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UNIT 3
PROMOTING A BRAND
Topic A
Explore the use of branding and the
promotional mix in business

Name: Thomas Houghton

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A1 THE IMPORTANCE OF BRANDING TO BUSINESSES

(P1) A brand is ..

A Strategy.

The perception of a
customer
e.g. apple vs Samsung
PS4 vs Xbox

A logo

A legal instrument

A company

A personality

A vision
Easy.com

An identity

An Image

A long term plan for the promotion of a company or a

product.

A brand is how the public sees the product. It must

represent everything the company stands for e.g.
innocent pure and natural brand.

The symbol that can be placed on a product so that

people know it belongs to a particular company e.g.
Nike tick
A brand is exclusive property of its owner. That means
that nobody else can profit from it. Companies work
hard to protect their brands e.g. apple and Samsung.
e.g. virgin- they apply the brand to their company- each
one benefits from the virgin brand/name.

Customer perceptions of a brand include how they

imagine a brand might behave,- they see it a bit like a
person. E.g. innocent-quirky
Brands are often created with the intention of using
them on a whole range of products. Easy brand- hotels,
cars, bus, office, pizza, gym, airlines, property, storage.
A brand can give a company and identity that
differentiates it from others, this may be due to the
quality or features.
Each brand has it own unique associations, e.g. BMW
good engineering, Porche- luxury and speed.

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Why Businesses use branding

Branding is used by businesses to create a clear image that customers can
recognise. A brand shows something belongs to a particular company. It gives
the customer a clear message about what they can expect from the product or
service. E.g. McDonalds maybe value and convenience.
Activity
(M1) In pairs list 5 brands in the table below and make notes on what you think the
brand represents.
Brand

Message/represents?
Technological innovation, expensive, sleek design

Apple

Cheap, tasty, looks nice.

McDonalds
Different prices, different packages
Microsoft

(M1) Types of Branding

Businesses use different types of branding:

Service branding
Product branding

This is when the brand

represents a specific
service e.g. google

Brand represented a
specific product
E.g. Jaffa cakes

Types of Branding

Corporate branding
This brand a company and it
can be applied to all of their
products and services e.g.
Kelloggs, Heinz, Cadburys

(M1) Adding Value

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The purpose of a brand is to add value to a product or service. Adding Value

means the increase in value a business creates using the production process
A good brand will differentiate a company from is competitors. Differentiation
means making a product seem more valuable than those of their competitors
(M1) Benefits of successful branding
Using the cards, match the title to the correct definition.
Benefits of successful branding
A brand creates an association in peoples minds
Image
about the image of the product e.g. McDonalds
fast service.
A brand tells people how good the product is
Quality

Recognition

Long-lasting perceptions

Trust

Marketing Multiple
products

The golden arches of the McDonalds logo are

well known around the world. People know what
it stands for regardless of the language they
speak
A well established brand creates a lasting
impression on customers. E.g. coca cola
holidays are coming Christmas adverts- once
they have seen it they start to think about
Christmas.
Customers know that a product with a brand will
meet a certain standard. For example
Travelodge hotels will be consistent around the
world
This is called brand extension. Once a brand is
successful, it can be used to promote a range of
products.

(M1) Unsuccessful branding

Branding doesnt always work the way the business wants it to and can go wrong.
Negative publicity can damage the reputation of the brand eg Tesco horsemeat
scandal. Even now Tesco are still recovering from that and the company has gone
through some very difficult times since.
(P2) A2 - WHY BUSINESSES NEED TO PROMOTE THEMSELVES
Promotion is very important for all businesses. If a business manages its promotion
well, it allows it to stay ahead of its competitors. This is because good promotional
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activity will inform customers about a companys products and persuade them that
they should make a purchase from that company.
Businesses benefit from promotional activity by creating awareness of their brand.
This should lead to increased sales and profits. Promotion is one of the 4 elements
of the marketing mix. When it is well designed, promotion will support the other
elements of the marketing mix.
Activities used in the marketing mix
Place

Product

Elements of the marketing

mix
Promotion

Price

These are the 4 elements of a good marketing campaign.

PRODUCT
This is what the business sells to their
customers. A product has a combination
of features and benefits.
Feature: what the product does or what
it is made of.
Benefit: what can get from using the
product e.g. Netflix- exclusive
programmes, films and shows

PROMOTION
This is how a business communicates
with their customer. Promotion is used to
create awareness of the product in many
ways. E.g. TV, Newspapers, billboards,
cinema, internet, email, etc
Promotion is targeted based on the
target market.

