intangeable activities, benefits, or satistfactions that an organization provides to its consumers

1. Product (service)
2. Price
3. Place (distribution)
4. Promotion
5. People
6. Physical Evidence
7. Process

• managers of goods and services must design the product concept, whether a good or a service, with the benefits and features desired by consumers
• because services are intangible, therefore more difficult to describe, brand name and identifying logo are even more important
• therefore, service organizations rely on branding strategies in order to distinguish themselves in the mind of consumers
• strong brand names are important for service marketers, not only for differentiation purposes but also for conveying an image of quality
• A service with well-established brand reputation will also find it easier to market new services than firms without such brand reputation

• Because of the intangeable nature of services - price is often percieved as an indicator of quality

• inseparability of services from producer - place is very important for services
• until recently, consumers had to go to the service provider to purchase the service. 

• increased competition has forced many service firms to consider the value of convienent distribution (e.g. firms now offer service in many locations)
• Technology is also being used to deliver services beyond the provider's physical locations (e.g. interac)
• The availibility of electronic distribution of services over the internet allows for global reach for a variety of services. (e.g. banking, travel, entertainment)

• The value of promotion, especially advertising, for many services is to show consumers the benefit of purchasing the service
• The internet is not only used for service delivery, but also service promotion/advertising. Social media also ued.
• public relations -> an important tool for service firms
• public relations tools, such as event sponsorship or public-service activities are very popular amongst service industries.
• personal selling also plays an important role
• when consumer buys service, she is buying the person selling the service

• Many services heavily depend on people for the creation and delivery of customer service experience
• Customers will often judge quality of service experience based on performances of people providing service
• this aspect of services has led to internal marketing:
• based on notion that in order for a service organization to do well, it must care and treat its employees like valued consumers
• It must focus on its employees (or internal market) before successful marketing tactics can be targeted at consumers
• the organization must properly select, train, and motivate all of its employees to work together to provide service quality, excellent customer experience, and customer satisfaction

• where the firm and customer interact can influence the customer's perception of the service. 
• The physical evidence of the service includes all the tangibles surrounding the service: the buildings, signage, vehicles, furnishings... etc. etc.
• Service firms need to manage physical evidence carefully and systematically in order to convey the proper impression of the service to the consumer
• this is sometimes referred to as impression management, or evidence management

• process refers to the procedures, mechanisms, and flow of activities by which the service is created and delivered
• process not only involves "what" is created but HOW it is created
• the customer contact audit - the flow chart of the points of interaction between customer and service provider - can serve as a basis for ensuring better service creation and delivery processes
• Most services have limited capacity due to the inseperability of the service from the service provider
• For example, a patient must be in the hospital at the same time as the surgeon to recieve a treatment and only one patient can be helped at a time. 

• if service marketers have a relatively fixed capacity to produce a service, they must make that capacity as productive as possible without compromising service quality
• This is referred to as capacity management

the money or other considerations (including other goods and services) exchanged for ownership or use of a good or service

from a consumer's perspective, price is often used as an indicator of value when compared to the benefit of the consumer. 

at a given price, as percieved benefits increase, percieved value increase (e.g. a large pizza for the same price as a medium pizza). 

though, be careful using price as an indicator of value -> especially for services, as some consumers may percieve low price as poor quality and thus, poor percieved value (e.g. a $25 dentist check-up)

• increasing product or service benefits while maintaining or decreasing the price

• intense competition in many industries has led to lower prices for consumers
• consumers may have changed their attitudes toward lower prices in the new low-cost world
• In short, consumers may not always percieve lower price as an indicator of poor value or poor quality

total revenue (TR) - total cost (TC)

