Push and pull marketing strategies can help you reach target audiences using different advertising approaches.
Choosing the right marketing strategy for your small-and-midsize-business (SMB) is crucial to ensure success in an increasingly crowded marketplace. A well-planned marketing strategy helps you effectively allocate limited resources to achieve cost efficiency. It can help SMBs to identify and reach their ideal target audience by standing ahead of their competitors.
With the option to choose from multiple marketing strategies, SMB owners must carefully select the right one for their business. In this article, we’ll discuss two marketing strategies: push marketing and pull marketing.
What is push marketing?
Push marketing strategies actively promote a company's product and services to the target consumers. The aim is to get the product or service seen at the point of purchase. Push strategies often utilize traditional advertising and marketing avenues, such as television ads, direct mail, telemarketing, sales calls, trade shows, and events, to promote instant sales.
What is pull marketing?
Pull marketing strategies focus on increasing the demand for a product or a service while creating loyalty for the brand. This type of marketing strategy aims to make compelling and convincing marketing materials that persuade customers to buy while allowing them to make a purchase decision in their own time. Some examples of avenues used in pull marketing include search engine optimization (SEO), content marketing, social media engagement, and influencer marketing.
What are the key differences between push and pull marketing?
While both aim to increase sales, push and pull marketing work differently. Here are some key differences between the two:
Push marketing | Pull marketing | |
|---|---|---|
Timing | Push marketing emphasizes immediate promotion and call to action to encourage quick sales or immediate conversions. | Pull marketing prioritizes building long-term relationships by nurturing leads while proving value over time. |
Communication style | Push marketing is mostly one-way communication from the business to the customer. | Pull marketing allows for interaction and conversations between the business and the customer. |
Cost and ROI | Push marketing is more expensive than pull marketing as it involves paid advertisement and promotions, such as TV commercials, radio ads, and billboard ads, which come with a huge initial price. However, not all advertising expenses in push marketing can generate a return on investment (ROI). | Pull marketing requires low upfront costs, focusing on building an audience by targeting consumers already interested in your product and service. |
Initiative | In push marketing, businesses adopt a proactive approach to reach out to potential customers through ads, promotions, and messages. | In pull marketing, customers are the ones who seek out information on products and services through valuable and relevant content. Businesses focus on creating and distributing content that attracts and pulls these interested customers. |
Target Size | Push marketing focuses on reaching a large audience with the hope of converting a smaller percentage into customers. | Pull marketing targets a smaller, more defined audience by creating content that resonates with them and provides value, increasing the chances of converting them into loyal customers. |
What are some examples of push and pull marketing?
To better understand how push and pull marketing operate, let's look at some concrete examples demonstrating their effectiveness:
Push marketing examples
Television commercials designed to capture the viewers' attention and deliver the message in a short time span.
Static or digital billboards placed in high-traffic areas with clear and compelling images and simple copy to gain potential customers’ attention and increase their retention power.
Direct mail, such as catalogs, letters, brochures, and postcards, could be personalized to target individuals.
In-store displays featuring eye-catching designs and call to action encourage customers to purchase.
Sponsored social media posts with engaging visuals and concise messaging to help drive sales.
Pull marketing examples
Content marketing through creating and sharing valuable, relevant, and helpful content that helps in creating brand awareness, establishing authority, and nurturing relationships with prospective customers. Some content marketing examples include podcasts, blog posts, social media content, email newsletters, infographics, and e-books.
Search engine optimization to increase organic traffic to a website by improving its ranking through various optimization techniques, including incorporating keywords into your site’s content.
Influencer marketing by collaborating with third-party individuals with strong and large social media followers, who, due to their huge following, can often sway your potential customers’ opinions, behaviors, and decisions.
Email marketing which can be used to build relationships with customers, generate leads, and promote brand awareness via targeted emails. Examples of email marketing include newsletters, promotional emails, and event or webinar invitations.
Push vs pull marketing: Which is more effective and when?
The choice of when to use push vs pull marketing strategy depends on various factors, including the stage of the business, goals, and available resources. Although both strategies are popular for giving quality results, a balanced strategic approach can yield better results for your business. Some instances where push marketing strategies may work better than pull marketing include:
New product launches as push marketing can help create a buzz while generating interest.
Seasonal and clearance sale as businesses want to sell items quickly.
Competitive industries, as push marketing may help stay ahead in highly competitive industries.
Some cases when pull marketing may work better include:
Building brand awareness which is normally achieved through valuable content that seeks to engage the target audience over time.
Educational content to help answer any questions your potential customers may have.
Specialized markets often prefer pull marketing, as they require the establishment of authority and credibility over time.
Which type of marketing is right for your business?
Choosing push vs pull marketing strategies depends on the needs and goals of your business. Depending on these metrics, your business may want to use pull, push or a combination of both marketing strategies. For example, push marketing can be helpful if you are looking to meet sales goals in less time, as it has the potential to deliver immediate results. However, pull marketing can work better for new businesses that want to establish themselves as an authority and gain credibility in a specific area.
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