Kotler And Armstrongs Marketing Communication

Effective communication is critically important for a successful organization. On one hand there is a variety of promotional tools as advertising, sales promotion, direct marketing, public relations personal selling and value – added approaches such as sponsorship. On the other hand a firm has to find an appropriate mix of promotion tools. This combination of communication tools is called promotional mix or marketing communication mix. According to Fill, the marketing communication mix ¿½should be grounded in the behavior and information-processing needs and styles of the target audience¿½ (Fill, 2006) In addition for Kotler and Armstrong, marketing communication is crucial element to build profitable customer, retailer and other stakeholder relationships. (Kotler & Armstrong, 2008) Marketing communication is a complex activity and is used by organizations with varying degrees of sophistication and success. Red Bull, an energy drink producer, is an example of using the promotional mix in a successful way. The significant meaning of the marketing communication mix for Red Bull¿½s business model is emphasized by Dietrich Mateschitz, founder and CEO of Red Bull, when he said: ¿½We don¿½t bring the product to the people. We bring the people to the product.¿½ (Selling Energy ¿½ Red Bull, The Economist, May 11, 2002, http://www.economist.com/node/1120373?story_id=1120373). The purpose of this paper is to analyze the marketing communication mix strategy of Red Bull and to illustrate the major role the promotional mix plays in the firm¿½s business model..

Books

Chris F. (2006) Marketing Communications: Engagement, Strategie and Practice. New York : Pearson Education LTD,

Kotler, P. & Armstrong G (2008) Principles of Marketing. New Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall

Website

The Economist, (2002) ¿½Selling Energy ¿½ Red Bull. [Online]

< http://www.economist.com/node/1120373?story_id=1120373 >[accessed 29. October 2010]

The Red Bull GmbH was founded 1984 by Dietrich Mateschitz and Chaelo Yovidyha. The companies headquarter is located in Austria, where the energy drink Red Bull was launched for the first time in 1986. Referring to Hollensen , in 2006 Red Bull reached a 45% share of the world market in energy drinks. This makes the firm market leader in the segment of energy drinks. (Hollensen, 2008) In 2009 the company reported a decreased turnover in the light of the global recession. In the last year the global operating firm sold 3.906 billion cans of its energy drink. With a shrinking of 1.7% in its turnover from ¿½3.921 billion in 2008 down to ¿½3.267 billion in 2009. (BusinessWeek)

Books

Hollensen S. (2008) Essentials of Gobal Marketing. Edinburgh : Pearson Education LTD,

Website

BusinessWeek, (2010), Red Bull GmbH. [Online]

[accessed 29. October 2010]

1.2 Research Question

What are the components of Red Bull marketing communication mix and which strategy approach is Red Bull using to implement its promotional mix?

1.3 Research Method

This research is an analysis of Red Bull¿½s promotion activities based on the marketing communication mix framework.

1.3.1 Research Design

Sources used for this paper: books, online articles (The Economist, Business Week) the websites of Red Bull GmbH and other websites. When carrying out this investigation, we contacted Red Bull by e-Mail to gather some company data. The Red Bull¿½s customer service provided us with no data. The books ¿½Marketing Communications: Engagement, Strategies and Practice¿½ (Fill, 2006) and ¿½Principles of Marketing¿½ (Kotler and Armstrong, 2008) will serve as sources of the theoretical framework for the paper.

1.4 Structure of the paper

This paper is separated in five parts: The first part is the introduction section and its content is about background information referring to Red Bull, further more the research question and the research method. In the second part the authors are explaining the used theoretical framework for the analysis. The third part contains the analysis of marketing communication mix of Red Bull. In the last part, part 4, the conclusion ends this paper.

2 Theoretical framework

The significance of promotion in the marketing communication mix is well accepted by the majority marketing schools and marketing professionals. Kotler defines the marketing communication mix as ¿½the specific blend of advertising, sales promotion, personal selling and direct marketing tools the company uses to persuasively communicate customer value and build customer relationships.¿½ (Kotler & Armstrong, 2008). Fill, considers marketing communication as a management process through which an organization interact with its audience in a one-way, two-way or dialogic way. (Fill, 2006)

Kotler, Armstrong and Fill use the classical communication mix framework (See figure 1) for their analysis of used marketing communication mixes.

Figure 1: The tools and position of the marketing communication mix.

Source: (Fill, 2006)

However, Kotler et al (2006) maintain the theory of an evolutionary communication mix as a dynamic framework in the marketing process. Fill argues that the traditional tools from the communication mix cannot longer be assumed to be the most effective forms of communication. (Fill, 2006) As a consequence to this approach the marketing communication mix has to be adapting on a company¿½s marketing communication strategy. A market orientation strategy is always focused on the needs of the audience. Therefore Fill indentifies three main marketing communication strategies and describes them ¿½as the 3Ps of marketing communication mix strategy¿½ (Fill, 2006):

* A pull strategy is characterized by high investment in advertising with the goal to increase the end-user customer¿½s awareness to buy a product.

* A push strategy focuses on the trade channel. The communication messages include a promotion part and an informative part. Target group of this strategy are wholesaler and retailers.

* A profile strategy is one that focuses an organization¿½s communication upon the development of corporate image and reputation. To accomplish and deliver a profile strategy public relations, including sponsorship and corporate advertising, become a pivotal tools of the marketing communication mix. Personal sell my remain a vital element delivering both product/service and corporate messages.

Considering the marketing communication mix framework, companies are able to plan and implement an audience oriented promotional mix for an effective communication process.

Books

Chris F. (2006) Marketing Communications: Engagement, Strategie and Practice. New York : Pearson Education LTD,

Kotler, P. & Armstrong G (2008) Principles of Marketing. New Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall

3 Analysis

Figure 2: The tools and position of Red Bulls marketing communication mix. (Based on Fill, 2006)

4 Conclusion

Marketing communication has become an integral part of the social and economic system in the world.