CHALO VIRAL KARTE HAIN!

Going Viral!, does these keywords sound familiar. This is the sound of the new marketing communication where the digitization has made it place. It accounts for 2% of the 20,000 crore advertising market and soon will be bigger.

The integrated marketing communications campaign by Coca Cola..."Chalo Viral Karte hain" was a hit. The reason was the marketers did some research where they found that today that most of the accounted age groups live their life online. So, why spend more money on other media vehicles. They understood that viral is done by the customer and not marketers. The major benefit of this vehicle is that the learning curve is faster and up-scaling.

The recent example of Toyota Etios, where its integrated digital media campaign including Facebook, Twitter, Direct messaging and blogging helped them make the new car a success amongst the target audience. Why are we forgetting that if customer like the product, he will market it for us. This is going to save cost on using other media vehicles and innovative way of communicating the message.

Developing an interface for the customer is not enough, work has to be done on its presentation, engagement factor and the way its rewarding the customer. This is a normal trait of a human being, he/she needs motivation to do something.


So, remember "Engaging with the customer on-line is a marketers job and the rest is for the consumer to carry it forward".

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BUSINESS UNIT STRATEGIC PLANNING!

SWOT Analysis

After careful management audit we are able to judge the possible assumptions cumin up relating to strengths, weaknesses, opportunities which we can focus upon and threats which can arise due to various factors which can be both internal and external.

Goal Formultion

Marketing objectives are made out of the assumptions because it helps us in designing the marketing strategy regarding what possibly we can do in order to satisfy the customer with the help of required resources and how on the basis of present growth can guide us in designing further strategies.

Strategic Formulation

After laying down the marketing objectives we can do the most important part that is budgeting the  plan which not only includes budgeting for operational activities but also long term projects which will come up as a result of diversification and other unexpected change in government policies  and prices of raw materials and other things etc.

Program Formulation and Implementation

After this some companies in order to monitor  whether the plan made is good enough to last in the market for long an implementation is done on a trial basis and time period is stated as per the company wants to.

Feedback and Control

It is done to find loop holes and doing required modification.

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CORPORATE AND DIVISION STRATEGIC PLANNING

Mission Statement or Defining the Corporate mission

Mission statement includes the mission of an organization which it needs to achieve through careful marketing research by carefully analyzing the needs and wants of what customer wants and providing him with the same. They have some characteristics such as a good mission statement should be: -

Firstly, should be limited to few goals.

 Secondly, it should be such that there should enough individual discretion to be acted upon the company’s major rules and policies. Thirdly, it should be defining the competitive spheres(Industry like one industry or, Products and applications, Competence like the kind of use of technology being used or if it is having the capacity to use it, market segment, Vertical like distribution channels and geographical) in which the company would be operating. Fourthly, it should be take a long term view and lastly, it should short, memorable and meaningful.

Establishing SBU’s

It talks about how market oriented definitions are stronger than product oriented definitions due to various factors. It tells us that if as a company u are giving the definition which is making u a company operating in a particular product line in a particular segment basically a product oriented definition but if we use a market oriented definition it helps us in diversification in the same segment and in product lines. E.g. IBM redefined itself  from a hardware and software manufacturer to a builder of networks , another example for target market definition is of Pepsi which defined that the target market for coca cola is the same i.e. only  drinks is its but did not realize when it is giving the market definition other drinks. Juices and water also comes under its product line. Each SBU has several characteristics: -

1 If it is a single business or a collection of businesses it can be planned separately from the business.

2 It has own set of competitors

3 One manger is responsible for the strategic planning and profit performance, which controls most of the factors affecting profit.

Assigning resources to SBU’s

It basically focuses on the investing decisions or to allocate corporate resources. It basically focuses on the working of BCG Matrix Model.

Assessing Growth opportunities

It means adding, downsizing or terminating the older businesses. It focuses on filing the gap between future desired sales and projected sales by adding new businesses. It tells us that lowest curve of the gap is expected sales over the period and highest curve depicts the sales over the same period and how fast company will grow.

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IS SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING IMPORTANT!

There has been a recent debate about the value addition to entrepreneurs through Facebook, Google+ and Twitter. In today's scenario if a brand has to practically achieve its penetration level in the minds of the customer, social media marketing is a necessity. As, we all know that word of mouth plays an evident role when it comes to marketing communication. Social media Marketing is another form of word of mouth wherein you have social circles built in the form of groups, one to one interaction with friends and colleagues. So, why wouldn't a company want to capitalize on an effective means of spreading awareness at such a low cost. It not only helps a company understand the market vibe in relation to a particular product but also helps in better customer engagement.Social Media Marketing is making news for its presence, low cost, brand building and most of all regaining customer loyalty.

