Though they're a great way to boost short-term sales of products and services, promotions can also lose their impact over time. Senior marketing consultant and MarketingProfs seminar presenter Michael Goodman suggests trying fresh techniques throughout the year. "See if you can develop a promotion that works better than whatever you did last time." To do this properly, however, you must study both the effectiveness and the efficiency of your promotions.

Boring, you say. Perhaps. "It may not be fun," says Goodman, "but if you don't figure out if a promotion is working, you could spend money you don't need to spend and miss the opportunity to develop a promotion that will exceed your goals."

The first step is to define your objectives and set clear measurement criteria. Armed with this knowledge, you will be better prepared to launch successful promotional campaigns, implement them more effectively—and ultimately achieve higher sales at a lower cost.

The Po!nt: Keeping track of how well your promotion works and the additional sales it generates may not be sexy, but it's the best way to get the maximum return on your promotion investment.

→ end article preview
Read the Full Article