(unit price * quantity sold) - TC

1. identify pricing constraints and objectives (constraints like demand for product class, brand, etc, and objectives like market share, survival, etc.)
2. Estimate demand and revenue (involves price elasticity estimation)
3. Estimate cost, volume, and profit relationships (e.g. break even analysis)
4. Select an appropriate price level (demand,cost, profit, or competition oriented approach)
5. set list or quoted price
6. make special adjustments to list or quoted price (e.g. discounts)

factors that limit the latitude of prices that a firm may set are called pricing constraints

examples of potential restrictions:

- demand for the product, class, or brand

- newness of the product (stage in product life cycle)

- single product vs a product line

- cost of producing or marketing the product

- cost of changing prices and time period they apply 

- types of competitive markets

- competitor's prices

• The number of potential buyers for the product class (e.g. cars), product (e.g. sports car), or brand (e.g. Dodge Viper) affects the price
• So does the question of whether the item is a luxury (a viper) or a necessity (e.g. bread)

• The newer a product and the earlier in the stage of the life cycle, the higher the price that can usually be charged

e.g. when Apple introduced its iPad, not only was it unique and in the introductory stage of the product life cycle but it was also the first comercially successful tablet device sold

As a result, Apple had great freedom in setting a price. 

• in the long run, a firm's price must cover all the costs of producing and marketing a product
• otherwise, the firm will fail, so in the long run, a firm's costs set a floor under its price. 

• research indicates that most firms change the price for their products once a year because of the cost of printing new catalogs
• but in the online environment, prices can change from minute to minute

4 types of competitive markets: pure monopoly, oligopoly, monopolistic competition, and pure competition

extent of price competition

• Pure competition: Almost none: market sets the price
• Monopolistic Competition: some - compete over range of prices (price and non-price competition exist)
• Oligopoly: some - price leader or follower of competitors
• Pure Monopoly: none - sole seller sets the price

extent of product differentiation

• Pure competition: none - products identical
• Monopolistic Competition: some - differentiate products from competititors
• Oligopoly: various - depends on industry
• Pure Monopoly: none - no other producers

extent of advertising

• Pure competition: little - purpose is to inform prospects that seller's products are availible
• Monopolistic Competition: much - purpose is to to differentiate firm's products from competitors
• Oligopoly: some - purpose is to inform but to avoid price competition
• Pure Monopoly: little - purpose is to increase demand for product class

1. profit
2. sales
3. market share
4. unit volume
5. survival
6. social responsibility

• one objective is managing for long-term profits, which is followed by many japanese firms that are willing to forgo long-term profits to develop quality products that can penetrate competitive markets in the future
• a maximizing current profit objective, such as during this quarter or year, is common in many firms because the targets can be set and performance is measured quickly
• Canadian firms are sometimes criticized for this short-term orientation
• A target return objective involves a firm setting a goal (such as 20%) for ROI = (netprofit after taxes/investment)*100

given that a firm's profit is high enough for it to remain in business, its objectives must be to increase sales revenue

the hope is that the increase in sales revenue will lead to an increase in market share and profit

objectives related to sales revenue or unit sales have the advantage of being translated easily into meaningful targets - far more easily than ROI targets, for example

market share is the ratio of the firm's sales revenue or unit sales to that of the industry

companies often pursue a market-share objective when industry sales are relatively flat or declining

many firms use unit volume, the quantity produced or sold, as a pricing objective

these firms need to match the unit volume demanded with price and production capacity

in some instances, profits, sales, and market share are less important objectives of the firm than mere survival

for example, specialty toy retailers are facing problems because they cannot compete with big discounts offered by companies like walmart

a firm may forgo higher profit on sales and follow a pricing objective that recognizes its obligations to consumers and society in general

e.g. a pacemaker offered at a low price

• shows the maximum amount of a unit consumers will buy at a given price

inverse relationship between price and quantity demanded

other than price, 3 factors in influencing demand

1) consumer tastes (depend on factors such as demographics, culture, technology)

2)  price and availibility of other products - as the price of close substitute products falls and their availibility increases, the demand for a product declines

3)consumer income - in general as real consumer income increases, demand also increases

first of these 3 factors affects what consumers want to buy, 3rd affects what they can buy.

these 3 factors are known as demand factors 

• typically, the more substitutes are availible for a product, the more likely it is to be price elastic

TR = P*Q

total money recieved from sale of product

Total profit = TR - TC

total = fixed + variable

variable = vary directly with quantity produced (e.g. wages paid to labour)

fixed = do not change with quantity produced (e.g. salaries of executives, leases)

Break even analysis: a technique that analyzes the relationship between total revenue and total cost to determine profitability at different levels of output

break even point (BEP) is point at which total revenues and total costs are equal. 