Social media Marketing is necessary because people today are so busy with their lives, they have hardly time to look around and see what is happening in terms of the new brand launch, roll out of new products, movies etc. The only thing people take out time for is to update their status, tweet or adding people into different circles. So, if you want your brand to survive in the market and hit the right target audience, opt for social media marketing.

In order to choose the right social media partner, listed below are some distinction between them, which is as follows: - Source:- ( Quora)

This is one of the ways that can help you in selection, other factors is the determining the traffic, target audience, the policies, the application used, the methods that can be used for promotion etc

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MARKETING PLANNING

Marketing planning is all about firm marketing activities. It can also be pertaining to a specific product or an organization as a whole.

So, when the senior management is taking the decision regarding the formulation and planning of business strategy they indebted to incorporate the marketing activities into the plan which they think are appropriate for the plan.

A (Product planning) marketing plan includes the following things: -

Executive Summary and table of contents:- containing the senior management goals and recommendations and other supporting rationale and operational detail

Situational Analysis: - Situation is judged in terms of the market, competitors, sales and various other macro environment forces. Also critically scrutinizing what all SWOTS tells us.

Financial Projection:-it tells us about the sales forecasts and also break even analysis. Hereby, on the revenue side the company would mention the sales volume by the product and month category. On the expense side it mentions the expected costs of marketing broken into fingers. The break even analysis mentions that if there is not a monthly offset of fixed cost and average per unit variable cost the sustained market share of a company after a saturation point would decline.

Implementation Controls: - Monitoring and adjustment of plans. It basically looks whether the company is a set budget and situation is able to perform at a particular standard.

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The Tipping Point

Here's the scoop -  This book has built-in appeal: little changes can have big effects; when small numbers of people start behaving differently, that behavior can ripple outward until a critical mass or "tipping point"" is reached, changing the world. Much like the butterfly effect. Much like an epidemic.

According to Gladwell there are three conditions necessary to create epidemics.
The first one is “The Law of the Few”, which states that there’s a 80/20 Principle. This principle says that 80% of the work gets done by 20% of the people.
The second rule is “The Stickiness Factor”. This factor points to information and the types of information that will stay with you, stick with you, like a kick-ass commercial that touched on something for you.
The third rule is “The Power of Context”, which is all about sensitivity to our surroundings and how it can influence us whether we accept it or not.

Gladwell also introduces us to the particular personality types who are natural pollinators of new ideas and trends, the people who create the phenomenon of word of mouth. These are Connectors, sociable personalities who bring people together; Mavens, who like to pass along knowledge; and Salesmen, adept at persuading the unenlightened. 

He analyzes fashion trends (why hush puppies became a rage in the 90s), the crime rate, smoking, children's television, for clues about making ideas infectious and visits religious communes to multinationals to understand how to start and sustain ‘epidemics.’

It is a fantastic read and should be read by everyone. It would give us all a better insight into human behavior and can be used in business, social and personal arenas.

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VODAFONE BAGS ON CONVICTION

Vodafone in its latest advertising campaign has focussed on the conviction aspect of advertising. Its latest advertisement is on borrowing credits. They have tried to analyze the inner desire of the exsisting customer and cater to them accordingly. They know that friends share everyhting, so, why wouldnt they share credits. This is how the communicators fullfills his/her job by narrowing down the convction in a particular category and transform it into a need. This advertising strategy not only helped them in achieving the goal of brand differentiation but also building a great brand depth( Brand depth can also be referred to as TOP OF THE MIND BRANDS).

This link below gives you a sneak peak into Vodafone's Latest Ad
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1gaBR74Bmfg

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HOLISTIC MARKETING CONCEPT

 HOLISTIC MARKETING CONCEPT

         The concept believes that as long as there is marketing everything matters and there is an integrated perspective of everything.  The major components of holistic marketing are as follows: -

          

            Relationship Marketing: -  

          It is important for building long term relationships with client and customers in order to survive in the market. Customer Relationship Mgt and Partner Relationship Mgt play a major role. Key constituents are employees, customers, suppliers, distributors.

            Integrated Marketing: - 

         The marketer’s task is to devise activities in terms of creating, communicating and  delivering value satisfaction to customers. It is not just this but also marketing activities which is largely based on the marketing mix. Where under product we look for quality, design, variety, packaging, safety, warranty, reserves and brand name. Coming on to prive list price, discounts, allowances, credit terms etc. and then talking about place comes channels, coverage, assortments, locations, inventory , transport, and then promotion where in advertising, sales promotion, sales force, public relations and direct marketing.

