You know you need great marketing to get your business and its products and services in front of your target market or ideal customer. Creating an effective promotional marketing program will get customers right to your door, website, inbox, or phone and induce them to buy what you have to offer.

What is promotional marketing?

Promotional marketing is one aspect of your marketing program and includes the details of how to attract customers to take action. The advantage of a promotion is to create something of interest to your business or company, to make your business stand out by differentiating itself from the competition and to make your business noticed by your target market, as many people as possible.

Some companies take promotional marketing to the next level by using promotional products (also known as ad specials, swag, or giveaways). What makes this type of marketing so effective is its ability to influence customer behavior, encourage action, create goodwill, and be remembered long after the promotional event. Promotional marketing, if done right, has lasting benefit beyond other forms of advertising.

Who uses promotional marketing?

All companies can use promotional marketing. A company that offers a bonus, gift or additional benefits with a normal customer purchase benefits from the use of promotional marketing techniques.

How can we get more customers in our store? Television commercials, print ads, and direct mail offers are the most common methods of offering the promotion to the target market. Think of the mailing envelopes that come to your home, filled with coupons and special offers. A restaurant, for example, may have television commercials offering a free drink with a lunch order. Either cosmetic companies offer a free gift with purchase or a department store advertises a 50% off sale for a select item type. The promotion draws attention to that additional element or benefit, which companies hope will encourage customers to visit that they otherwise would not.

Other companies use a technique known as point of sale marketing. This helps increase sales of sales products that can be difficult to sell individually. For example, mobile phone companies may offer peripheral items like chargers and headsets at a reduced price if they buy a cell phone with that item. (“Buy a phone, get a headset at half price”). Since the customer is already there and has committed to the largest purchase (the phone), they are more likely to buy the additional item because they are drawn to the savings.

Creating your promotional marketing program

Step # 1 – What is the plan?

Thinking and planning carefully is the first step to making your promotion effective. What is the OBJETIVE? What results are you looking for? Increasing revenue, creating brand awareness or launching a new product are just some of the strategic goals of promotional marketing. Your business can also be promoted from within with team building programs, employee recognition, or security awareness.

Step # 2 – Who is the target?

Before you begin, you will need to identify your target audience. Who is the ideal customer? Who is best suited to buy what you have to offer? What are your needs and how can your products and / or services satisfy them? Then, generate your sales materials with this target audience in mind. The goal of any promotional marketing program is to get people to buy your product or service by creating an attractive proposition that requires timely action. You may want to create different messages depending on the communication methods you are using. Remember this is a work in progress, so don’t be afraid to change your strategies depending on what is working and what is not.

Step # 3 – How to make the promotional offer?

There are dozens of ways to spread your message, including social media, internet marketing, custom web landing pages, promotional products, and direct mail. Remember that your target audience will dictate the advertising method. For example, if your target market is those over 65, you may want to rely more on direct mail or a print ad; However, if your market is less than 25 years old, you will definitely want to take advantage of newer technology methods such as online marketing, social media, and text messaging.

Step # 4 – What are the results?

To judge the promotional campaign, it is essential to measure the program. How many did you offer? How many actually used the offer? How much new sales revenue was generated from the offer? Without measuring the promotion, there is no way to improve and set the bar higher for the next promotion to be better. Promotions are a way of testing the market. Does your promotion generate more sales with a discount, a gift or a bonus? Marketing your business helps build excitement about a current service or new product launch.