BTL
BTL (Below The Line) is a set of indirect advertising methods that are not part of traditional advertising technologies: outdoor advertising, advertising in print media, radio and television.
It is believed that BTL advertising focuses on direct communication with the consumer, so it includes relevant activities and procedures:
- Sales marketing: promotions, giveaways, discount coupons and gifts for purchases made, sales, tastings and other sales promotion events held directly at the points sales.
- Trade marketing: sales promotion activities among resellers (business events, exhibitions, presentations, meetings, etc.)
- Direct marketing (mailing lists, telephone sales, personal communication): direct personal communication between a seller and a potential buyer of goods/services, carried out through various means communications (email, phone, instant messengers, social networks, etc.) or live.
- Guerrilla marketing: a set of measures that allow you to advertise a product to the target audience with minimal advertising budget costs. Includes ambient media; word of mouth; viral, hidden, outrageous marketing, etc.
- POS materials at points of sale and other places of contact with the audience: wobblers, price tags, light panels, promotional stands, gifts for distribution (leaflets, calendars, magnets, key chains, cups, bags, etc.).
- Loyalty programs, event marketing, sponsorships, and a number of other ways.
In fact, BTL includes everything that has nothing to do with display advertising. This can be the distribution of free samples, various sponsorship events and tastings, various loyalty programs. All advertising placed in the media is referred to as ATL (Above The Line).
According to a legend that can be read on all sites related to marketing, the terms ATL and BTL originated in the middle of the 20th century in a large company (some sources name Procter & Gamble). It is said that one of the marketers compiled a list of various advertising activities in the media, drew a line to calculate the cost, and only then noticed that he forgot to include the cost of giving away free probes. As a result, additional advertising was recorded under the line, which led to the emergence of two new terms for direct and indirect advertising.
However, it should be noted that today the terms ATL and BTL are used less often, as modern realities require marketers to use more flexible and complex approaches when promoting than this was required in the middle of the last century. Experts who are closely connected with the world of advertising note that only comprehensive solutions can bring a noticeable result today. At the same time, the frequency of using the once dominant ATL approach in Western markets is decreasing from year to year. But interest in combined approaches, which necessarily include BTL, is increasing.
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