marketing-collateral

What is marketing collateral?

  • Marketing collateral describes any sales or marketing material through which a company promotes its brand, products, or services.
  • To create effective marketing collateral, it’s important to understand the audience and where they mass online to avoid wasting resources on ineffective materials. It is also important to ensure brand consistency and make data-based decisions.
  • Traditional forms of marketing collateral are less effective than they once were and include direct mail, merchandise, brand magazines, and various types of display ads. Digital examples include websites, videos, case studies, industry reports, and white papers.
AspectExplanation
DefinitionMarketing Collateral refers to a set of printed or digital materials that businesses use to promote their products or services and support their marketing efforts. These materials are designed to provide information, build brand identity, and persuade potential customers.
Key ConceptsPrinted and Digital: Marketing collateral can be physical (e.g., brochures, flyers) or digital (e.g., PDFs, web content). – Information: Collateral provides details about products, services, and the company itself. – Branding: It reinforces the company’s brand image and identity. – Sales Support: It aids the sales process by providing valuable resources.
TypesPrinted: Brochures, flyers, business cards, posters, banners, catalogs. – Digital: E-books, whitepapers, infographics, PDFs, videos, web content. – Promotional Items: Branded merchandise like pens, mugs, or T-shirts.
PurposesEducation: Providing detailed information about products or services. – Lead Generation: Attracting potential customers through downloads or subscriptions. – Sales Enablement: Equipping sales teams with resources to close deals. – Brand Awareness: Building and reinforcing brand identity.
DesignEffective marketing collateral features visually appealing design, clear messaging, and consistent branding. It should be easy to read and navigate while conveying the company’s value proposition effectively. The design should match the intended audience and purpose.
DistributionCollateral can be distributed through various channels, including trade shows, sales meetings, email campaigns, social media, and the company’s website. The choice of distribution channel depends on the target audience and marketing goals.
Digital CollateralIn the digital age, digital collateral plays a significant role. This includes materials such as e-books, infographics, and web content. These materials are often downloadable and can be used for lead generation and content marketing efforts.
ROI MeasurementEvaluating the return on investment (ROI) of marketing collateral involves tracking metrics like downloads, click-through rates, conversion rates, and sales generated as a result of the collateral. This data helps in assessing the effectiveness of different collateral pieces.
CustomizationTailoring marketing collateral to specific target audiences and buyer personas can enhance its impact. Personalized content that addresses the unique needs and pain points of customers can lead to higher engagement and conversion rates.
ChallengesChallenges in marketing collateral include design consistency, keeping content up-to-date, and ensuring that collateral aligns with the company’s branding guidelines. Additionally, digital collateral may need to be optimized for various devices and platforms.
ConclusionMarketing Collateral remains a valuable tool for businesses to convey information, promote products, and support sales and marketing efforts. In an increasingly digital world, the combination of both printed and digital collateral allows companies to reach a wider audience and cater to diverse preferences.

Understanding marketing collateral

Marketing collateral describes any sales or marketing material through which a company promotes its brand, products, or services.

Marketing collateral is certainly not a new idea and, before the internet era, referred to the sell sheets and brochures that were created to enhance and support the sales process. 

Marketing collateral now encompasses any print or digital media that a company uses to promote its brand, products, and services. Like most things nowadays, marketing collateral is an evolving concept. It may be influenced by technological innovation, dynamic business environments, and trends that dictate how consumers respond to marketing messages.

Marketing collateral is a broad field that can be used to achieve a variety of ends. Most businesses still use it as a tool to spread product awareness, increase product adoption, and retain existing customers to drive loyalty. Less commonly, marketing collateral is used to promote new initiatives that boost employee morale and corporate culture. Other businesses may use certain collateral as part of a corporate rebrand.

How to create effective marketing collateral

To create effective marketing collateral, avoid the temptation to use as many materials as possible to broaden the company’s reach.

Instead, follow these best practices:

  1. Understand the audience – every marketing campaign starts with this point, and for good reason. Who is the target audience and what problems do they want to solve? Where do they mass or interact with like-minded individuals?
  2. Ensure the brand is consistent – a company’s brand should be consistent across various marketing collateral. Ensure that the same shade of blue is used in everything from a product pamphlet to an Instagram campaign. The same principles also apply to fonts, logos, and photos. Digital asset management (DAM) platforms ensure marketers have access to the same files when creating the content for new campaigns.
  3. Make data-informed decisions – while it’s important to determine what the target audience needs, marketers also need to understand the effectiveness of different types of marketing collateral. Tools such as Google Analytics can provide data that clarifies which collateral is worth the outlay and which should be avoided. On a more specific level, unique identifiers such as redemption codes can provide quick, actionable data with which to make decisions.

