on
different challenges that arise as the product moves.
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Price: When setting a
price, the marketer must be aware of the customer perceived value for the
product. Three basic pricing strategies are: market
skimming pricing, market penetration pricing and neutral pricing. The
'reference value' (where the consumer refers to the prices of competing
products) and the 'differential value' (the consumer's view of this product's
attributes versus the attributes of other products) must be taken into
account.
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Promotion: Advertising
covers any communication that is paid for, from cinema commercials, radio and
Internet advertisements through print media and billboards. Public relations
is where the communication is not directly paid for and includes press
releases, sponsorship deals, exhibitions, conferences, seminars or trade
fairs and events.
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Place: Refers to providing
the product at a place which is convenient for consumers to access. Various strategies such as intensive distribution,
selective distribution, exclusive distribution and franchising
can be used by the marketer to complement the other aspects of the marketing
mix.
1.2 Promotional mix
In marketing,
the promotional mix describes a
blend of promotional variables chosen by marketers to help a firm reach its
goals. It has been identified as a subset of the marketing
mix. It is believed that there is an optimal way of allocating
budgets for the different elements within the promotional mix to achieve best
marketing results, and the challenge for marketers is to find the right mix of
them. Activities identified as elements of the promotional mix vary, but
typically include the following:
- Advertising is the paid presentation and promotion of ideas, goods, or services by an identified sponsor in a mass medium. Examples include print ads, radio, television, billboard, direct mail, brochures and catalogs, signs, in-store displays, posters, mobile apps, motion pictures, web pages, banner ads, emails.
- Personal selling is the process of helping and persuading one or more prospects to purchase a good or service or to act on any idea through the use of an oral presentation, often in a face-to-face manner or by telephone. Examples include sales presentations, sales meetings, sales training and incentive programs for intermediary salespeople, samples, and telemarketing.
- Sales Promotion is media and non-media marketing communication used for a pre-determined limited time to increase consumer demand, stimulate market demand or improve product availability. Examples include coupons, sweepstakes, contests, product samples, rebates, tie-ins, self-liquidating premiums, trade shows, trade-ins, and exhibitions.
- Public relations or publicity is information about a firm's products and services carried by a third party in an indirect way. This includes free publicity as well as paid efforts to stimulate discussion and interest. It can be accomplished by planting a significant news story indirectly in the media, or presenting it favorably through press releases or corporate anniversary parties. Examples include newspaper and magazine articles, TVs and radio presentations, charitable contributions, speeches, issue advertising, seminars.
- Direct Marketing is a channel-agnostic form of advertising that allows businesses and nonprofits to communicate directly to the customer, with methods such as mobile messaging, email, interactive consumer websites, online display ads, fliers, catalog distribution, promotional letters, and outdoor advertising.
- Corporate image campaigns have been considered as part of the promotional mix.
- Sponsorship of an event or contest or race is a way to generate further positive publicity.
- Guerrilla marketing tactics are unconventional ways to bring attention to an idea or product or service, such as by using graffiti, sticker bombing, posting flyers, using flash mobs, doing viral marketing campaigns, or other methods using the Internet in unexpected ways.
- Product placement is paying a movie studio or television show to include a product or service prominently in the show.
2.0 Public Relations
The Public relations Society of America defined Public
relations in (2012) as a strategic communication process that builds mutually
beneficial relationships between organizations and their publics.
In other words, Public relations can also be defined as the
practice of managing communication between an organization and its
publics (Dominick 2007)
Here,
the Public relations experts or professionals present the face of the organization
or individual they represent, to articulate its objectives and official views
on issues of relevance, primarily to the media. Public relations contribute to
the way an organization is perceived by influencing the media and maintaining
relationships with stakeholders.
