Marketing channels refer to the intermediaries between producers and final users that constitute a distribution channel. A firm's marketing channel system involves decisions about which intermediaries to use to convert potential buyers into profitable customers. A firm can use either a push strategy, employing sales forces and trade promotions to induce intermediaries to sell to end users, or a pull strategy, using advertising to persuade consumers to demand the product from intermediaries. Large companies employ both push and pull strategies skillfully across multiple marketing channels.