Advertising is an Important Element of Any Marketing Plan
Advertising is a component of a marketing plan that falls under the category of promotion. It is just one of multiple promotional activities that a company might pursue as part of its marketing efforts; others include sales promotion, public-relations campaigns and events. Advertising involves identifying communication tools or media designed to reach a target audience, creating the right mix of advertising tactics to ensure effective communication, creating effective messages combining both words and images and, finally, measuring results.
Determining Your Advertising Budget
Advertising budgets vary dramatically across companies, geographies and industries. Arguably one of the most naive questions a marketer could ask is: "How much of our marketing budget should be allocated to advertising?" The correct response: "It depends." Some organizations don't advertise at all (Mrs. Fields Cookies is a well-known example). Others -- like the major companies we see advertising through mass media -- spend literally millions of dollars on it. Decisions about advertising's role in the marketing plan will depend on other plan elements: primarily the goals, objectives, strategies and tactics of the plan.
Creating the Right Mix of Tactics
In addition to a variety of media, marketers have available to them a wide range of communication tactics for conveying their messages. From the traditional (newspaper, television, radio and billboards) to Internet-driven options (online banner ads, Google Adwords, social media advertising), the right mix of tactics ensures that the message reaches a range of people, over time, to emphasize and reinforce important messages. The scheduling of messages is an important part of any marketing effort.
Creation of Effective Messages
Advertisers communicate with their target audiences through words, images, sound and motion. The creation of effective messages includes the consideration of how these different sensory options can best leverage the media they are used in (for instance, television advertising requires greater attention to all four than newspaper advertising), as well as issues related to the impact of the message and the overall costs involved. Advertisers are seeking the right balance between audience impact and financial cost.
Measurement of Outcomes
Advertising is not a strict science, but there is some science involved. Effective marketing plans include not only consideration of the tactics and messages to be used in a campaign, but also consideration of how results will be monitored and measured. The marketing plan should include information about the various metrics -- number of individuals reached, number of responses, increase in levels of awareness or preference, and sales -- that provide an indication of overall effectiveness.
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