blog

Promotional marketing

Posted on 20th January 2012 by Tony Furnival

With a fragile UK economy and weak consumer confidence, maintaining meaningful brand loyalty is challenging to say the least. Recent research has shown that 68% of consumers are happy to brand switch and only 5% prefer to keep to one brand.

These statistics are alarming given that we spend our entire working day fixed on delivering the complete opposite for clients.

So what else can we do to make buyers think before they buy and avoid the almost hysterical worship of the cheapest price?

Since the ‘dawn of time’ marketing disciplines have operated in silos. Specialists have ring-​​fenced their areas of expertise to provide an almost prescriptive approach to consumer targeting.

The dawn of new (or recent) and exciting digital innov­ations means that these lines of demarcation are becoming increasingly blurred with the digital world now being able to fully integrate, and enhance, the physical world rather than provide an alternative to it.

Techno­logies such as augmented reality, QR codes and the ‘buzz’ that is social media, allow us to interact with consumers in ways which we have never been able to before.

It’s important to embrace this technology, but most importantly to understand and realise the benefits that it can provide. For example promo­tional marketing no longer needs to be two dimen­sional; it no longer needs to be generic, or distant from the purchase envir­onment, but most of all, it doesn’t always need to be about price. In fact technology provides us with a fantastic oppor­tunity to breathe new life into the art of promo­tional marketing, and commu­nication in general, allowing us to bring to life conven­tional collateral - posters, advertising, packaging etc. to create an engaging, positive and, poten­tially, personal brand experience.

And when you think that in a recent survey 54% of consumers who have had a positive brand experience will go on to buy – it gives you some measure of what can be achieved.

Recently, I came across the following example of a great trans­form­a­tional marketing idea based on this principle.

John Lewis Virtual Windows (Courtesy of Promo­tional Marketing):

John Lewis extended its use of mobile commerce by launching virtual window displays in seven shops in the run up to their clearance sales which started on December 27, to capitalise on high street footfall on Boxing Day.

From 5pm on Christmas Eve, when John Lewis starts clearance online, customers passing the branches were able to use their iPhones to scan the codes of clearance products featured on the window in order to buy them.

After scanning, the shopper was linked to the John Lewis mobile site, to make the purchase. Goods were then either delivered to store on 28 December, as part of their Click and Collect service, or altern­atively customers could opt for a named day home delivery.

Use of these tools also provide, quite possibly, the most powerful form of research, allowing brands or retailers to build on relationships and to truly deliver a personal service and poten­tially allow brands to shape their merchandising, promotions, stocking and even pricing policies to suit their local, or individual audience.

When digital is integrated into physical, it breaks the rules and some marketers will have to work hard to remove the ‘blinders’ they probably aren’t even aware of. For example, ‘proximity’ matters less when you can be standing at the bus stop on the high street, aim your phone at a poster, and make a purchase.

We don’t need to imagine the future – it’s already here. If we adopt this thinking it will take us all to new, and creative, promo­tional heights.

A final word of caution though. Technology is there for the benefit of all, and we should continue to embrace it, where we can, but make sure we use it in ways that are relevant for both audience and brand!

Big’s client director since 2011, Tony is our sales activation guru.

With over 20 years’ in the business, Tony has consid­erable experience of working both client and agency side, with a range of major brands including O2, Procter & Gamble, Marks & Spencer and Barclays.

Blog, Digital, Out and about, We love