Sales Promotions For A New Product Launch

Table of Contents

• Sales promotions plan for a new product
• Creating a sales promotions plan – steps
• Ways to promote a new product
• How to launch your promotion
• Our favourite examples of successful sales promotions

You walk into a store and have the option between two different brands of air fryer. Brand A is selling at the normal price, but Brand B is running a promotion – buy one and receive an accessory set free! Which are you likely to try? The one that offers you more for the same price. And this is known as a sales promotion. 

Promotions have been used in new product launches for many years as they are an effective way to create buzz and drive sales. They can take many forms, from discounts to extended warranty offers, free gifts with purchases and more. The impact of promotions on sales can vary depending on the specific promotion and the product being launched. A survey showed that 70% of respondents agreed that a sales promotion encouraged them to buy a product they wouldn’t normally buy. People love routine and tend to stick to what they know. A sales promotion is an opportunity to create an appealing offer that sparks a user’s interest to try a new product. 

Sales promotion plan for a new product

Sales promotions are an effective method of increasing sales, heightening brand awareness, and retaining loyal customers. No matter the size of your business or industry, there is a sales promotion strategy that can work for you.  

A sales promotion is only one of the tools in the marketing mix and shouldn’t be a standalone strategy to promote your product. When planning your launch, it’s a great idea to create a sales promotion ahead of time, so that your campaigns are well-researched, planned and perhaps most important of all – compliant and legally sound. 

Need to learn more about why compliance and clarity is so crucial in sales promotions? Just read our ‘Pepsi, where’s my jet?’ article. 

A sales promotion plan outlines a set of tactics and activities designed to increase sales and generate a buzz for your new product or brand. It typically includes researching and deciding on your objectives, target audience, competitor analysis, promotional strategies, measurement and an implementation plan. Sales promotions are most effectively used in conjunction with other marketing tactics such as advertising and public relations to create a comprehensive marketing plan.

Creating a sales promotion plan typically involves the following steps:

• Define your objectives: Clearly define the specific goals of the promotion, such as increasing sales, driving traffic to a website, or building brand awareness. Try to be as specific as possible. Don’t just say, ‘increase sales’, instead, your objective should be ‘increase sales by 10%’. When your objectives are specific, you can reverse engineer the numbers, creating actionable steps for achieving the goal.

• Identify your target audience: Understand who the target customers are, their needs and preferences, and what motivates them to buy the product or service. Also understand where to find them online, and what their lifestyle and interests are.

• Conduct a competitor analysis: Conduct research into what promotions competitors are currently running and how they are promoting their products. Use this information to create a promotion that stands out from the competition. 

• Develop your promotional strategies and tactics: Select the most appropriate promotion for your target audience, product, and goals. Common types of promotions include discounts, cashback offers, free gifts with purchases, and sweepstakes. Choose a promotion that you think will not only bring the best results but that resonates with your audience and brand.

• Determine the budget: Estimate the cost of the promotion and allocate resources accordingly. 

• Plan the implementation: Outline the steps required to implement the promotion, including the timeline, channels, and key stakeholders.

• Measure the results: Any marketing effort is futile if you don’t measure the results. Track the results of the promotion and measure its effectiveness. Use this information to adjust the strategy and improve future promotions. This ensures that you’re wasting time and money on a strategy that is not working for you.

• Timing: This can influence the success of your launch. Choose the right time to launch the promotion. It could be a slow time of the year or a big shopping event, this will help in maximising the results of the promotion. 

It’s important to keep in mind that a sales promotion plan may need to be adjusted as the promotion progresses. It’s essential to be flexible with your strategy and be prepared to make changes as necessary to achieve your desired results.

Ways to promote a new product

There are several product launch promotion ideas that you can leverage to meet your sales goals. Some examples include: 

• Trade in / trade up: encouraging customers to trade in their current product for a more valuable one. The value of the current product is used to reduce the price of the new purchase. For example, when trading in an old cellphone for a new model.

• Money-back guarantee: offering customers their money back if they are not satisfied with the product. This provides assurance to the customer that they can try the product without risk and return it if it does not meet their expectations.

• Offer Discounts: offering a percentage or dollar amount off the regular price of a product. For example, “20% off all products” or “buy one, get one 50% off.” 

• Buy-One-Get-One (BOGO): a free or discounted product when a customer buys one at full price. For example, “buy one pair of shoes, get the second pair 50% off.” 

