<p>When you are looking to increase your sales, promotional campaigns are a great way to attract new customers or to give your existing customers a little incentive to come back.&nbsp;</p> <p>The 6 secrets to an effective promotional campaign are:&nbsp;</p> <p><b>1)&nbsp; Stand out with a grand prize</b></p> <p>A unique grand prize that will get people's attention.&nbsp; Add some excitement to your promotional campaign by turning into a lottery.&nbsp; Have people tell their friends and co-workers &quot;hey, did you know that ABC is running this great promotion?&quot;&nbsp;</p> <p><b>2)&nbsp; Offer a small prize to every participant</b></p> <p>Have a small gift, prize, or incentive for everyone who participates.&nbsp; Even if they don't win the grand prize, they'll still feel appreciated it by you.&nbsp; And make this a useful gift, not some toy-like plastic radio that credit companies seemed to love so much.&nbsp; A discount coupon serves well as a gift for everybody, because again, it'll bring you some business.&nbsp;</p> <p><b>3) Make 'em work for it</b></p> <p>Don't give away the prize away for just signing up.&nbsp; Have your customers work for it.&nbsp; Have them come to your store, give you a call, agree to receive a newsletter, spend a minimum amount, or make a solid referral.&nbsp; Drum up some business before the prize leaves the building.</p> <p><b>4) Sense of urgency</b></p> <p>Create a sense of urgency. &nbsp;Set a specific end date to the campaign, and set it relatively close in the future. &nbsp;Ideally, you want people to act right away, not 3 months from now. &nbsp;If the closing date is too far away, some people will choose to make a decision later, and you'll have to spend extra effort and money to remind them about your promotion.</p> <p><b>5) Measure it to know it worked</b></p> <p>Make sure to measure the expect result of the campaign, be it new sales, customer referrals, or store visits. &nbsp;Keep track of these metrics so at the end of the day you know exactly what you got for your investment. &nbsp;If you are an online business, add a &quot;How did you learn about us&quot; field to your order form or newsletter sign-up page. &nbsp;If you are a store, ask the customer and note down their answer.</p> <p><b>6) Lower your cost by engaging your business contacts</b></p> <p>Use your business contacts to increase the appeal of your promotional campaign.&nbsp; There's always a good chance that they want more business just as you do, but cost is a factor.&nbsp; So offer them to jump on the bandwagon and do a cross-promotion with you by footing the bill for the small prizes or offering your customers a discount on their products and services.&nbsp; Obviously, your businesses should be somewhat related.&nbsp; A chiropractor could partner up with a massage therapist while a roof contractor could make a deal with a windows installation business.&nbsp;</p> <p><b>Additional Reading &nbsp;</b></p> <p>Learn more about promotional campaigns in Dan Kennedy's Ultimate Marketing Plan (you can pick it up online or at Kinko's).&nbsp; This book is only $14.95, and I personally think it is a fantastic guide to increasing your sales.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> 2008-02-29T20:05:35Z -26.2891 412 338 true 15 4862 six-secrets-of-a-successful-promotional-campaign 0 2008-02-29T21:41:16Z 2008-02-29T21:41:16Z

<p>Promotional campaigns are an effective way of attracting more customers or creating an incentive for existing customers to give you more business. &nbsp;Learn 6 secrets of effective promotional campaigns so you can maximize the return on your investment.</p>

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