The main objective of sales promotion is to bring about a change in the demand pattern of products and services. Basically, sales promotion has three specific objectives. First, it is meant to provide important marketing information to the potential buyers.
The second objective is to convince and influence the potential buyers through persuasive measures. Thirdly, sales promotion is meant to act as a powerful tool of competition. The specific objectives of sales promotion are as follows:
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a. To introduce new products or services:
Sales promotion is often used to motivate prospective consumers to try new products and services. Dealers are also induced to introduce new products and services in the market. Usually, free samples are provided through dealers during such introduction. Similarly, discounts in cash or goods may also be offered to dealers to stock new products or deal with new services. Free samples, trade discounts, cash discounts are basically sales promotion measures.
b. To attract new customers:
Sales promotion measures also play an important role in attracting new customers for an organisation. Usually, new customers are those persons that are won away from other firms. Samples, gifts, prizes, etc. are used to encourage consumers to try a new brand or shift their patronage to new dealers.
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c. To induce existing customers to buy more:
Sales promotion devices are most often used to induce the existing customers of a firm to buy more. Product development, offering three products at the cost of two, discount coupons, are some of the sales promotion devices used by firms to motivate the existing buyers to buy more of a specific product.
d. Helps the firm to remain competitive:
Most of the companies undertake sales promotion activities in order to remain in the competitive market. Therefore, in the modern competitive world no firm can escape the responsibility of undertaking sales promotion activities.
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e. To increase sales in off-seasons:
Many products like air-coolers, fans, refrigerators, air-conditioners, cold drinks, room heaters, etc. have seasonal demand. Manufacturers and dealers dealing with such type of goods make every effort to maintain a stable demand throughout the year.
In other words, firms try to encourage the purchase of such goods in off-seasons also. That is the main reason behind discounts and off-season price reductions of such items in the market during slack seasons.
f. To add to the stock of the dealers:
Dealers like wholesalers and retailers usually deal with a variety of goods. Their selling activity becomes easier when the manufacturer supplements their efforts by sales promotion measures. When a product or service is well supported by sales promotion, dealers are automatically induced to have more of such items.