flowchart LR S[Sender] --> EN[Encoding] EN --> M[Message] M --> CH[Channel] CH --> DE[Decoding] DE --> R[Receiver] R --> RE[Response] RE --> F[Feedback] F -.-> S style S fill:#FFEBEE,stroke:#C62828 style F fill:#E8F5E9,stroke:#2E7D32
72 Promotion Decisions
72.1 What is Promotion?
Promotion — the fourth P of the marketing mix — is the set of communication activities that inform, persuade and remind target customers about a product or service (kotler2021?). The modern term is Marketing Communication or MarCom.
TipThree Working Goals of Promotion
| Goal | Working content |
|---|---|
| Inform | Make target audience aware of the offering |
| Persuade | Build preference and trigger purchase |
| Remind | Sustain memory and repeat purchase |
72.2 The Promotion Mix — Five Elements
Kotler classifies promotion activities into five tools, collectively called the Promotion Mix or Communication Mix:
TipFive Elements of the Promotion Mix
| Element | Working content |
|---|---|
| Advertising | Paid, non-personal, mass communication identified with a sponsor |
| Sales promotion | Short-term incentives to encourage purchase or sale |
| Personal selling | Face-to-face presentation by sales force |
| Public Relations and Publicity (PR) | Building positive image; non-paid news / editorial |
| Direct marketing | Direct-to-customer communication — mail, email, telephone, online |
A sixth element — Digital and Social Media Marketing — is now treated as an important addition.
72.3 Communication Process
The classic communication model has nine elements (kotler2021?):
The model adds noise — anything that interferes with reception. Successful communication requires the sender’s encoded fields and the receiver’s decoded fields to overlap.
72.4 Advertising
TipFive Ms of Advertising
| M | Working content |
|---|---|
| Mission | Objectives — inform, persuade, remind |
| Money | Budget — affordable, percentage of sales, competitive parity, objective and task |
| Message | Creative content — appeal, copy, design |
| Media | Channels — TV, radio, print, outdoor, online |
| Measurement | Effectiveness — reach, frequency, GRP, recall, response |
TipTypes of Advertising
| Type | Working content |
|---|---|
| Informative | New product launch |
| Persuasive | Build brand preference; comparative |
| Reminder | Sustain top-of-mind awareness |
| Reinforcement | Convince current buyers they made a good choice |
TipMajor Advertising Media
| Medium | Strengths | Weaknesses |
|---|---|---|
| TV | Mass reach, audio-visual | High cost, clutter |
| Radio | Wide reach, low cost | Audio only |
| Newspaper | Local, credible | Short shelf-life |
| Magazine | Targeted, longer shelf-life | Slower reach |
| Outdoor (hoardings, transit) | Repeated exposure | Limited information |
| Internet / Mobile | Targeted, measurable | Ad-blocking, fragmentation |
| Cinema | High impact, captive audience | Limited reach |
72.5 Sales Promotion
Sales promotion offers short-term incentives to encourage purchase or sale.
TipForms of Sales Promotion
| Target | Tools |
|---|---|
| Consumer | Free samples, coupons, cash refunds, price packs, premiums, contests, loyalty programs, demonstrations |
| Trade / dealer | Price-off, free goods, allowances, push-money, sales contests, dealer conferences |
| Sales force | Bonuses, contests, sales-meetings |
72.6 Personal Selling
Personal selling is the face-to-face presentation by a salesperson to a potential buyer.
TipSeven Steps in Personal Selling
| Step | Action |
|---|---|
| 1 | Prospecting and qualifying |
| 2 | Pre-approach |
| 3 | Approach |
| 4 | Presentation and demonstration |
| 5 | Handling objections |
| 6 | Closing |
| 7 | Follow-up and maintenance |
72.7 Public Relations and Publicity
Public relations (PR) builds and maintains the firm’s image, reputation and relationships with various publics through:
TipPR Tools
| Tool | Working content |
|---|---|
| Press releases and news | Coverage in editorial space |
| Speeches and events | CEO appearances, sponsorships |
| Corporate communications | Annual report, in-house magazine |
| Public-service activities | CSR, philanthropy |
| Lobbying | Influencing legislation |
| Crisis communication | Managing image during disasters |
Publicity is the unpaid form of PR — news coverage, editorial mentions, viral content.