BEPvquantity = fixed costs/(unit price - unit variable cost)

1. demand oriented approaches
2. cost oriented approaches
3. profit oriented approaches
4. competition oriented approaches

setting the highest initial price that consumers who desire a product are willing to pay

a firm introducing a new or innovative product can use this approach 

initially, some customers not very sensitive since they weigh products benefits against availible substitutes

as these customers demands are satisfied, firm lowers price to appeal to more cost-concious segment

effective when:

- enough prospective customers are willing to buy the product immediately at such a high price that sales are profitable

- high intial price will not attract competitors

- lowering price only has a minor effect on increasing the sales volume and reducing unit costs

- customers interpret high price as signifying high quality

setting a low initial price of the product to appeal to the mass market

the exact opposite of skimming pricing

the conditions favouring penetration pricing:

1) many segments of the market are price sensitive

2) a low initial price discourages entry by competitors

3) unit total costs fall dramatically as sales volume increases

a firm using penetration pricing may:

1) maintain the initial price, or

2) lower the price further, counting on new volume to generate the necessary profit

sometimes, may follow skimming pricing

initially charge a high price to attract price-incensitive consumers then recoup with penetration pricing

after this is done, used to appeal to broader segments of the population

involves setting a high price so that quality or status concious consumers will be attracted to the product and buy it

such products may sell worse at lower prices than at higher prices

manufacturer delibrately adjusting the composition and features of a product to achieve the target price to consumers

selling two or more products in a single, "package" price

often means lower marketing costs to sellers

the charging of different prices to maximize revenue for a set amount of capacity at a given time

e.g. classes of seats on airplanes

services businesses engage in capacity management, and an effective way to do this is varying price by day, week, or season

entails adding a fixed percentage to the cost of all items in a specific product class

high volume products often have smaller markups than low volume products

e.g. higher markup for candy then for bread and eggs

involves summing the total unit cost of providing a product or service and adding a specific amount to the cost to arrive at a price

most commonly used method to set prices for business products

based on learning effect, which estimates that the unit cost of many products or services declines by 10-30% when a firm's experience at producing them doubles

because of lower costs, a rapid decline in price is possible

set a annual dollar amount of target pricing..

sub in all other numbers into equation and solve for price

Profit = TR - TC = (P*Q) - (Fixed Costs + (UVC*Q))

note critical assumption that demand is incensitive up to a certain price. 

one-price : setting one price for all buyers of product or service

flexible-price/dynamic pricing: involves setting different prices for products and services depending on individual buyers and purchase decisions

- a basic version of product offered free to consumers

-consumers will percieve value then pay for more advanced version

e.g. dropbox

3 types

1) discounts

2) allowances

3) geographical adjustments

4 types

1) quantity - to encourage consumers to buy larger quantities - firms offer quantity discounts, which are savings related to a larger order

2) seasonal discounts: to encourage buyers to stock inventory earlier than their normal demand would require, manufacutrers often use seasonal discounts

3) trade (functional discounts): to reward wholesalers and retailers for marketing functions they will perform in the future, a manufacturer often gives trade or functional discounts