The
concept that is sometimes confused with public relations is press agentry. Press
agentry involved staging events or planning enterprises that attract media or public
attention to a person, product, organization or cause. Press agents now more
commonly called publicity agents, are useful in some PR campaigns, public
relations encompasses a much broader area and involves more than just
attracting attention (Dominick 2007)
Another
concept that is sometimes confused with public relations is publicity, the
placing of stories in the mass media. Publicity is a tool in the public
relations process, but it is not equivalent to Public Relations.
According
to Dr. Jacquie L’Etang from Queen Margaret University, public relations
professionals can be viewed as "discourse workers specializing in
communication and the presentation of argument and employing rhetorical
strategies to achieve managerial aims
2.1 Public Relations practitioner
has the following as part of his functions:
- Financial public relations
- Consumer/lifestyle public relations
- Crisis communication
- Internal communications
- Government relations
- Food-centric relations
- Media Relations
2.2 Similarities and differences between
advertising and public relations
·
Both are attempts at
persuasion
·
Both involve using the
mass media
·
Public is a management
function while advertising is a marketing function.
·
Advertising uses the
mass media and machine assisted communication settings. While public relations
involve interpersonal communications.
·
Advertising is normally
sponsored. While public relations
messages appear as features, news stories, or editorials and the space or time
involved is not paid for. In many instances, advertising, particularly
corporate advertising is used to help further a public relations program
Public
Relations is the art and social science of analyzing trends, predicting their
consequences, counseling organization leaders and implementing planned programs
of action that serve both the organization’s and the public’s interest.
2.3 Ethical issues in Public Relations and
their Analysis
The
use of public Relations experts as reporters must especially during Video News
Releases (VNRs). The government most times makes use of public relations
experts to communicate messages to the public and at the end of the message,
the Public Relations person will act as a reporter while he is not. The public
Relations person should as a matter of fact, state that the message is from a
particular government department to avoid confusion.
For
instance, there was a heated argument in the US about president Push Medicare
prescription drug plan. Before signing the bill into law, there was serious
publicity through Video News Release (VNR) on different channels. The story ran
in over 40 TV channels in 33 markets. Karen Ryan was used for that story, at
the end she said ‘I am Karen Ryan, reporting’. The question now is, should she
be used as a reporter? Which media organization does she work? Now, she should
have said, I am Karen Ryan reporting for the department of health and human
services.
For
example in Nigeria, during the Ebola disease issue, such messages were clearly
stated if they were from the state or federal government
2.4
SPIN
Spin has been
interpreted historically to mean overt deceit meant to manipulate the public,
but since the 1990s has shifted to describing a "polishing of the truth.
Today spin refers to providing a certain interpretation of information meant to
sway public opinion. Companies may use spin to create the appearance of the
company or other events are going in a slightly different direction than they
actually are. Within the field of public relations, spin is seen as a
derogatory term, interpreted by professionals as meaning blatant deceit and
manipulation. Skilled practitioners of spin are sometimes called
"spin doctors."
In the work of
Stuart Ewen, “Public Relations: A
Social History of Spin” he argues that public relations can be a real
menace to democracy as it renders the public discourse powerless. Corporations
are able to hire public relations professionals and transmit their messages
through the media channels and exercise a huge amount of influence upon the
individual who is defenseless against such a powerful force. He claims that
public relations is a weapon for capitalist deception and the best way to
resist is to become media literate and use critical thinking when interpreting
the various mediated messages
3.0 ADVERTISING
Advertising
is any form of non-personal presentation and promotion of ideas, goods and
services usually paid for by an identified sponsor (Dominick 2007)
Advertising
can also said to be Paid, non-personal, public communication
about causes,
goods
and services, ideas,
organizations,
people, and places,
through means
such as direct
mail, telephone,
print, radio, television, and internet.
An integral part of marketing,
advertisements are public
notices designed
to inform and motivate. Their objective
is to change
the thinking pattern
(or buying
behavior) of the recipient,
so that he or she is persuaded to take the action
desired by the advertiser. When aired on radio or television, an advertisement
is called
a commercial.
