Alternative Media for Marketing

 L 8

Ing. Jiří Šnajdar 2014

Alternative Media for Marketing Video games

offer marketers a popular medium to reach younger consumers as they relax and enjoy free time.

Video game marketing is a multimillion dollar Marketplace.

Recently advertisments and product placements represent a lucrative new method for reaching this valuable market.

Traditionally video games were developed for teen and young adult males.

Today 40 percent of gamers are females.

From marketing communications perspective gaming appears to have great potential. It is very good for all aspects of marketing including brand awarness and brand loyalty.

Traditional mass media advertising faces many chalanges. Advertisers are not ready to abandon radio, TV, magazines, newspapers and outdoor programs, they know that many new and valuable media outlets have emerged.

Resulting alternative marketing programs and alternative media are on the rise. Increasing numbers of money are spent finding ways to reach potential customers in a new and innovative formates.

Alternative marketing programs are identified:

buzz marketing, guerilla marketing, product placement, branded entertainment, lifestyle marketing and experiential marketing.

Then attention-getting messages can be developed for those points of contact.

This means a firm can supplement or replace mass media advertising with more targeted options.

Buzz marketing

has become one of the fastest-growing areas of alternative marketing.

Buzz marketing or word of mouth marketing, emphasizes consumers passing along information about a product.

A recommendation by a friend, family member, or even an acquaintance carries higher levels of credibility than does an advertisment. Buzz marketing can be generated in the following ways:

1. consumer who truly like a brand and tell others

2. consumer who like a brand and are sponsored by a company to tell others

3. company or agency employees who tell others about the brand

These messages can be delivered in person or via the internet in chat rooms, blogs or e-mails.

Many musical groups have gained fame and fortune through this type of support by those who have seen the bands in bars or a small concert or tour.

Sponsored consumers are individuals as agents or advocates to introduce new products. It works best when these individuals also like the product-brand. An alternative type of sponsorship is using house parties or likewise.

Company employees is a final group of agents. The company or agency decides wheter they should pose as customers or identify themselves as being affiliated with the company. Better- should be up front and clearly identify themselves as being with the company.

Buzz marketing stages: inoculation – incubation – infection

Buzz marketing preconditions: first the product must be new, unique and perform better than current brands. The brand should stan dout and have distinct advantages over current products on the market. Memorable advertising helps to generate buzz. Buzz marketing works for two reasonns.

First people often trust someone else´s opinion more than paid advertising. Second people like to render they opinions. They like to share their thoughts.

Sharing an opinion can build a person´s ego and sense of self-worth, especially when opinion leads to happiness or satisfaction with a particular product.

Stealth marketing

is a special form of buzz marketing, uses surreptitious / secret practices to introduce a product to individuals. Someone posing as a turist can ask people to také photo with a new camera and then talk to them about the camera.

An attractive model ordring a beer or soft drink can tell everyone about how great it tastes. In both instances someone is being paid to extol the product´s benefits. The debate over the ethics of this approach is likely to continue.

Guerrilla marketing

programes are designed to obtain instant results using limited resources.

Historically guerilla marketing has been one of the most successful alternative media marketing programs. Its tactics count on creativity, quality of relationships and willingness to try unusual approaches.

These programs were originally aimed at small businesses, however now guerilla marketing tactics are used by wide array of firms.

Guerrilla marketing emphasizes a combination of media, advertising, public relations and surprises to reach consumers. Guerrilla marketing tends to focus on specific regions or areas. Creating excitment that will spread to others by buzz is the objective.

GM often involves interacting with consumers, not just sending out a message. Building the relationship with customers should bet he outcome. By getting the customers to react or to do something, the program enhances the chance that the message will hit home.

Guerrilla marketing requiers agressive, grassroots approach to marketing.

It should promote a one-to-one relationship with consumers through innovative, alternative means of branding.

When done properly has the potential to be powerful marketing weapon.

