Advertising, Sales Promotion and Public Relations

Promotion in the Marketing Mix

Promotion is the fourth P in the marketing mix. It covers everything a business does to raise awareness of its products and encourage purchase. A common misconception is that promotion and advertising are the same thing. They are not: advertising is just one type of promotion. Promotion also includes sales promotion techniques and public relations. This lesson covers all three.

Advertising Mediums

An advertising medium is the channel through which an advert reaches its audience. Start-ups must choose mediums that match their budget, their target audience and their brand image. Advertising mediums split into two broad groups: traditional (non-digital) and digital.

Non-digital advertising mediums include:

• Leaflets — low-cost printed flyers, posted through letterboxes or handed out at events. Useful for local businesses targeting a specific area.
• Newspapers — local or national print advertising. A local fish-and-chip shop might advertise in the town’s weekly paper to reach nearby residents.
• Magazines — specialist publications allow the business to reach a defined interest group. A small outdoor clothing brand might advertise in a hiking magazine to find customers who already love walking.
• Radio — adverts on local radio stations reach a broad local audience during commuting hours.
• Billboards — large outdoor displays in high-footfall areas such as roadsides or shopping centres, suitable for building brand awareness over time.
• Cinema — adverts shown before films reach a captive audience and can be targeted by film genre and local cinema location.
• TV adverts — television advertising gives a business wide reach and strong visual impact. It is traditionally expensive, but regional TV slots can be more accessible for a small business. TV adverts are a named medium in the specification, added to the list in 2025.

Digital Advertising Mediums

Digital channels allow start-ups to reach specific audiences at lower cost than most traditional mediums. The named digital advertising mediums are:

• Social media — platforms such as Instagram, TikTok and Facebook allow businesses to post content, run paid adverts and communicate directly with followers. There are two distinct types of social media post, and the specification requires you to know the difference:
  • Business-generated posts — content created and controlled by the business itself (a photo of a new product, an announcement of opening hours, a promotional offer).
  • Third-party-generated posts — content created by customers, bloggers or influencers about the business or its products. The business does not control these, but positive third-party posts can be highly persuasive because they are seen as independent opinions rather than paid advertising.
• Social networks — broader networking platforms where businesses can create communities, run groups or participate in conversations relevant to their audience.
• Websites — a business’s own website is a digital shopfront. Good search-engine visibility drives customers to it without the ongoing cost of paid adverts.
• Online banners — paid display adverts that appear on websites, targeted to users based on their browsing interests.
• SMS (text messages) — promotional texts sent directly to customers who have opted in, delivering offers or updates instantly.
• Podcasts — a business can sponsor an existing podcast relevant to its target audience, or create its own branded podcast to build an engaged listener community.
• Vlogs (video blogs) — video content, typically on platforms such as YouTube, allows a business or individual to demonstrate products, share behind-the-scenes content or build a following over time.

Sales Promotion Techniques

Sales promotion techniques are time-limited tactics used to stimulate sales quickly. Unlike advertising, which builds awareness over time, sales promotion is designed to get customers to buy now. The seven techniques you need to know are:

• Discounts — reducing the price for a limited time (for example, “20% off this weekend only”). Effective for clearing stock or attracting price-sensitive customers.
• Competitions — customers enter a prize draw when they buy. Creates excitement and encourages purchase without permanently reducing the price.
• BOGOF (Buy One Get One Free) — a form of discount where two units are sold for the price of one, doubling the perceived value.
• Point of sale displays — eye-catching promotional material at the checkout or near the product in a physical location, encouraging impulse buying.
• Free gifts — a free item given with a purchase (for example, a free tote bag with a first order). Adds perceived value without reducing the main product’s price.
• Loyalty schemes — customers earn points or stamps with each purchase that can be exchanged for discounts or free products, encouraging repeat business.
• Sponsorship — a business provides financial or in-kind support to an event, organisation or individual in exchange for brand visibility. A local bakery sponsoring a community fun run gets its name on race bibs and banners.

Public Relations for Small Businesses

Public relations (PR) is about building and maintaining a positive reputation through unpaid coverage. Unlike advertising, PR is not directly paid for — a business earns media attention by doing or creating something genuinely interesting or newsworthy. For a small start-up, PR can be a cost-effective way to reach audiences that paid advertising could not afford. The three PR methods you need to know are:

• Product placement — getting the product into a TV show, film, video or prominent social media post without it being explicitly labelled as an advert. A small candle-maker whose candles appear in a popular lifestyle blogger’s video benefits from organic exposure.
• Celebrity endorsement — a well-known individual publicly recommends or uses the product. For a start-up, this might mean a local sports personality or community figure using and sharing the product on their social channels rather than a national celebrity deal.
• Press releases — a written statement sent to journalists, local newspapers, bloggers or radio stations announcing something newsworthy about the business — a launch, a charity partnership, a milestone or an award. If picked up by the media, it generates free coverage.