3Ps of Marketing Communication

An organisations marketing communication strategy are represented by 3Ps: Push, Pull and Profile.

  1. Push strategy: This strategy promotes products to retailers or wholesalers in order to force the product line down the distribution line.
  2. Pull strategy: This strategy is the opposite to push strategy where communication reaches to consumer or end user first with an aim to attract the retailer wholesaler channel to purchase the product line.
  3. Profile Strategy: In order to satisfy an organisations promotional goals profile strategy is used. This strategy mostly aims towards satisfying stakeholder needs.

1. Push Strategy

Main focus of push strategy is to use minimal or no advertising to get the product to the buyers. This strategy acquires customers by personal sale. One of the places can be trade-shows where products are shown to interested business. In trade shows distributors get to know about product line up of a company with their business expertise they work on which product will suit them better and which product they want to represent.

Features of push strategies:

  • In case of low brand loyalty product categorization.
  • In situations where there are many substitutes available in the market.
  • Comparatively innovative products to be marketed.
  • Purchase of the product is mostly impulse.
  • Consumer has prior knowledge of this product and has reasonable knowledge about the product.

3. Pull Strategy

Using pull strategy marketing efforts are made to attract end users or customers. Lot of promotions are used, customers are given offers to buy the product at a better rate. Campaigns includes contests, free samples, social activities etc. In pull strategy if organisation add advertisement with the campaign then the whole costing becomes significantly higher.

Features of Pull strategy;

  • The product demand as high.
  • Product line can be differentiate from other products on the basis of real or emotional features.
  • Brand loyal consumers are the first line of customer who shows higher involvement in product purchase.
  • Associated brand loyalty is higher.
  • Often consumers make decisions of brand choice before even they are in store.

3. Profile Strategy

For the organisations interest it is vital to keep up good relationship with its various stakeholders. Using profile strategy awareness, perception, attitude and reputation of a company is build. Tools used are;

  1. Public relations
  2. Sponsorship
  3. Corporate advertising

In cases of international market, nature of the foreign market is often determinant of the extent to which push, pull and profile strategy can be used. To overcome repetition in activities and better market reach different marketing strategy is adopted in each different markets. Some of these markets are highly fragmented whereas some of them are concentrated.

Implications of these Marketing Communication Strategies

A pull strategy among the three requires higher spending on advertisement and promotional activities to build upon consumer demand for a product. If the strategy works well then consumers will contact retailers for the product. The retailers will contact distributor who will then communicate back to manufacturers who will manufacture and stock the product.

A push marketing strategy uses company’s existing sales forces and trade promotional activities to create market demand for a product. Here the producer promotes their product to distribution channel. Distributer promotes the product to retailers and then from retailers product reaches to consumers.

Key steps included for the organisation:

  1. Determine general marketing objectives.
  2. Formulate appropriate push/pull strategy (which can be done by identifying marketing communications, appropriate channel management)
  3. Spread marketing massage to all communication partners.
  4. Output evaluation.

Critical Analysis of Marketing Strategies:

Having only one strategy for marketing communication often limits the company’s reach. For a successful product portfolio it is common practice among companies to use both push and pull strategies to create a strong buzz in market. To create a satisfactory marketing mix which will lure customers to buy a selected range of product needs well-structured marketing strategies. Consumers react to one of these marketing strategies which again depends on what stage they are in their decision making process. Pull marketing tactic will work well with bargain hunters but it won’t work for socially aware consumers. These type of consumer will respond to push marketing strategy. In order to launch a new product mixing up strategies ensures consumers can’t resist the products. For stakeholder communication using pipeline of products will help those concerned that their invested money is in safe hands.

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