Push-Pull

I remember the movie version of the Doctor Dolittle series in which a strange-looking creature called a "push-me-pull-you" was introduced. This unique critter looked very much like a llama except it had two heads - one of its front and one at its back. "I've never seen anything like it!" one of Dr. Dolittle's colleagues sang out. (Such a reaction was highly appropriate as, after all, this was a musical.) What triggered my memory of that movie and that scene was some recent reading I have done on marketing strategies followed by persons attempting to promote companies to international markets. The two primary categories many professionals use are called "push" and "pull" strategies, according to authors Charles Hill and G. Tomas Hult.

A push strategy is characterized by promoters making in-person pitches to potential clients or customers. A push strategy is when promotion is conducted via media advertising. Given these differences, one question popping into my mind is: "Which one is better? Which strategy generates the most positive results?" To that, the response has to be it depends upon the circumstance. The two types of strategy may seem to be tightly linked, but the reality is they are quite different in that their objectives are different. The push strategy is geared for a small or even intimate audience while the pull strategy focuses on much larger numbers.   

You see push-pull strategies followed in all kind of areas where outreach is conducted. Examples are found in such scenarios as the traditional selling of products and fund raising campaigns to the promotion of political candidates and recruitment of students by colleges and universities. If done well, the two should complement each other. In real estate, to give one instance, a pull strategy may be used to bring potential buyers to an open house, but then a push strategy represents the follow-up when the real estate agent sits down with the interested parties to hopefully make a sale. Push-pull outreach showcases the importance of well coordinated communication efforts.