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KIJECBM/APR-JUN15/V OL-2/ISS-2/A12
ISSN:2348-4969
IMPACT FACTOR (2015) - 3.9581
KAAV INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ECONOMICS,COMMERCE &
BUSINESS MANAGEMENT
INFLUENCE OF PROMOTIONAL MIX ON INCREASE OF
SALE
MAIN AUTHOR
SONAM DUTTA
CO AUTHOR
ANKIT SINGH
ABSTRACT
In today's world, existence and development of organizations and companies depend on proper marketing and
selling products and services. Today's marketing is not based on producing facilities but rather on providing
appropriate information channels for the consumers. Successful companies must identify proper ways of
persuading customers in order to preserve their situation in market share and competitiveness. In cosmetics
industry, we deal with a market progressing rapidly, but the interesting fact is that the share of domestic
manufacturers is declining along with the decrease in their sales.
RESEARCH RESULT SHOW THAT PERSONAL
selling, sales promotion and advertising were the most influential factors in increase of sale. But direct
marketing had less significant effect on increase sale of the product.
INTRODUCTION
In all marketing processes, marketers try to infuse quality in the minds of customers in order to provide with
values around which repurchase and sales promotion shape up. Indeed, marketing seeks proper way of
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KIJECBM/APR-JUN15/V OL-2/ISS-2/A12
ISSN:2348-4969
IMPACT FACTOR (2015) - 3.9581
satisfying customers' demand at end of which successful companies get distinguished from the unsuccessful
ones. Considering the use of cosmetics products by a vase range of families, it increases competitiveness
unconsciously. Besides, competition in cosmetics product industry involves especial condition due to short life
cycle. According to Kumar (2006), the less life cycle, the more competition gets; so rapid and on time sale is
an essential factor for producers. In this industry, some famous foreign producers preserve significant
international market share for years, but new competitors have influenced the share of these companies by
producing products fitting consumers' demands and wishes, proper price, new ways of presenting products,
enormous advertising, etc.
LITERATURE REVIEW
Promotion mix
Pheng low (1995) in defining promotion mix states, promotion involves any ways of providing information
and persuasion and reminding consumers of marketing mix of products, goods or services. ohHyunjoo (2009)
believes promotion results in increase of sales and profit and also develops the tendency toward the brand
finally brings about increase in sales. Understanding consumers' reaction to promotion in supplying useful
approaches is very important both for increasing sales and other components of marketing mix, because these
factors are deeply interrelated; in fact components of sales promotion can serve as significant factors in
deriving consumers (Banerjee, 2009). In other words, promotion consists of providing direct or indirect ways
of communication with people, groups or organizations in order to inform and persuade them on the way to
purchase products and services (Rezvani, 2008). Promotion mix tools most applied in this industry include:
Sales promotion, advertising, personal selling and direct marketing
Sales promotion
Defining the term sales promotion is rather difficult for the presence of multiple relating techniques and tactics
and that sales promotion is a tool to achieve company's marketing communication objectives and an essential
element in planning marketing (Blattberg, 1990). Sales promotion is a short term strategy to derive demand
and also and especial marketing offer which provides more profit than what consumers receive from the sale
position of a product and also has sharper influence on sales (Banerjee, 2009). This tool has the ability to
attract and keep loyal customers and is an excellent what to persuade them build viable link with the
organization and involves all motifs applied by the producer to persuade trade with members of a channel
(Ndubisi, 2006). Among various tools of sales promotion, four ( free sample, advertising gifts, coupon and
discount) are investigated which have more influence in cosmetics and beauty products industry.
Free sample
According to Ben Amor's researches (2009), during the last ten years, significance of free sample as tools of
promotion in the field of cosmetics has been on the rise. According to the investigation done by Denly a
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marketing company, 75% the companies use free samples to improve their products, whereas 52% of the
companies don't advertise their new products. Although representing this method is a powerful promotion
tools, it requires high costs for the organizations. Shoemaker and Bava(2004) state this tool is influential in
cases which involve a lot of people not having used the product or even not willing to do so.
Giving advertising gifts
Proper gifts are one of the best ways to transfer the message that communication is important. Oral
communications are soon forgotten but gifts with company's mark on it act as a reminder and attract the
customers (Fan, 2006). Indeed we can claim company's gifts are a kind of investment in the business world.
This method is based on interaction on which presenting gift results in inducing the feeling of an obligation to
make up for the profit and paves the path for ongoing business (Beltramini, 2000).
Offering coupon
Coupon has direct influence on increase of the sale through which consumers tendency toward the product
increases (Meng, 2009). This is one of the oldest and yet most common tools of promotion which has been
applied since 1895 and during recent years has become a known term for producers and retailers as a tool to
encourage sale has been on the rise and accepted to the consumers more than any other promotion
method(Banerjee, 2009).
Discount
Discount play an important role in today's markets and its application among retailers has been increasing
during the last years and many emprical evidences confirm the use of temporary decrease of price to increase
short term sales (Martınez, 2006). Discount is a technical tool for retailers to increase sales and profits and it
should be presented in times which the demand for products and services are high (e.g. in Christmas) (Oh
Hyunjoo, 2009).