PRICE
It is important to get the price of the
products right,
Too much and people may not be able to
afford it. Too little and it may cheapen the
brand and result is no profit being made.
The price charged will depend on the
quality, The better the quality the higher
the price, Demand is also important- the
more demand the higher the price.
Competition also needs to be
considered.
PLACE
Where are you selling the product?
The business needs to consider their
target market. Will you sell direct or
through retailers? Will you sell online or
in store? Direct methods allow the
business to make higher profits. Using
retailer leads to more potential
customers.

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Activity
In small groups research a local business and then state what they do for each of
the 4 ps. Then recommend improvements for each of the 4 ps.
PRODUCT
What they do.
Carverys
Fish & chips
Southern fried chicken
Chips
Cheesy chips
Curry & chips
Garlic bread
Ice cream
Hot & soft drinks
Alcoholic beverages
Pie of the day

PRICE
What they do.
4.20
3.89
2.98
1.00
1.20
1.35
1.25
1.50
1-3

What they could do.

Make the prices a bit more reasonable
What they could do.
Do a wider varity of products

PROMOTION
What they do.
Advertisements outside the building.

PLACE
What they do.
Have multiple locations

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What they could do.

Massive billboards

What they could do.

(P2) Benefits of promotion to business

Promotion is essential for businesses to communicate with customers about their
goods and services.
How do you think businesses could benefit from having effective promotion?

Raise awareness
Increase sales
Encourage new customers to buy products
Remind existing customers about the product.

(P3) A3 ELEMENTS OF THE PROMOTIONAL MIX AND THEIR PURPOSES

The promotional mix refers to the different elements that a business can use to
encourage customers to buy its products.
Think about successful promotional methods you have seen. Why have they
been successful in your opinion?
The Cadburys adverts are successful because they get the audiences attention by
repeating the adverts and also audiences already know what the product is and with
the advert they play a song that is catchy like the gorilla playing the drums advert
they play a recognisable song so whenever you hear that song it will remind you of
that advert.
It is interesting so it gets your attention
It is easy to remember
It is different
It includes product information

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Advertising
Advertising is when a business pays for space in the media to communicate with the
public about their products or services. This can be expensive and so businesses
must ensure they choose the right media so as to not waste their budget (the amount
of money they have been allocated to spend on adverts).
There are 2 main purposes of advertising:

To inform people. You need to make customers aware of your product or

service and its benefits. You will tell customers about its best features.
To persuade people to make a purchase. You might tell people about the
great benefits that you offer, or the low price, extra value etc. e.g. dominosleaflets showing offers and deals and emails to promote their business.

Different companies will use adverts with either one or both of the above purposes.

(P3) Message and Medium

When you design an advert, you must think about what you want to tell people (the
message) and how you will tell them (the medium).
Your message might be what you sell, where you sell it and how much it costs.
The medium you choose depends on your budget and what type of market you are
trying to reach. So a large company like Kelloggs will have a large budget and they
will want to reach a large audience so they may choose national TV or a national
newspaper. Whereas a small, independent computer repairs shop may use a local
media or maybe social media.
Activity
Using newspaper, magazine cuttings or phots of adverts on billboards find 3 adverts.
For each state whether they are trying to inform or persuade. For each advert write
a short explanation of how it uses words and pictures to achieve these purposes.

(P3) Methods of Advertising

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There are many different methods of advertising available to businesses, depending

on the medium that they choose:
Method
Moving
image

Print

Ambient

Description
TV or cinema adverts. It is useful to show specific features or the
moving parts of the product. It is now common for businesses to
upload their adverts on YouTube
This is advertising in newspapers, magazines or billboards. Can be
in colour or black & white. Technology means there are now digital
signs that can change throughout the day.
Adverting in public spaces e.g. The side of the bus. These are often
very colourful and eye catching.

Electronic adverts on websites or those sent over emails

Digital

Audio

Radio adverts- these are low cost and only involve sound.
Businesses can tell customers about their product.