           Internal Marketing: - 

          It is particularly a concept that relates to hiring, training and motivating the employees working for our organization who want to serve the customer’s well as the company wants to.

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ORIENTATION TOWARDS MARKETPLACE

COMPANIES ORIENTATION TOWARDS THE MARKET PLACE

 The competing concepts over which companies have built their companies activities are as follows: -

           The production concept:- 

           It is one of the oldest concepts in business it generally deals with a fact that their large scale production of good with low costs and mass distribution. This type of concept is also applied when a company kind of needs to expand .e.g. Haier, the domestic appliances giant used inexpensive labor to dominate the market in China.

           The product Concept:

           The product concept holds that customer is looking for products with good quality, strength, durability and that is what companies try to focus upon that is making  superior products and improving them over the period of time of what we really call continual improvement.

          The Selling Concept: -  

           The selling concept talks of that if customers and businesses are left alone they would not probe the customer to buy organization products. So, there has to be some selling and promotion effort. These type of concepts are generally applied for products which customers do not think of buying like encyclopedias, insurance etc.

           The Marketing Concept: -  Instead of a product centered or a make sell philosophy businesses shifted to customer centered approach wherein the marketing played a huge role in where marketing research was donw what the customer really wants , then identification of target audience was done in order to market the product i.e. Marketing.

          

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INTRODUCTION TO MARKETING MANAGEMENT

WHAT IS MARKETED

Goods, Services e.g. work of bankers, lawyers, insurance, hotels (hospitability), Events: - Olympics, world cup. Places e.g. Singapore tourism. Experiences: - Orchestra Walt Disney.  Organizations:- Like Philips we make thing better like having a corporate identity of it’s own. Persons: - Madonna, Jordan, Oprah Winfrey. Information: - encyclopedias, books, magazines. Properties: - like Jaypee group, Ideas:- marketing of companies idea of the product for their customer’s

KEY CUSTOMER MARKETS

Consumer Markets: - Companies selling mass consumer and goods have to spend a great deal of time establishing a brand image which depends upon the quality of the product which depends upon: -

• Product superiority
• Reliability
• Packaging
• After sale service

Business Markets:- Companies selling goods to skilled and pro buyers must be really good enough o market their product considering that there product is providing enough high revenues when they sell it further in the market. In this case advertising may play a small role but major role would be played by sales force.

Global Markets:-  Companies should no which country to enter in terms of culture, target market their profit estimation and various other reasons.

Non profit and Governmental Markets: - Companies selling good to churches and other charitable places should be considerate about pricing of the goods as they have limited purchasing power. Government purchasing for bids where in the lower bid is the most favored..

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INTRODUCTION TO BRANDING

Branding is an image or perception you built for your organization in the minds of the customer/target group.

Perception determines the inclination towards different brands. Mental Association with each brand keep on changing with the business environment, reaction to changing needs and wants of the customer.

There is a particular cycle that has to be followed: -

The companies advertise after analyzing certain factors like target group, demographics, taste and preferences etc. The help in creating a certain experience so that a particular mental connect between customer and the brand can be built. The mental association helps in establishing a certain perception in the minds of the customer about the brand. The result is a profound bran d recall that helps in the final purchase of the product

Brands are conditional assets, It tells us that if the brands are not support by a good product, after sales service, in the long run it would not exist for a prolonged time period .

E.g. Apple as a brand is being supported by its innovative product and commendable after sales service. This is the reason that it is the number one brand at present. Other examples are Amul, Ferrari, Tata etc

Branding and its relevance to a certain extent goes hand in hand, If the brand is relevant in accordance with the need of the customer and the changing trend the brand prospers and vice versa.

E.g. Polaroid filled a case against Kodak of coming out with an instant camera and from then the brand has failed to exist in the market. It was because to survive in the market you need to change and diversify, which is only possible if you have competition.

The choice that has to made amongst the brands depends on a certain evaluation criteria, which includes the features, price, the way it is has built the mental association etc.  

Point of Parity: -

This explains that certain features are essential for any product to enter into a category plus a certain materialistic pull in the form of features, price , bonus etc, to be distinctive.

E.g. Company A provides you detergent for Rs. 28/kg and Company B is providing you the same detergent with a different brand name for Rs. 28/kg plus a chance to win a Swatch watch.

Branding helps in transforming the product category . E.g. – Starbucks – it started with tea, started providing coffee, sandwiches, Wi- Fi connectivity, convenience in payment etc.

