Promotional Programs Part 1

Mary Ellen Sokalski, MAS

The Scarlet Marketeer, Inc.

Why in the world is a services provider teaching this class?

- I worked for 2 of the biggest suppliers in this industry for 33 total years

- I’ve worked with hundreds of top distributors and learned from the best

- I now have my own company which markets for suppliers and distributors

- I have spoken for PPAI for the last 25 years

- I had nothing else to do this afternoon

What in the world are promotional programs?

What in the world are promotional programs?

What the pros say:

“It’s a program that is going to be

outcome based…

Outcome selling vs.

product selling.”

What in the world are promotional programs?

What the pros say:

“One with a trackable outcome, multiple "touches" of the target audience, and multiple media.”

What in the world are promotional programs?

What the pros say:

“Something formal like items selected for an online store or flyer. Or something that a client orders over and over where it only makes sense

to get it entered as a “program” with the supplier so that they know to have more on

hand and special arrangements such as price, production time, no repeat set-up charges,

etc.”

What in the world are promotional programs?

What the pros say:

“It’s a collaboration of print, packaging, merchandise with a theme, a unique delivery method and one that can be

quantifiably measured.”

What in the world are promotional programs?

What the pros say:

“This means different things to different people. A broad definition is anything other than a standard drop ship order that required more than

being an order taker.”

Product selling v. price selling

Is either good for you or the customer?

Product Selling

Cons• Push things the customers don’t need• Not assessing their needs, just recommending a

limited solution• You are missing a world of other value added

services and profit opportunities• You can be shopped easily, vulnerable to price

cutters• Pushing a product rather than the MESSAGE of

the campaign

Price Selling

Cons

• You cut your margins

• You can be shopped easily

• Not diagnosing their real problems, just selling on price

• Missing a world of other value-added services and profit opportunities

The 4 Commandments of Price

1. Price is almost always more significant in the mind of the seller than in the mind of the buyer.

2. Price is never the primary reason people buy ANYTHING.

3. The only time price becomes the main issue is when customers perceive all things as being equal.

4. There is a major difference between price and cost.

Program Selling Pros

• You are now judged only by “It’s NOT the product… it’s the PROVIDER.” Eliminates competition.

• You are selling your expertise.

• Don’t display a catalog.

• Make customers feel special.

• With a good diagnosis, you uncover their PAIN, understand it and can translate it.

Which is better?Promotional products/ incentives

or cash?

Which is better?Promotional products/ incentives

or cash?• Numerous studies show non-cash delivering a greater impact to

recipients and to the organization. • 39% of managers surveyed believed non-cash was most effective at

motivating employees versus 20.5% for cash, an almost 2-to-1 preference.

• Reasons:- Distinct and personally memorable. Tangible rewards pay lasting

dividends as recipients often associate strong positive memories of a merchandise or travel reward years after receiving it.

- Cash has limited impact. Cash rewards often are lumped in with the employee’s weekly budget and soon forgotten.

- The Trophy factor… almost always shared with friends or employees — amplifying the reward’s impact both within and outside the organization.

Great Questions

What are your favorites?

Meet a new buddy & share them for 3 minutes.

My 3 favorite questions

• What is the program goal? (employee purchases, marketing purchases, increase brand awareness, incentive program, etc.)

• What is the one message you want people to know but they don’t?

• Is there anything ELSE that I should have asked you?

Who is really your target audience?

Dig deep!

Client, prospect, rep, branch, dealer?

Which comes first?

The message or the promotional product?

What is the

ONE message you want people to remember?

Now what SYMBOLIZES

that message?

Symbolize this:

Outstanding customer service

1. What is the SYMBOL you need to convey?

(1 minute)

2. What products truly convey that image?

(1 minute)

Message review

1. What is the message?2. What symbolizes the

message?3. Now select the products

based on the symbol.

You’re a creative PROGRAM seller!

What is a premium?

What is a premium?

In order to get a "premium," one must perform some act. You have to buy

something like a Happy Meal to receive a child's toy as a premium. You can't get the

toy without making the purchase. You have to test drive a new car, open a bank

account or buy something else to receive the premium as an extra gift.

What is an incentive?

What is an incentive?

In order to receive an "incentive," a person must also

do something.

What makes it different from a Premium?

What is an incentive?

The primary difference between a premium and an incentive is the price. A toy at

McDonald’s is a premium. A 40-inch color TV earned by selling above last year's quota is an

incentive.

Both, however, are incentives in that they require some action in order to obtain them.

INCENTIVE or premium?

INCENTIVE or premium?PREMIUM INCENTIVE

What is a promotional product?

A "promotional product", on the other

hand, is usually given freely with no strings attached. The

fundamental purpose of a promotional product is to offer an inexpensive and utilitarian vehicle that carries an advertising message. True, some promotional products are in fact premiums, but that's the exception rather than the rule. Also, some premium merchandise is given freely with no strings attached.

BENEFITS of an incentive program

- Motivation

- Increased Earnings

- Loyalty

- Reduced Turnover

- Collaborative Efforts

- Increased Productivity

BUSINESS Gift programs

What was the best business gift you ever received?

Define the business gift.

Defining the business gift

96% of end buyers define a business gift in the same way suppliers and

distributors do: as logoed personal-use items given out to establish good relationships and high-retention rates

with clients and employees.

2/3 of respondents acknowledged that price played an important factor

in how they identified these gifts.

Business gift facts & stats

The most highly favored business gift items fell into the office/business category (47%) with home items

(18%). The most popular selection for buyers willing to spend more than $100 per recipient was a gift certificate.

