Advertisers commonly use both push and pull techniques. Explore a company of your choice, identifying its pull and push techniques. Push techniques might be more difficult to find; look for indicators of trade promotions such as retailer ads, promotional prices, and in-store displays (with lots of merchandise). Analyze the company's overall sales promotion strategy and discuss why you think one area might be emphasized over another.
Develop a direct marketing program for a product that is normally sold only in stores. Describe the target audience, your objectives, and the direct marketing activities you would use and explain why. Create a mockup of a campaign piece. Explain how you would generate and utilize a marketing database.
Look at the recruitment advertisements for sales representatives in your local newspaper or on a website such as monster.com or craigslist.com. What personal characteristics and past work experience are most companies looking for?
Find a print ad for a product, service, or retailer. Design a sales promotion that would complement the advertising campaign. Describe ways in which the advertising, sales promotion, and other relationship-building activities could be effectively integrated.
Find an interesting package in your home or in a store. Evaluate the package on the four major criteria sought by marketers: protection, preservation, information, and promotion.