72.8 Direct and Digital Marketing
TipDirect and Digital Marketing Channels
| Channel | Working content |
|---|---|
| Direct mail | Letters, catalogues |
| Telemarketing | Outbound and inbound calls |
| Email marketing | Newsletters, promotions |
| Social media | Facebook, Instagram, X, LinkedIn |
| Search engine marketing (SEM) | Google Ads, Bing Ads |
| Search engine optimisation (SEO) | Organic search |
| Content marketing | Blogs, videos, podcasts |
| Influencer marketing | Endorsements by social-media personalities |
| Mobile marketing | SMS, app push, location-based |
| Affiliate marketing | Commission to external referrers |
72.9 AIDA Model
E. St. Elmo Lewis’s AIDA hierarchy (1898) is the oldest persuasion model:
TipAIDA Model
| Stage | Working content |
|---|---|
| A — Attention | Capture audience attention |
| I — Interest | Build interest in the product |
| D — Desire | Convert interest into desire |
| A — Action | Trigger purchase |
Other hierarchy models: DAGMAR (Define Advertising Goals for Measured Advertising Results), Hierarchy of Effects (Lavidge & Steiner), Innovation Adoption (Rogers).
72.10 Push vs Pull Strategy
TipPush vs Pull Promotion Strategy
| Strategy | Working content |
|---|---|
| Push | Producer pushes the product to channel members; channels push to customers (industrial goods, technical products) |
| Pull | Producer creates consumer demand directly; consumers pull product through the channel (consumer goods, brands) |
72.11 Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC)
Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC) — Don Schultz’s concept (1993) — integrates and coordinates all promotion tools to deliver a consistent, clear and compelling message about the firm and its products. IMC ensures the same brand voice across advertising, PR, sales, digital and direct channels.
72.12 Indian Advertising Regulation
TipIndian Advertising Regulation
| Body / Statute | Role |
|---|---|
| Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) | Self-regulatory body since 1985 |
| Consumer Protection Act 2019 | Bars misleading advertising; CCPA can act |
| Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act 1954 | Bars misleading drug advertising |
| Information Technology Act 2000 | Online advertising |
| Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act 2003 | Ban on tobacco advertising |
| Code for Self-Regulation in Advertising (ASCI Code) | Honesty, no offence, fairness, no misleading claims |
72.13 Exam-Pattern MCQs
NoteEight-question set
Q1. Which of the following is not a classical element of the promotion mix?
A. Advertising B. Sales promotion C. Personal selling D. Inventory management
Answer: D. Inventory management is part of operations / supply chain, not promotion.
Q2. Match each promotion element with its description:
| Element | Description | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| (i) | Advertising | (a) | Short-term incentives |
| (ii) | Sales promotion | (b) | Building positive image; non-paid news |
| (iii) | Personal selling | (c) | Paid, non-personal mass communication |
| (iv) | Public Relations | (d) | Face-to-face presentation by sales force |
A. (i)-(c), (ii)-(a), (iii)-(d), (iv)-(b) B. (i)-(a), (ii)-(b), (iii)-(c), (iv)-(d) C. (i)-(b), (ii)-(c), (iii)-(d), (iv)-(a) D. (i)-(d), (ii)-(a), (iii)-(c), (iv)-(b)
Answer: A.
Q3. AIDA stands for:
A. Attention, Interest, Desire, Action B. Acquisition, Information, Decision, Adoption C. Awareness, Image, Demand, Acceptance D. Action, Identity, Decision, Acquisition
Answer: A. Attention → Interest → Desire → Action (Lewis 1898).