Examples of marketing collateral

Let’s conclude by taking a look at some print (traditional) and digital marketing collateral examples. 

Print (traditional)

Traditional forms of collateral are not as impactful as they used to be, but can still be used to stand out from saturated web environments and attract consumer attention. 

Examples include:

  • Brand magazines – outdoor company REI publishes a print magazine called Uncommon Path that features stories, topics, and products relevant to outdoor enthusiasts.
  • Display advertisements such as billboards, shelf signage, point-of-sale and front-end stands, and interactive product kiosks.
  • Direct mail, and
  • Merchandise.

Digital

Many forms of digital collateral are simply traditional forms that have been made web-friendly. Think of a print brochure turned into a pdf or a display advertisement that forms part of an AdSense campaign.

Examples include:

  • Websites.
  • Videos.
  • Case studies.
  • Blog posts.
  • E-books.
  • Infographics.
  • Industry reports, and
  • White papers.

Additional Examples

Traditional (Print) Marketing Collateral:

  • Brochures:
    • Tri-fold brochures: Folded into three sections, providing clear divisions for content.
    • Bi-fold brochures: Folded in half, suitable for concise product/service overviews.
  • Catalogs:
    • Product catalogs: Include high-quality images, product descriptions, and pricing for an extensive product line.
    • Service catalogs: Detail various service offerings, packages, and pricing structures.
  • Flyers:
    • Event flyers: Announce events, seminars, workshops, or promotions.
    • Sales flyers: Highlight discounts, limited-time offers, and new arrivals.
  • Business Cards:
    • Double-sided cards: Utilize both sides for additional information or design elements.
    • Die-cut cards: Feature unique shapes or cutouts to stand out.
  • Posters:
    • Promotional posters: Showcase products, services, or events with eye-catching visuals.
    • Educational posters: Convey information or tips related to the industry or niche.
  • Newsletters:
    • Print newsletters: Mailed to subscribers or distributed at physical locations.
    • Digital newsletters: Delivered via email, containing clickable links and multimedia.
  • Product Samples:
    • Cosmetic samples: Small samples of skincare, makeup, or fragrances.
    • Food samples: Provide tastings of new food products at grocery stores.
  • Press Releases:
    • Press kits: Include press releases, company background information, and high-resolution images.
    • Media advisories: Concise notifications for media about upcoming events or announcements.
  • Annual Reports:
    • Interactive annual reports: Feature clickable links, videos, and infographics for engaging content.
    • Sustainability reports: Highlight the company’s environmental and social responsibility initiatives.
  • Trade Show Booths:
    • Banner stands: Portable displays with retractable banners for quick setup.
    • Modular booths: Customizable exhibit setups with various components.

Digital Marketing Collateral:

  • Social Media Posts:
    • Visual content: Eye-catching images, graphics, and videos to enhance engagement.
    • Carousel posts: Swipeable slideshows for storytelling or product showcases.
  • Email Campaigns:
    • Drip campaigns: Automated series of emails sent at specific intervals.
    • Newsletter emails: Contain curated content, updates, and offers.
  • Webinars:
    • Live webinars: Real-time presentations with interactive Q&A sessions.
    • On-demand webinars: Pre-recorded webinars accessible at any time.
  • Podcasts:
    • Interview podcasts: Feature industry experts and thought leaders.
    • Educational podcasts: Share insights, tips, and tutorials related to the niche.
  • Interactive Quizzes:
    • Personality quizzes: Fun and engaging quizzes with personalized results.
    • Knowledge quizzes: Test users’ expertise in a specific field.
  • User-generated Content (UGC):
    • Customer reviews: Display ratings and reviews on product pages.
    • Social media mentions: Share user-generated content on official profiles.
  • Online Contests and Giveaways:
    • Photo contests: Encourage users to submit photos related to the brand or product.
    • Sweepstakes: Randomly select winners from entrants for prizes.
  • Social Media Stories:
    • Behind-the-scenes stories: Offer a glimpse into company culture and operations.
    • Interactive polls and questions: Engage users by soliciting their opinions and feedback.
  • Mobile Apps:
    • Branded utilities: Apps that provide tools or services relevant to the audience.
    • Gamified apps: Incorporate game elements for user engagement and loyalty.
  • Virtual Reality (VR) or Augmented Reality (AR) Experiences:
    • AR product try-ons: Allow customers to visualize products in their real environment.
    • VR tours: Virtual tours of physical locations or properties.

