BOGOF!

Derren Brown doesn't seem to want to give away any of his tickets for anything! I have searched far and wide for any offers or deals that may be offered to draw people in, but nothing! On the other hand, the National Wedding Show are offering free things at every turn. Wedding magazines are offering the chance to win tickets, and the sponsors and related companies are offering the chance for free goodies. I know which sales promotion strategy I prefer!

The Institute of Sales Promotion use the following definition:

"A range of tactical marketing techniques designed within a strategic marketing framework to add value to a product of service, in order to achieve a specific sales and marketing objective"

These objectives are going to be intended to increase custom, whether this be current or future. Using these kind of marketing techniques (such as offering people to win, save towards using coupons etc or get for free using offers such as buy one get one free) will raise awareness of the event and it's related companies, and potentially gain otherwise uninterested custom. The companies can time their offers to go out at just the right time as to appeal to the target market, and they can research fully into the best way to reach them.

When looking at the marketing of an event, there is a common acronym that presents the common objectives. This is as follows:

Awareness

Interest

Desire

Action

These are pretty self explanatory- the idea that in order to draw in your customers, there is particular action that needs to be taken. The subject needs to be made aware of the event, through advertising. This is the time in which the companies can advertise in the paper, and start to email past customers reminding them that the event will be returning (however, keep in mind that an event such as a wedding show aren't going to have too much of a repeat custom- you would hope, anyway!). Following this, you need to grab their interest. This is when you can begin to advertise on television, and use social media tools such facebook to continually post about the event and build it up. The next area is desire, in which you need to make people WANT to attend. Give them initiative and research your audience to direct it all towards them in the most effective way possible. The last objective is Action, and this is the area that sales promotion will fall under. Putting together competitions, offers etc creates a buzz about the event and can spread news of it via word of mouth between friends and potential couples of the future!