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Product Promotion
Product is an item or service offered to the consumers at a price. Therefore, product promotion is the communication or any activity undertaken to inform the consumers, persuade and remind them to buy the product from the market.
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Publicity
This is the mentioning of the product or the organization in the mass media to make it be known to many people. There two types of publicity, that is free publicity (where the payment is not required) and Special featured publicity (where there is payment, for example sponsoring an event in the public).
Advantages of Publicity
- It saves the organization money incase of free publicity.
- It is likely to cover a wider region as the publicity is in the media.
- The organization may earn credibility due to positive publicity.
- The information may be received positively by the customers as the message is likely to be more objective.
- It may improve the competitiveness of the firm.
Disadvantages of Publicity
- Unfavourable information about the organization may reach the public especially in free publicity.
- It is irregular and short lived.
- Might require special occasion or event in order to attract the mass media.
- The firm does not have control on how the information will appear in the media and the extend of the coverage.
Public Relations
A process of passing information with an intention of creating, promoting, or maintaining good will and a favourable image of the organization in the public. It involves informing the public about the firm’s achievement and how it is contributing to the community welfare and development, to get more approval of the public.
Advantages of Public Relations
- May be used to correct the dented image of the firm
- It informs the public about the activities of the firm
- Assist in upholding the good image of the firm
- It improves the relationship between the firm and its customers
Disadvantages of Public Relations
- It is costly in terms of time and finance involved
- The customer may make premature buying arising from the picture created by the firm
- Effects may take long before they are actually realized
- It may be difficult to evaluate the impact of the message, since the customers are not obliged to respond to it
Point of purchase (Window) display
This is where the items are arranged in the shops strategically, allowing the customers to see them easily. The arrangement is meant to attract the customer’s attention and induce them to buy goods as they pass close to the shop.
Advantages of Point of Purchase Display
- May induce the customer to buy the product due to their arrangement
- As the customers get in to the shop, they are likely to buy including the other goods that were not being displayed
- The customers are able to determine the features of the product with ease
- It is relatively a cheaper method of promotion
Disadvantages of Point of Purchase
- The method only work well with the potential customers who are near the shop and not far away
- They may also attract thieves especially if the product displayed is of high value
- In case the arrangement does not appeal so much to the customers, they may not get into the shop
- It may be expensive setting up the display area
Direct Mail Advertisement
A form of advertisement which is sent to the potential customers directly in the form of a mail, for example the pricelist being sent to the potential customers.
Advantages of Direct Mail Advertisement
- It is able to reach the targeted group as they are sent to the potential customer directly
- The message may be made to suit the requirement of the specific customer to be
- There may be an immediate respond on the message
- The potential customers incurs no cost to acquire the information
Disadvantages of Direct Mail Advertisement
- Some mails may not get to the intended customers in time
- The prospective customer may ignore the advertisement
- May not be effective where the customer needs to examine the product
- This method may be expensive especially in terms of material and money
- It may only appeal to the literate group only
Catalogue
A booklet that gives information about the product that the organization deals in. It gives the description about the product, the picture as well as the prices of the product.
Advantages of Catalogue
- It may be used to advertise all the products in the organization
- The owner/organization has the total control over the catalogue
- It gives detailed information about the product
- Its colourful nature makes it an attractive promotion
Disadvantages of Catalogue
- It is expensive to produce increasing the cost of production
- Change in price may affect the whole catalogue
Guarantee (warranty issue)
An assurance given to the customer that the product will serve as expected if used according to the instructions given by the manufacturer. For the guaranteed period the seller will be willing to maintain repair or replace the product for the customer.
Advantages of Guarantee
- The confidence built in the customer by the guarantee to the customers makes them to buy more products.
- It may create the customers loyalty to the product of the firm.
- The fact that the product can be replaced if it gets spoilt within the period is an advantage to the customer.
Disadvantages of Guarantee
- Repairing or replacing the product may be very costly to the organization.
- The method may only be suitable for the durable goods.
- The customer may be tempted to mishandle the good during this period.
Discount
This is a reduction in price of the commodity, allowing the buyer to pay less than what he would have paid the goods.
Types of Discount
- Quantity discount: - Allowed by trader to encourage him/her to buy more quantity of the product being offer
- Trade discount: - Allowed to another trader who is buying products for resale to the consumers
- Cash discount: - Allowed to the customer to enable him pay promptly for the goods bought
Sales Promotion
These are activities carried out to increase the sales volume of a business. They are activities out of the ordinary routine of business that is carried out by the seller to increase his sales volume.
The methods of carrying out sales promotion includes all the methods of carrying out product promotion as discussed earlier, that is, shows and trade fair, showrooms, free gifts, free sample, personal selling, advertisement, window display, credit facilities, after sales services, etc
Factors to Consider when Choosing a Promotion Method
- The cost of the promotion that is whether the company can afford it or not, for some promotion methods are very expensive that may not be easily affordable to the company.
- The nature of the product being promoted especially whether it requires demonstration or not. Products which requires demonstration are best promoted through personal selling.
- The targeted group for the advertisement, on whether they can be reached by that method or not. The promotion method must reach the targeted group, if it has to be effective.
- The objective that the firm would like to achieve with the promotion, and whether the method is helping them to achieve that particular objective.
- The method used by the competitor in the market to enable them choose a method that will enable them compete favourably.
- The requirement of the law concerning product promotion, to enable them not use what the law does not allow.
Ethical Issues in Product Promotion
- Cheating on performance of the product to attract more customers by given them wrong and enticing information about what the product can do.
- Cheating on the ingredients of the product by telling them that the product contains a suitable type of ingredient which does not exist just to lure them to buy the product
- Not telling them the side effects of the product which may affect them should they continuously use the product due to fear of losing customer
- False pricing, especially a case where they overprice their and later on reduce them slightly just to lure the customer, yet exploit them
- Not caring about the negative effect of the product on the environment, which may includes littering of the environment by the posters used for advertisement
- Social cultural conflict, especially putting up some forms of advertisement which are considered a taboo buy the community leaving around, such as hanging a billboard of a female advertising inner wears next to a church
Trends in Product Promotion
- Use of website/internet to advertise product worldwide, which has increased the coverage.
- Encouraging gender sensitivity and awareness in product promotion to bring about gender balance.
- Use of electronic billboards in advertisement to increase their visibility even at night.
- Intensifying personal selling by the business to reach more customers.
- Development of promotion convoys to move from one place to the other with music and dancers to attract more prospective customers.
- Catering for the rights of the youths when carrying out product promotion and even involving them in carrying out the promotion.
- Catering for the interest of those with special needs when carrying out advertisement.
- Advertisement through mobile phones by sending them s.m.s about the product.
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