Advertising
Advertising has been designed to direct views also make change in behavior easy and may present the most
convincing sale messages with most accurate perspective of products or services without much cost (Celeb,
2007). Until 1989, advertising in eastern and central Europe had carried a negative implication and been
considered as a tool to spread Capitalism, but gradually advertisement have been designed which had
informative aspects and because of it's significance in informing upon new products and services it turned to be
generally accepted(Petrovici, 2007). Indeed advertisement is one of the primary communication link with
consumers, hence consumers' desired image and language along with culture, economy and commercial
changes should be kept in mind (Wang, 2009) and in order to bring about the best influence, the message type
should accord with the product, that is logical messages are more useful for consumer products whereas
emotional messages fit with value based and empirical products (Mortimer, 2008). If the content of the
message and the way it's represented convey association of an specific desired brand for people, they get more
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information on it which results in positive reaction toward the product (Praxmarer,2009). With respect to the
variety of advertising media, three public ones are studied which are most applied in this industry: television,
radio and magazine
Television
With the burst of TV numbers, and variety of TV programs, the media is now considered as the most useful
information source for new products. Experts believe that TV has a long term influence of an indirect and
gradual nature but very important and incremental.
Radio
Since radio broadcast messages are delivered and received when driving or housekeeping, understanding
through radio is not perfect and listeners complete the message image with their own imagination. Imagination
process is very important in radio since the audience ponders upon the message and has their own
interpretation (Khojasteh, 2002).
Magazine
Magazine industry has undergone dramatic changes in the world and these changes got into all dimensions of
this industry. Although the nature of a magazine still remains unchanged, the industry supporting it is in
constant flow. The growth of advertisement in magazines, the variety of contents and the advances made,
prove this changing environment (Mohamadian, 2009).
Personal Selling
Personal selling is the executive wing of organizations to attract customers and increase sale of products and
services. All efforts in organizations' different departments result in the performance of Personal selling(Azizi,
2009), since it is informed of the rival companies and market changes sooner than other
departments(Storbacka, 2009). In fact, they act as private link between company and customer and from
consumers' point of view represent the company, bring value for it and so need information on the consumer
(Moghareh Abed, 2009) and in order to be successful in sales process, having information on marketing,
financial issues and activities are essential (Storbacka, 2009). Trust between the seller and the buyer is
important which has been vastly discussed in marketing literature and researches show that more trust results
in more effective performance (Dawes, 2006).
Direct Marketing
Direct Marketing Association defines Direct Marketing as follows: Direct Marketing is an interactive
marketing system which uses one or more advertising media to provide a measurable reaction or trade in every
level (Kutler, 2006). This represents a flexible method which can deliver the message and target especial group
of customers in an effective way (Hayter, 2005). Direct Marketing is one of the most important elements of
marketing mix in most successful companies. The more competition in market and customers surrounded by
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KIJECBM/APR-JUN15/V OL-2/ISS-2/A12
ISSN:2348-4969
IMPACT FACTOR (2015) - 3.9581
messages and information on the products, the clearer boundaries of marketing environment become and more
potential channels for most traditional companies are provided (Duffy, 2005).
Among various direct marketing methods, four main ones i.e. sale through catalogue, email, telephone and
S.M.S are studied in the research. Marketing with price list (catalogue) Marketing with catalogue requires the
company to post the catalogue to the customers or providing access for them. The catalogue may be in form of
a simple booklet or even cassette and CDs. Indeed for some companies these booklets are replacements for
professional sellers.
Telemarketing
With telephone, a company tries to contact the customers directly and sell them it's products. This method has
become one of the primary tools in making direct marketing communication.
Network Marketing
Network marketing through computer making mutual conection provides the consumer with the possibility of
contacting the seller with the use of electronic device.
Marketing through mobile phone
Mobile phones has increasingly become a communication device along with traditional communication
devices such as TV and even solely. It's application as a device to advertise brand and derive customers'
reaction is very important since it has the ability to identify customers and send especial contents inmessages
and it's expected that in near future marketing through mobile phone will increase (Leppaniemi, 2008).
CONCLUSION
Promotion can be a powerful derive to persuade consumers and lead into increase of sales and profits and
make most of those who don't have the experience of the product try it at least once. Testing of research
hypotheses (one-sample T-test) showed that sale promotion, advertising and personal selling are influential
factors in increase of sales in hair color since they improve costumers' awareness and persuade them to try the
product and these results correspond to researches such as Banerjee (2009), Oh, Hyunjoo (2009), Petrovici
(2007), Wang (2009), Dawes (2006), Storbacka (2009), Moghareh Abed (2009), etc. But direct marketing had
no meaningful influence on inrease of the sale from the perspective of individuals present in the population.
Moreover, using Friedman test, tools of promotion mix and components of every tool influencing the increase
of the sale were rated which shows personal selling stands above all other components followed by sales
promotion and advertising. Among sales promotion tools, giving free sample stands above all components
followed by giving advertising gifts, coupons and discount.
Among advertising media, magazines are the most important to people followed by TV, Radio.
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