Promotion is an important part of any sales process. It helps people know about your products/services, it also gives them more reasons to buy from you. In this case, we'll focus on what's called 'product promotion'. You can use different methods for promoting your products such as advertising online (e.g., pay per click), offline ads, social media marketing, etc. These days, there's so much competition out there that all businesses need to do something unique to stand out among their competitors. Here are five tips to help you with your product promotion efforts.
There are many things you can do to market a product. However, if you want to be successful at promoting your product, then here are five most common ones.
1. Advertising - Advertisements can be done through various forms including print advertisements, radio commercials, television commercials, billboards, digital ads, etc. The best thing about using these means of advertisement is that they reach everyone regardless of where they live. They're not just limited to local customers but global too. That said, make sure the audience sees and understands the message before buying into it. If they don't understand the information provided by the company, they won't believe anything else they hear from the same source.
2. Word-of-mouth or recommendation - People trust each other more than anyone else. Your word-of-mouth could potentially bring huge profits and fame to you. To get started, ask friends who have bought your product to tell others about it. Encourage them to talk about it whenever possible. Also, try asking them whether they'd recommend it to someone else. Remember to keep it professional though! Do not pressure those close to you if they decline to buy. Instead, find other people who might be interested in buying your product.
3. Referrals - Referral programs are usually offered when companies give incentives like discounts in exchange for referrals. When referring potential buyers, always remember to follow up and ensure that the referral was indeed a buyer. Never offer freebies unless it's to existing clients.
4. Branding - A brand name is a symbol representing you and your organization. Make sure everything associated with the brand represents the image you wish to portray. For instance, logos should be clear, simple, recognizable, and consistent throughout the entire line of items.
5. Events - There may be times when holding events to promote your product may be beneficial. But first, consider carefully why you're hosting the event. Are you trying to sell something or increase awareness for yourself? Or both? If you decide to hold an event, make sure you do extensive research to determine which type of event is right for you.
Now that you've learned the basics of promotion, let's look at its subtypes.
1. Direct Marketing - This involves sending direct mail pieces to targeted groups of individuals. Examples include catalogs, brochures, flyers, newsletters, etc. Sometimes, this form of promotion is used along side other techniques mentioned above.
2. Indirect Marketing - This involves reaching large numbers of people through mass media. Some examples include TV, newspapers, magazines, radio, internet, etc.
3. Public Relations - PR involves building positive relationships between you and your target audiences. This includes creating favorable coverage in news outlets and press releases.
4. Special Promotions - Using special promotions allows you to show off certain features of your product while making money from it. An example would be offering a discount for a specific period of time.
All good marketing campaigns involve 4 key components:
Product
Target Audience
Marketing Strategy
Measurement & Evaluation
Let's take a closer look at each one of these.
Product: Products are typically the main reason why people purchase something. Therefore, it's very important to select a great quality item that meets their needs. After selecting the product, you'll have to think about how to price it correctly. Don't forget to create a compelling ad campaign around it to attract attention.
Audience: Who exactly does your product cater to? What kind of customer base do you have? How old are they? Where do they live? Think about the demographics of your ideal client and write down their characteristics. Then, identify the channels that your prospects regularly visit.
Strategy: Now that you've identified your ideal customers, it's time to figure out how to reach them. Once again, it comes back to the question "Who?" You have to choose the appropriate channel(s) based on your audience's preferences.
Evaluation: Finally, once you've reached your target audience and created a proper strategy, check out if it worked. Measure, analyze, and evaluate results to see if it had been worth the effort.
In order to effectively monitor the success of your promotion, you should track several metrics. Here are three popular measurement tools:
Sales Volume
Cost Per Acquisition
Conversion Rate
You can easily calculate conversion rates using Google Analytics. Simply divide number of conversions by total visitors to arrive at a percentage. Cost per acquisition will depend on how much you spent on your ad campaign. And finally, sales volume will tell you the amount of revenue generated by your product or service.
It's never easy to succeed in today's competitive world especially when trying to promote a product. But with the right knowledge, resources, and skills, you can definitely achieve your goal. With the following tips, you'll surely become better prepared to put your ideas into action. Good luck!
1. Use Social Media
Social media has become one of the most effective tools used by companies to reach customers directly. The best thing about using social media is that it doesn't cost anything – unlike other forms of advertisements like print, TV or radio.
Today, social media is more than just Facebook and Twitter. There are several websites where users share information about their daily lives and interests. Some popular examples include Pinterest, Instagram, Tumblr, LinkedIn and others.
You should be careful not to spam these sites because they don't want anyone else but real fans to see your posts. One way to avoid getting into trouble is through search terms. For example, if you own a dog breed store then you might consider adding keywords like "dog breeder", "dog show" or "dog training". Searching those phrases could bring up relevant results from both sides (i.e., buyers & sellers).
