There is still a place for non-digital marketing activities within the overall marketing mix such as advertising, direct marketing, public relations (PR), sales promotion & event marketing.
Advertising media include radio, TV, cinema, press and outdoor. Outdoor advertising includes roadside, transport, retail & leisure. Although advertising is perceived as being a less attractive marketing solution these days by many organisations due to the effectiveness of digital advertising, this does not mean that it can never work. If sales targets and marketing budgets permit, advertising still has an important role to play in the marketing mix.
Direct marketing is one-to-one marketing with customers at any point in the sales pipeline and it is often used to generate sales or create leads. With existing customers, it might be to inform them of promotional offers or new products and services. There are many factors which affect the success of a direct marketing campaign such as:
- Data quality and quantity
- Customer segmentation
- Gatekeepers
- Quality of promotional offers
- Calls to action (or lack of)
- Follow-up communications
Direct marketing techniques include telemarketing and email marketing, as well as physically-distributed products.
PR is all about the development of media relations with industry journalists and influencers in order to create press articles in relevant media to a client’s marketplace, such as newspapers, magazines, radio and tv.
The job of a PR person is to associate a product or brand with an appropriate celebrity or 3rd-party event, to firefight negative publicity and foster brand partnerships and find sponsorship deals. It is about storytelling and making a product or brand stand out from the crowd and much, much more…
Typical strategies are short-term tactics to persuade a potential customer to purchase or trial a product or service using money-off coupons, competitions, discount vouchers, free gifts, point of sale, and loyalty cards.
The key to creating successful event marketing strategies, such as for conferences, seminars and exhibitions, is understanding the needs of the target audience. There are many things to consider such as:
- Making sure communications are in line with the corporate brand proposition
- The invitation process needs to be seamless and personal, persuasive and relevant
- The event itself has to be memorable and appropriate
- It has to be well-planned in every respect, with a focus on every single detail
- Pre and post event promotion are also important considerations to optimise impact
If you would like to speak to us about our marketing & PR services, please get in touch.
