CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Sales promotion has become an effective marketing tool that assists organizations to wax stronger in a global competitive environment. Oyedapo, (2012) identified sales promotion as a key ingredient in marketing campaigns which assist organization to achieve its objectives. The main aim of any organization is to maximize profit, have largest market shares and to become leader in a market competitive environment.

Okoli (2011) confirmed that the essence of setting up a business organization is to make profit. Sales promotion simply exists to have a direct impact on the behavior of the firm’s customers (Blattberg and Neslin 1990). Aworemi (2008) in his research finding said that sales promotion plays a significant effect on sales volume which helps in achieving the organizational objectives.

The role of sales promotion in achieving organizational stated objectives cannot be underestimated. The purpose of sales promotion is to motivate the customers to immediately purchase a particular product thus enhancing its sales volume (Sadia and Syeda, 2012; Odunlami and Ogunsiji; 2011; and Aderemi, 2003).

According to Shimp (2003), sales promotion refers to any incentive used by a manufacturer to induce the trade (wholesalers, retailers, or other channel members) and/or consumers to buy a brand and to encourage the sales force to aggressively sell it. Kotler  (2003) sees Sales Promotion a key ingredient in marketing campaigns and consists of a diverse collection of incentive tools, mostly short term designed to stimulate quicker or greater purchase particular products or services by consumers. Sales promotions programmes are those activities other than stimulate consumer purchase.

Sales promotion is an important component of an organizations overall marketing strategy along with advertising, public relations, and personal selling. Sale promotion acts as a competitive weapon by providing an extra incentive for the target audience to purchase or support one brand over another (Odunlami and Ogunsiji, 2011) It is on this premises that this research work wishes to examine the effect of sales promotion dimensions on sales volume with special reference to the selected firm from the brewery industry in Cameroon called Brasseries du Cameroun.

1.1 Background To The Study

As the newest member of the promotional team, sales promotion has suffered from a serious Identity crisis. For example, initially the American Marketing Association defines sales promotion as, “marketing activities, other than personal selling, advertising, and publicity, that stimulate consumer purchasing and dealer effectiveness, such as displays, shows and exhibitions, demonstrations, and various non-recurrent selling efforts not in the ordinary routine.

In the American Marketing Association view, sales promotion supplements both personal selling and advertising coordinates them, and helps make them more effective. However, this does not provide an accurate portrayal of the role played by sales promotion.

A simple way of viewing sales promotion is to say that it means special offers: special in the sense that they are extra as well as specific in time or place; offers in the sense that they are direct propositions, the acceptance of which forms a deal. Simply, it increases the perceived value of the product. As in most aspects of marketing, the rationale of sales promotion is to provide a direct stimulus to produce a desired response by customers.

Promotion is one of the market mix element or feature use frequently in marketing. It is one of the tools of promotional mix includes: communication process, direct mail marketing, personal selling, public relation, news media, advertisement, and sales promotion.

Promotional activities are defined as a direct inducement offering extra incentives all along the market route from manufacturers through distribution channels to consumers to enhance the movement of the product from producers to consumers. (Bovee and Arens 1992) The activity works with the organizations advertising, personal selling efforts and publicity.

It also includes those activities designed to encourage users to purchase at point of sales with maximum effectiveness for example: in store display demonstrations and exhibitions (Buma 1999).this is achieve through the push and pull strategies.

Hence, two important things to be remembered about promotional activities are; It is an acceleration tool designed to speed up selling process which involves a direct inducement(such as money, prizes, extra special product gift or specialized information) that provides extra incentives to buy visit the store to request, or take actions Also promotional activities may be used anywhere along the market route from manufacturers to dealers, from dealer to customer or from manufactures  to customers. (Bovee and Arens 1992)

It should also be seen as a function use to inform one or more group of people about a company and its products/services. The activities can be geared towards increasing public awareness of a company, and a new or existing product. Further, they can serve to educate consumers, or even urge people to take a stand in a social or political issue in the society. They maintain a strong interest in an already existing product.

The importance of these promotional activities makes it very necessary for most existing companies to use them for survival. This explains why most companies like Guiness Cameroun, Nestle, SIAC, Les Brasseries Du Cameroun involves in promotional activities to boost their products and services because they know that these activities are indispensible for their economic existence.

With globalization and the advent of modern technology, promotion coupled with advertisement and public relation is rapidly being use within the business milieu. This idea cannot be over emphasized considering the fact that our economy is fast becoming a competitive one.

The research is limited to Brasseries Du Cameroun which means its promotional activities will be examined

1.2  Statement Of The Problem

Promotional activities are like the forerunners of every successful business.  They have to be apprehended by most business operators who have as interest, to maintain an ever upper hand and a forward trend in their business undertakings. But in our world today, the situation is gradually moving towards other aspects that can lead to expansion of businesses like advertising, publicity, public relations etc due to fear of going  into promotion which can cause over expenditure.

Taking into consideration the fact that brewing industries in Cameroon are exposed to a competitive market, the researcher wants to know whether Brasseries Du Cameroun is succeeding in winning a greater share of the market, or is able to maintain its position in the economy. Hence, the problem this study seeks to expose is the role promotional activities play in increasing s:

1.3 Objectives Of The Study

The study will show the relationship between communication and the economics of large-scale business enterprises. In fact it aims at finding the role of communication as not only necessary for survival of such business; but primordial for their business existence.

Mindful of the fact that, “sophisticated technologies” play positive and relevant role in the market economy of the Cameroon economy. The study is geared at finding out the following

1. To find out the types of sales promotional activities carried out in companies.
2. To find out why companies carry out promotional activities.
3. To find if sales promotional activities increase sales in companies.
4. To know when companies can carry out promotional activities.

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