Unit IX: Retail Promotion - Planning Retail Promotions, Store Events & Sales Promotion, Retail Advertising. Q1.

Define Retail Promotion? Elements of Retail Promotional Mix? (P.498, Barry Berman) Retail Promotion includes Any communication by a retailer that informs, persuades, and/or reminds the target market about any aspect of that firm. Retail promotions are designed to promote the goods and services offered in the business district and to directly generate retail sales. Retail promotions should be used as part of a broader promotional strategy, which also can include special events and image-building promotions. Retail promotions can either be discount-oriented sales events or targeted, non-sale promotional events. Elements of Retail Promotional Mix Advertising, Public Relations, Personal Selling, and Sales Promotion are the elements of Promotion. A good plan integrates theses elements based on the overall strategy. A movie theatre concentrates on Ads & Sales Promotions, while an Upscale Specialty Stores stresses Personal Selling.

Advertising :- Paid, non-personal communication transmitted through

out-of-store mass media by an identified sponsor

Key aspects Paid form (Distinguishes Advt. from Publicity) Non-personal presentation Out-of-store mass media (Newspaper, T.V., Radio) Identified sponsor

Public Relations:It entails any communication that fosters a favorable image for the retailer among its publics (Consumers, Investors, Government, Channel Members, Employees, and the general public). IT may be personal or non-personal, paid or unpaid, and sponsor controlled or not controlled.
Common activities include speaking at conferences, winning industry awards, working with the press, and employee communication

Publicity is any nonpersonal form of public relations whereby messages are transmitted through mass media, the time or space provided by the media is not paid for, and there is no identified commercial sponsor.

Personal Selling:- Oral communication with one or more prospective customers for the purpose of making a sale. The level of personal selling used by a retailer depends on the image it wants to convey, the products sold, the amount of self service, and the interest in long term customer relationships- as well as customer expectations.

Sales Promotion:- Encompasses the paid communication activities other than advertising, public relations, and personal selling that stimulate consumer purchases and dealer effectiveness. It includes displays, contests, sweepstakes, coupons, frequent shopper programs, prizes, samples, demonstrations, referral gifts, and other limited-time selling efforts outside of the ordinary promotion routine.

Q2. Discuss Planning a Retail Promotional Strategy? (P.512, Barry Berman)

Promotional Guidelines Utilize promotions that are consistent with and enhance store image Review success or failure of each promotion to help in developing future promotions Test new promotions when possible Use appeals that are of interest to your target market and that are realistic to obtain Make your objectives measurable and obtainable Develop total promotional campaigns, not just ads New stores need higher promotional budgets than established stores Stores in out-of-the-way locations require higher promotional budgets than stores with heavy traffic

Q3. Determine Promotional Objective & Promotional Budget? Ans:- A retailers broad promotional goals may be drawn from the list: Increase Sales Stimulate Impulse and Reminder buying Raise Customer Traffic Get Leads for Sales Personnel. Present and reinforce the retailers image Inform customers about goods and services Popularize new stores and web sites Enhance customer relations Maintain Customer Loyalty Have consumers pass along positive information to friends and others. Perhaps the most vital long term promotion goal for any retailer is to gain positive word of mouth (WOM), which occurs when one consumer talks to others.

Establishing Overall Promotional Budget :1. With the all-you-can afford-method :- A retailer first allots funds for each element of the retail strategy mix except promotions. The remaining funds go to promotion. 2. The Increment Method:- relies on prior promotion budgets to allocate funds. A percentage is either added to or subtracted from one years budget to determine the next years. 3. The Competitive Parity Method :- A retailers promotion budget is raised or lowered based on competitors actions. It the leading competitor raises its budget by X percent, other retailers in the area may also follow. 4. The Percentage of Sales Method:- A retailer ties its promotion budget to revenue. A promotion to sales ratio is developed.

Q4. Discuss In Store Events & Sales Promotion? Stimulating, exciting, immersive events with a human touch can transform the way consumers think about products, brands and retail environments. When the right consumer connects with the right Brand Ambassador, sometimes the spark lights up an entire network of buyers. Have you ever shopped in a store that was dull and boring? You may not even recall the name of the shop because it was simply that uninteresting. As a retailer, you don't want your store to become one of those lackluster shopping experiences. A great way to avoid becoming mundane is by strategically planning promotional events for your retail store.

Retail Store Events Tips

Choose a Event that fits your industry, target audience and goals. Maintain a calendar of all planned and actual promotional events. Don't forget to include local community events in the planning. Try to schedule events 3-6 months in advance to create an effective promotion. Create a folder for each event to maintain records and review the final results. Increase your Open-to-buy and purchase extra inventory for special events. Sales Promotion:-

Encompasses the paid communication activities other than advertising, public relations, and personal selling that stimulate consumer purchases and dealer effectiveness Types of Sales Promotions: Displays Contests Sweepstakes Coupons Frequent shopper programs
Prizes Samples Demonstrations Referral gifts Other limited-time selling efforts

Objectives: Increasing short-term sales volume Maintaining customer loyalty Emphasizing novelty Complementing other promotion tools

