Sales promotion
is an important component of the marketing mix.
Manufacturers and retailers offer sales promotions for specific purposes, such as to increase sales, promote brand loyalty or introduce a new product. They usually last a short time and use promotional vehicles such as advertising or product demonstration. The main goal of a sales promotion is to induce the customer to take a desired action.
New Product Exposure
For manufacturers, sales promotion helps introduce a new product to the marketplace and create buzz among potential buyers. Merchants also benefit from the interest by seeing an increase in store traffic. For online marketers, promoting new products such as an e-book can attract more visitors to their website.
Providing Information
In addition to making consumers aware of a product, a sales promotion can also provide useful information. This can be an effective tool when introducing a new product. Customers may receive a free trial period along with information about the product and how it works. In this way, companies can get customers to try new products by removing any apprehension.
Increasing Sales
A promotion can stimulate product sales. Manufacturers commonly reduce the price of a product for a limited time to induce customers to make a purchase. In the short term this can increase the number of units sold, which can lead to increased market share in the long run if the customer permanently switches from a competitor's brand.
Brand Loyalty
Sales promotions can also be used to increase brand awareness and loyalty. Clubs or special memberships provide consumers discounts or promotions for continued use. Many airlines offer frequent-flier programs where customers eventually receive free or discounted flights.
Impulse Sales
Sales promotions can generate impulse sales. A customer may not be aware of a product until she enters a store and sees a sign advertising a sale price. Impulse sales also result from in-store demonstrations, such as giving away free samples of a food item.
Tags: aware product, introduce product, product sales, receive free, sales promotion