Traditional Marketing Promotional Tools

Traditional marketing promotional tools include coupons, discounts and sampling.

Traditional marketing promotional tools include things such as coupons, free samples, contests, discounts and rebates. "Traditional" refers to the fact that these promotional techniques have been in use for some time; they are largely print-based. Newer, digital forms of these tools also are available. Regardless of which promotional tools you use for your business, have a tracking and measurement plan in place so you can determine the return on investment for each of your marketing strategies.

Coupons

Coupons are a traditional promotional tool in which you offer incentives for customers to buy your product or service within a specified time frame. All companies can use coupons as a marketing and promotional tool to attract more customers. For example, if you own a restaurant, hand out coupons when you give customers their bill to entice them to come back.

Samples

Sampling is a promotional tool in which you give customers a free trial of your product or service. While providing samples can cost you money up front, it can pay off by attracting new customers to your business. Samples can be particularly effective in the food and beverage and consumer products industries. If you sell a new, eco-friendly line of cleaning products, offer samples at retail stores such as Target, Kmart and Costco. Allowing customers to try your products can be an effective strategy in helping you increase sales volume.

Bonus Packs

Bonus packs entice customers to buy from you by delivering a larger amount of your product without added costs. Offer a bonus pack with "20 percent more than the normal size for the same price." Communicate on your packaging that it is a limited time promotion to create a sense of urgency among buyers.

Rebates

Rebates are a promotional marketing tool in which you reward a customer with a rebate for purchasing a certain amount of your product. For example, if your company sells consumer electronics, offer a $100 rebate when a customer spends more than $500 on your products. This can be an effective promotional strategy, especially under difficult economic conditions.

Contests

A chance to win a prize can draw in customers. There are several ways to structure a contest. You can simply ask customers to enter their name and contact information in a drawing for a prize; to purchase your product and use it as a part of the promotion, such as a "best recipe" contest; or to participate in a game of skill for a chance to win a prize. A movie production company, for example, can promote its new movie by having a contest to see who can correctly answer the most questions about the cast.

References

• Flat World Knowledge: Elements of the Promotional Mix - The Advertiser's Trusty Tools
• Marketing Find: Web Marketing Promotional Tools and Techniques
• Nonprofit Technology Network: Can Social Media Marketing and Traditional Marketing Coexist?