Advantages Eye-catching appeal Distinctive themes and tools Additional value for customer Draws customer traffic Maintains customer loyalty Increases impulse purchases Fun for customers

Q5. Explain Retail Advertising? Paid, nonpersonal communication transmitted through out-of-store mass media by an identified sponsor Key aspects * * * * Paid form Nonpersonal presentation Out-of-store mass media Identified sponsor

Objectives o Lifting short-term sales o Increasing customer traffic o Developing and/or reinforcing a retail image o Informing customers about goods and services and/or company attributes o Easing the job for sales personnel o Developing demand for private brands

Advantages Attracts a large audience Gains pass along readership (for print) Low cost per contact Many alternatives available Control over message content; message can be standardized Message study possible Editorial content surrounds ad

 Self-service operations possible

Types of Advertising

Key- Terms

Q1.

Objectives of Public Relation ? Increase awareness of the retailer and its strategy mix Maintain or improve the company image Show the retailer as a contributor to the publics quality of life Demonstrate innovativeness Present a favorable message in a highly believable manner Minimize total promotion costs

Q2.

Advantages of Public Relation ?

Advantages Image can be presented or enhanced More credible source No costs for messages time or space Mass audience addressed Carryover effects possible People pay more attention than to clearly identified ads

Q3.

Disadvantages of Public Relation?

 Some retailers do not believe in spending on image-related communication Little control over publicity message More suitable for short run Costs for PR staff, planning activities, and events

Q4.

Objectives of Personal Selling? Persuade customers to buy Stimulate sales of impulse items or products related to customers basic purchases Complete customer transactions Feed back information to company decision makers Provide proper levels of customer service Improve and maintain customer satisfaction Create awareness of items also marketed through the Web, mail, and telemarketing

Q5.

Advantages of Personal Selling?

Advantages Message can be adapted Many ways to meet customer needs High attention span Less waste

 Better response Immediate feedback

Q6. Disadvantages of Personal Selling? Disadvantages Limited number of customers handled at one time High costs Doesnt get customer in store Self-service discouraged Negative attitudes toward salespeople

Q7. Functions of Personal Selling?

Q8. Hierarchy of Effects?

Q9. Implementing the Promotional Mix? Media Timing Content Makeup of Sales Force Sales Promotion Tools Responsibility for Coordination

Q10. Media Selections? Coverage maximum number of consumers in the retailers target market Reach actual total number of target customers who come into contact with the ad message Frequency average number of times each person who is reached is exposed to the ad during a given time period

Q11. Cooperative Advertising? The costs of retail advertising are sometimes shared by manufacturers or wholesalers and their retailers. Two or more retailers may also share costs. Both of these approaches entail Cooperative Advertising.

Q12. Vertical Cooperative Advertising? A manufacturer and a retailer or wholesaler and a retailer share an ad. Advantage to retailer are the reduced ad costs, assistance in preparing ads, greater market coverage and less planning time.

Q13. Horizontal Cooperative Advertising? Two or more retailers share and ad. It is most often used by small noncompeting retailers, retailers in the same shopping center, and franchisees of a given firm. Advantages are the bargaining powers of retailers in dealing with the media and the synergies of multiple retailers working together.

Q14. Order taking salesperson? Performs routine clerical and sales functions Setting up displays, stocking shelves, answering simple questions, and ringing up sales. This type of selling is most likely in stores that are strong in self-service but also have some personnel on the floor. Q15. Order Getting Salesperson?

They are actively involved with informing and persuading customers, and in closing sales. This is a true Sales employee. They usually sell higher price or complex items, such as real-estate, autos and consumer electronics.

Q16. How to Schedule Retail Ads? Ads should appear on (or slightly precede) the days when customers most likely to purchase Ads should be concentrated around the times when people receive their payroll checks If funds are limited, concentrate ads during periods of highest demand Ads should be timed to appear during time of say or day of week when the best cost-per thousand for the target market ((cost of ad/number of people in the target market viewing the ad) x 1000) The higher the degree of habitual purchasing of a product class, the more the advertising should precede the purchase time.

Q17. Why Retail Sales are lost? Generally, the retail sales are lost due to

Q18. Media decision? The choice of specific media is based on their overall costs, efficiency (The cost to reach the target market),lead time, and editorial content. Overall costs are important since heavy use of one expensive medium may preclude a balanced promotional mix, and a firm may not be able to repeat a message in a costly medium

Q19. Content of Messages? Whether written or spoken, personally or impersonally delivered, message content is important . Advertising themes, wording, headlines, the use of color, size, layout, and placement must be selected. Some retailers use comparative advertising to contrast their offerings with competitors. These ads help position a retailer relative to competitors, increase awareness of the firm, maximize the efficiency of a limited budget, and offer credibility. Yet, they provide visibility for competitors, may confuse people, and may lead to legal action. Q20. Word of mouth?

Perhaps the most vital long term promotion goal for any retailer is to gain positive word of mouth (WOM), which occurs when one consumer talks to others. If a satisfied customer refers friends to a retailer, this can build into a chain of customers. No retailer can succeed if it receives negative WOM. Negative WOM will cause a firm to lose substantial business.