This document discusses marketing communications and pricing strategies for services. It defines marketing communications as messages used to promote the marketing mix of product, price, place and promotion. It then discusses objectives of various communication targets, including consumers, intermediaries and competition. The promotional mix tools of advertising, sales promotion, personal selling, public relations and publicity are defined. Approaches to pricing services are also covered, including cost-based pricing, demand-oriented pricing and competition-oriented pricing. Specific methods under each approach are listed. Finally, various pricing strategies like odd pricing, psychological pricing and negotiated pricing are defined.

1. RIZA SALIM,
SANEEM NAZIM

2. Marketing Communications
Marketing communications are the messages and related media used to
communicate with a market. It is the promotion part of the marketing
mix or the four Ps – Price, Promotion, Place and Product.
Communication and the Service Marketing Triangle
• Internal Marketing Communication
• External Marketing Communication
• Interactive Marketing Communication

3. Service Communication
1) Objectives of Consumer Protection for Services
a) Objectives targeted at customers.




Creating & increasing an awareness of a new or existing service.
Encouraging customers to try the service.
Changing the timing of customer demand for the service.
Communicating the unique features of service and its distinct
services.

4. b) Objectives targeted at Intermediaries.
 Convincing intermediaries to deliver a new or a redesigned service
 Convincing existing intermediaries to push the promotion service
including display of prices, point of sales merchandising, etc.
 Protecting intermediaries against price negotiation by customers at
the point of purchase.
c) Objectives targeted at competition.
Changing competition, communication must create an offensive or
defensive impact based on the situation.
2) Developing the Promotional Mix
The marketing communication mix communicates information to
customers about product & services. It uses a combination of
strategies to influence the customers to buy the services.

5. Promotion Mix
Promotion mix refers to the type, combination and proportion of various
promotional elements used to promote sales. The promotion mix is also
known as marketing communication mix or promotional blend, Which
consists of five major tools- Advertising, Sales promotion, Personal
selling, Public relations and Publicity.
Definition
According to Masson and Ruth “promotion consists of those activities
that are designed to bring a company’s goods and services to the
favorable attention of customer.”

6. Elements of Promotional Mix
•
Advertising
Advertising is a paid form of non-personal mass communication
by an identified sponsor. They aim to promote the product, service or
idea to the target audience. The mass media used include print
media, direct mail, audio visual media, bill boards etc.
•
Sales Promotion
Sales promotion includes activities that seek to directly induce or
indirectly serve as incentives to motivate, a desired response on the
part of the target customers, company sales people and middle men
and their sales force. These activities add value to the product,
includes discounts, gifts, contests, premiums, displays and coupons
etc.

7. • Personal Selling
Personal selling involves oral presentation in a conversation with
one or more prospective buyers for the purpose of making sales. It
creates product awareness, stimulates interest, develops brand
preferences, negotiates price etc
• Public Relations
Public relation is a process of creating and maintaining successful
relations with public. Public relations tools are Speeches, News, Events,
Written materials etc.
• Publicity
Publicity is news carried in the mass media about a firm and its
products, policies, personnel or actions. Organizations frequently provide
the material for publicity through news releases, photographs and press
conferences.

8. Pricing in Services
Price
Price is the amount we pay for goods, services or ideas.
Pricing
Pricing is equivalent to the total service offering. It includes brand
name, delivery and other benefits. Pricing involves establishing pricing
objectives, identifying the factors governing the price, determining the
methods of pricing and formulation of pricing strategies and policies.

9. Approaches to Pricing Services
1) Cost Based Pricing
This policy assures that no product is sold at a loss, since price
covers the full cost incurred. The selling price is equal to cost of
production plus expected profit. This policy ignores competition or
demand, which are the chief determinants of price.
Methods of cost based pricing
•
•
•
Cost Plus Pricing
Targeting Pricing
Break-Even Pricing

10. 2) Demand Oriented Pricing Policy
This policy, the demand is the pivotal factor. The firm does not fix a
price but charges what a buyer can pay. Price is fixed by simply
adjusting it to the market condition. A high price is charged when
demand is high and a low price is fixed when the demand is low.
Price determination is usually adopted under such market situations
Methods Demand Oriented Pricing Policy
•
•
Skimming Pricing
Penetration Pricing

11. 3) Competition Oriented Pricing Policy
Most companies set prices after a careful consideration of the
competitive price structure. Deliberate policies may be set for selling
above, below or generally in line with competition. Depending upon
the changes in the competitive prices, the price of the products of the
firm will vary.
Methods of Competition Oriented Pricing Policy
•
•
•
Premium Pricing
Discount Pricing
Going Rate Pricing

12. Kinds of Pricing (Pricing Strategies)
• Odd Pricing (Charm pricing)
A pricing ending in an odd number is known as odd pricing.
• Psychological Pricing
When a firm fixes the price of its products at a full number, it is
known as psychological pricing
• Dual Pricing (Discriminatory Pricing)
When a producer sells the same products at two or more different
prices, it is called dual pricing. It is possible only when different brands
are marketed in the same market and it adopted in Railways.

13. • Negotiated Pricing
This method is followed by industrial suppliers. The price is not fixed.
The price to be paid depends on bargaining.
• Promotional Pricing
Promotional pricing takes into consideration the fact that price is an
important ingredient in the marketing mix. Under this practice selling
price is fixed to increase the volume of sales.
• Expected Pricing
Under this method, the price acceptable by the consumers is found out.
The price range is fixed by conducting surveys with the consumers and
the price is fixed considering the response of the consumers.

14. Thank YOU !!!!