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Promotional Strategies for Group Buying Websites

The group buying trend, is more of a collaborative coupons sold at one place to avoid time wastage and also easier for the customer to provide a catch to place an order for it. The websites focus on providing deep discounts in order to make customers buy in bulk serving both the purpose of seller and buyer. The buyer saves money and avoids the big burn in his hole and seller earn a handsome profit margin of 35-40% , in this the deal of the company being sold saves on advertising cost. These websites use social networking site such as Facebook and Twitter to make the customer familiar of the fact that a deal of such and such company and price is available.

While designing the promotional strategies for international market I suppose the marketer should be well aware of the taste and preference of the local consumer, his convenience and also his buying trend. While going through various articles on “group buying” I understood that preparing a promotional strategy for mature markets the marketer can sit back and relax because marketer separate business development from discounts but when it comes to developing markets the marketer has to plan short term strategy because the markets are dynamic. For eg: couple of Americans will go to have dinner at restaurant even if they don’t get discounts but in country like India, the marketer has to make short term strategy where frugality is in culture itself.

Also, while designing the promotion strategies for international markets the marketer has to scrutinize the most visited websites or websites which are popular among the masses so they can use them for their ads. Marketers can also tie up with search engines so that they can get what they are seeking for. Response!

Also, above I have already mentioned that without social networking sites like twitter n facebook it’s very difficult or one can say next to impossible that group buying could exist. Some other strategies could be more attractive discounts compared to competitors.

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Revisiting the 4 P's

While formulation of a promotional plan, there are certain things that need to be kept in mind.

The most important is revisiting the 4P's of Marketing Communication, which are as follows: -

PRODUCT
The product especially a gadget like mobile changes every 3 months because of its features and the technology that changes every second
 E.g. Changing mobiles phones in the duration of 3 months

PRICE
The pricing is a very important aspect to consider as it decides the brand positioning and thus helps in the  formulation of its promotional plan accordingly.
 e.g. Honda City recently slashed its prices, now the recent change in prices lead to further change in positioning and the focussed target group, which will further lead to change in the promotional plan

PLACE

When we talk about the place, we talk about the framework and if there are any shortcomings in the distribution plan
e.g.- There are 3 Problems identified at 3 different layers of the distribution channel
A) The wholesalers are not motivated, which is leading to shortage in stocks
B) To revamp merchandising as the absence of Point of Sale materials, leads to poor recall when sales have to be made
C) To increase brand recall and brand recognition- Appropriate Communication has to be opted so that customer has a better brand recall and brand recognition

Brand Recall- e.g. - You went to buy a shoe in a multi brand store and you say show me nike air max i.e. Brand recall

Brand Recognition- e.g.- You went to buy some cosmetics and you were confused what to buy, so you asked for lo real and lakme. Then the sales person shows you a product of Garnier, which you didn't ask for. You recognize the product form the Ad you saw yesterday and end up buying it..i.e. Brand Recognition

PROMOTION
So, according to the above listed problems in the distribution channel we suggest some promotional plans: -

Problem1 - Better Margins, Trade Promotion, Foreign Visits for dealers, Facilitation with Awards
Problem 2- Different Point of Purchase and Point of Sale Materials, Use of Bill Boards and In Store Advertising
Problem 3- Advertising, Sales Promotional techniques, In field promotions and Sales People at Point of Sale Display

So, solutions for the promotion help in building the Integrated Communications Plan.

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Advertising Vs Sales Promotion

The basic difference between Advertising and Sales Promotion when we talk in context of Integrated Marketing Communications is as follows: -

Advertising

Has different objectives, which is to create awareness and providing as a medium for recall in the minds of the customer at the point of sale(POS).

The time duration for an advertisement  is generally 20 years

The Appeal created is more emotional,e.g.- Surf Excel- "Dag Ache Hain"

It gives reasons for the customer to buy a product and a service
                             
 Sales Promotion

The only objective is for selling the products

The time duration is generally less than 2 months, but in exceptional case it can run beyond 6 months

The appeal here is more rational, i.e. it tries to justify whatever it is trying to convey

It not only gives the reason for the customer to buy a product or a service but also an incentive for the same, e.g.- Matrix giving away its 5 subject notebook worth Rs 95 on Buy 1 Get 1 offer.

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INTEGRATED MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS.....INTRODUCTION

Integrated Marketing Communication is not a rocket science; it is a simple concept that involves all the promotional tools working together in a harmony to get a unknown brand a famous one. It includes the creative execution and media planning, which demands it to be a success. When we talk about a a loud roar it gets better with a crowd doing it, it goes the same with promotion, with the integration of  360 degree promotional campaign, it will only help in bringing the brand under limelight not under darkness.

The rising Indian population and the demographic shift has created a demand where Integrated marketing Communications to cater to both the mass audience and niche audience.