Lifestyle marketing

is another program that can be used to make contacts with customers in more offbeat and relaxed settings, which involves identifying marketing methods associated with the hobbies and entertainment venues of the terget audience.

In all cases the purpose of a lifestyle marketing program is finding a venue where the target market goes for relaxation, excitement, socialization or enjoyment.

Experiential marketing

is a newer form of alternative marketing, combines direct marketing, field marketing and sales promotins into a single consumer experience.

It typically involves marketing through interactive means such as special events and free samples. Experiential marketing seeks to engage consumers with the brand, rather than just providing a free sample.

EM gives consumers the opportunity to question as well as gain hands-on experience with the brand, allowing them to be more intimate with it, leading to a

higher conversion rate – adaptation.

Choose a clear, concise market segment to target. Identify the right time and place to involve consumers with the brand.

Choose opportunities that fit with consumers´ lives and when they can engage with the brand emotionally and logically.

Make sure the experience reveals clearly the brand´s promise and represents the brand well to consumers.The key to experiential marketing is letting consumers enjoy the benefit of a good or service before making a purchase.

Product placements and branded entertainment

A product placement is the planned insertion of brand or product into movie, television show, or program in some other medium with the purpose of influenceing viewers.

Advertisers believe product placements can lead to increased awareness and more positive attitudes toward the brand.

One key advantage of brand placement is the low cost per viewer, especially for movies.

After a movie has finished at the cinema, it will be converted to a DVD for movie rental, or one of the premium movie channels.

This expands a movies reach beyond the cinema screen to other venues where it may be seen multiple times by individuals.

The actual manner in which a bran dis placed into a movie or show is important. Brand insertation work best when they seem be logical. The most effective placements are those woven into program in such a way that appears to be a natural part of the story.

Many companies buy advertising spots on television programs that feature the product placements of the brand.

Additional promotional incentives may also be offered. This helps move consumer beyond recognition and liking to the actual purchase.

A brand´s appeal may be stronger when appears in a nonadvertising context.

The perception of what others think of a brand is important to consumers. Seeing the brand being used in a television show, a movie, a book, makes the brand look acceptable and even desirable.

Alternative media venues

Mobile phones Video games Cinemas Subways Street and mall kiosks

Escalators Parking lots Airlines

Shopping bags Clothes

Mobile phone advertising may reach by 5x higher figures in 2013 than in 2008.

Mobile

advertising consists of three principal formates: messaging, display and search.

Click-to-call advertising has emerged as a new form. This technology has increased the response rate to ads.

Many of the top brands have developed applications for mobile phones in an effort to engage consumers.

Video Game Advertising

Product placement in video games have become common. Products can be part of a stand-alone game purchased at a retail store and played on the computor or they can be placed in an Internet video game.

In-game brand placement enjoys all the advanteges of brand placements and branded entertainment.

Video game advertising reaches young people, who have become difficult to contact through traditional media.

In addition it has the added feature of interactivity. The number of game-related Web sites has exploded in recent years.

Rather than placing ads in game itself, advertisers can place ads on these gaming Web sites. Some of these site receive as many as 7 million visits per year.

Sponsored downloads for games offer a new option that has become especially popular with automotive manufacturers.

Worldwide research indicates that majority of gamers like seeing ads in video games, if they are done well and fit in the scene.

In- Store Marketing

Approximately 60 % of all purchase decisions are made in retail store.

The in-store shopping experience has major impact on purchase decisions.

Now retailers can add motion. Placing and using video screens and television monitors to present messages represent the newest and most expensive in-store marketing tactic.

Digital media within the store offeres retailers the opportunity to customize messages to fit the store and the aisle where the display is located.

Traditionally one of the most important components of in-store marketing has been point-of-purchase display (POP).

Special form of display that advertises merchandise. Point-of-purchase displays remain highly effective tools for increasing sales.

To be effective, POP displays should clearly communicate the product´s attributes.

Pricing and other promotional information should be included.

The best point-of-purchase displays are integrated with other marketing messages.

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