Key Highlights:

  • Definition of Marketing Collateral: Marketing collateral encompasses all sales and marketing materials used by a company to promote its brand, products, or services, whether in print or digital form.
  • Evolution of Marketing Collateral: In the past, marketing collateral mainly referred to printed materials like brochures, but it has evolved to include both print and digital media due to technological advancements and changing consumer behaviors.
  • Purposes of Marketing Collateral: Marketing collateral serves various purposes, including spreading product awareness, increasing product adoption, retaining customers, boosting employee morale, and supporting corporate rebranding efforts.
  • Creating Effective Marketing Collateral:
    • Understand the target audience and their needs.
    • Maintain brand consistency in design, color schemes, fonts, and logos.
    • Use data-driven insights to assess the effectiveness of different collateral types.
  • Examples of Traditional (Print) Marketing Collateral:
    • Brand magazines (e.g., REI’s Uncommon Path).
    • Display advertisements (billboards, shelf signage, interactive kiosks).
    • Direct mail.
    • Merchandise.
  • Examples of Digital Marketing Collateral:
    • Websites.
    • Videos.
    • Case studies.
    • Blog posts.
    • E-books.
    • Infographics.
    • Industry reports.
    • White papers.
Related FrameworksDescriptionWhen to Apply
Brand Style Guide– A comprehensive document that outlines the visual and verbal elements of a brand’s identity, including logos, colors, fonts, tone of voice, and imagery guidelines. Brand Style Guides ensure consistency across all marketing collateral and communications, helping maintain brand integrity and recognition.– When establishing or maintaining brand identity and consistency across marketing materials and communications. – Utilizing Brand Style Guides to ensure uniformity in design elements, messaging, and brand representation effectively.
Marketing Asset Library– A centralized repository or database that stores and organizes marketing collateral, including brochures, flyers, presentations, videos, images, and other promotional materials. Marketing Asset Libraries enable teams to easily access, share, and distribute approved assets, streamlining collaboration and ensuring brand consistency.– When seeking to centralize and organize marketing collateral for easy access, sharing, and distribution across teams or departments. – Implementing Marketing Asset Libraries to streamline workflow, maintain version control, and ensure brand compliance effectively.
Content Calendar– A schedule or plan that outlines the creation, publication, and distribution of content across various channels and platforms over a specific period. Content Calendars help coordinate content production, ensure consistency, and align with marketing objectives and audience needs.– When planning and managing the creation, publication, and distribution of marketing content across multiple channels and platforms. – Using Content Calendars to organize content production, maintain consistency, and optimize engagement effectively.
Design Templates– Pre-designed layouts or templates that provide a framework for creating marketing collateral such as flyers, posters, social media posts, or email newsletters. Design Templates ensure visual consistency, streamline content creation, and allow for customization to suit specific messaging or branding requirements.– When aiming to create consistent, professional-looking marketing collateral while saving time and resources on design efforts. – Utilizing Design Templates to maintain brand consistency, streamline content creation, and expedite production effectively.
Message Architecture– A framework that defines the key messages, value propositions, and positioning statements used to communicate a brand’s identity, products, or services across marketing collateral. Message Architecture ensures alignment and consistency in messaging, helping convey a cohesive brand story and resonate with target audiences.– When developing or refining messaging strategies to communicate brand identity, value propositions, and key messages across marketing collateral. – Implementing Message Architecture to align messaging with brand objectives, differentiate from competitors, and engage target audiences effectively.
Visual Hierarchy– The arrangement and prioritization of visual elements within marketing collateral to guide the viewer’s attention and convey key messages effectively. Visual Hierarchy uses design principles such as size, color, contrast, and placement to create focal points and direct the flow of information for better comprehension and engagement.– When designing marketing collateral to prioritize information, highlight key messages, and guide the viewer’s attention effectively. – Applying Visual Hierarchy principles to create visually appealing and engaging marketing materials that convey messages clearly and effectively.
Call-to-Action (CTA) Strategy– A plan that outlines the placement, design, and messaging of calls-to-action within marketing collateral to prompt desired actions from the audience, such as clicking a link, making a purchase, or signing up for a newsletter. CTA Strategies aim to drive conversions, engagement, and lead generation by encouraging specific user actions.– When designing marketing collateral to prompt desired actions from the audience, such as clicking a link, filling out a form, or making a purchase. – Developing CTA Strategies to optimize conversion rates, increase engagement, and achieve marketing objectives effectively.
Content Personalization– The practice of tailoring marketing collateral and messaging to individual preferences, interests, behaviors, or demographics to create more relevant and engaging experiences for the audience. Content Personalization uses data insights and segmentation strategies to deliver targeted content that resonates with specific audience segments.– When aiming to enhance audience engagement, conversion rates, and customer satisfaction by delivering personalized and relevant marketing collateral. – Implementing Content Personalization strategies to leverage data insights, segment audiences, and deliver targeted content effectively.
Multi-channel Distribution– The distribution of marketing collateral across multiple channels and platforms, including print, digital, social media, email, and offline channels, to reach and engage with audiences through various touchpoints. Multi-channel Distribution maximizes reach, visibility, and impact by leveraging diverse communication channels and audience preferences.– When seeking to maximize the reach and impact of marketing collateral by distributing it across multiple channels and platforms. – Employing Multi-channel Distribution strategies to engage with audiences through various touchpoints and increase brand visibility effectively.
Performance Tracking and Analysis– The process of monitoring, measuring, and analyzing the effectiveness of marketing collateral in achieving predefined goals, such as driving website traffic, generating leads, or increasing sales. Performance Tracking and Analysis enable marketers to assess ROI, identify optimization opportunities, and refine strategies based on data insights.– When evaluating the impact and effectiveness of marketing collateral in achieving predefined objectives, such as driving engagement, conversions, or brand awareness. – Conducting Performance Tracking and Analysis to measure ROI, identify trends, and optimize marketing strategies effectively.

