Running a promotional event can be a great way of achieving a host of business goals, from boosting sales to simply getting more people talking about your brand. To find out how to make your promotion a success, read our guide.

 
Determine your objectives
When it comes to any kind of marketing campaign, the first step is always to determine your objectives. After all, this is what will give your initiative direction – and it will shape the rest of your planning. Common goals of promotional events include increasing brand awareness, alerting people to your latest products, acquiring new customers and bolstering sales.
Budget
Once you’ve decided what you’re shooting for, you need to ascertain a firm budget. Doing so will help you work out exactly what you can and can’t do to achieve your goals. After all, there is little point in planning a vast campaign if your funds can only stretch to something small.
As well as thinking about what you can feasibly do within the budget you have, it pays to consider which options will help you make the most of your money, too. Sounds obvious, perhaps, but when you get caught up in designing a campaign it can be easy to dive in without really assessing which methods offer you the most value and best fit with your goals.

Choose the right promotional event
Promotional events come in all shapes and sizes. Your options include offering freebies with certain purchases and hosting standalone events to promote your company and products, as well as things like trade shows or seminars.
Largely based on the type of company you are, the promotional event you choose will also need to tally with your objectives – so make sure you give it some careful thought.

Select the right merchandise
The next step is to select the promotional merchandise you will be giving away. Again, you will need to consider this in light of your aims and what your business does, but other essential points include how useful each item is and what would most appeal to your target audience.
Indeed, usefulness is a key factor in determining just how much people want promotional items, as well as how long they keep them for. So, the more useful a product you give away is, the better exposure it will result in for your brand. Popular options include mugs, pens and USB sticks – items people use day in, day out.

Pick your time
Another essential point to consider, the timing of your promotion can really make a difference to how successful it is. For example, if you’re a retailer pushing a brand new product and you’re offering promotional merchandise as an incentive for customers to buy, you need to think about when your busiest periods generally are. This will help you maximise interest in your campaign.
Similarly, it’s worth giving some thought to how long to run your promotion for. Generally speaking, shorter campaigns generate a sense of urgency, thereby encouraging people to buy quickly to snap up the deal before it become unavailable. Whatever you decide, don’t forget to spread the word about your promotion so people know it’s on!
Get enough stock!
Sounds simple enough, but this is an essential part of your campaign. Since marketing budgets are typically feeling the pinch at the moment, you want to make sure your funds are well spent.
If you order too little, you could find yourself without enough goods to satisfy demand, which might result in bad press. Order too much, however, and you may find yourself with an unnecessary surplus. That said, the good thing about promotional merchandise is that it can be used in a variety of situations, so you can always hand it out at a later date.