4) cash discounts: to encourage retailers to pay their bills quicker, manufacturers offer cash discounts

like discounts, are reductions from list or quoted price for performing some activity

trade-in allowances: a price reduction when a used product is a part of the payment on the new product (without formally reducing list price)

promotional allowances: sellers in the channel of distribution can qualify for promotional allowances for undertaking certain advertising activities to promote a product

e.g. free case of frozen pizzas to seller for every one dozen cases purchased

frequently a portion of these savings is passed along to consumers by retailers, some through Everyday Low Pricing

made to reflect the cost of transportation of the products from seller to buyer

FOB origin pricing: "free on board" - seller pays the cost of loading product onto vehicle. buyer pays for transportiomn

Uniform delivered pricing: price the seller quotes includes all transport costs. Seller retains title of goods until recieved by buyer. 

sales grow quickly, profit is minimal

lack of profit often due to large investment costs

marketing objective of a company at this phase: stimulate trial - initial purchase of product by consumer

companies often spend heavy on ads - often made to stimulate primary demand - demand for product class

price can be high - skimming, to recoup costs and take advantage of insensitivity of early buyers - but high profits can attract competitors

characterized by rapid increases in sales

in this stage that competitors appear

at this stage emphasis on advertising shifts to stimulating selective demand, in which product offerings are compared to those of competitors offerings to gain market share

product sales grow at increasing rate. 

new features added to original design in this case

characterized by a slowing of total industry sales or product class revenue

competitors begin to leave the market

sales begin to increase at a decreasing rate

profit declines due to fierce price competition

marketing towards holding market share through further product differentiation and finding new buyers

occurs when sales and profits begin to drop

frequently a product enters this stage due to environmental factors

technological innovation often precedes decline as newer technologies replace older technologies

a company will take one of two strategies to handle declining product

1) deletion from line

2) harvesting - retains product but reduces marketing support costs

1) length

2) shape

3) the product level

4) the life cycle and consumers

there is no exact time that a product takes to move through its life cycle

consumer products have shorter cycles than business products

mass communication shortens life cycles

rate of technological change sortens life cycles

high learning product:

- significant education of consumer is required. extended introductory period

low learning product:

- sales begin immediately due to little learning being required

fashion product:

- long cycles with product coming in and out of style

fad: 

- rapid sales on introduction, followed by an equally rapid decline

life cycles exist on product class and product form

product class - refers to entire product class or industry- such as video game consoles

product form - refers to variations within the product class (e.g. Nintendo Wii)

The life cycle and consumers

some ppl attracted to product early, some will only buy after they see their friends with them

5 categories

innovators, early adopters, early majority, late majority, laggards

for any product to be successful, must be used by early adopters and early majority

companies try to stimulate trial by offering warranties,money back guarantees, etc. 

a set of human characteristics associated with a brand name

e.g. traditional, romantic, sophisticated consumers often choose brands consistent with their own self-image

added value brand name gives to a product besides the functional benefits provided

1) competitive advantage

2) consumers are willing to pay a higher price for a product with brand equity

1) Multiproduct branding strategy

2) multibranding strategy

3) private branding strategy

4) mixed branding strategy

a company uses same name for all of its products in the product class

- lower ad costs

- consumers will transfer favourable opinion to new product

co-branding: two or more brands pairing together. e.g. westjet and bell

involves giving each product a distinct name

promotional costs tend to be higher

however, minimizes risk that one product's failure will affect impressions of another product

when a firm manufactures products but sells them under the brand name of wholesaler or retailer

e.g. Presidents Choice

the bundling of multiple brands into a single marketing effort aimed at a common consumer group

e.g. proctor and gamble's website, home made simple

firm markets products under its own name(s) and that of a reseller

social benefit brands are brands that have a special added value in terms of their core environmental or social benefits that they provide

integral part of the package and typically identifies the product or brand, who made it, how it is to be used, and the package contents and ingrediants

can provide competitive advantage

communication benefits: important info conveyed to consumers

functional benefits: storage, convience, protection, etc. 

perceptual benefits: package and label shape, colour, and graphics distinguish it from one another. 

