Strong Promotional Strategy Helps Achieve Goals

As you are developing your marketing program it’s important to consider what elements within the promotional mix would be optimum to utilize in reaching your goals. Are you introducing a new product or service, are you trying to build more awareness of yourself and/or your business or are you trying to attract new customers?

Many might think that promotional mix and marketing mix are the one in the same. While they may use some of the same elements they seek different outcomes. Both are important to the success of your business. However, the marketing mix or 4p’s (product, price, place and promotion) are geared toward your success in the marketplace. They help you understand how to best satisfy the needs of your customer. What is the best mix of product attributes for a price your customers are willing to pay (and you make a profit) and where would they most likely want to go and buy it and how do you promote it effectively are some of the key questions the marketing mix helps to answer.

Promotional Mix Informs, Reminds and Persuades

The promotional mix is geared more toward the direct interaction you have with your customers. It can include many of the same elements you might utilize within your marketing mix to promote your product but the goal of

the promotional mix is to inform, remind and persuade your target audience about your product or service.

The promotional mix can include:

• Personal Selling: the most direct of course would be face-to-face, think retail environment,     telephone, video conferencing or text chats
• Advertising: the most non-personal outlet of the mix even though it can include social media advertising that does elicit some direct communications it’s mostly paid messages using mass media outlets
• Direct Marketing: a printed piece mailed or an e-mail message directed specifically to your prospect or customer
• Sales Promotion: using special incentives for the short-term to encourage your customers or prospects to act now
• Public Relations: sometimes referred to as publicity, this is a non-paid form of information where you try to get the news media to refer to the company or new product/service in a favorable way

To succeed in achieving your goals you need a strong promotional strategy that can include one or more of the promotional mix elements mentioned above. For instance, you could introduce a strong sales promotion like a sweepstakes that encourages people to enter a drawing for a great prize that should correspond to your new product. This sales promotion will accomplish all the elements of the promotion mix – inform, remind and persuade your prospect/customer to take action. It encourages people to visit your website where they learn more, you get to build your email list with more prospects so you can forward your promotional materials and you can create more “buzz” about your product as your sweepstakes makes the social media circle. Win, win.

Self Promotion Grows Your Personal Brand

Another area that has proven to be an effective promotional strategy is to grow your own personal brand awareness. Self promotion today is more important than ever and is vital in growing your reputation and sales. It could be considered the 6^th element in the promotional mix. The old adage “people like to do business with people they know and trust” still holds true. Granted, you don’t want to be a braggart but you do want to promote the value that you bring to the table. Your experience counts as to how you are able to better contribute to your client’s success so let them know about it. Remember the promotional mix is all about direct interaction. What better way than with you sharing your message and being relevant to your customers.