How to Organise an Effective Sales Promotion

Experience has shown that an effective sales promotion is best seen as a Project to be planned, managed and executed as such. As in project management there are few stages involved in the process which should be meticulously executed. Whether it be a product or service, the stages are basically the same and would only vary in their details and application.

The first task is to think up a list of committed team members to help in the process. This step is crucial to the success of the Campaign because if the wrong hands are selected, then there would be no commitment to agreed goals and implementation would suffer from a lack of initiative. Remember no matter how well planned the process, there is always a chance that something important is escaping the radar of the planners’ attention. Wrong assembly or ineffective team composition may also lead to shortage of ideas and wish-washy execution.

The next step is to plan out a programme of action. This plan of action or check list in marketing circles is a comprehensive list of all actions required for success of any programme or campaign. Your Check list should ideally include: Venue, Date, Speakers or Speakers or entertainers, dancers or any other attention grabbing devices that may be agreed. Budget considerations are crucial because they determine how extensive or limited the Campaign is to be.

Another step is to consider whether to use internal or external staff or to use a compliment of both. As the Football World Cup approaches for instance, it would be a surprise if Guinness would promote her products in any other way except by the efforts of External Consultants as she has always done. Whether to use Internal or External staff is contingent on a couple of factors: availability of trained and able staff, possibility of retaining and effectively using the team at the end of the Campaign period. It is also crucial that the length of the campaign is considered and whether the company wants to have sales promotion over a long period. Experience shows that long running Campaigns are fraught with tedium, wear-down syndromes.

A good Check list should also include information on resources, Topic or Theme, Public Address System procurement, Publicity materials printing, choice of printers and finance, elevated stands, technicians (PAS), instrumentalists, selection of sub team leader (which should be done be recognized Group heads/ leaders.) As I noted while writing on a similar topic recently, “the complete answers may not be available to these queries but it would do to itemise them and fill them up as the decisions are made concerning what or who would carry out each function”. I also recommend that “you should have alternative processes, venues or actions itemised and crossed out as the events unfold.” As I learnt from Sir Chris Ogbechie of the Lagos Business School (LBS) it is essential to assign responsibilities immediately so that those with various responsibilities would begin to chew up their tasks and improve on what ever they have been assigned. Although this is no guarantee of success, it reduces the chances that you would make a mistake or leave out crucial roles.

The next step is to check out the tasks as they being implemented. Getting a Venue can be problematic if the Campaign coincides with any of the seasonal events in Nigeria. Beginning from September, choice venues like Muson Centre, Eko Hotels, The Event Centre and others are fully booked with rare chances that a day or two may be available in between. For a Campaign that should, all things being equal, last some weeks or couple of days, this will not do.

As with Centres, entertainers such as comedians and dancers are often very busy towards the Christmas festivities. It may become troublesome if you do not start out in time too. Another reason for starting out early is that their names may be required in the publicity materials.

Whether the Campaign is national or localized is also important in choosing which medium to utilize. There would be publicity stunts to promote the Campaign and this will depend on budget, medium, relevance and reach of such media. Every decision to be taken concerning publicity should be weighed against the backdrop of the ROI of the campaign; although it is important to note that a weighed distribution (per annum) may be used to rate the ROI of promotions instead of a Project tenure view. In which case, promotion is considered only as a fraction of the Marketing cost.

The next important step is to get your publicity materials printed on time. Having the computer print out scrutinized by the members of the Committee will help reduce error and promote solidarity amongst the team. Where external teams are involved, it is important to get the views of the Consultants concerning the theme of the Campaign. After all they are the ones to encounter the end users. It is important to note that a feedback form or any other mechanism should be devised such that it would be possible to reach out to the respondents or those who participated in the Campaign. A theme and Scheme may be devised for this purpose.

Security is always an issue in open air Campaigns. There should be a liaison with relevant police authorities in order to safeguard men and materials.

Finally, experience shows that where external consultants are utilized in Campaigns, reporting procedure may be compromised. The Sales Director or Manager therefore needs to include the information that payments to consultants would be contingent upon satisfactory report and return of materials used in the Campaign.

Once the Campaign has rolled off, then you need to keep your eyes on the ball. Ensure that there is regular and constant supply, replenishment of stock. An efficient supply of stock is cost effective and important to success.

If you have done a good preparation, the chances of local variations would be reduced. However, there should be a quick feed back method that ensures that decisions are made quickly. Levels of autonomy available to Sub team leadership are contingent on earlier agreed conditions.