Product Promotion 1

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.

The purpose/Importance of product promotion

It informs the customer of the availability, price, and where to obtain the product to satisfy their wants.

It persuade the buyer to buy their products a head of their competitors products in the market.

It reminds the customers of the continued existence of a given product in the market

It educate the consumers of the usage of the product to satisfy their needs fully

It informs them on any improvement that has been made on the product

It stimulates the demand of the product being promoted in the market

It brings out the positive features of the product

It opens new market for the product in the environment
Methods of product promotion

Product promotion may be carried out in the following ways:

I. Personal selling

II. Advertising

III. Sales promotion

IV. Publicity

i. Personal selling

This is a method of promotion where there is an oral presentation in the conversation with the prospective customer.

It is done by with the use of salesmen who informs the prospective buyer of all the aspects of the product.

Methods of personal selling

Personal selling can be carried out in the following ways;

Through sales person approaching the customers.

A case where the sales person approaches the prospective customers after drawing their attention, explaining details of the product and even demonstrating how the product works in order to persuade the customer to buy.

Steps involved in personal selling through sales person.

i. Identify prospective customers who could possibly require the product.

ii. Preparing the presentation by gathering all the possible information about the product , as well as designing an appropriate methods that he
will be used to present to the customer.

iii. Establishing the customers contact, as well as choosing an appropriate time to meet the customer to be.

That is the time when the customer may receive him.

iv. Arousing the consumers interest in the product by attracting his/her attention through approach and languages, as well as making the
prospective customer develop interest in the product.

v. Dealing with the objections on the product which may have been brought about by the customer to be.

vi. Closing the sale by inquiring whether the prospective customer will be interested in the product or not.

This should be done in a polite manner.

vii. Offering after sale service to the customer on the product that has been sold.

Shows, trade fairs and exhibitions

This is where the manufacturer of a given product gets a chance to display publicly to the prospective customer to inform them about the product.

The prospective customers’ attention is then drawn to the product and more information is given to him about the product at the point where it is displayed.

Advantages of shows, trade fair and exhibitions

• It gives the customer an opportunity to compare various products before making a decision on what to buy.

• It gives the sales person an opportunity to explain in fine details the features of the product to the prospective customers.

• The manufacturers of the product gets a chance to receive immediate feed back from their customers through interactions during the shows.

• The number of people visiting their stall to asses their products will help them determine their potential market size for the product.

Disadvantages of shows, trade fairs and exhibitions

• It is expensive to hire a stall for the exhibition of the product

• The sales person may have to explain over and over again for the prospective customers as they may not enter into the stall at the same time.

• The trade fairs are not frequently organized, therefore an organization rely on it as the only means of product promotion may not succeed.

Showrooms

These are large rooms where goods are displayed, especially bulky and durable goods like cars, furniture’s, etc for the customer to see and be
informed about them to stimulate their interest in them.

The room allows the customer to get more information about the product from the sales person in the showroom.

Advantages of showrooms

• They enables the seller to get immediate feed back on the product.

• They enable the customers to get clarification on the product they need to purchase.

• It is

a cheap method of production.

• It provides an opportunity for the usage of goods to be demonstrated.

• The information the prospective customer get from the show room is more reliable.

Disadvantages of showrooms

• They are usually located away from the town centers, making them not be accessible by many.

• It is expensive to hire showrooms.

• They require security to protect the goods inside them which may be very expensive.

• Some prospective customers may tamper with goods in the room while trying to operate them.

Free Gifts

A gift is an item given to the customer free of charge after buying a product.

which it is pegged on or buying products of a given value.

The gift may not necessarily be the same as the product bought, but they are meant to encourage the customer to buy more or give the customer opportunity to explore the product given as a gift.

Advantages of free gifts

• It enable the customer to enjoy the product given as a gift without paying for it

• It persuades the customer to buy more of the product in order to get the gift

• It is an additional product, and therefore increases the customers satisfaction.

• It may help in creating loyalty in the product being promoted.

Disadvantages of free gifts

• It makes the customer buy including products they didn’t require in order to the said gift

• The cost of the product may be very expensive for he customer

• Some middlemen may remove the gift and keep or even sell to the customer to maximize profit.

Free Sample

This is a product on trial given to the customers freely to influence their demand towards the product.

It mainly used when the product is new and the
customer may have not known about the existence of the product.

Advantages of free sample

It enables the customer try the product before making a decision to buy it

The customer is able to enjoy the product that otherwise he may have not enjoyed

The organization is able to get immediate feedback from the customer about their new product

It enables the organization to acquire more customers for their product.

Disadvantages of free sample

Some of those receiving the sample may not come back to buy

It may be an expensive method of promotion especially where many.samples are to be given

Goods given for free may reduce the value of goods that may have been sold to earn profit.

It is not suitable for expensive products.

Circumstances under which personal selling is appropriate

i. When launching a new product in the market which requires a lot of awareness to the prospective customers to enable them make a choice

ii. When a product is tailored to meet the customer’s needs, as different consumers have different needs, taste and preferences to be addressed.

iii. When demonstration is required on how the product works, especially the technical products.

iv. When the organization has the capacity to finance the sales force carrying out the personal selling.

v. Where the market is concentrated within a given region that can easily be accessible by the task force.

Advantages of personal selling

It is more flexible than any other method for the marketer is able to meet the needs of different people.

It enable the prospective customer to know more details about the product before making a decision.

The sales person is able to demonstrate the use of the product

The seller is able to get immediate feedback on the product

The seller is able to obtain the personal contact of the prospective buyer

It gives the buyer an opportunity to negotiate the terms of purchase

It takes care of both literate and illiterate prospective customer.

The seller is able to persuade the prospective buyer to buy the product.

Disadvantages of personal

It is labour intensive and therefore very expensive when the area to be covered is wide method.

It is time consuming as it involves explanation and demonstration.

It may only target a particular group of people

The seller has to meet the travelling and other expenses involved which may be very expensive

Salespersons may misuse the resources allocated for them, making the target not to be achieved the process may inconvenience the prospective buyer’s program.
It may only cover a given region which may not be wide enough.

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