Tips for Designing a Powerful Sales Promotion

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March 28, 2014 by Yanique's Marketing Concepts

• Use sales promotions with advertising. For example, combine a price promotion with an ad emphasizing the product’s features or with a point-of-purchase display. Or if you’re marketing to businesses through trade shows or conventions, combine poster ads with sales-rep selling contests to get the most impact.
• Be clear about your objectives. Your goals for sales promotions will vary with your target market. lf you’re targeting retailers, persuade them to carry your company’s new offerings, to stock more inventory, to encourage off-season buying, or to offset competitive promotions.
• Choose the appropriate promotion tools. Depending on your objectives, select the right tools. For salespeople, launch sales contests-with prizes to the winners. lf you’re marketing to businesses through trade shows or conventions, use publications, videos, and other audiovisual materials to generate new sales leads, meet new customers face to face, sell more to existing customers, and educate customers.
• Use sales promotions in markets of high brand dissimilarity. Sales promotions tend to attract brand switchers who look primarily for low price, good value, or premiums. You’ll get more-and longer lasting-market share if you use such incentives in markets of high brand dissimilarity.
• Distinguish between price promotions and added-value promotions. Sales promotions, with their incessant prices off, coupons, deals, and premiums, can devalue the product offering in consumers’ minds. Make sure your promotions enhance your brand image.
• Pretest your sales promotion program. Use pretests (small trial runs) to determine whether the promotional tools you’ve chosen are appropriate, the incentive size will produce enough sales response without costing the company too much and the presentation is efficient.

 

*Originally published by the Harvard Business School Publishing.