"Sales promotion includes incentive-offering and interest-creating activities which are generally short-term marketing events other than advertising, personal selling, publicity and direct marketing. The purpose of sales promotion is to stimulate, motivate and influence the purchase and other desired behavioral responses of the firm's customers."
Sales promotion offers a direct inducement to act by providing extra worth over and above what is built into the product at its normal price. These temporary inducements are offered usually at a time and place where the buying decision is made. Not only are sales promotions very common in the current competitive market conditions, they are increasing at a fast pace. These promotions are direct inducements. In spite of the directness, sales promotions are fairly complicated and a rich tool of marketing with innumerable creative possibilities limited only by the imagination of promotion planners. Sales promotion is often referred to by the names of 'extra purchase value' and 'below-the-line selling'.
This sales promotion is aimed at final consumer or users. Consumer sales promotion used by retailers are aimed at attracting customers to specific locations. The various methods of sales promotion tools are-
• Sample-Samples are offer of a trial amount of a product generally 84% consumer package goods marketers use sampling as part of their promotion strategy. By offering free samples, a company gains entry into that market, soaps, detergents, toothpastes, shampoos, conditioners are examples of few products that are normally popularized through free samples. Free samples are distributed for several reasons: To stimulate trail of a product to increase sales volume in the early stages of PLC, to obtain desirable distribution. The samples can be distributed through in store sampling (food products and cosmetics), door to door sampling, mail sampling, (through postal service), news paper sampling, mobile sampling, on package sampling, professional sampling(drugs).
• Premiums: - Premiums are goods offered either free or at low cost or an incentive to buy the product. Premiums are offered as bonus, prize, gifts or other free offers. Premium can be used to boost sales to attract competitor's customers, introduces different products.
• Contests: - Contests of various kinds constitute widely used sales promotion tools. There are consumer contest which are open for all, consumer contest are given wide publicity to attract the participation of the widely scattered consumer base. Consumer contest take a variety of forms- Quiz contests, beauty contest, car rallies, scooter rallies, suggesting a logo etc. Contests can be divided in to 2 broad categories- Skill competition & sweepstakes. One form of sweepstakes is a game & scratch off cards with instant winners & prizes are an important promotional tool.
• Demonstration: - Companies resort to product demonstration for sales promotion especially when they are coming up. With a product new to the market. In India products like beverages, washing powders, electronic product have utilized product demonstration as a tool of sales promotion. It may be-
(i) Demonstration at retail store.
(ii) School demonstration.
(iii)Door to door demonstration.
(iv)Demonstrations to key people.
• Coupons: - Coupons are certificates which offer reductions to consumers for specified items. Coupons distributed through newspaper, magazine advertisement or by direct mail. Coupons enclose the customer to exploit the bargain and they also serve as an inducement to the trade for stocking the items.
Types of coupons-
(i) Instant redemption coupon
(ii)Bonus back coupon
(iii)Scanner delivered coupon
(iv)Cross ruffling
(v)Free standing inserts coupons can be delivered to consumers through news paper.
(vi)In store couponing
• Trade fairs and exhibitions:-They form one of the oldest practices of sales promotion. Trade fair & exhibition provide companies with the opportunity for introducing and displaying their products. This brings the company's product and the consumer's direct contact with each other. Trade fairs have become a handy and effective tool of sales promotion. Orders and enquiries worth billions get generated at international trade fairs.
• Discounts and price
• Free gifts/Gift cards: - Companies also give gifts to consumers, dealers and key people. These gifts include pens, diaries, table, and decoration. Gifts normally carry the company's name and logo. The gifts are intended to create goodwill towards the company.
• Exchange schemes/Money back offers:-This is the latest sales promotion tool in consumer disables market.
To increase the sale of any product manufactures or producers adopt different measures like sample, gift, bonus, and many more. These are known as tools or techniques or methods of sales promotion. The FOUR commonly used methods of sales promotion.
• Free samples: You might have received free samples of shampoo, washing powder, coffee powder, etc. while purchasing various items from the market. Sometimes these free samples are also distributed by the shopkeeper even without purchasing any item from his shop. These are distributed to attract consumers to try out a new product and thereby create new customers. Some businessmen distribute samples among selected persons in order to popularize the product.
• Premium or Bonus offer: A milk shaker along with Nescafe, mug with Bourn vita, toothbrush with 500 grams of toothpaste, 30% extra in a pack of one kg. are the examples of premium or bonus given free with the purchase of a product? They are effective in inducing consumers to buy a particular product. This is also useful for encouraging and rewarding existing customers.
• Exchange schemes: It refers to offering exchange of old product for a new product at a price less than the original price of the product. This is useful for drawing attention to product improvement. 'Bring your old mixer-cum-juicer and exchange it for a new one just by paying Rs.500' or 'exchange your black and white television with a color television' are various popular examples of exchange scheme.
• Price-off offer: Under this offer, products are sold at a price lower than the original price. 'Rs. 2 off on purchase of lifebuoy soap, Rs. 15 off on a pack of 250 grams of Taj Mahal tea, Rs. 1000 off on cooler' etc. are some of the common schemes. This type of scheme is designed to boost up sales in off-season and sometimes while introducing a new product in the market.
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