Promotional Marketing
SALES PROMOTIONSSales Promotions play a key role in a marketing communications program for any business or organization. Promotional goals are usually short-term marketing tactics designed to attract attention, boost sales, offer stronger purchase incentives and to stimulate a quicker response from consumers. Businesses typically use promotions to convey new messages about their products or services. Perhaps introduce a new product, benefit or service that solves many customer’s current problems. Advertising promotions can target the trade, distributors, general public or ultimate end-users. Typical promotional formats include: premiums, coupons, contests, special events or sponsorships. By selecting the appropriate media for your needs, a strategic marketing promotions campaign can improve brand awareness and recognition, increase sagging sales, increase current customer touch points and deliver more opportunities (and reasons) for new customers to connect with you. |
PUBLIC RELATIONSMany times, small businesses struggle to use the full potential of public relations because they do not fully understand its positive strategy. Just consider the newer digital options, which include connecting with blog writers, who can become some of your strongest, viral brand advocates. Public relations are similar to promotions because PR events and stories also “dramatize” a company, product or service. This form of marketing is probably the most misunderstood and least used. The advantages of using public relations are really worth checking into:
How to Market your Company to the Press
NOTE: Hopefully, your first experiments with public relations won’t be responding to negative publicity. With news spreading quickly through social media and mobile devices, negative publicity can impact and cripple a company, brand or product very quickly. If this happens to your business, the official response must be professional, tactful, transparent and strategic. If widespread damage does occur, it can become a long, tedious and costly process to get trusted consumers to return to your company, products or services. |