Q4. Match each advertising “M” with its content:
| M | Content | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| (i) | Mission | (a) | Channels — TV, radio, print, online |
| (ii) | Money | (b) | Reach, frequency, recall |
| (iii) | Media | (c) | Inform, persuade, remind |
| (iv) | Measurement | (d) | Budget — affordability, percentage, parity, objective and task |
A. (i)-(c), (ii)-(d), (iii)-(a), (iv)-(b) B. (i)-(a), (ii)-(b), (iii)-(c), (iv)-(d) C. (i)-(b), (ii)-(c), (iii)-(d), (iv)-(a) D. (i)-(d), (ii)-(a), (iii)-(c), (iv)-(b)
Answer: A.
Q5. Match the personal-selling step with its content:
| Step | Content | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| (i) | Prospecting | (a) | Convincing the prospect to make purchase |
| (ii) | Approach | (b) | Identifying potential customers |
| (iii) | Presentation | (c) | Initial meeting and rapport |
| (iv) | Closing | (d) | Demonstrating product benefits |
A. (i)-(b), (ii)-(c), (iii)-(d), (iv)-(a) B. (i)-(a), (ii)-(b), (iii)-(c), (iv)-(d) C. (i)-(c), (ii)-(d), (iii)-(b), (iv)-(a) D. (i)-(d), (ii)-(a), (iii)-(b), (iv)-(c)
Answer: A.
Q6. Push promotion strategy:
A. Producer creates consumer demand directly B. Producer pushes the product to channel members; channels push to customers C. Consumer pulls the product through the channel D. Customer initiates communication
Answer: B. Push — push through channels.
Q7. Arrange the steps of the communication process in correct order:
- Encoding
- Sender
- Decoding
- Receiver
A. (ii), (i), (iii), (iv) B. (i), (ii), (iii), (iv) C. (iii), (iv), (ii), (i) D. (iv), (iii), (ii), (i)
Answer: A. Sender → Encoding → Channel → Decoding → Receiver → Response → Feedback.
Q8. Match each Indian regulation with its content:
| Regulation | Content | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| (i) | ASCI | (a) | Bars misleading drug advertising |
| (ii) | Drugs and Magic Remedies Act 1954 | (b) | Self-regulatory body for advertising |
| (iii) | Consumer Protection Act 2019 | (c) | Ban on tobacco advertising |
| (iv) | COTPA 2003 | (d) | Bars misleading advertising; CCPA |
A. (i)-(b), (ii)-(a), (iii)-(d), (iv)-(c) B. (i)-(a), (ii)-(b), (iii)-(c), (iv)-(d) C. (i)-(c), (ii)-(d), (iii)-(b), (iv)-(a) D. (i)-(d), (ii)-(c), (iii)-(a), (iv)-(b)
Answer: A.
ImportantQuick recall
- Promotion — communication that informs, persuades, reminds.
- Five-element promotion mix: Advertising, Sales Promotion, Personal Selling, PR/Publicity, Direct Marketing. Modern addition: Digital and Social Media.
- Communication process: Sender → Encoding → Channel → Decoding → Receiver → Response → Feedback (with noise).
- Five Ms of advertising: Mission, Money, Message, Media, Measurement.
- Advertising types: informative, persuasive, reminder, reinforcement.
- Sales promotion targets: consumer, trade, sales force.
- Personal selling 7 steps: Prospecting → Pre-approach → Approach → Presentation → Handling objections → Closing → Follow-up.
- AIDA (Lewis 1898): Attention → Interest → Desire → Action.
- Other hierarchy models: DAGMAR, Hierarchy of Effects (Lavidge-Steiner), Innovation Adoption (Rogers).
- Push vs Pull: push through channels; pull from consumer demand.
- IMC (Schultz 1993) — integrated marketing communication.
- Indian regulators: ASCI 1985, CPA 2019, DMR Act 1954, COTPA 2003, IT Act 2000.