Another tip to remember when using social media is to create content that your audience would find interesting. If you're selling shoes then maybe you could post pictures of celebrities wearing your latest designs. Or perhaps you sell makeup kits and you could write articles related to celebrity makeup trends. Whatever you decide to do, make sure you have a good understanding of who your target market is.
"The purpose of social media is to build relationships." - Scott Stratten
Promotion is one of the most important parts of marketing. It’s about building relationships with customers that can be converted into sales. In order for this process to work well, it requires constant communication between both parties.
But what does “promote” actually mean? What methods should I use when promoting my products or service? And how do I go about doing so effectively?
Here we'll discuss five different ways to market your brand (or any other product) and offer some tips on how to get started using them.
The word "promotion" comes from the Latin verb promovere which means to bring something forward or outwards. In the context of marketing, it refers to all activities involved in getting people aware of a particular product or service – including advertising, public relations, direct mail, events, etc. The four Ps refer to these four basic activities as follows:
Product - This includes everything related to what your company sells. Your logo, packaging design, website, etc.
Price - The price at which you sell your product/service. You need to make sure it's affordable enough for consumers to buy without feeling like they're being ripped off.
Place - Where your product is sold. For instance if you have an online store selling clothes, then place could refer to where the customer buys your clothes.
People - Who is buying your product. If you want to increase sales, you need to attract more potential buyers to take action.
Product placement is another way to promote your brand. When done properly, it adds value to a piece of content by showing users exactly what kind of product you were talking about. But it also has its limitations since not every video needs to include a product.
For example, if you create videos explaining how to cook certain dishes, but don't show any cooking tools during filming, viewers won't necessarily know that they can purchase those items after watching the video. So while product placement may still add value to a video, it isn't always necessary.
Now let's look at six types of promotional techniques:
1. Advertising
Advertising consists of various forms such as TV commercials, radio advertisements, newspaper ads, billboards, outdoor signs, etc. These can either cost money or require time spent on creating a message. However, there are many free alternatives available to advertise your brand. Some examples include social media posts, blog articles, email campaigns, QR codes, etc.
2. Public Relations
Public relations involves making connections with journalists, bloggers, influencers, and even celebrities who might help spread awareness about your brand. PR professionals often focus their efforts on writing press releases, sending emails to relevant publications, attending conferences and meetings, and speaking at events.
3. Direct Mail Marketing
Direct mailing is a form of advertising through postcards, letters, catalogues, flyers, etc. People tend to receive fewer spam messages than regular emails and thus direct mailings have become less common over the years. However, there are still plenty of businesses that rely on it to reach prospective clients.
4. Events & Conferences
Events and conferences are great opportunities to meet with potential customers face-to-face. They allow companies to showcase their latest offerings directly to interested people. There are numerous options depending on whether you'd rather host or attend an event.
5. Online Campaigns
Online campaigns consist of websites, blogs, YouTube channels, Facebook pages, Instagram accounts, Twitter feeds, and other platforms designed to engage with audiences. While some of them are purely informational, others contain offers or discounts.
6. Branding
Branding is essentially the overall image of your brand. It's made up of all of the visual aspects associated with your brand, including logos, fonts, colors, photography, websites, posters, banners, etc. Since branding takes time to build, it makes sense to start early.
There are several ways you can promote your product or brand, but here are just a few ideas:
Email Marketing
This method works best for small businesses looking to reach a larger audience quickly. Emails usually come with opt-in boxes that ask visitors to signup for updates or promotions. Once signed up, marketers send newsletters regularly and sometimes announce special deals and discounts.
Social Media Posts
Using social media as part of your marketing strategy allows you to interact with your target audience directly. By posting quality content consistently, you gain followers who trust you. From there, you can continue engaging with them by sharing interesting stories and offering valuable insights.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
One effective way to promote your product or brand is via SEO. Although search engines like Google aren't really concerned with the actual quality of your page, they pay attention to things like keyword usage, links back to your site, unique content, and user experience.
Content Marketing
Another popular option for brands is content marketing. Using informative pieces of written material, you aim to educate readers about your products and encourage them to act accordingly.
If you're thinking of starting your own business, you'll likely find yourself wondering how to promote it. Here are 5 easy steps you can follow to begin working towards your goals:
Identify your target demographic.
Decide on a niche that interests you.
Find out what problems they have and address them.
Offer solutions to those problems.
Create a plan to implement your solution.
Once you've taken care of step 1, 2, 3, and 4, you can move onto step 5. Remember to keep track of your results throughout the entire process and adjust accordingly.
To learn more about how to promote your business, check out our guide below:
As mentioned above, there are several ways to promote your brand or product. One way is to simply advertise it everywhere possible. Another is to develop a targeted approach based on specific demographics. Let's explore each of these further below.
