Develop an Integrated Marketing Strategy

JWI 518 Marketing in a Global Environment, week8 summary, 12/2/12

This was a challenging week with numerous core marketing concepts to learn and think about. We learned how to come up with a marketing strategy to target key customer segments, taking into account stages in a product life cycle and consumer adoption process. I recognize that the role of an integrated marketing communications plan, inclusive of social media tools, is to take key and consistent messages to customers such that their brand perception, preferences and purchase decisions can be influenced positively.

These principles work for me at multiple levels. I can apply them in my current role within my organization to market new ideas and influence adoption. As I take on broader leadership roles, I believe these principles will help me work with the marketing experts more effectively.

Dr DP

JWI 518 Marketing in a Global Environment, Week8, Summary, 12/2/12

(I) Kotler, Chapter 10: Setting Product Strategy and Marketing the Life Cycle
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When planning market offering, think through 5 levels of the product
core benefit, basic product, expected product, augmented product, potential product

(II) Kotler, Chapter 15: Designing and Managing Integrated Marketing Channels
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Effective marketing communications requires 8 steps:
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Identify target audience, Determine objectives, Design the communications, Select the communication channels, establish total communications budget, decide on communications mix, measure results, manage integrated marketing communications process

There are 5 Stages of buyer readiness
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Awareness, Comprehension, Conviction, Order, Reorder
Tools to influence purchase decision are:
Advertising & publicity - decreases with time
Sales promotion; Personal selling - increase with time

(III) Chang, Obama and the Power of Social Media and Technology
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Technology is a transformative force. Get people engaged in the process on a large scale by focusing on:
Message, Mobile, Money; Respect, empower, inclusivity. Internet allows openness,inclusiveness, self-organizing, grassroots leadership.

(IV) Week 8 | Lecture 1: Product Strategy: Marketing Across the Adoption Process and Life Cycle
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Goal: Devise a product strategy for marketing across all the stages of a product lifetime
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Challenge: Marketing challenged by constant changes in product life cycle, customers, technologies
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Cost, tools, messages:
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Balance cost vs expected results at every stage of the game
Select tools that offer best chance of reaching consumers
Select messages that will create the greatest persuasive impact

(i) Product Adoption Process:
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Awareness - that brand exists; word-of-mouth
Interest - find out more; offers a physical, mental, emotional satisfaction
Evaluation - features, benefits, costs vs alternatives
Trial - sample, test drive, store visit
Adoption - customer buys product; speed of adoption depends on relative advantage, much lower cost, cool, budget, public opinion

(ii) Customer innovativeness categories
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Innovators (2.5%)
Early adopters (13.5%)
    Emotion driven motivations & messages - desire to be first; exclusive
    Logical motivations & messages - leg up from competitive advantage at cutting-edge
Early majority (34%)
Late majority (34%)
Laggards(16%)

(iii) Marketing messages must fit with the key motivators that drive someone to buy
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eg. Early adopters
    Emotional messages - use TV & internet advertising with images of color, sound, music to arouse desire; laugh & look cool
    Logical messages - explain product's advantages from features eg. business success & life success
    Brand positioning -eg. Blackberry: indispensable tool that lets you live life with greatest flexibility; emblem of professional success; good value

(iv) Product Life Cycle
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Bell Shaped: Introduction, Growth, Maturity, Decline, Withdrawal
Growth Slump Maturity eg. coffee makers
Cycle Recycle Pattern eg. drugs
Scalloped Return eg. baking soda

(V) Week 8 | Lecture 2: Integrated Marketing Communication: Optimizing the Marketing Mix
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Know how, when and where to market products in order to make the greatest impact.

Marketing Communications (MarCom) campaign Goal: increase sales; drive brand awareness etc
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Deliver Marketing messages & Create brand image
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    => deliver through effective marketing campaign - different sources of integrated marketing communications
    => create the ideas and feelings customers have about a brand - brand image
Move buyers through four AIDA stages of decision making
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    => Attention: Broad awareness with mass media like TV, radio, magazines, internet
    => Interest: features, benefits, endorsements, ratings, price eg. print, mail, personal contact with influencers
    => Desire to own: Transformational appeals to emphasize strong human emotions eg. love, pride, joy, humor, fear, coolness
    => Action to buy: Logical & emotional motivators; coupons, samples, personal selling, specials; time pressure; expiration dates, limited time offers

(VI) When to Market
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Buyer Readiness:
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StageI (Product introduction) - ramp up brand awareness through mass media eg. TV, internet, print
StageII (AIDA)  - Additional information, emotional seduction eg. direct mail, personal sellings, sales promos, reminder advertising such as "got milk?"

Life Cycle of Product:
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Introduction - Brand awareness
Growth - heavy advertising to build brand loyalty
Maturity - less advertising; more sales promos
Decline - advertising and promos decreased to low maintenance levels

Where to Market
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Advertising: TV, radio, magazines, newspapers, billboards, packaging, brochures, posters, fliers, inserts, online, search engines
Sales promos: contests, samples, exhibits, coupons, rebates, gifts, premiums, trade shows, demsos, special offers
Events: Sponsorships, entertainment and sports events, festivals, cause-related events, factory tours, trips.
Public Relations and Publicity: Press kits and releases, media stories or mentions, speeches, seminars, charitable donations, community events, lobbying, annual reports, in-house publications, articles in the media by company executives.
Direct and Interactive Marketing: Catalogs, direct mail, telemarketing, shopping channels and sites, online.
Word-of-Mouth Marketing: Person-to-person communications, chat rooms, consumer reviews, and recommendations.
Personal Selling: Sales presentations and meetings, in-store samples, contact from company representatives, fairs and tradeshows, door-to-door, online.

(VII) Integrated Marketing Mix example - Subway
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Customer receives same basic message and brand promise - healthy, delicious sandwich vs less healthy McDonalds or KFC
Advertise: TV, radio, billboards, fliers to drive people to its website which features videos and health information
Sales promos: newspaper inserts with coupons & specials; in store promos and specials
Events: NASCAR racing sponsor, Little League baseball, AHA heart walk
PR: emphasize relative healthiness of sandwiches eg Jared ad
Word-of-Mouth marketing: Oprah, Larry King Live; online chat rooms, blogs

Narrower marketing mix - Chipotle
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Advertise: word of mouth primarily; online, print, billboards to promote contest
Sales Promos: $10K promo contest for customer with best idea for TV ad

(VIII) Net Promote Score (NPS)
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 The concept of NET promoter score (NPS) is insightful. The question "how likely are you to recommend this brand to your friend", and asking customers to rate on a scale of 1-10, is simple but insightful and brilliant. By looking at the difference between the fraction of "promoter" customers who are scoring favorably 9-10 and the "detractors" who score 0-6, the NPS is calculated. Progressive leaders should drive not only profits but also NPS score to ensure the profits are "good" and sustainable. "Bad profits" are those that come at the expense of bad NPS ratings and they can kill a firm in the long run.