Promotions Sales promotions can result in immediate sales benefits and also "help keep sales consistent throughout the year," (Chapter 6, p. 4). Although sales promotions are short-term and can potentially hurt the brand image, they are often indispensible tools for some companies and some brands. There are basically two categories of promotions: promotions for consumers and promotions for the trade industry (retailers or wholesalers). Consumer promotions account for as much as 75% of all marketing expenditures for some companies (Chapter 6, p. 8). Seven primary types of consumer promotions include coupons, sampling, cash refunds or rebates, sweepstakes, loyalty programs, premiums, and free trials.

Coupons are one of the most common types of consumer promotions used. Coupons may offer a percentage off a purchase, or a finite dollar amount. Although coupon use has declined, they remain important. Food coupons are one of the most important types of coupons used in the consumer sector. For instance, a Kraft brand product...

Consumers will look forward to finding the weekly coupon to replenish their supply of whatever the item is, thus securing Kraft's brand loyalty with that specific demographic.
Sampling is an important promotional tactic for a new product, or a product that has recently been changed or rebranded. Again, food items benefit particularly well from the use of samples because a customer is much more likely to buy something they know tastes good vs. An item that they have never tried before and cannot pronounce the name. Therefore, if an item is exotic like a special New Mexican enchilada sauce, the consumer who tries the delicious sauce will have incentive to buy it. The product "sells itself," theoretically.

Cash refunds or rebates are used more often in the consumer electronics sector. From the manufacturer's perspective, rebates are clever because the consumer has already made the purchase. For example, a television at…