1. Advertise
When trying to reach a wide range of people, it's better to spend money instead of spreading your message across multiple mediums. Instead, concentrate on one channel and run adverts using paid services like Facebook Ads, Google Display Network, or LinkedIn Sponsored Updates.
You can also try running sponsored tweets on Twitter and Instagram ads on Instagram.
2. Target Demographics
While advertising is useful for reaching large numbers of people, targeting smaller groups is much more efficient. Depending on the type of product or service you sell, you can narrow down your prospects geographically, socially, or professionally.
A good example of this is when you're looking to recruit employees for your startup. Rather than going door-to-door and handing out resumes, you can use sites like Upwork to connect with freelancers around the world. Then you can contact them individually and give them reasons why you think they'd fit well within your team.
3. Create Special Offers
By giving away extra incentives along with your original product, you can entice shoppers to return to your shop again. A classic example is the $25 gift card offered alongside electronics purchased online.
It gives you an opportunity to convert loyal customers into repeat ones. Other times, you can offer coupons or promo codes that only apply to certain purchases.
4. Promotional Gifts
Giving out gifts to existing customers is a fantastic way to win them over and retain them long term. Not only does it boost loyalty, it helps strengthen ties between two individuals.
Instead of giving generic cards or vouchers, consider designing personalized ones that feature photos of your staff members or family members. That way, recipients feel appreciated and valued.
5. Personalized Customer Service
Customers expect fast replies to support requests, especially when dealing with technical issues. To ensure that happens, set up a dedicated phone number specifically for your customers.
Letting them speak with someone immediately lets them understand that you're invested in helping them succeed. Plus, having a live person answer calls saves precious time.
We've discussed three of the main ways to promote your brand or product. Now let's see what else you can do.
1. Use Influencer Marketing
Influencer marketing is a powerful tool that uses famous personalities to drive traffic to your business. Whether it's celebrities endorsing your brand, musicians singing your praises, or athletes showcasing your goods, it shows that you have what it takes to compete against big players.
2. Offer Free Trials
Most products nowadays come with trial periods before purchasing. As a result, offering free trials increases conversions because potential customers know they can test your product first.
3. Ask Customers for Reviews
Customer reviews are crucial for boosting trustworthiness among potential clients. When asking for feedback, remember to avoid sounding too pushy or demanding. Instead, ask questions that will help you improve upon your current offering.
4. Sell Products Offline
Although traditional offline stores are slowly becoming obsolete, they remain useful for attracting and converting customers. With brick-and-mortar locations, you can hand out branded merchandise and collect information about consumer habits.
If you sell a product online, it's important that you know how to market it. How do you get people to buy what you're selling? There is no simple answer here. The best way to find out is to try different methods and see which ones work for you.
As an entrepreneur who sells products online, there are many things you can do to spread awareness about your brand - but not all of them are going to be effective. Here are five tried-and-true ways to promote any type of product or service in today’s world.
There are four main categories when it comes to promoting products: offline advertising, SEO (search engine optimization), social media marketing, email marketing, and content marketing. Each one has its own benefits and drawbacks, so we'll discuss each category separately below.
Offline Advertising
The most traditional method of advertising involves handing flyers around town with contact information or posting ads on local newspapers. While these methods still have their place, they aren't as popular anymore because of the advent of technology. For instance, if someone sees an ad in a newspaper, this person might go home and Google the company name instead of calling up customer support right away. In addition, more consumers than ever want convenience and instant gratification rather than waiting around for something to arrive at their doorstep.
Search Engine Marketing
When it comes to search engines like Google, Bing, Yahoo!, etc., companies need to optimize their websites by making sure certain keywords appear frequently throughout the site. If customers use specific words to search for items similar to yours, then those results come up first when searchers look through the list of links provided by the search engine. This allows your website to show up higher in searches than competitors' sites. In order to increase traffic from search engines, make sure your website contains relevant keyword phrases.
Social Media Marketing
Social media marketing is another very powerful tool businesses can use to advertise their brands. It works similarly to other forms of digital marketing such as SEO and email marketing, except it takes advantage of the popularity of platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Pinterest, Snapchat, LinkedIn, etc. As with other forms of marketing, it requires time on your part to create engaging posts/videos/photos and monitor responses. However, once you've set everything up, you should start seeing positive ROI within hours of creating the campaign.
Email Marketing
Just like direct mail campaigns, emails offer a great opportunity to generate sales leads. When sending emails, keep in mind that personalizing messages helps boost response rates since people tend to trust email communications more than promotional material sent via snail mail. You also don't necessarily have to include huge graphics or flashy fonts – plain text works just fine too.