1) connecting with consumers

2) environmental concerns

3) health, safety, and security

4) cost reduction

a statement indicating the liability of the manufacturer for product deficiencies

limited coverage warranty - states the limitations, more importantly, areas of non-coverage

full warranty - no limits of non-coverage

a statement, that, before product development begins, identifies (1) a well defined target market; (2) specific customers needs, wants, and preferences, (3)what the product will be and do to satisfy consumers

if it doesn't have a precise protocol, products tend to fail...

- insignificant point of difference

- too little market attractiveness (not a good market)

- incomplete market and product definition before development starts

- poor execution of the marketing mix

- poor product quality

- bad timing

- no economical access to buyers (e.g. fight for shelf space)

- not listening to needs of consumers

- skipping steps in new product process

- pushing poorly concieved product into market in order to make quick revenue

- "groupthink" in taskforce and committee meetings

- not learning critical takeaway lessons from past failures

1) new product strategy development

2) idea generation

3) screening and evaluation

4) business analysis

5) development

6) market testing

7) commercialization

provides necessary focus, structure, approach, and guidelines for pursuing innovation

company determines type of innovation it wishes to pursue (its focus). how much cost and profitability should new products contribute to the company?

six sigma protocols: means to "delight consumer" through achieving quality through highly disciplined process

small group of ppl who desire to use products or services before general market recognizes this need. 

developing a pool of concepts as candidates for new products

novel approach to idea generation - crowdsourcing: get ideas from massive amount of people

involves internal and external evaluations of the new-product ideas to eliminate those who warrant no futher effort

can be done through an internal approach or external approach (concept tests with consumers)

involves specifying the product features and marketing strategy needed to commercialize a product

last checkpoint before significant capital is invested in creating a prototype

replicates a full-scale test market to a limited degree

STMs are often run in shopping malls, where consumers are asked to identify who uses product in question

participants given money to decide to buy or not to buy firm's or competitors product in real or simulated store environment. 

positioning and launching a new product in full scale production and sales

most expensive stage

large companies often use regional rollouts 

- introducing project suquentially into certain geographical areas

some retailers impose a fee if product does not meet predetermined sales target

thus regional rollouts often used to minimzie risk

firm markets directly to consumers

referred to as direct-to-consumer as DTC, or D2C, 

allow consumers to buy products by interacting with various media without a face-to-face meeting with a salesperson

includes: mail order selling, direct-mail sales, catalogue sales, telemarketing, etc.

when retailer is large

when the cost of inventory makes it too expensive to use a wholesaler

or

so many models exist in the product that it would be impossible for a wholesaler to stock all of the models, in addition, the cost of maintaining an inventory would be high. 

low cost, low value units that are frequently purchased by consumers, e.g. candy, magazines

wholesaler can break down (sort) cases so retailers can buy in large or much smaller quantities

employ the internet to make goods and services availible for consumption or use by consumers or business buyers

electronic intermediaries perform at a relatively lower cost than traditional intermediaries because of efficiencies made possible by information technology

however, electronic intermediaries are incapable of performing elements of the logistical function such as storing, sorting, and transporting, particularily for products such as automobiles. 

an arrangement whereby a firm reaches buyers by employing two or more different types of marketing channels. 

e.g. apple which sells its product online, in its own retail stores stores, and in retail stores such as Best Buy

wherby one firm's marketing channel is used to sell another firm's products. 

e.g. kraft distributes starbucks coffee in supermarkets

independently owned firms or individuals who bring buyers and sellers together to make sales

unlike agents, have no continuous relationship with the buyer or seller but negotiate a contract between two parties and then move on to another task (used in real estate industry, fruits and vegetable sellers)

professionally managed and centrally coordinated marketing channels designed to achieve channel economies and maximum marketing impact. 

