Low Cost Promotions - Part - II

Coco-Cola Badge

8. COMMUNITY SERVICE: Nothing brings the company to the attention of the people faster or more favorably than community service. Give sponsorship to local festivals like the Ganesh Chaturdhi and Dussera. 

9. BADGES AND NOVELTIES: Any company can easily and inexpensively produce badges, bumper stickers, book covers, book markers and other novelty items for distribution in its area. The company can imprint its business name and the first names of the customers on many of these products at little cost and distribute them for free. Or it can tie its novelty program into a contest: once a month and can offer a prize to any individual whose car happens to carry one of its bumper stickers or badges with peel-off coupons, redeemable at its place of business.

10. CELEBRITY VISITS: The company may be able to arrange to have a local media celebrity, public officials, or entertainment personally even a fictitious cartoon character or clown-visit its shop. The celebrity can sign autographs, read stories to children, perform cooking demonstrations, or perform any one of a hundred other traffic-building activities.

11. CELEBRATE HOLIDAYS: Companies should celebrate major public holidays with special sales. Celebrate some of the offbeat holidays as well. Once the company find the "right" holiday, it can sponsor a special sale or special product and arrange for special media coverage of the holiday event.

12. GO WHERE THE PEOPLE ARE: Can the company open sales information booths at community fairs and festivals? If the company has the people and the time, it can target regional fairs or even trade fairs.

13. MAILING LISTS AND GREETING CARDS: Once the company begins establishing a committed clientele, it can gather their names on a mailing list. It can save the names from its mail orders and telephone inquiries. Eventually, it will be able to send product circulars or even catalogs to the people on its list. Holidays, birthdays, and anniversaries make nice greeting card occasions. Greeting cards create enormous goodwill and keep the name of the company in front of its customers.

14. SCAVENGER HUNTS: If the company wants people to buy NOW, it should offer them an unbeatable deal. If they bring an old product, a small appliance, a book, whatever-to it, the company should give them a worthwhile discount on a comparable new item. Or it can stage a general purpose scavenger hunt.

15. PARTIES: Everyone loves a party. Why not celebrate the anniversary of the business or some special holiday by offering free snacks and beverages?

16. SEMINARS: In this information hungry age, people love to receive advice, especially about their personal needs and hobbies. If the company sell health foods or runs fitness classes, perhaps it can offer "wellness" seminars during lunchtime in its area's business community. If the company is in an interior decorator business, perhaps it can offer one-hour decorating workshops to any group of ten people who will gather at its office.