Packaging includes the activities of designing and producing the container or wrapper for a product. The package may include the main container of the product, for example the Crest toothpaste tube; a secondary packaging that is discarded when the product is to be used (the cardboard box containing the Crest tube); and the shipping packaging needed to store, identify, and ship the product, for example a corrugated cardboard box containing six dozen toothpaste tubes.
Labeling is also part of the packaging and consists of the printed information that appears on or inside the package. Packaging decisions were based on cost and production factors. The main function of the packaging is to contain and protect the product. However, in recent times, numerous factors have made packaging a very important marketing tool.
Increasing competition and crowding on the shelves of retail stores mean that packaging must now perform many sales tasks, from attracting attention to the product and describing it, to making the sale. Companies are understanding the power of good packaging to create instant brand recognition for the customer.
For example, in an average supermarket, which stocks 15,000 to 17,000 items, the typical shopper spends about 300 items per minute, and 53% of all purchases are made on impulse. In this competitive environment, packaging may be the seller's last chance to influence buyers. It becomes a 5-second commercial.
Innovative packaging can give a company an advantage over competitors. Developing a good packaging for a new product requires many decisions. Decisions need to be made about the specific elements of the package, such as size, shape, materials, color, text and brand advertisement. These elements must work together to support the product position and marketing strategy. The packaging must be compatible with the advertising of the product, the price and the distribution.
Labelled
Labels can range from very simple, attached to products, to complex graphics that are part of the package. The label could describe various things about the product, in addition to promoting the product through attractive graphics.
Promotion
Depending on the product or service in question, and the way in which it will be marketed, different types of promotional actions may be required, which may change even at different levels of the selected distribution system, as the product or the service moves from the manufacturer or producer to the consumer or end user. Promotion is a fundamental element in the marketing plan since it deals with all problems related to communication between the company and its buyers, be they intermediaries, consumers or end users.
The promotional activity carried out by the company constitutes the support on which the sales operations are carried out in the considered market. Every promotional program is developed based on the basic information regarding the product, the markets in which it will be marketed, and the particular situation under which the actions will be carried out.
The most important elements that are included in the promotional strategy within a commercial, industrial or service organization are:
- Advertising Packaging Packaging Sales Promotion
Sales promotion is to present products directly and personally, in addition to offering additional values or incentives of the product to sellers or consumers; This sales effort is not constant as in the case of advertising.
It is also used to achieve immediate sales increases. When the company uses advertising or personal selling, it usually does so continuously or cyclically; but the use of sales promotion systems by the marketing manager is usually irregular in nature and its result is immediate.
Difference between Promotion and Advertising
Sales promotion versus advertising is less alienating and what it offers tends to meet the needs of customers. By promoting sales, the use or new uses of the product are informed, its existence is periodically remembered and, most importantly, the capabilities of the product to satisfy consumer needs are persuaded.
Advertising without the support of sales promotion would not have the same results, since all the effort made in advertising would be wasted if more direct and close contact was not achieved with both the distributor and the consumer.
Goals:
- Stimulate sales of established products Attract new markets Help in the product launch stage Publicize changes in non-existent products Increase sales in critical times Help retailers attract more consumers Get faster sales of products in their decline stage still a lot of existence.
Types of Sales Promotion strategies
When the characteristics of the product with respect to those of the competition are almost identical, the sales promotion strategies are used to gain market within the consuming public and also obtain a sales volume.
There are two groups of promotional strategies according to the types of public towards which they are directed.
- Strategies for consumers: it is about motivating customers' desire to buy so that they buy a product or service.
- PrizesCouponsPrice reduction and offersSamplesContests and raffles
- ExhibitorsCabinetsDemonstrators
Consumer Strategy
AWARDS
Its main objective is to convince the customer to buy a certain product the moment they see it. Whatever the type of prize in question, it should always appear irresistible to the consumer.
An award is a piece of merchandise that is offered at a certain cost to the business or to the customer who purchases a particular item.
They can also be used to train consumers to purchase the largest sizes of a product.
Types of prizes:
- Self-Redeemable Free Awards Using Stamps
COUPONS
They appeal to both consumers and distributors. One of the main goals of coupons is to attract consumers to a certain product and to a specific store by offering a certain time limit.
The coupons attract the customer to the product on offer to be purchased as soon as possible. These coupons are equivalent to money and are accepted as cash by merchants, who exchange them with manufacturers to recover their value.
PRICE AND OFFER REDUCTION
These types of strategies are used to motivate consumers and make them loyal to a certain brand, but care must be taken since abuse of them can harm the image of the product.
Price reduction: This type of promotional strategy offers consumers a discount of a certain amount of money on the regular price of a product; the amount of the reduction is announced on the label or package.
These promotions attract consumers through price and in this way the manufacturer is implicitly giving a reason for the consumer to purchase the product at the time they are viewing the promotion.
Offers: offers are linked to price reductions and are synonymous with purchases of two or more products at the same time with a special price.
The most common examples of offers are:
- Two for the price one Three for the price of two Buy one get one free Buy one get the other at half price
This type of offer requires a special packaging in which the products are attached or a bag with the necessary information about the product and the offer.
SAMPLES
Samples are a sales promotion strategy in which the product itself is the main incentive. It is a way to get the customer to try the product either for free or by paying a minimum sum in order to use and know the product and in this way, the customer will buy it of their own free will; basically the success of the product depends on its nature. If an item has benefits that are immediately noticeable, the use of samples as a promotional strategy will be appropriate.
Sample types:
- Sample inside the package Door to door samples Mail samples Store samples
CONTESTS AND DRAWS
Contests and giveaways are promotional strategies in which the main incentive for the consumer is the opportunity to win something with minimal effort and investment.
Giveaways offer consumers excitement and fun, plus they can earn multiple prizes with minimal effort; Contests require some effort on the part of the consumer, but the consumer participates in something that pleases him, sometimes tests his talent. By choosing contests and giveaways as your promotional strategy, the promotional campaign is given an exciting twist. Furthermore, its cost is relatively low and the prizes are distributed among a large number of participants, of which only a few will be winners; Meanwhile, the brand will be achieving greater recognition among the consuming public.
Bibliography
- Kotler, Philip. Marketing. Ed. Prentice HallCeavens, Hills, Woodruff. Marketing Administration. Ed. CECSAStanton, William J. Marketing Fundamentals. McGraw HillEyssautier, by Mora Maurice. Basic Elements of MarketingMercado, Salvador. Scheduled marketing. Ed. LIMUSA, Noriega editors.