Read Also: Marketing Strategy, Go-To-Market Strategy.

Visual Marketing Glossary

Account-Based Marketing

account-based-marketing
Account-based marketing (ABM) is a strategy where the marketing and sales departments come together to create personalized buying experiences for high-value accounts. Account-based marketing is a business-to-business (B2B) approach in which marketing and sales teams work together to target high-value accounts and turn them into customers.

Ad-Ops

ad-ops
Ad Ops – also known as Digital Ad Operations – refers to systems and processes that support digital advertisements’ delivery and management. The concept describes any process that helps a marketing team manage, run, or optimize ad campaigns, making them an integrating part of the business operations.

AARRR Funnel

pirate-metrics
Venture capitalist, Dave McClure, coined the acronym AARRR which is a simplified model that enables to understand what metrics and channels to look at, at each stage for the users’ path toward becoming customers and referrers of a brand.

Affinity Marketing

affinity-marketing
Affinity marketing involves a partnership between two or more businesses to sell more products. Note that this is a mutually beneficial arrangement where one brand can extend its reach and enhance its credibility in association with the other.

Ambush Marketing

ambush-marketing
As the name suggests, ambush marketing raises awareness for brands at events in a covert and unexpected fashion. Ambush marketing takes many forms, one common element, the brand advertising their products or services has not paid for the right to do so. Thus, the business doing the ambushing attempts to capitalize on the efforts made by the business sponsoring the event.

Affiliate Marketing

affiliate-marketing
Affiliate marketing describes the process whereby an affiliate earns a commission for selling the products of another person or company. Here, the affiliate is simply an individual who is motivated to promote a particular product through incentivization. The business whose product is being promoted will gain in terms of sales and marketing from affiliates.

Bullseye Framework

bullseye-framework
The bullseye framework is a simple method that enables you to prioritize the marketing channels that will make your company gain traction. The main logic of the bullseye framework is to find the marketing channels that work and prioritize them.

Brand Building

brand-building
Brand building is the set of activities that help companies to build an identity that can be recognized by its audience. Thus, it works as a mechanism of identification through core values that signal trust and that help build long-term relationships between the brand and its key stakeholders.

