Chapter 16 - Integrated Marketing Communications

The Ingredients to the Promotional Pie

    It takes 4 main ingredients to bake up the perfect promotional pie: advertising, public relations, sales promotion, and personal selling. The end result (the pie) is reaching the ultimate target market, whom will most likely buy your product. Although companies add emphasis on some ingredients more than others, or add their own promotional twist, the pie will be unique for each individual. Also, these 4 ingredients involve a great amount of communication - a strength of the Boys and Girls Clubs of America.

Here is how the Boys and Girls Clubs of America prepares their promotional pie...

Ingredient #1 - Advertising

    The BGCA is a global brand, so there is less need to mass communicate like a start-up brand would need. Although the BGCA still advertises regularly, the message behind most ads are used to broadcast their events and how they will spark positive changes in the community while meeting organizational goals.

Facebook ad campaign that broadens awareness of the Boys and Girls Club's commitment to digital literacy

 

Ingredient #2 - Public Relations

    By mass communicating how their events make a difference, they are strengthening their positive public image. In an event dating back to September 15th, 2010 - national spokesperson Denzel Washington announced the BGCA's plan to battle the issue of soaring high school dropout rates nationwide.

    "We want to help every Boys & Girls Club member advance to the next grade level every year, and graduate from high school on time, prepared with the attitude, knowledge and confidence to succeed and achieve their full potential.  It’s what we mean by our new slogan: ‘Great Futures Start Here.’" - Denzel Washington during the announcement

    By tackling this issue and announcing this program nationwide, the BGCA generated a good deal of positive publicity. So far the BGCA is living up to their promise, The Boys and Girls Club of Hartford, CT implemented a "Goals for Graduation" program for youths ages 6-18 to help them stay on a successful path to graduation.

 

Ingredient #3 - Sales Promotion

    Of all the ingredients, the BGCA puts the most emphasis on sales promotion. This is the sector the BGCA invests most of their finances and materials on. Without a good sales promotion to get people involved with a club, the BGCA will not make money. Some ways the BGCA boosts sales is by holding contests, giving away prizes, offering membership discounts, hosting high-school dances, and much more! Here are some examples of some sales promotion flyers:

Benton County club hosts tournament ($5,000 in prizes)

Hawaii club offers $1.00 memberships

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ingredient #4 - Personal Selling

    Since the BGCA puts more effort on selling their services rather than products, some clubs put together an avid personal selling program. When any club facility needs to fill registration vacancies for an event, they may send representatives to a location to influence prospective buyers to buy a ticket or register. The club reps set up tents, booths, or other presentations to stimulate interest for the purpose of making a sale. The sales groups need to sell as much tickets as possible before the event, so they most likely choose to set up demonstrations where there is heavy foot traffic (ie. busy shopping malls, festivals, parades, etc.).