In
Malaysia, IKEA has relied excessivelyon on promotion through catalogues. What
other forms of promotion would you suggest?
Answer:
IKEA also can promote their product
through internet. According to SKMM, internet users in Malaysia will achieve
65% at the end of 2012. Recently, Malaysia’s Paypal reported that the trend of
online transaction in Malaysia increased to RM2.71 billion at the end of 2012
compared RM1.97 billion in year 2011. Through in internet, mostly all people in
Malaysia will see the the advertisement in video or picture.
IKEA
can build web sites that embody or express their purpose, history, product and
vision that are attractive on first viewing and interesting to encourage repeat
visits. In the Youtube, IKEA also can advertise their product because every consumer
of Youtube is from different level of age. Nowadays, the web site already offer
to any company to advertise their product through video.
Other
than that, IKEA can use e-mail about IKEA’s product. The users can choose
either want to accept or not the advertisement e-mail in the future. In
addition, IKEA also can promote their product through social media such as
social network (Facebook, and Twitter), bloggers, online communities and forums.
Consumers can share text, images, audio and video information with each other
and with companies and vice versa. Online communities and forums created by
consumers and groups of consumers with no commercial interests or company
affiliations. They can posting, instant messanging and chat about special
interest about IKEA’s product. All member in the group can give testimonies
about IKEA’s product. So, IKEA need to use the link of the group and spread
to consumer.
Through
blogs, IKEA can use the way too. But, it depend on the ownner of the blog
instead they give a good comment or try to revenge on companies for bad
product. If the owner of the blog give good comment and testimony, IKEA must
use the blog to promote their product to consumer though e-mail. Social network
usually the best way to attact people because most people use social network
for online. They can share and give some comment of IKEA product as a
testimony. So, other people will buy the product. But, it can cause trouble
when IKEA’s product does not give satisfaction to consumer. By using internet,
IKEA can reduce marketing cost.
IKEA can do promotion in other form
such as newspaper. IKEA can advertise their product through newspaper. This is
because newspaper is a major information and choice in Malaysia to gain
information and so on. Newspaper is good in local market coverage but IKEA must
choose a popular newspaper’s companies such as Metro and The Star.
IKEA also can use television as a
medium to promote their product. They must choose perfect time to advertise
their product on television such as on 8.00 to 9.00 PM when all consumer likely
to watch television. This way can give more attraction because of high
attention and easy to reach person that interested to their product.
IKEA can advertise their product
through magazine but must be popular and suitable for their target market. In Malaysia,
magazine such as ‘Majalah Nona’, ‘Mangga’ and so on. Other than that, IKEA also
can promote by using radio and newsletters. By using radio, IKEA need to
promote through popular radio such as Hot FM, HITZ FM and Era. This way can
reduce cost and can use telephone call from consumer to give testimony. By
newsletters, IKEA can promote their product and gain high selectivity and
interactive opportunities.