Brand Dilution

brand-dilution
According to inbound marketing platform HubSpot, brand dilution occurs “when a company’s brand equity diminishes due to an unsuccessful brand extension, which is a new product the company develops in an industry that they don’t have any market share in.” Brand dilution, therefore, occurs when a brand decreases in value after the company releases a product that does not align with its vision, mission, or skillset. 

Brand Essence Wheel

brand-essence-wheel
The brand essence wheel is a templated approach businesses can use to better understand their brand. The brand essence wheel has obvious implications for external brand strategy. However, it is equally important in simplifying brand strategy for employees without a strong marketing background. Although many variations of the brand essence wheel exist, a comprehensive wheel incorporates information from five categories: attributes, benefits, values, personality, brand essence.

Brand Equity

what-is-brand-equity
The brand equity is the premium that a customer is willing to pay for a product that has all the objective characteristics of existing alternatives, thus, making it different in terms of perception. The premium on seemingly equal products and quality is attributable to its brand equity.

Brand Positioning

brand-positioning
Brand positioning is about creating a mental real estate in the mind of the target market. If successful, brand positioning allows a business to gain a competitive advantage. And it also works as a switching cost in favor of the brand. Consumers recognizing a brand might be less prone to switch to another brand.

Business Storytelling

business-storytelling
Business storytelling is a critical part of developing a business model. Indeed, the way you frame the story of your organization will influence its brand in the long-term. That’s because your brand story is tied to your brand identity, and it enables people to identify with a company.

Content Marketing

content-marketing
Content marketing is one of the most powerful commercial activities which focuses on leveraging content production (text, audio, video, or other formats) to attract a targeted audience. Content marketing focuses on building a strong brand, but also to convert part of that targeted audience into potential customers.

Customer Lifetime Value

customer-lifetime-value
One of the first mentions of customer lifetime value was in the 1988 book Database Marketing: Strategy and Implementation written by Robert Shaw and Merlin Stone. Customer lifetime value (CLV) represents the value of a customer to a company over a period of time. It represents a critical business metric, especially for SaaS or recurring revenue-based businesses.

Customer Segmentation

customer-segmentation
Customer segmentation is a marketing method that divides the customers in sub-groups, that share similar characteristics. Thus, product, marketing and engineering teams can center the strategy from go-to-market to product development and communication around each sub-group. Customer segments can be broken down is several ways, such as demographics, geography, psychographics and more.

Developer Marketing

developer-marketing
Developer marketing encompasses tactics designed to grow awareness and adopt software tools, solutions, and SaaS platforms. Developer marketing has become the standard among software companies with a platform component, where developers can build applications on top of the core software or open software. Therefore, engaging developer communities has become a key element of marketing for many digital businesses.

Digital Marketing Channels

digital-marketing-channels
A digital channel is a marketing channel, part of a distribution strategy, helping an organization to reach its potential customers via electronic means. There are several digital marketing channels, usually divided into organic and paid channels. Some organic channels are SEO, SMO, email marketing. And some paid channels comprise SEM, SMM, and display advertising.

Field Marketing

field-marketing
Field marketing is a general term that encompasses face-to-face marketing activities carried out in the field. These activities may include street promotions, conferences, sales, and various forms of experiential marketing. Field marketing, therefore, refers to any marketing activity that is performed in the field.

Funnel Marketing

funnel-marketing
interaction with a brand until they become a paid customer and beyond. Funnel marketing is modeled after the marketing funnel, a concept that tells the company how it should market to consumers based on their position in the funnel itself. The notion of a customer embarking on a journey when interacting with a brand was first proposed by Elias St. Elmo Lewis in 1898. Funnel marketing typically considers three stages of a non-linear marketing funnel. These are top of the funnel (TOFU), middle of the funnel (MOFU), and bottom of the funnel (BOFU). Particular marketing strategies at each stage are adapted to the level of familiarity the consumer has with a brand.

Go-To-Market Strategy

go-to-market-strategy
A go-to-market strategy represents how companies market their new products to reach target customers in a scalable and repeatable way. It starts with how new products/services get developed to how these organizations target potential customers (via sales and marketing models) to enable their value proposition to be delivered to create a competitive advantage.

Greenwashing

greenwashing
The term “greenwashing” was first coined by environmentalist Jay Westerveld in 1986 at a time when most consumers received their news from television, radio, and print media. Some companies took advantage of limited public access to information by portraying themselves as environmental stewards – even when their actions proved otherwise. Greenwashing is a deceptive marketing practice where a company makes unsubstantiated claims about an environmentally-friendly product or service.