• Free gifts with purchase: a complimentary product or service when a customer makes a purchase. Like offering a free travel-sized product with the purchase of a full-sized product.

• Rebates: offering a refund or credit after a customer has made a purchase. For example, “submit your receipt for a $10 rebate on your purchase.”

• Limited time offers: Offering a promotion for a specific period. This is also known as flash sales. An example of a limited time offer might be, “20% off all products for the next 24 hours.”

• Loyalty programs: giving rewards or discounts to customers who make multiple purchases or who have been customers for a certain amount of time. For example, “earn points for every purchase and redeem them for discounts or free products.”

• Contests and sweepstakes: offering prizes or rewards to customers who participate in a contest or sweepstakes. For example, “enter to win a free trip to Hawaii by purchasing a XYZ product and sharing a photo on social media.”

• Sampling/free trial: offer free samples of a product to customers, to encourage them to purchase the full-sized product. For example, “try a free sample of our new XYZ product at select stores.” 

How to launch your promotion

Launching a promotion can be a complex and multi-faceted process and exciting too, but there are some basic steps to follow to make your sales promotion successful. 

• Announce the promotion: Use a variety of channels to announce the promotion, such as email, social media, in-store signage, and advertising. Be sure to clearly communicate the details of the promotion, including the start and end dates, any restrictions, and how customers can take advantage of it.

• Build a buzz: Create anticipation for the promotion by teasing it in advance or by offering a sneak peek. Use influencers, brand ambassadors, or other partners to generate buzz and excitement around the promotion.

• Train resellers & retail partners: Make sure that your resellers and retail partners are brought up to speed about the sales promotion so that there is no miscommunication about the offers which could cause confusion and unhappy customers.

• Create a sense of urgency: Use language and imagery that creates a sense of urgency, such as limited time offers, while supplies last, or exclusive deals.

• Making it easy to redeem: Make it simple and convenient for customers to redeem the promotion. For example, if it’s an online promotion, ensure that the website is easy to navigate and that the checkout process is straightforward.

• Measure the results: Use tools such as analytics, surveys, and customer feedback to measure the results of the promotion and understand its effectiveness.

• Follow-up: Follow up with customers who have redeemed the promotion and encourage them to continue engaging with your brand and make another purchase.

• Evaluate the results: Evaluate the results of the promotion and use the insights gained to improve future promotions and make better decisions. 

Our favourite examples of successful sales promotions

Dyson – Dyson Pure Hot + Cool Link Purifier – 30 Day Free Trial

Benamic partnered with Dyson, implementing a free trial promotion with the launch of its Pure Hot + Cool Link Purifier. The free trial campaign lasted 4 weeks and the objective was to maximise sales and enhance the brand’s image. Customers were given up to 30 days to trial the product if they weren’t satisfied, they simply had to complete the online registration form and return the product after which they were fully refunded. 

Canon – EOS Video Pro – Trade In for Cashback 

To drive sales of selected Canon EOS and XC10 cameras, Benamic developed an attractive trade-in cashback campaign. This campaign aimed not only to push sales of the promotional products but also to increase brand awareness and customer loyalty. When a customer bought a qualifying product, they had to download the online claim form and upload proof-of-purchase and a copy of the trade-in certification. Once the claim was validated the cashback amount was paid back to the customer. 

Tesla Model S – Free Test Drive 

Before the company launched the new car, they let influencers and their superfans test-drive the car. This was a clever strategy, to create awareness about the upcoming launch and to find out how to make the car better and locate flaws within it. Tesla was very vulnerable by letting customers drive a product that wasn’t 100% ready to be sold yet, but this worked in their favour. Not only did the product improve because they received honest feedback, but they also built a relationship based on trust with their test drivers. 

Lego – A contest giveaway 

Lego hosted a contest that required people to create and submit a custom Lego build. The contest winners received an exclusive Lego set as well as having their Lego build displayed at the famous Lego House in Denmark. The campaign encouraged people to buy additional Lego pieces for their build after which they had to submit their entry for review. The prizes included four exclusive Lego packs and the winning entries were put on display at the Lego House in Denmark.  

A successful sales promotion for a product launch can help to build momentum, drive sales, and attract new customers. There is no one-size-fits-all strategy when it comes to choosing sales promotions for new product launches. Knowing your product and target audience is important to decide on the best ways to promote a new product that will leave a lasting impression on your new customers. 

Reach out to the team at Benamic if you need advice on a well-planned and executed sales promotion plan to increase your chances of success.