3.1 Functions of Advertising
3.1.i Identifying Brands
Products,
services and ideas are sold through businesses that are differentiated by their
brand identities. Brand identity is communicated to the public via advertising.
Consumers build emotional relationships with certain brands with which they
become increasingly familiar through the years, thanks to advertising.
3.1.ii Information
Advertising
supplies the necessary information to consumers so that they know what is
available and where to buy it. It broadcasts information on products, services
and ideas sold on the open market through a variety of media portals. It reveals
the special features being sold, what color and size the product is and which
stores carry it.
3.1.iii Persuasion
Powerful,
visual advertising presentations compel consumers to purchase goods, services
and ideas as a way to achieve emotional fulfillment. Persuasion is the core
mission of advertising. Advertising tells you how the product, service or idea
you are considering will improve your life. According to Jeremiah O'Sullivan R,
author of "The Social and Cultural Effects of Advertising,"
advertising feeds on the concepts of ideology, myth, art, sexual attraction and
religion. Advertising infuses images and ideas into products and services, just
as the meanings of products and services are infused into images and ideas,
notes O'Sullivan.
3.1.iv Previewing New Trends
Previews about
the virtues of new products, services and ideas motivate consumers to obtain
them because they don't want to be left out. Advertising lets consumers in on
up-and-coming trends and new markets. They offer coupons, rebates and trial
offers on new products, services or ideas to recruit new customers and induce
existing customers to try things. Advertisers preview new or improved products,
services and ideas to consumers in order to appeal to their sense of wanting to
be in the know about leading edge trends. Previewing new trends is a technique
employed by advertisers that capitalizes on consumers' desires to "keep up
with the Jones" by owning the latest and greatest product, service or
idea.
3.1.v Demand
The demand
generated by advertising, public relations, and sales promotion
"pulls" the goods or services through channels of distribution, notes
"Reference for Business." One of the powerful functions of
advertising is to generate consumer demand for specific products, services and
ideas through ad campaigns that target the audiences that are most likely to
buy them." Products, services and concepts are sold in volume, according
to the consumer demand for them.
3.1.vi Customer Base
Consistent
quality advertising increases consumer loyalty for a product, service or idea.
Advertising seeks to maintain the current customer base by reinforcing
purchasing behavior with additional information about the benefits of brands.
The goal of advertising is to build and reinforce relationships with customers,
prospects, retailers and important stakeholders.
3.1.vii Pricing
Advertising
displays consumer goods with competitive prices relative to the current market,
thus educating consumers about what things should cost. Advertising lets you
know what the competition is doing, when the next sale is, and how you can
receive the latest coupon or rebate and seeks to assure you that you are
receiving the best value for your money.
3.1.viii Advertising
online
Online advertising
began in 1994 when HotWired, the digital counterpart to the technoship wired
magazine, started a web site with about a dozen sponsors who paid to have
advertising banners embedded throughout the site. Since that time, online
advertising has though a number of changes.
3.2 Categories of internet Advertising
Banner
advertisings, pop-ups and pop-under are still the most common forms of online
advertisings, but other configurations are gaining popularity.
·
Splash pages are web
advertising pages that appear before a web page loads and then disappear a
short while later.
·
A skyscraper is an elongated
vertical banner advertising that borders one side of a web page
·
Floating advertising is one in
which an object moves across the page on a preset course of moves up and sown a
page as the user scrolls.
·
Mouse-trapping advertising
occurs when the user closes one advertising that is then replaced by a slew of
others that keep popping up.
3.3 Hierarchy Models
Hierarchy
models is one of the earliest theories about advertising effects Elmo Lewis
suggested, a theoretical idea that turned out to be fundamentally important to
all theories about advertising. “Attention to a message led to Interest in the
focus of the message, which led to Desire for the idea/object, which led to
Action to comply with what the advertising advocated.” The AIDA model was the
first of what have come to be called “hierarchy” models of how advertising
works. That for a good advertising, it should be able to get the attention of
the people, the people should be able to develop interest, there should be
desire for such product and action should be taken which has to do with
patronizing the product.