This is where a seed of marketing pitches in ,which is relationship marketing helping the organization from a slaughter that they are going to witness in the coming years from their competitors and so a defence mechanism, which includes planning and execution is needed

This is a more enhance level of integration that crosses other boundaries where only one phrase exist “what is after this”. It is the mix of horizontal integration, vertical integration, internal and external integration,  which helps making IMC an important lesson for all those marketers who want to make it big for themselves and for their organization.

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BTL THE NEW FACE OF MARKETING COMMUNICATION

BTL( Below The Line Communication) is the intensive penetration strategy used for catering to a specific niche. It is opted by the companies for many reasons but out of them the first and the most important is brand recall via personal engagement. The basic purpose of doing BTL is creating a personalized touch and feel of the products. The customer attention is grabbed for a prolonged time and in the meantime you help them understand the specification about the product and this is how you spread awareness at a minimum cost. BTL plus point is that it is highly measurable. In a radio industry the money spent by them on Street Level Marketing is measured by comparing it with how many cumes have increased (Cumes here refer to the no of listeners who tune in to any particular radio station). BTL is the key to consumer ethnocentrism, it helps in resolving the problem of demographic segmentation.

BTL is the new face of marketing communication for many industries and these are the following examples to support the same: -

BIG FM doing road shows

Pepsi organizing and sponsoring events of various colleges.

MTS sponsoring the whole college fest paying worth 12 lakhs


Brands like Toyota and Ford doing on ground activation for their new models like ETIOS and FIESTA

Make My Trip going for BTL Communication at Select City Walk.

Zapak sponsoring Gaming events, also comes under BTL Communication

This is a research conducted by me to prove that BTL Communication has a superior consumer connect: -

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Is your Marketing Communication Effective?

From the past few decades, ATL Communication has been a blessing in disguise for marketers who wanted their brand to be the odd one out. Its funny how these brands who were once an acknowledged establishment, now are a mere puppet of the numbers game. If your numbers are up you are there in the market and if not , you always have an exit door waiting for you.
Communication sole purpose is awareness and conversions. Communication is not just letting the customer know about the product but also finding if the customer wants your product. Its about what people want and you give it to them.

As, I define those mediums which help us cater the mass audience Mediums are not limited to TV, Radio, Movies, Internet and Outdoor Advertising. This type of communication is good as it helps the customer remember about the product but for only those who see it. Convenience matters and to care of that, customers don’t have to worry, it is the organization who has to figure out how to reach its target group and in what way.

Why do you think Surf Excel a detergent brand didn’t just do a simple promo of a detergent being effective, rather opted for an emotional ad where a child jumps into dirt just to make someone happy. It is not some brilliant concept that they have come up with. It is plain perception marketing, you scan your audience for what they want and how they will act to the environment around them and you strategize accordingly.

In today’s scenario, in order to understand the customer, personal engagement is very important. You need to understand the market vibe, get down on the floor and act accordingly. You have to take yourself to the customer, if he is not coming to you. The one who does that has a better recall for his brand at a low cost as compared to a person who spend 1 crore worth money on advertising and is still not able to achieve results.

These are few examples to support the same: -

Most of the educational institutes like career forum, career launcher, Time and PT are holding informative workshops and free tests for students which give a direct interaction of these institutes with the target customer and hence a suitable platform to sell themselves.

Ring tones and music videos on cell phones are helping the entertainment industry to promote for a music video or a movie for dirt-cheap rate as compared to media promotion.

Various companies sponsor sport events to promote their brand, but nowadays media companies like Hindustan Times are holding weekly events through out the country in which companies can put up their stalls, display banners and posters and arrange for some fun activities. These events give the companies a platform at very low price to promote their brand and increase visibility among target consumer. These companies also give discount coupons to winners in the games, which in turn boost the sales of the products and ensure that first time users try these products as well.

Pepsi organized an inter school cricket event for 425 schools across 14 cities which did wonders for the company by promoting the brand amongst the right target customer for almost no cost.
Most of the pharmacy companies do BTL promotion by getting shelf space through doctors to display their products or by giving away free calcium tablets again through doctors, knowing that for a patient a personal advise from a doctor would hold more value as compared to a commercial advertisement.

Another interesting BTL promotion was by NIKE. An athlete dressed up in Nike sportswear could be seen jogging on an elevated treadmill for the whole day on National Highway 8, Delhi.

Tata Shaktee is a strong rural brand from Tata Steel, for roofing products, has BTL activity in the form of Haat participation. By having a stall at Haat, Tata Shaktee engages potential consumers in interactive games around differentiating attributes of the product. Also, discount coupons are given for interested buyers, with details of nearby retailers.

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