How to Run an Effective Sales Promotion Using Your Social Media Channel

Whether yours is a stone and mortar business or an ecommerce store, a small business or large conglomerate, successful companies understand that sales promotions are one of the most effective ways a business can increase sales and improve customer satisfaction.

Sales promotions have been used for decades in a wide range of industries, and sales promotion ideas are sure to benefit you with or without the investment of money in a larger marketing campaign.

In this article, we take a look at a range of strategies that you can use in conjunction with your social media outlets to drive traffic to your site, increase awareness of your brand, improve consumer engagement, and ultimately strengthen sales.

1. Buy One, Get One Free.

A BOGO, or buy-one-get-one-free deal is one of the most- and well-used promotional methods available. Not only do they encourage the clearing of stock that may be out-of-season or make room for new product, they rarely cost a business anything. Instead, they increase revenue because they increase interest in a product and take into account retail markup.

For example, let’s say it costs a business 20 cents to produce a given item.  If that item is sold two for $1, that business is still making a profit and will benefit overall because more of the items are sold. BOGO can also work for services, offering deals on classes, training, or other services as a means for filling their schedules or garnering new clients during an offseason.

Getting the word out to your consumers is as easy as posting the BOGO promotion to your social media sites. Blast your followers with a tweet, post a well-designed image on your Instagram account, or curate an interesting and compelling article about the value of your product or service for your Facebook page.

2. Free Gifts.

There are a variety of ways to use a free gift promotion. Restaurants, for example, often offer free desserts or free kids meal with the purchase of an adult entree. Service industries may offer a free service with the purchase of a gift card. Some businesses may offer a free sandwich to the first 100 customers to a newly-opened location.

Ecommerce stores may consider adding a free gift or free shipping for a limited time or with the purchase of a particular product. Amazon, for example, recently ran a free gift promotion of $15 Amazon credit with a $50 purchase, virtually ensuring return customers and increasing its Amazon Prime sales.

3. Free Samples

Free samples allow businesses, especially startups, to provide potential consumers with access to their product. Grocery stores intermittently offer food samples for new products, regardless of whether they purchase something or not. This allows consumers to consider a product they may not have tried before.

Smaller businesses may find they don’t have the marketing budget that larger corporations do, but can still provide include samples to their consumers. Lotions, perfumes, and beauty products are among the items that are best promoted through samples.

Providing free samples to social media influencers is another way to use the sales promotion strategy. If you’re looking for your product’s superior quality to get noticed, pack your product in a professional and presentable way, and send it off with a handwritten note to an influencer you think will enjoy it. Influencers love when you send free samples of product with personalized messages.

Not only does it share you value their opinion, but your company can also benefit from the endorsement of the social media influencer. Don’t forget to include information about your company’s backstory and product details, including all of the social media handles, blogs, professional websites, and hashtags that will help them find you if they want to know more.

4. Social Media Contests and Giveaways

Many small businesses are finding that social media contests and giveaways can drive traffic to their social media sites, improve brand awareness, and increase their following. Sometimes purchasing a product provides a consumer entry to these giveaways, but sometimes contests are used to increase visibility and don’t.

Contests and giveaways can include things like photograph and caption contests, a referral promotion, a hashtag contest, and surveys are among some of the best ways a business can interact with their fans and followers, build strong communication, and generate leads that convert into sales.

5. Customer Loyalty Programs

Focusing on garnering new followers is important, but so is maintaining your loyal consumer base. Using customer relationship incentives like rewarding branding reps, providing customer retention programs like an insiders’ club, or offering subscriptions to long-term members are just some of the customer loyalty programs to consider.

Has your business enjoyed an especially effective sales promotion campaign you want to share? Comment below.

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