3 major types 

- corporate systems

- contractual systems

- administered systems

the combination of successive stages of production and distribution under single a ownership

for example, a producer might own an intermediary at the next level down the channel

in practice, this is called forward integration

when a retailer owns manufacturing facilities - backwards integration

save in distribution costs, gain greater control over supply resources

independent production and distribution firms integrate their efforts on a contractual basis to obtain greater marketing impacts than they could achieve alone. 

e.g. franchising is an example of this. 

achieve coordination at successive stages of production and distribution by the size and influence of one channel member rather than through ownership

e.g. walmart

involves those activities that focus on getting the right amount of the right products to the right place at the right time. 

cost-effective flow of raw materials, etc. 

a sequence of firms that perform activities required to create and deliver a good or service to consumers

differs from marketing channel in terms of membership (includes suppliers that provide raw materials to manufacturers as well as wholesalers and retailers that deliver finished goods)

choice of supply chain follows from clearly defined marketing strategy. has 3 steps.

1. understand the consumer: this helps us define relative importance of efficiency and responsiveness (efficiency - economies of scale, but hard to respond to needs of consumer)

2. understand the supply chain: some favour efficiency, some responsiveness

3. harmonize supply chain with marketing strategy

used with groups of prospective buyers

includes advertising, sales promotion, public relations

personal selling uses cutomized interaction between a seller and a prospective buyer. 

face-to-face, telephone, examples of personal selling

direct marketing also uses messages directed for specific consumers

two-way flow of communciation between buyer and seller, designed to influence a person or group's purchase decision

personal selling usually face to face comms between sender and reciever. 

feedback availible - able to craft communications to indivdual

but flexibility can also be a disadvantage

most expensive of the 5 promotional elements

special events sponsorship, lobbying efforts, annual reports, press conferences.

publicity often plays the most important role - non-personal, indirectly paid presentation of an organization, good or service

indirectly because they pay PR staff

advantage: credidability

disadvantage: lack of users control over response

short-term inducement of value offered to arouse interest in buying a good or service

examples, coupons, rebates, etc. 

short term nature stimulates sales for duration

advertising support needed to convert customer who tried sales promotion into long term buyer

cannot be too frequent, otherwise they will never buy without promotion

uses direct communication with consumers to generate a response in the form of an order, request for further info, or trip to outlet

e.g. face-to-face selling, direct mail, catalogues, telephone solicitations

can be customized to target markets

disadvantages:

- requires up to date database with info about target consumers

- developing and maintaining database can be expensive and time consuming

- growing concern about privacy has led to decline in response rates. 

promotional programs tailored ot the end consumer

personal selling used at place of purchase

promotional programs tailored to purchases of consumer products often use mass marketing b/c potential market is large

direct marketing may be used to encourage first time/repeat purchases

ads for business buyers published in trade publications

b/c business buyers have technical questions, personal selling often important

intermediaries often focus of promotional efforts (e.g. personal selling)

informing consumers in an effort to increase their level of awareness

all promotional mix elements can be used in this stage

primary objective: persuade the customer to buy the product

brand managers attempt to gain brand preference and solidify

sales promotion assumes less importance in this stage

publicity is not a factor b/c it depends on novelty of product

primary promotional element is ads, which stressed brand differences

personal selling used to solidify channel of distribution

- need to maintain existing buyers, ads remind consumers of product's existence

- sales promotion, in the form of discounts and coupons offered

- direct marketing actions, such as direct mail, are used to maintain involvement with existing consumers and encourage repeat purchases

- price cuts and discounts can also increase a mature brand's sales

usually a period of product phase-out

little money spent on promotional mix. 

refers to the technical sophistication of the product and hence the amount of understanding required to use it. 