Task - Choosing methods of advertising

The type of product or service that you are promoting will influence your choice of
advertising method. For each of the following businesses, suggest a type of advert
and explain why you think it is appropriate.
1. A local car dealer
The best way of advertising for a local car company is on a local radio station
because then people who are listening will be able to listen to their advert and
local radio is better than an national newspaper because local people will see
the advert and will be able to go to their business quickly, but if it is a national
newspaper people who see the advert wont go to the business because it is
too far away and thy have other car dealerships that are closer to them.
2. An online retailer
E-mails are the best way for them because they will be able to target previous
customers and also new customers, also with E-mail mostly everyone uses
email so then they will be able to get hold of people online.
3. A national chain of coffee shops
National TV is the best type of advertisement for a coffee shop because then
a lot of people in that country will see that advert and they will be able to
advertise their products to the rest of the country.
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4. An office cleaning company based in north west

Ambient advertising is the best way for this because they will have adverts on
the side of busses around the north west and since it is a cleaning company
they can send email to specific areas.
(P3) Sales promotion
1. Sales promotions are used to encourage customers to purchase your
products or for distribution channels to stock your goods. This involves
offering an incentive to make it more attractive to make a purchase. Sales
promotion methods include:
Discounted prices e.g. 25p off, buy one get one free or 25%
Price promotion
extra free.

Coupons

Offering customers money off if they collect them and use

them when purchasing goods e.g. Alton Towers.

Competitions

Customers can win a prize when they buy a product- also

includes instant wins e.g. Cadburys, Galaxy.

Money refunds

Some businesses offer cash back schemes when a customer

buys something. They then get the money back at a later date.

Loyalty incentives

This encourages customers to go back to the shop e.g. cafe

nero, collect 10 stamps and get a free drink.

Key terms .
B2B market a business to business market in which one company sells products
to another
Distribution channels the route that a product or service takes to get to the
market eg manufacturer to wholesaler to retailer.
Interpersonal skills being able to speak to customers and read their body
language
B2C market a business to consumer market in which companies sell products
directly to the public.
Pitch the proposal made by a salesperson to sell their products to a potential
customer.
(P3) Personal Selling

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This is where a representative of a company interacts directly with a potential

customer. The salesperson uses their interpersonal skills to try to persuade the
potential customer to make the purchase. This is called the closing sale.
This can be better than advertising for some businesses if their product or services
are complicated. The salesperson is able to explain the features to the customer
and answer any questions they might have.
Telephone:

Face to face:
The sales person watches
language and decides if they will
make a purchase
METHODS OF PERSONAL SELLING

Cant read body language but a

good sales person can tell from the
tone of their voice if they are going
to make a purchase

They then adopt their sale pitch

Email:
Video or web conferencing:

Deals can be discussed

over a period of time.

The use of a web cam allows

the sales person to see the
customer. They can also
demonstrate the products.

Attachments can be sent

A relationship can be
formed

Activity
Stella and Dot moved to the UK in 2011. They use a modern twist on direct selling
called a trunk show. Go to www.pearsonhotlinks.co.uk and search for Stella and Dot
then answer the following questions:
1. What is a trunk show?

2. Why do you think Stella and Dot employ stylists rather than salespeople?

(P3) Public Relations activities

Public relations are the activities a business carries out
to place information in the media without paying for it
directly. So, for example, getting your product onto the
news on the TV, for good reasons of course. This air time can be worth thousands
and thousands of pounds.

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The problem with this is that the message you are trying to convey may not be the
one the media decides to use. Examples of PR activities include:

Sponsorships- This is when you pay to display your brand at an event. E.g.
TV sponsorship. Some companies use sponsorships to create a positive
image for the company.

Exhibitions- An exhibition is when one or more company present and display

their products. It is often large event e.g. wedding fairs and has many different
stalls highlighting different products.

Press releases- This involves writing a statement which can be used by

journalists as part of a news story. They may be sent out each day.

Activity
Think about a recent successful event, it could be an event in college or your sports
team etc. Write a short press release that could be sent to your local newspaper to
promote the achievement.
(P3) Direct Marketing
This is when a business communicates directly with the customer establishing an
individual relationship between the business and the customer. While adverts are
shown to everyone in a specific area, direct marketing material is aimed at a specific
customer and can be tailored according to the individual or group to whom it is sent.
Direct marketing activities include the following:

Directmail- Letters posted to customers to give them information about their

products, email is becoming more common and it is easy for the business to
send information e.g. Amazon.
Mail order catalogues- Sending customers a catalogue containing
photographs and details about products e.g. Avon
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Magazines- Some companies send out magazines to their customers, The

customers would need to be on a mailing list e.g. asos, They include pictures
and descriptions of the products.
Telemarketing- This is when a phone call is made to a customer to tell them
about their products.