Content Marketing
One of the latest trends in digital marketing is content marketing. Instead of relying solely on paid advertisements, marketers now focus on providing high quality free resources that educate readers and encourage them to take action. By sharing useful articles on topics related to your industry, you help build credibility among visitors and potential clients while building relationships between yourself and other businesses.
Now that you understand the basics behind product promotions, let's talk about exactly how to implement them into your business strategy. Most small businesses rely heavily on word-of-mouth referrals when trying to reach new clients. But unless prospective buyers already live near you, finding a buyer isn't always easy. Fortunately, there are four proven strategies that can help you grow your client base even further.
1. Give Customers Something To Talk About
People love talking about good experiences they had with others. And this goes double for if that experience was positive and memorable. So, whenever possible, incorporate testimonials into your marketing materials. Doing this makes it easier for prospects to share their stories with friends and family and encourages them to become repeat customers themselves.
2. Offer A Free Trial Or Discount
It may seem obvious, but offering a discount or trial period to convince people to purchase a product is one of the oldest tricks in the book. Many people feel hesitant to spend money until they actually test out the item in question. Offers like these give customers the confidence needed to make a decision without feeling pressured.
3. Encourage Referrals
By encouraging current or past customers to recommend your product to their peers, you greatly improve your chances of reaching more potential buyers. Plus, happy customers often end up being advocates for your brand, spreading the word about your product to anyone else who asks.
4. Use Promotional Products
These days, everyone loves receiving branded goods that they didn't pay much attention to before. Whether it's t-shirts with your logo printed across the chest or coffee mugs featuring your favorite quote, giving away promotional merchandise can really drive interest. Just remember to ensure that the giveaways match your target audience.
Once you learn how to properly promote your product(s) using various channels, you can begin implementing tactics tailored specifically to meet your needs. Below, we outline five of the most common types of product promotion:
1. Advertisements
Advertising is pretty straightforward. You simply run an advertisement in a magazine or newspaper, put up signs along busy roadsides, post billboards in malls, or display banners on websites. These ads are meant to draw eyes and ears toward your message. They usually contain a catchy headline, short description, call-to-action button, and maybe a photo of some attractive model wearing your clothes.
2. Public Relations Campaigns
A public relations campaign is designed to influence opinion leaders in your niche. PR agencies specialize in this kind of marketing, so they typically employ journalists, bloggers, influencers, and celebrities to spread news about a particular brand. Their goal is to gain favor among influential figures in your field and sway their opinions towards your cause.
3. Product Launches
Product launches happen every day now thanks to the Internet. Companies launch new lines of clothing, cosmetics, electronics, furniture, cars, and countless other items virtually overnight. They do this either to celebrate special occasions or as a means of introducing new innovations. Either way, product launches can bring enormous amounts of publicity and exposure to both individuals and organizations.
4. Special Events
Many companies hold events where they invite attendees to sample their wares, attend lectures, view demonstrations, and participate in contests. Some companies host grand openings, trade shows, concerts, fashion weeks, food festivals, and charity fundraisers during which they showcase their products. Whatever event you decide to sponsor, make sure that you choose the venue carefully and coordinate with vendors to guarantee maximum impact.
5. Branding
Branding refers to the overall image your organization projects to the public. Think of branding as "your face" or "the voice of your company." It includes everything from logos to taglines to slogans to colors used on packaging and signage. Once you establish a consistent identity for your business, you can better communicate your values and mission statement to potential clients and employees.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of each form of product promotion?
Offerings like advertisements, public relations campaigns, and product launches are fairly cost-effective options for getting started in your business. However, they require considerable upfront investment. On top of paying for printing costs, banner displays, billboard placements, press releases, and professional photography, you'll likely need to hire a graphic designer to develop visuals, prepare copy, and manage the project budget. Even worse, these efforts won't yield immediate returns. Your hard work could end up producing little to no results after several months of spending.
On the flip side, advertising offers flexibility. With print ads, you can customize layouts to fit any size screen; however, you'll need to cover expenses for postage, shipping, and storage fees as well. Additionally, depending on the medium involved, you may incur additional charges based on the number of impressions received.
Publicity campaigns require less planning and setup, but require significant financial commitment. Depending on the scope of the effort, you may have to invest thousands of dollars in hiring professionals to write articles, conduct interviews, produce videos, design infographics, and arrange speaking engagements. Afterward, you'll probably be responsible for monitoring their progress and ensuring that deadlines are met.
Finally, sponsoring events or organizing private parties gives your business access to a wide selection of audiences and provides you with opportunities to interact directly with potential customers. However, these kinds of activities are generally expensive and difficult to pull off. They require extensive planning and careful coordination, plus you'll need to devote significant amounts of manpower and resources to organize the entire affair.
For more tips on how to successfully market your products, check out our blog post titled 8 Steps to Successful Online Marketing.
Just follow our battle-tested guidelines and rake in the profits.