- the more complex the product, the greater the emphasis on personal selling. 

represented by the product's purchase: financial risk, social risk, physical risk

A private jet might represent all 3 risks - it is expensive, employees and customers may see and evaluate it, and safety and reliability are important

- the greater the risk, the greater the need for personal selling

pertain to the degree of service, maitenance, or support required after the sale

personal selling important for these to build buyer customers

Prepurchase decision

Purchase stage

Postpurchase stage

advertising is more helpful than personal selling in this stage because advertising informs the customer of the existence of the product and the seller. 

sales promotion in the form of free samples can also play an important role

when the salesperson calls on the customer after heavy advertising, there is some recognition of the product. 

the importance of personal selling is highest, whereas the impact of advertising is lower

sales promotion in the form of coupons and deals, point of purchase displays, and rebates can be very helpful. 

the sales person in still imporant

- the more personal contact after the sale, the more the buyer is satisfied

- advertising also important to assure consumer correct purchase was made

- advertising and personal selling help reduce the consumer's post-purchase anxiety

sales promotion in the form of coupons and direct marketing reminds can help encourage repeat purchases. 

manufacturers face resistance from channel members who do not want to order. 

may implement a pull strategy, targeting to consumers and encouraging them to ask the retailer for the product. 

seeing demand from consumers, retailers order the product and the product is pulled through intermediaries

many forms including catelogues, telemarketing, etc. 

- e-mail marketing among the fastest growing mediums in Canada

- an explosion in mobile direct marketing and social media direct marketing

value of direct marketing its convienence (i.e more privacy than instore shopping, can order online 24/7). 

1. direct orders - result of offers that contain all the information necessary for a prospective  buyer to make a decision to purchase and complete transaction

2. Lead generation is the result of an offered designed to generate interest in a product or service and a request for additional information. 

3. Traffic generation - the outcome of an offer designed to motivate people to visit a business

suggest to the consumer that s/he can avoid some negative experience through the purchase

suggest to the audience the product will increase the attractiveness of the user. 

gather attention, but little impact on how consumers act, think, or feel. 

imply the product is more fun or exciting than the competitors offerings

but wears out quickly, may offend, need to be careful across cultures

1)maximizing exposure

2) minimizing costs

generated by users (customers) and desseminated (spread widely) via various channels, in particular, the internet. in order to do this, they can

1. advertise on user-generated content sites (e.g. youtube)

2. allow user to create content themselves, then sponsor the content and allow it to be shared with others online

3. create an actual contest encouraging the user to create media

4. partner with the consumer to co-create the media and the message and then desseminate it. 

1. many marketers are looking for measurable results from promotional efforts, and sales promotion viewed as an effective tool in this regard

2. consumers more value concious

3. competitors are using it (contagious)

4. electronic delivery and processing of sales promotion offers facilitates its spread

sales tools used to support a company's advertising and personal selling efforts.

include sweepstakes, samples, loyalty programs, coupons, deals, etc. 

usually located in high-traffic areas near the cash register or the end of an aisle in the store

involves the use of a brand name of a product in a movie, television show, etc.

filmakers believe it can add to films authenticity - placement can be economical

sales tools used to support a company's advertising and personal selling directed to wholesalers, retailers, and distributors

include:

1. allowances and discounts

2. cooperative advertising

3. training of distributors salesforces

an effective method for encouraging increased purchases by intermediaries

the merchandise allowance - reimbursing retailer for extra in-store support during special featuring of the brand

the case allowance - discount on each case

the finance allowance - paying retailers for financing costs/losses associtated with consumer sales promotions

a manufacturers success often rests on the ability of the resellers salesforce to represent its products

thus it is in the best interest of the manufactuer to help train the resellers salesforce

form of communication advertisement meant to shift the opinions of the general public about your company/products/services

sometimes includes minimizing impacts of crisis (crisis management)

most frequently used tool: publicity, which takes a non-personal, indirectly paid presentation of the good, organization, or service

usually takes the form of a news release

also can include a newsconference (invite media to info meeting)

growing area of PR is sponsorship marketing

- e.g. sponsoring the olympics

collateral materials such as annual reports, corporate websites, are also PR tools

many PR departments now facilitating and responding to what happens on social media

misinformation disseminated by an organization so as to present an enviromentally-responsible public image