Promotional marketing may not have always enjoyed top-table status in marketing departments but there is little doubt it has long been an effective vehicle through which brands or products can reach the hands of their target consumer.
If leveraged correctly, it can be pivotal in building long-lasting and hugely valuable relationships with customers. Naturally, the recession saw a surge in promotional marketing strategies, and in particularly price-cut promotions, as the battle to encourage customers to continue to make purchases intensified.
But while this may have delivered short-term results, it also encouraged agnosticism when it came to brand loyalty, as customers were motivated to purchase based on price above anything else.
For brands, frequent switching by consumers made it more challenging to gain a deep understanding of the individual, their shopping habits and preferences. Without this rich knowledge, delivering relevant and targeted communications that truly resonated with that shopper were far harder, affecting their ability to build a strong, long-term relationship.
While price-cut promotions certainly still have a role to play, there are many routes open to brands to use beyond this, particularly as channels have been enhanced and expanded with the growth of digital technology.
According to FastMap 10th edition, £14.4bn was spent on so-called “added value promotions” in 2014, indicating that in the post-recession world, promotional offers that provide rewards are being put ahead of price cuts.
From free gifts and competitions, to coupons and vouchers, businesses now have the opportunity to build far greater experiences using promotions, which excite and capture the interest of the customer. Better still, new channels enable them to reach far more audiences than ever before.
So, with that in mind, how can brands ensure they are leveraging promotional marketing successfully, beyond price-cuts to win over the heart and loyalty of the consumer?
With such vast choice now available, getting the right promotional mechanisms in place to drive true value could be considered daunting or confusing. Some brands may want to play it safe and simply stick to what they know based on what’s worked previously, while others could be inclined to implement multiple techniques without really considering the overarching aim.
Neither approach is likely to deliver the desired customer engagement or generate an ROI uplift. It may seem obvious that the channel chosen to communicate a particular offer should be reflective of the individual customer’s preferences, but too few brands are using customer data to inform their decisions. There’s no point in investing in a brilliant promotional offer, if the customer is going to be put off by the route to reach the end goal.
A major benefit of the growth of the multi-channel environment, is the rapid-response capabilities it has given brands. Consumers today are being bombarded by distractions, so capturing their attention and responding to them in a relevant way, at the right moment is critical. Social and mobile channels lend themselves particularly well to this, so worth considering incorporating into promotional activity, especially given the proliferation of smartphone users amongst consumers.
In the over-crowded market, brands must invest in promotional campaigns that are going to deliver standout with the consumer, for the right reasons. Price-cut promotions no longer provide enough of a differentiator or offer the rich, meaningful brand experience that will encourage customers to part with their data or money.
For brands looking to deliver financial success and harbour loyal relationships it’s time to invest in sales promotions that go beyond price to offer to value, for both brand and consumer.
Joanne Varey is managing director of Granby Marketing Services
