This document contains a past paper discussion on marketing communications and branding from a 2012 marketing tutorial. It addresses three questions and provides guidance on developing strong answers. For the first question, it emphasizes the importance of differentiating benefits for the organization versus the consumer when discussing branding. It also stresses using a real-world example to illustrate these benefits. For the second question on push versus pull strategies, it advises making assumptions about the business context before formulating a response. And for the third question on sales promotions, it prompts considering both retail and manufacturing perspectives with specific examples.

1. Hull BA (Hons) – Marketing and Management
MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS
& BRANDING
Tutorial 2
2012 Past Paper
Discussion
Note: Pictures used in this powerpoint file
is for academic purpose only

2. Question 1
• What are the benefits of branding for the
organisation and the consumer? With
reference to one of your favourite brands
evaluate how it adds value for both the
organisation and the consumer.

3. Is this the answer?

4. There are other benefits to consider
(make sure there’s differentiation between
organization and customer)
• Improved perceptions
of product
performance
• Greater loyalty
• Less vulnerable to
competition
• Less vulnerable to
crises
• Larger margins
• Inelastic consumer
response to price
increases
• Elastic consumer
response to price
decreases
• Greater trade
cooperation
• Increase in
effectiveness of IMC
• Licensing
opportunities
• Brand extension
opportunities
4

5. Answer the question in full
•
•
•
Listing the benefits from the previous
pages only answered Part 1 of the
question
Part 2 asks for an example of your
favorite brand
A good answer should illustrate the
benefits you have identified in Part 1 with
the example in Part 2

6. Where can you find examples?

7. My pick would be Google
• Benefit for organization
– Brand extension opportunity

8. My pick would be Google
• Benefit for consumer
– A credible brand’s new products often get
review from 3rd party source

9. Question 2
• Imagine you are a marketing manager for
a fashion clothing manufacturing
company. You are trying to figure out if
you need to utilize a push or pull strategy.
Using examples, outline how you might
develop a marketing communications
strategy focusing on these concepts.
Evaluate the usefulness of these concepts
in the development of marketing
communications strategies.

10. What should be your
considerations?
1. You are a fashion clothing manufacturer but
the question does not tell whether you have
your own brand or retail shops.
2. It’s important to make assumptions. Let’s say
you work for FILA, which sells via its own
shops (including online shop) and other
intermediaries.
3. It may be easier to justify your answers by
assuming you are launching a new product:
Let’s say it’s kids collection
10

11. Answer the question in full
•
•
•
Making assumptions will help you justify
your answers.
The next part of the question asks you to
“outline how you might develop a
marketing communications strategy
focusing on these concepts.”
Before you decide on your answers, it’s
important to list down your IMC strategy
development approach.

12. PUSH, PULL STRATEGY
• Push strategy: involves directing effort at
intermediaries so that they are motivated
to direct their promotional effort at
customers, thereby pushing the product
down the distribution channel.
• Pull strategy: involves aiming promotional
activities at end users so that they
demand the product from intermediaries,
thereby pulling the product down the
distribution channel.
12

13. Is this the answer?
MANUFACTURER
Push
Trade
Promotions
RETAILER
Push
Retail
Promotions
Consumer
Promotions
Pull
CONSUMER
13

14. IMC DEVELOPMENT
Translating corporate objectives
to media objectives
Evaluating performance based
on objectives
Market Study
SWOT / Competitive Analysis
Deploy your
communications tools
Identify your target
consumer
Know their buying and media
consumption behavior
Budgeting and media
planning
Think about your story
and the core message
14

15. Answer the following under this part
of the question
•
•
•
•
•
If you have both wholesale and retail,
what should be our business objectives?
Who are your target customers (B2B /
B2C)?
What message would appeal to your
target customers?
Which channels would you choose?
What IMC tools will you deploy?

16. Answer the question in full
•
•
The last part of the question asks you to
“evaluate the usefulness of these
concepts in the development of
marketing communications strategies.”
The concepts you need to evaluate are
the push and pull strategies in each
stage of your IMC development process.

17. Answer the following under this part
of the question
•
•
•
•
•
Do you want more sales volume to come from
intermediaries or direct sales?
Should FILA be relying on intermediaries to
market its products? Can you do it yourself?
How are your intermediaries’ capacity in
different markets in building relationship with
customers?
Is there a consistent message that can appeal
to your customers?
Are the same IMC tools available in all your
target markets?

18. Example available to you
• Is this clearly a pull strategy where by C&A is
trying to reach customers directly without going
through the intermediaries.
• The end result is
that customers
would be pulled to
buy from C&A’s
retail shops.

19. Example available to you
• This promotion is pushed down to the customers
via an intermediary, thus the push strategy.
• It is clear that the
customers are
motivated by this
shop’s promotional
effort to buy from
this particular shop.

20. Evaluation
• In comparing the C&A and the A&F
promotional campaign, the pull strategy
from C&A seems to be able to reach out to
customers of any one particular store, but
potentially a nation wide or region wide
approach.
• The A&F promotion, however, is quite
limited to that particular store. The scope
is quite limited.

21. Question 3
• Sales promotions (e.g. buy one get one
free, 2 for 1, coupons, trade promotions)
are becoming a very popular tool for
manufacturing and retail marketing
managers, as part of the marketing
communications mix. Using examples of
your choice describe and evaluate the role
of sales promotions.

22. Understand the question
• Key words in the question
– Marketing mix
– Sales promotion
– Retail marketing
– Manufacturing marketing
– Describe and evaluate examples

23. Start from broad concepts down to
specific examples

24. Sales Promotion Definition

25. Sales Promotion Definitions
– Is any incentive that is additional to the
basic benefits provided by the brand
and temporarily changes its perceived
price or value.
– Is short-term oriented and capable of
influencing behavior because it offers
buyers superior value and can make
them feel better about the buying
experience.

26. Examples of sales promotion
• For both retail marketing and
manufacturing marketing
– Should they focus on B2B or B2C?
– Who would buy from a manufacturer?
– Where do transactions normally take place?
– What kind of incentives would appeal to your
customers in influencing their behaviors?

27. Under example, you need to
describe the role of sales promotion
• For manufacturing marketing, my pick
would be HOFEX in the F&B industry

28. Under example, you need to
describe the role of sales promotion
• For retail marketing, my pick would be
1111 Crazy sale

29. Evaluation against your objectives
is the last element