1.3.2 Branding & Promotion

• Promotion


  • Promotion is an important element of the marketing mix as it plays a crucial role in generating customer awareness, interest and desire for a product/service
• Promotion


  • A business can communicate its value proposition to potential customers and differentiate itself from competitors
• Promotion 


  helps to build brand awareness and loyalty which can lead to repeat purchases and referrals
• Types of Promotion


  • Digital Communications
  • Sponsorship
  • Public Relations
  • Advertising
  • Direct Marketing
  • Sales Promotion
  • Personal Selling
• What is Advertising?


  • Promotion occurs through paid channels such as television, radio, print media (magazines), and online advertising
• Advantages of Advertising


  • It can reach large audiences and increase brand awareness
  • Can also be used to create a specific brand image or message 
• Disadvantages of Advertising


  • Can be expensive
  • The effectiveness of advertising can be difficult to measure
  • Many customers tune out or ignore ads
• What is Direct Marketing?


  • Involves communicating directly with customers through email, text message, social media or post
• Advantages of Direct Marketing


  • Businesses can target specific audiences and personalise their message to individual customers
  • Direct marketing is also measurable, which enables businesses to track their results and adjust their strategy accordingly
• Disadvantages of Direct Marketing 


  • Can be intrusive as customers may perceive it as spam
  • Can also be costly, especially if businesses do not have an established customer database or need to purchase leads
• What is Sales Promotion?


  • Marketing techniques that encourage the purchase of a product or service by offering temporary incentives or discounts such as free samples, buy one get one free, discount coupons, loyalty cards, and rebates (customers have to mail in to receive money back)
• Advantages of Sales Promotion


  • Can quickly boost sales or customer engagement
  • Can help to clear out stock or promote a new product
  • Can encourage impulse purchases
  • Can be targeted to specific segments of customers
• Disadvantages of Sales Promotion


  • Can be expensive especially if the promotion requires a heavy discounting
  • Can attract deal-seeking customers who may not be loyal to the brand
  • May reduce the sales of full-priced products
• What is Personal Selling?

  • Occurs when a salesperson interacts with potential customers one-on-one, either in person or through digital communication channels
• Advantages of Personal Selling

  • Allows businesses to build relationships with their customers and understand their specific needs
  • Enables businesses to provide personalised advice and guidance to customers
• Disadvantages of Personal Selling

  • Can be expensive due to the cost of hiring and training sales staff
  • The impact of personal selling can be limited as it is difficult to scale to large audiences
• What is a Sponsorship


  • This is an agreement in which a company provides financial or other support to an event, team, or organization in exchange for marketing exposure
  • Can take many forms, such as logo placement or naming rights
• Advantages of Sponsorship


  • Can help to build brand awareness and credibility
  • Can create emotional connections with target audiences
  • Can support specific business objectives, such as entering new markets or reaching new customers
• Disadvantages of Sponsorship


  • Can be expensive, especially for high-profile events or properties
  • May not directly drive sales
  • May be subject to negative publicity if the sponsored entity experiences a scandal or controversy 
• What is Public Relations?

  • The business seeks to build relationships with the public and manage their reputation
  • Public relations activities can include media relations, crisis management and community outreach
• Advantages of Public Relations


  • Can enhance a business's reputation and credibility
  • This can lead to increased customer loyalty and sales 
  • Can be cost-effective when compared to advertising or personal selling
• Disadvantages of Public Relations

  • PR can be time-consuming and is difficult to measure the direct impact of PR activities on the profits of a profits
• What is Digital Communications?


  • Refer to any form of marketing or communication that is delivered electronically, such as social media, search engine optimisation (SEO), or mobile apps such as Instagram and Twitter
  • Can be used for building brand awareness, generating leads, or driving sales
• Advantages of Digital Communications

  • Can be highly targeted to specific customer segments
  • Can provide real-time engagement and feedback from customers
• Disadvantages of Digital Communications


  • Can be easily ignored or filtered out by customers
  • May require significant investment in technology or data infrastructure
  • May be subject to data privacy regulations or security breaches
  • May not be effective for reaching older or less digitally-savvy customer segments.
• Branding


   The process of creating a unique and identifiable name, design, symbol, or other feature that differentiates a product/service or company from its competitors
• Branding is important to a business for a variety of reasons:

  • Branding establishes recognition and identity
  • Branding builds trust and credibility
  • Branding differentiates a business from its competitors
  • Branding creates an emotional connection with customers which helps to generate repeat purchases
  • Branding supports marketing and advertising efforts
• Types of Branding


  • Product Branding
  • Own Brand Product
  • Manufacture/Corporate Branding
• Manufacturer/Corporate branding


  • This refers to the use of a company name or logo to promote all the products or services offered by the company
• The Advantages of Corporate Branding


  • Creates a strong brand recognition and reputation for the company, which can increase customer loyalty and trust
  • Allows the company to leverage its existing reputation and customer base to introduce new products more easily
  • Helps to build economies of scale by promoting multiple products under one brand, which can reduce marketing costs and increase profitability
• Disadvantages of Corporate Branding


  • If a company's reputation is damaged by a product it can have a negative impact on all the products offered under that brand
  • If the company faces intense competition in one market, it may affect the sales of all the products offered across other markets
• Product branding


  • This refers to the use of a unique name, design, or symbol to promote a specific product
• The Advantages of Product Branding

  • Creates a distinct identity for the product which can help to differentiate it from competitors and increase brand loyalty
  • Allows the company to market different products to different segments of the market
  • Can help to build customer loyalty and trust by associating the product with a specific quality and benefits
•  Disadvantages of Product Branding

  • The cost of creating and promoting a new brand for each product can be expensive
  • Introducing new products under different brands is difficult as the business must build a new brand for each product from scratch
  • Different products within the brand may have different levels of quality which can affect customer satisfaction
• Own brand product


  • Own brand or private label branding refers to the use of a retailer's name to promote a specific product or service and is often used by supermarkets
• The Advantages of Own Brand Products


  • It can help retailers to differentiate themselvesfrom their competitors by offering unique products
  • It allows retailers to offer products at a lower cost than branded products which can help to increase sales and profitability
  • It can help to build customer loyalty by offering exclusive products that are not available elsewhere
•  Disadvantages of Own Brand Products

  • Own brand products may have a lower perceived quality than branded products which can affect customer loyalty and trust
• The Benefits of Branding

  • Added Value
  • Ability to Charge Premium Prices
  • Reduced Price Elasticity of Demand
• Added Value


  Strong branding can add value to a product by creating a perception of quality, reliability, and trust
• Ability to Charge Premium Prices


  Customers may be willing to pay more for a product that is associated with a well-established brand as they perceive products with strong branding to be of higher quality and therefore worth the extra cost