The word sales promotion is made of two words, i.e. sales and promotion. Sales mean selling a product after charging a price and hand over the product and service. Sales Closing is a big task a;though at the end of the day.
Promotion means to increase. Therefore, sales promotion is a continuous process to increase the sales. Therefore, it can be said that any process whose purpose is to increase sales is sales promotion.
Sales promotions are a great way for your organization to encourage potential customers to buy your product or sign up for your service. Done well, they boost short-term sales but also attract new customers, prompt positive online reviews, and lead to repeat purchases.
But it can also feel like our days are overrun with sales promotions. Chances are, your inbox is packed with marketing emails from businesses offering discounts, special prices, buy-one-get-one offers, flash sales, and free-shipping offers.
Sales Promotion in Marketing
Sales promotion activities are more common for consumer’s goods marketing than for industrial goods. Consumers are attracted by displays, packaging and publicity.
It may also provide an inducement to marketing intermediaries like wholesalers, retailers etc. It also attempts to accelerate sales, offering coupons with certain benefits, using limited-time offers. Basically it is a tool designed to speed up the selling process and maximize sales volume.
A sales manager is interested in any approach that will help persuade customers to buy.
International decision on promotion should include a consideration of sales promotion alongside of, or in place of expenditures for advertising and personal selling.
Offering a discount is a tried-and-true way to win over customers, boost sales, and move stock. Not only do 77% of shoppers say discounts can influence where they shop, almost half (48%) admit a discount has sped up a purchasing decision.
Discounts can be limited to a specific point in the customer journey — for example their first online order — or a seasonal or holiday promotion. Or consider an alternative, such as offering a special price. If your goal is customer retention, rather than a short-term sales boost, consider offering rewards points. Reward points don’t offer the possibility of immediate gratification like discounts, but they will appeal to customers who shop with you on a regular basis.
Coupons are another promotional tool that has been transformed by technology. You can send them directly to customers via email or text message. You can use them as an inducement to join a mailing list, or as a “thank you” to people who have. For example, mobile coupons delivered via text message
Types of Sales Promotion Strategies
A variety of activities comprise the total promotion strategy. This includes things like a trade show, specialty advertising, contest, point-of-purchase displays, coupons, recognition programs, and free samples.
Rather than when they form a primary component of the promotion activities.
Expenditures for sales programs may be very substantial.
What makes a sales promotion work?
1. Select the right target audience
The difficulty with any marketing campaign lies in locating those individuals who will eventually become loyal customers. Many marketers believe that by casting a large enough net, they’ll be able to locate those individuals simply by virtue of percentages. After all, if they contact enough prospects, some of them are bound to complete the journey through the sales funnel and become paying customers. A smaller percentage of those customers will become loyal customers.
The problem with this idea is it’s remarkably inefficient, as only a small fraction of prospects and leads become buyers and so offset the initial investment. By instead predetermining a target audience, businesses can put their finite marketing resources to better use.
2. Set measurable goals
There’s no denying the importance of setting goals, but there’s also power in writing them down.
Ask yourself what the most important objective of your promotion should be. Are you hoping to draw in new customers, or are you more inclined to focus on customer retention? Do you want your customers to purchase more frequently, or would you like for them to increase the average amount they spend on a purchase? Are you attempting to increase your business during slower seasons or times of day? Are you interested in regaining the attention of former customers who have taken their business elsewhere?
3. Limit availability
You can take advantage of these psychological triggers by offering limited-time deals. A sales promotion — such as a gift with purchase — may seem like an attractive incentive for motivating sales, but unless that promotion is only available for a limited time or in limited quantities, many customers won’t be interested. On the other hand, if the same customers are faced with the possibility of missing the promotion if they don’t act quickly, they may be far more likely to commit.
4. Promote widely but wisely
Visibility is key. Just be sure to account for the marketing cost of promoting your promotion. Otherwise, you might end up spending more money on advertising than you’ll make back through increased sales. For this reason, it may be most beneficial to focus on promotional strategies that have demonstrated return on investment (ROI).
You can market or advertise your promotions just like any other product or service. In-store signage, information on your company website, blog posts, social media posts, email marketing campaigns, e-newsletter stories, media releases, brochures, and print and online advertising can all be effective ways to let prospective customers know about your sales promotion.
Sales promotion methods are typically more effective when used as part of a total communications program.
