Marketing communications (marcomm) extends well beyond the common items of public relations and advertising. Marketing communications encompasses all of the information that is put forth about a product, sometimes including internal information. Price lists, catalogs, promotional pieces, collateral material and a host of other types of marketing literature are all part of marketing communications and represent one of the most important aspects of the marketing of a product or service. Marketing communications are an integral part of the marketing mix, and although marcomm is most closely associated with promotion, it is dependent on (and can greatly affect) other areas of the marketing mix. This research considers the role of marketing communications within the marketing mix, how effective marketing communications are developed, and considers a particularly effective use of marketing communications by Eastman Kodak.
The marketing mix is composed of four components: product, distribution (place), promotion and price (Kontzer, 1995, p. 68). Product refers to the specific product or service that is being offered for sale, and is the foundation for the remainder of the marketing decisions. Even within a particular product category, decisions must be made about the exact characteristics that a product will have, and whether the company will market variations on its primary product. For example, companies that sell soft drinks must decide not only on whether the beverages will be carbonated or noncarbonated, but also on flavors and additives: will the products have sugar or no-sugar, caffeine or no caffeine?
The distribution question refers to where the product or service will be available. Some end users do not buy products directly from the manufacturer; this is the case with most consumer goods in the United States where distributors and retailers buy products before they are offered to the consumer. Depending on who the ...