(M2) A4 PROMOTIONAL ACTIVITIES IN BUSINESS

Types of Market
To create an effective promotional campaign, businesses must identify which
customers they want to target with their promotions.
Business to Business (B2B) Markets- Emails & phone calls.
When a company sells goods or services to other companies it is targeting a B2B
market. Eg Asda buying beans or soup from Heinz.
Business to Consumer (B2C) markets- TV adverts, newspaper, social media etc
Consumers are the people who use goods and services. There is a range of
products available in B2C markets, including phones, clothes, food etc.
Activity
For each of the following products, suggest which promotional methods you would
use to sell it in a B2B market and a B2C market:
1. Laptop computer- (B2B) send it by email currys or pc world because it is
easy to pass on the information. And a you will contact specific part of the
business that deals with that type of product that they are selling them.
(B2C) TV adverts will be the best so then you can show how the laptop works
2. Frozen chips (B2B) over the phone will be the best method because then
you can get to a specific part of the business that deals with hat type of
products and you can tell them over the phone what it is and give them a
sample.
(B2C) Tv advert- shows them around tea time so then they will see that
product and can also give out free samples so then they can taste the product
and see if they like it.
3. Flight to Spain- (B2B) email offering the flights that you have on offer and
done over the internet so they can change the prices daily.
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4. GCSE Maths revision guide- (B2B) they face to face contact with sales reps
coming out and showing you the product
(B2C) see it on the shelves in book stores because people who are looking for
that product will be able to find it.

1. (M2) Market Segmentation

Dividing the market up into groups of people allows money to be spent
more efficiently. The process of identifying and targeting a group of
people with similar interests is called segmentation. Markets can be
segmented in a number of ways:
Age

People have different needs based on their age, E.g. mobile

phones- panic buttons and large buttons.

Family status

People have different needs depending on their family status E.g.

married, children, single, -holidays.

Gender

Male & female- haircare, cosmetics, clothes, Topshop and top

man

Attitudes

Customers are divided by how much they earn- Supermarkets

premium, supermarkets own, budget range- smart price, everyday
essentials.
Products are bought based on how people see the world. E.g. Fair
trade, organic

Lifestyle

Markets can be segmented based on hobbies or interests. E.g.

magazines

Income

( M2) The use of promotional activities in business

Setting Objectives There is no point spending time devising
your promotional mix, if you dont know what it is you want to
achieve. When you are planning promotional activity it is
important to set SMART objectives. Do you remember these from
unit 1?
Activity imagine you are the marketing manager for a new
chocolate brand. You are going to launch the new chocolate bar
in 6 weeks time. Write a suitable SMART objective for your new product.
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How appropriate is your promotional mix?

The type of promotional activities that you select will depend on the type of product
you want to sell and the market you are aiming at. The appropriateness of your
promotional mix will also depend on your target segment. For example, digital
advertising might be more appropriate for younger consumers. Audio channels such
as radio might be more appropriate for older age groups.
(M2) Benefits of selecting an appropriate marketing mix
Selecting an appropriate promotional mix means that money is spent efficiently.
Otherwise money is wasted on activities that attract few customers. Well-planned
activities will also make a business more competitive. Staying ahead of competitors
is very important.
(D1) The AIDA model
AIDA stands for:
A Attention (grabbing the customers attention)
I Interest (making the customer contemplate that product)
D Desire (making the customer want that product)
A Action (makes the customer physically go out and buy that product and make the
business make profit)
AIDA describes the stages that a customer goes through when looking at welldesigned promotional material. The model can be used to evaluate the quality of the
different elements of your marketing mix.
Awareness/attention

Interest

It attracts peoples attention, eye catching slogan, striking

images

The features should be communicated so they find it

interesting. The business needs to understand the needs of
the customer. E.g. what features are they looking for in a
mobile phone- waterproof, camera, apps etc.

Desire

You need to persuade the customer to buy it. Highlight the

price, special offers, location (where they can buy it) e.g.
DVD released- price, release date and shops.

Action

You need to give the customer an opportunity to buy it . tell

them where they can buy it and make it available, e.g. a link
on an email from amazon.
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