Sales promotional campaigns must be clearly measurable and managed more effectively if UK brands are to combat the credit crunch; that was the underlying message at the Annual ‘Scanning Ahead’ Event hosted by promotional solutions business, Valassis.
However, rather than simply trying to ride out the storm, UK brands need to use the economic downturn as the catalyst to gain real insight into the way consumers behave in response to promotional activity.
The ‘Scanning Ahead’ Event was facilitated by BBC Correspondent, Adam Parsons and featured case studies and presentations from a number of FMCG brands, retailers, industry analysts and solutions providers. The speaker list included Deloitte, ACNielsen, the Institute of Sales Promotion, Loyalty Management Group, Tangerine, Glendinning Management Consultants, Royal Mail, TNT, Couponstar, BSG and the London Business School. Key topics included:
- The current and future economic outlook
- Managing promotional budgets more effectively
- Legal and societal challenges facing marketers
- The importance of making promotions measurable
- How an integrated approach can stretch your budget further
- Increasing consumer penetration through effective planning and evaluation
- How to reach consumers in the most cost-effective way
A highlight of the Event included a panel debate between Royal Mail, TNT and Couponstar about whether door-drop, direct mail or digital coupons are the most cost-effective sales promotional tool for targeting customers. An academic perspective on sales promotional activity was provided by Marco Bertini from London Business School.
Bertini’s presentation drew on over 100 studies published in the most highly regarded marketing journals since 2001, and touched on a range of topics including product stockpiling, price elasticity and how offers received at home can help cut through competing offers on the shelf.
Commenting on the key topics of discussion at the ‘Scanning Ahead’ Event, Charles D’Oyly, Managing Director of Valassis, says, "In today’s difficult business environment with the backdrop of a weakening economy and ever increasing demands from the board for accountability, the importance of demonstrating commercial effectiveness has never been greater. Many marketers are viewing the future with real ‘gloom’, a time to cut back and reduce their level of marketing activity, in the hope of riding out the storm. However, the current economic difficulties should actually be viewed as a real opportunity; a chance to think differently and to explore new ideas, and critically to develop a real insight into the way that consumers behave in response to promotional activity."
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