After studying this section, students should be able to do the following:
Objectives state what outcomes will be achieved, while strategy defines how each objective will be achieved. Once you understand the marketing environment, the next step is to develop specific marketing objectives. Marketing objectivesStatements of what the marketing function must do so that the company can achieve its overall business objectives (such as growth, expansion of its market share, or increasing profits). state what the marketing function must do so that the company can achieve its overall business objectives (such as growth, expanding its market share, or increasing profits). Marketing-related objectives are specific to the firm’s brands, customer segments, and product features. These might include “Grow sales of product X by 30 percent over the next twelve months” or “Increase market share among affluent consumers aged forty-five to sixty-five.” Samsung, for example, sells fourteen product categories in more than two hundred countries, which yields 476 category-country combinations. Samsung collects data systematically on each combination and uses that brand data to set better marketing objectives by country and product.Thomas Davenport and Jeanne Harris, “Competing with Multichannel Marketing Analytics,” Advertising Age, April 2, 2007, 16.
Advertising objectivesThe specific communication tasks that an advertisement seeks to achieve. are the specific communication tasks that an advertisement seeks to achieve. These tasks include trialInforming the consumer about a product. (informing the consumer about a product), continuityReminding the consumer of the product. (reminding the consumer of the product), and brand switchingPersuading the customer to change from one brand to another. (persuading the customer to change from one brand to another). Often, the advertising objectives are tied to the product’s life cycle. For example, trial is usually employed at the start of a product’s life cycle to encourage customers to try the product. A firm pursues continuity objectives when a product is mature in order to remind current customers to continue buying the product. Brand switching, or switchback, occurs at later stages of the life cycle—particularly the rejuvenation phase, when the company highlights new product features or lowers the price of the product.
The DAGMAR modelDefining Advertising Goals for Measured Advertising Results: a way to set objectives and measure the results of advertising, developed by Russell Colley, involving four steps: awareness, comprehension, conviction, and action. (Defining Advertising Goals for Measured Advertising Results), developed by Russell Colley, is a way to set objectives and measure the results of advertising. Colley stated that the process of achieving an advertising objective can be broken down into four phases:
The DAGMAR model states that advertising objectives must be concrete and measurable. That is, you want to have a precise statement of the message to communicate to the target audience and have a way to measure whether the intended message has been communicated properly. The measurement can be straightforward. For example, if your objective is that people perceive your product as the healthy alternative, you can measure the objective by asking shoppers whether they think your product is healthier than the competition.
The creative objectivesPlans that define the form and content of the advertising, including the message, emotional tone, and production objectives. deal with the form and content of the advertising. They define key elements of the message (what you want to say), emotional tone (how you say it), and production objectives (what the ad looks like). For example, the creative objective might specify that the advertising will reinforce existing aspects of the brand personality, modify old perceptions of the brand, or instill new brand characteristics.
Media objectivesPlans that define the who, where, and when of the target audience in the context of an overall marketing plan and budget. define the who, where, and when of the target audience in the context of an overall marketing plan and budget. Note that media objectives don’t state which media will be used, because how you reach the audience is part of setting a media strategy. Elements of media objectives can include:
You’ll learn more about how these objectives are put into motion in Chapter 9 "Choose Your Communication Weapons: SS+K Decides Upon a Creative Strategy and Media Tactics" and Chapter 10 "Plan and Buy Media: SS+K Chooses the Right Media for the Client’s New Branding Message".
Identify a TV commercial you’ve seen in the last month. Conduct an unofficial DAGMAR analysis for it: to what extent does it meet the criteria of creating awareness, comprehension, conviction, or action?
Now that you have read this section, you should be able to understand the power of branding and how to construct a strategic framework for solving problems:
