Sales Promotion is one of the elements of the promotional mix. (The primary elements in the promotional mix are advertising, personal selling, direct marketing and publicity/public relations).

Sales promotion uses both media and non-media marketing communications for a pre-determined, limited time to increase consumer demand, stimulate market demand or improve product availability. Examples include contests, coupons, freebies, and loss leaders, point of purchase displays, premiums, prizes, product samples, and rebates. Sales promotions can be directed at either the customer, sales staff, or distribution channel members (such as retailers). Sales promotions targeted at the consumer are called consumer sales promotions. Sales promotions targeted at retailers and wholesale are called trade sales promotions.

Sales promotion includes several communications activities that attempt to provide added value or incentives to consumers, wholesalers, retailers, or other organizational customers to stimulate immediate sales. These efforts can attempt to stimulate product interest, trial, or purchase.

Examples of devices used in sales promotion include coupons, samples, premiums, point-of-purchase (POP) displays, contests, rebates, and sweepstakes.

Sales promotion is implemented to attract new customers, to hold present customers, to counteract competition, and to take advantage of opportunities that are revealed by market research. It is made up of activities, both outside and inside activities, to enhance company sales.

Outside sales promotion activities include advertising, publicity, public relations activities, and special sales events. Inside sales promotion activities include window displays, product and promotional material display and promotional programs such as premium awards and contests.

Advantages of Sales Promotions

The main advantages in using sales promotional activity, either alone or to support mainstream marketing activity and communications, are:

(i) Very flexible and adaptable in terms of tackling specific problems or supporting mainstream marketing communications Bata national or local level

(ii) Capable of specific action through specific focus and structure

(iii) Relatively short lead times to design and implement (compared with media communications)

(iv) often more easy to monitor the effect or tangible result.

(v) Economical and cost saving, possibly with economics of sales.

(vi) Can be adapted to large and small markets, major or minor products or brands.