Consequently,
Advertising is supposed to have an effect on people’s attitudes, beliefs, and
behaviors. “Wasted advertising” has no effect. It doesn’t increase interest or
motivation toward the brand, doesn’t bring attention to the message itself or,
even worse, may cause some negative feelings such as annoyance about being
exposed to an advertisement of no relevance. Therefore, advertising should be
properly planned so that it can gain the people’s attention, then they will
develop interest and that will create desire and make them take action.
3.4 Issues in advertising and their
Analysis
Critics
of advertising are of the view that advertising does nothing rather than
creating greed, envy and avarice. Critics of Advert hold the view that
advertising does nothing than to promote materialistic values and lifestyles.
That advertising persuades us to evaluate others not by who they are, but by
what they possess. Here material objects are portrayed as desirable goals.
To
others, selling to children is not right. They argue that children are
unsophisticated audience and are vulnerable to the flashy, persuasive
techniques of the advertising industry. They argue that not many parents will
allow salespersons to come into their homes and talk about products and
services. The question now is why should they allow television to target their
children?
The
proponents to this act argue that, a child’s early exposure to such adverts,
will give him better understanding on the product and that will go a long way
to affect his decision making process on such product and he will be
knowledgeable on such products.
On
the part of the government, the issue has legal as well as ethical overtones.
The government has weighed in on the side of kids. The television Act limits
the amount of commercial minutes on TV shows that can be directed at children.
There is also a proposal to ban or limit beer, wine, and liquor advertising.
Despite these efforts, it is clear that parents will be the ones to confront
the issue.
4.0 Conclusion
Promotion
is an activity taken up to create awareness and boost the sales of a product.
It includes a host of activities like advertising campaigns, public relation
activities, distribution of free samples, offering free gifts, conducting
trade-fairs, exhibitions, competitions, offering temporary reduction in price,
launching door-to-door selling, conducting demonstrations at schools,
telemarketing. While, Public relations is a planned and sustained effort to
establish and maintain goodwill and mutual understanding between an
organization and its public. The role of PR is to identify the relevant public
and influence their opinion. Publicity is a sub function of PR that acts as a
bridge between the organization (its products) and its public. Advertising on
its own part, is the paid form of most widely used personal mass communication.
It can be in oral, written or visual form and is sponsored by an identifiable
source. Advertising is carried out in various mass media like the TV, radio,
newspapers, magazines, out-door displays, the Internet.
It
is important to figure out how to use advertising, public relations, and
promotional activities such as coupons or special shopping days as strategies.
Decision must be reached on what media channels to use, such as television,
print, Internet, or mobile devices, to reach the target audience.
Just
as functionalism theory states that, every unit or structure in the society
functions to complement each other. That is, each structure performs a
particular function in the society which brings about growth. So also promotions,
public relations and advertising function side-by-side to ensure proper awareness
and on the long run bring about more sales and in return improved revenue and
greater returns.
References
Dominick,
J. R. (2007). The dynamics of mass
communication: Media in the digital age. New York: McGraw Hills Companies
Inc.
Doane,
D. & Alex, M. (2001). Economic
Sustainability: The business of staying in business. Oxford: Oxford
university press
Wimmer,
R. D., & Dominick, J. R. (2000). Mass media research: an introduction. (6th ed.).
Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Publishing
Company.
Arens,
W.F & Schaefer, D.H. (2007). Essentials
of contemporary advertising. New York: McGraw-
Hill/Irwin.
Belch,
G.E & Belch, M.A. (2009). Advertising
and promotion: An integrated marketing
communications
perspective. New York: McGraw- Hill/Irwin.
Promotions, Public Relations and Advertising
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