Grassroots Marketing

grassroots-marketing
Grassroots marketing involves a brand creating highly targeted content for a particular niche or audience. When an organization engages in grassroots marketing, it focuses on a small group of people with the hope that its marketing message is shared with a progressively larger audience.

Growth Marketing

growth-marketing
Growth marketing is a process of rapid experimentation, which in a way has to be “scientific” by keeping in mind that it is used by startups to grow, quickly. Thus, the “scientific” here is not meant in the academic sense. Growth marketing is expected to unlock growth, quickly and with an often limited budget.

Guerrilla Marketing

guerrilla-marketing
Guerrilla marketing is an advertising strategy that seeks to utilize low-cost and sometimes unconventional tactics that are high impact. First coined by Jay Conrad Levinson in his 1984 book of the same title, guerrilla marketing works best on existing customers who are familiar with a brand or product and its particular characteristics.

Hunger Marketing

hunger-marketing
Hunger marketing is a marketing strategy focused on manipulating consumer emotions. By bringing products to market with an attractive price point and restricted supply, consumers have a stronger desire to make a purchase.

Integrated Communication

integrated-marketing-communication
Integrated marketing communication (IMC) is an approach used by businesses to coordinate and brand their communication strategies. Integrated marketing communication takes separate marketing functions and combines them into one, interconnected approach with a core brand message that is consistent across various channels. These encompass owned, earned, and paid media. Integrated marketing communication has been used to great effect by companies such as Snapchat, Snickers, and Domino’s.

Inbound Marketing

inbound-marketing
Inbound marketing is a marketing strategy designed to attract customers to a brand with content and experiences that they derive value from. Inbound marketing utilizes blogs, events, SEO, and social media to create brand awareness and attract targeted consumers. By attracting or “drawing in” a targeted audience, inbound marketing differs from outbound marketing which actively pushes a brand onto consumers who may have no interest in what is being offered.

Integrated Marketing

integrated-marketing
Integrated marketing describes the process of delivering consistent and relevant content to a target audience across all marketing channels. It is a cohesive, unified, and immersive marketing strategy that is cost-effective and relies on brand identity and storytelling to amplify the brand to a wider and wider audience.

Marketing Mix

marketing-mix
The marketing mix is a term to describe the multi-faceted approach to a complete and effective marketing plan. Traditionally, this plan included the four Ps of marketing: price, product, promotion, and place. But the exact makeup of a marketing mix has undergone various changes in response to new technologies and ways of thinking. Additions to the four Ps include physical evidence, people, process, and even politics.

Marketing Myopia

marketing-myopia
Marketing myopia is the nearsighted focus on selling goods and services at the expense of consumer needs. Marketing myopia was coined by Harvard Business School professor Theodore Levitt in 1960. Originally, Levitt described the concept in the context of organizations in high-growth industries that become complacent in their belief that such industries never fail.

Marketing Personas

marketing-personas
Marketing personas give businesses a general overview of key segments of their target audience and how these segments interact with their brand. Marketing personas are based on the data of an ideal, fictional customer whose characteristics, needs, and motivations are representative of a broader market segment.

Meme Marketing

meme-marketing
Meme marketing is any marketing strategy that uses memes to promote a brand. The term “meme” itself was popularized by author Richard Dawkins over 50 years later in his 1976 book The Selfish Gene. In the book, Dawkins described how ideas evolved and were shared across different cultures. The internet has enabled this exchange to occur at an exponential rate, with the first modern memes emerging in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

Microtargeting

microtargeting
Microtargeting is a marketing strategy that utilizes consumer demographic data to identify the interests of a very specific group of individuals. Like most marketing strategies, the goal of microtargeting is to positively influence consumer behavior.

Multi-Channel Marketing

multichannel-marketing
Multichannel marketing executes a marketing strategy across multiple platforms to reach as many consumers as possible. Here, a platform may refer to product packaging, word-of-mouth advertising, mobile apps, email, websites, or promotional events, and all the other channels that can help amplify the brand to reach as many consumers as possible.

Multi-Level Marketing

multilevel-marketing
Multi-level marketing (MLM), otherwise known as network or referral marketing, is a strategy in which businesses sell their products through person-to-person sales. When consumers join MLM programs, they act as distributors. Distributors make money by selling the product directly to other consumers. They earn a small percentage of sales from those that they recruit to do the same – often referred to as their “downline”.

