Sales Promotion

Sales promotion refers to promotion activities – other than adver-

tising, publicity, and personal selling – that stimulate interest, trial, or

purchase by final customers or others in the channel. Sales promotion

may be aimed at customers, at middlemen, or even at firm’s own em-

ployees.

The different promotion methods can all be viewed as different forms

of communication. But good marketers are not interested in just “com-

municating”. They want to communicate information that will encour-

age customers to choose their product. They know if they have a better

offering, informed customers are more likely to buy. Therefore they are

interested in 1) reinforcing present attitude that might lead to favour-

able behaviour or 2) actually charging the attitudes and behaviour of the

firm’s target market.

For a firm’s promotion to be effective, its promotion objectives must

be clearly defined – because the right promotion blend depends on what

the firm wants to accomplish. It’s helpful to think of three basic promo-

tion objectives – informing, persuading, and reminding target market

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customers about the company and its marketing mix. All are concerned

with affecting behaviour by providing more information. Even more

useful is a more specific set of promotion objectives that states exactly

who you want to inform, persuade, or remind, and why.

Potential customers must know something about a product if they are

to buy at all. Therefore, informing may be the most important objective.

For example, a cable TV company found that whenever it offered ser-

vice to a new neighbourhood, most of the families subscribed. The cable

company’s main job was informing prospects that cable was available.

A firm with a really new product may not have to do anything but inform

consumers about it – and show that it meets consumer needs better than

other products.

When competitors offer similar products, the firm must not only

inform customers that its product is available, but also persuade them

to buy it. A persuading objective means the firm will try to develop or

reinforce a favourable set of attitudes in the hope of affecting buying

behaviour. Promotion with a persuading objective often focuses on rea-

sons why one brand is better than competiting brands. Ads for Johnson

& Johnson’s Tylenol tout it as the pain relief medicine most often used

in hospitals to help consumers to buy Tylenol rather than some other

firm’s brand.

If target customers already have positive attitudes about the firm’s

product, then a reminding objective might be suitable. The objective can

be extremely important in some cases. Even though customers have been

attracted and sold once, they are still targets to competitors’ appeals.

Reminding them of their past satisfaction may keep them from shifting

to a competitor. Campbell’s realizes that most people know about its

soup – so much of its advertising is intended to remind.

1. Sales promotion may be aimed only at consumers.

2. It’s hard to generalize about sales promotion because it includes

such a wide variety of activities.

3. Marketers want to communicate information that will encourage

customers to choose their product.

4. The right promotion blend depends on how the firm wants to ac-

complish its objectives.

5. Informing may be the most important objective.

6. When competitors are offering similar products, the firm must only

inform customers that its product is available.

7. Promotion with a persuading objective often focuses on reasons

why one brand is better than competing brands.

8. If target customers already have positive attitudes about a firm’s

product, then a reminding objective might be suitable.

9. Even though customers have been attracted and sold once, they are

not any more targets for competitors’ appeals.

And now speak on each basic promotion objectives.

Text 5

Read the following text and answer the questions that follow it.

Public Relations (PR)

Effective public relations requires believability and to be continu-

ously believed we must constantly exhibit a high level of integrity.

This area of communication represents one of the oldest methods of

seeking to obtain a favourable response from a selected group of people.

It should not be related to business organizations alone; all of us indulge

in some form of PR on a social or professional basis. How many times

during a crisis or a problem period, have you resorted to a box of choco-

lates, a bunch of flowers, taking somebody out for lunch or dinner or

giving a gift in order to obtain a favourable response? Thus, words, ac-

tions or gifts are used when you want people to think of you in a certain

way, do something for you or sustain your relationship through an apol-

ogy when you have offended.

A definition of public relations in the business context will give you

an idea of the width and breadth of its applications:

The planned actions designed to gain and keep the goodwill of every

section of the public with which the company comes into contact.

The term “public” has enormous significance because it can in-

clude:

a) the company customers

b) shareholders, financiers or bankers

c) employees or potential employees

d) suppliers and distributors

e) other companies on the same industry

f) members of the community within which the company operates

g) members of the general public.

The scope of PR in the business world is far greater than when used

by an individual but the ultimate objective remains the same: improve

the relationships of an organization or individual with relevant mem-

bers of the public. Like all other elements of marketing PR has had its

time as a luxury or a novelty marketing tool and must be taken seriously,

recognized as a distinct are of expertise, and treated with the same cau-

tion with which we treat advertising, pricing or selling. It must also be

considered as a vital management function within the organization. The

Institute of Public Relations presents PR as being:

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The deliberate, planned and sustained effort to establish and main-

tain mutual understanding between an organisation and its public. The

words “planned and sustained” effort should encourage all people in-

volved in PR to proceed with caution, plan carefully, select the most

appropriate techniques and use PR as a means of achieving well-defined

objectives.

1. What is the definition of PR in the business context? (give your

own comment)

2. What is the definition of PR of the Institute of Public Relations?

3. Is this area of communication related only to business organization?

4. Can you give your own examples when we indulge in some form

of PR?

5. Whom does the term “public” include and why?

6. What do you know about PR as a novelty marketing tool?

7. According to the text PR must be treated with the same caution

with which we treat advertising, pricing and selling”. Why? Give your

arguments.

Text 6

Read the following text, find the key words and use them while speaking on the issues

touched up.

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