A good practical way to determine appropriate channels for your product would be to start at the point of final purchase. Who is the final consumer or user of your product? Where does that person look when buying your type of product? Once the various channels have been identified, it is easier to determine which ones make the most sense or which ones offer the path of least resistance.
Promotion
Promotion is that term which many people confuse with the word «marketing». But promotion is just one of the four Ps and a good «marketer» is not just a good promoter but also a good planner and a good listener.
Promotion can take many forms: advertising in various media, events, press releases, trade shows, brochures, flyers, and Internet sites to name a few. Promotion means creating awareness although awareness is just the beginning. Good promotion compels the buyer to buy. The «need» for the product must be addressed. How does it solve the customer’s needs (even needs he doesn’t know he has)?
There is virtually no limit on the amount of TV, radio, and newspaper advertising that one can do. When Apple announced the Macintosh in 1984, it used «shocking» television advertisement that was aired during the American Super Bowl broadcast. What an audience! What an impact! And then it was followed up with an inundation of print advertising as well as focused trade publications and trade shows. Of course, this also resulted in extensive «free» media coverage because of the news worthiness of this innovation.
Promotion is done with the purpose of not only creating demand, but building brand awareness. The challenge is to come up with another «kleenex» or «coke» or «Tamagochi».
Essential Vocabulary
1. forecast
forecast
2. sales revenues
– выручка от продаж3. distribution channel
– канал распределения4. pricing
5. adjustment
adjust
6. advertising budget
– бюджет на рекламу7. salesperson (salesman)
8. marketing mix
– маркетинговая смесь9. variable
10. retail outlet
– точка розничной торговли11. high-end
12. top-of-the-line product
– товар высшей категории13. invoice
invoice
14. loan
15. charge
charge
16. selling price
– продажная цена17. lag
lag
lagging
18. advantage
19. life cycle
– жизненный цикл20. markup pricing
– ценообразование с надбавкой к себестоимости товара21. «skimming» prices
– цены, «снимающие сливки»22. commodity products
– товары (чаще всего сырьевые)23. going-rate pricing
– ценообразование с учетом текущего уровня цен24.Free-on-Board (FOB)
– «франко-борт судна» (ФОБ)25. currency fluctuations
– валютные колебания26. freight
freight
27. middleman
28. emerge
29. customer (client) base
– клиентская база30. final (end) consumer
– конечный потребитель31. awareness
(to be) aware (of)
32. coverage
cover
cover
Exercise 1. Answer the following questions.
1. What is the difference between marketing and selling? 2. What should a company do to develop a forecast of sales revenues? 3. What independent variables are included in the marketing mix? 4. What main challenge do you face when you develop the marketing mix? 5. How do different categories of professionals perceive a product of their company? 6. What are the most common pricing strategies? 7. How do companies identify distribution channels? 8. What is the difference between promotion and marketing?