Net Promoter Score

net-promoter-score
The Net Promoter Score (NPS) is a measure of the ability of a product or service to attract word-of-mouth advertising. NPS is a crucial part of any marketing strategy since attracting and then retaining customers means they are more likely to recommend a business to others.

Neuromarketing

neuromarketing
Neuromarketing information is collected by measuring brain activity related to specific brain functions using sophisticated and expensive technology such as MRI machines. Some businesses also choose to make inferences of neurological responses by analyzing biometric and heart-rate data. Neuromarketing is the domain of large companies with similarly large budgets or subsidies. These include Frito-Lay, Google, and The Weather Channel.

Newsjacking

newsjacking
Newsjacking as a marketing strategy was popularised by David Meerman Scott in his book Newsjacking: How to Inject Your Ideas into a Breaking News Story and Generate Tons of Media Coverage. Newsjacking describes the practice of aligning a brand with a current event to generate media attention and increase brand exposure.

Niche Marketing

microniche
A microniche is a subset of potential customers within a niche. In the era of dominating digital super-platforms, identifying a microniche can kick off the strategy of digital businesses to prevent competition against large platforms. As the microniche becomes a niche, then a market, scale becomes an option.

Push vs. Pull Marketing

push-vs-pull-marketing
We can define pull and push marketing from the perspective of the target audience or customers. In push marketing, as the name suggests, you’re promoting a product so that consumers can see it. In a pull strategy, consumers might look for your product or service drawn by its brand.

Real-Time Marketing

real-time-marketing
Real-time marketing is as exactly as it sounds. It involves in-the-moment marketing to customers across any channel based on how that customer is interacting with the brand.

Relationship Marketing

relationship-marketing
Relationship marketing involves businesses and their brands forming long-term relationships with customers. The focus of relationship marketing is to increase customer loyalty and engagement through high-quality products and services. It differs from short-term processes focused solely on customer acquisition and individual sales.

Reverse Marketing

reverse-marketing
Reverse marketing describes any marketing strategy that encourages consumers to seek out a product or company on their own. This approach differs from a traditional marketing strategy where marketers seek out the consumer.

Remarketing

remarketing
Remarketing involves the creation of personalized and targeted ads for consumers who have already visited a company’s website. The process works in this way: as users visit a brand’s website, they are tagged with cookies that follow the users, and as they land on advertising platforms where retargeting is an option (like social media platforms) they get served ads based on their navigation.

Sensory Marketing

sensory-marketing
Sensory marketing describes any marketing campaign designed to appeal to the five human senses of touch, taste, smell, sight, and sound. Technologies such as artificial intelligence, virtual reality, and the Internet of Things (IoT) are enabling marketers to design fun, interactive, and immersive sensory marketing brand experiences. Long term, businesses must develop sensory marketing campaigns that are relevant and effective in eCommerce.

Services Marketing

services-marketing
Services marketing originated as a separate field of study during the 1980s. Researchers realized that the unique characteristics of services required different marketing strategies to those used in the promotion of physical goods. Services marketing is a specialized branch of marketing that promotes the intangible benefits delivered by a company to create customer value.

Sustainable Marketing

sustainable-marketing-green-marketing
Sustainable marketing describes how a business will invest in social and environmental initiatives as part of its marketing strategy. Also known as green marketing, it is often used to counteract public criticism around wastage, misleading advertising, and poor quality or unsafe products.

Word-of-Mouth Marketing

word-of-mouth-marketing
Word-of-mouth marketing is a marketing strategy skewed toward offering a great experience to existing customers and incentivizing them to share it with other potential customers. That is one of the most effective forms of marketing as it enables a company to gain traction based on existing customers’ referrals. When repeat customers become a key enabler for the brand this is one of the best organic and sustainable growth marketing strategies.

360 Marketing

360-marketing
360 marketing is a marketing campaign that utilizes all available mediums, channels, and consumer touchpoints. 360 marketing requires the business to maintain a consistent presence across multiple online and offline channels. This ensures it does not miss potentially lucrative customer segments. By its very nature, 360 marketing describes any number of different marketing strategies. However, a broad and holistic marketing strategy should incorporate a website, SEO, PPC, email marketing, social media, public relations, in-store relations, and traditional forms of advertising such as television.

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