Business gift facts & stats

Where?

28% of respondents said they turn to distributors as their go-to resource for business gifts—a sharp decline from the 1991 PPAI study, which noted a 60% distributor favorability with retail/wholesale outlets logging a 29% response rate.

Business gift facts & stats

When?

The No.1 time to distribute business gifts was found to be end-of-the-year holidays, with special occasions/events

pulling in a close second.

Business gift facts & stats

Why?

The most common response to the question of why business gifts were given was “to thank customers,” while some noted that “damage control” was another important variable.

Business gift facts & stats

Worth It?

78% believed that business gifting was at least “somewhat effective” in achieving the goals that motivated the initial purchase.

This number shoots to 91% when you review the category of buyers who have actually measured their business gifting results.

57% claimed that the practice was either “effective” or “very effective.”

employee/client recognition programs

Communication which rewards employees or clients for reaching specific goals or producing high quality results in the workplace.

Recognizing or honoring employees or clients for this level of service or behavior to repeat actions, through reinforcing the behavior you would like to see repeated.

Benefits of employee/client recognition programs

Benefits of employee/client recognition programs

• Drive measurable business results• Ripple marketing effect• Goodwill that lasts• Retain business• Retain top talent• Inspire employee engagement• Breathe life into your values• Manage people better• Unify and better manage your culture

What is an online company store program?

What is an online company store

program?

-An efficient way to manage brand-asset materials: apparel, collateral, promotional

products, corporate identity and more. And, because it’s web-based, it’s open for

business when their team needs them.

-- It could be used by employees, dealers, agents, branches, customers or prospects.

Benefits of an online company store program

• It controls your brand, how people use it, and spending.

• It relieves your staff from handling the distribution, and lets professionals handle it who are accountable.

• Reporting – who is buying and when.• Managing inventory for you.• Central shipping with controlled costs.• Versatility – many ways to use it.

Trade show programs

Trade show programs

Trade show programs• All elements must be carefully researched and designed before

the trade show begins. Must be done right the first time.• Identify the type of show, who attends, who are best prospects.

What is the primary MESSAGE?• Tailor specific goals for that trade show.

– Selling a specific number of products?– Generating buzz around a new product offering? Very

different approaches. Flashy trade show booth versus setting up personal meetings with clients at the show.

• What do goals call for before during and after the show for follow-up?

• The program also needs to cover the logistics of attending the show: who attends, works the booth, how message is conveyed, materials needed, how will follow-up occur.

• Final: evaluate the success, referring to the goals established.

What are the two main types of safety programs?

What are the two main types of safety programs?

Awareness

and

Incentive

Avoiding THIS!

Avoiding THIS!

Safety awareness program

Making employees aware of safety issues, and of potential hazards to themselves and others in the workplace.

Safety INCENTIVE program

Recognizing or rewarding employees for their safe behavior or achieving performance goals or safety milestones.

BENEFITS OF SAFETY PROGRAMS

BENEFITS OF SAFETY PROGRAMS

• Safe Attitudes• Safety Awareness• Fire Safety• PRODUCTIVITY• Preventing Accidents• Watching Out for Each

Other• Outstanding

Performance• Going The Extra Mile

• Saving Lost Work Time• Reducing unexcused

absences• Reducing YOUR

WORKLOAD• Decreasing

Tardiness• Minimizing Poor

Performance• Preventing Cutting

Corners• Reducing Frivolous Claims

Employee service awards

What were your favorite awards?

Employee service award advantages

• A chance to have a personal celebration with a specific employee.• A chance for the company to celebrate retention, demonstrating

it as a good place to work, deserving of loyalty.• A way to acknowledge solid performers who might not be earning

top bonus or knockout achievements.• One more way to say thank you to top performers.• Honors wisdom, knowledge, experience and continuing

contribution.• Acknowledges service as a symbol of continuity, allowing the

publicly telling of company stories, a walk down memory lane, reminiscing about the organization's history and founding, sharing it with newer hires.

Recommendations about the service award

• Suggest HOW the program will work.• Suggest it be done publicly, to enhance the good

feeling of all employees, by the CEO or top official.• Should have a component that lasts over time to

remind of their service: i.e. a plaque.• Should be something unique that the person will not

just blend into their life and forget about it. • Every employee who reaches that level should receive

the same reward.• Accompany the service award with a written

acknowledgement of the specifics of the employee's service.

Dealer incentive rewards

A corporate sales strategy in which the price a dealer has to pay a manufacturer for a particular product is reduced, allowing the dealer to make a higher profit or to reduce the price at which the product is sold to consumers. Or a gift or incentive to entice the sales of a current line. Dealer incentives can be tied to certain sales quotas, meaning that the dealer will only receive the incentive when a certain number of units is sold.

A dealer is motivated very differently with incentives

Ideas?

DEALER INCENTIVE BENEFITS

• Premiums like TV’s, electronics, luxury items, gift cards, travel keep dealers’ eyes on the prize of specific goals.

• Dealer recognition awards like plaques and trophies show pride to their teams and customers, for the trophy effect.

What we’re covering in part 2

• Co-op Programs• Value-Added Services to complete your program• Custom Products• Setting Measurable Objectives• Creating a Written Proposal• Protecting your Ideas• Pitching your Proposal• Negotiation Tips• A Case Study

And thank you for making my day sooooo much FUN!

Mary Ellen

Sokalski, MAS

The Scarlet Marketeer267-844-2311