Sales Promotion.

Sales promotion is a part of the promotional marketing mix. It is a way of persuading potential customers to purchase a product or service. Sales promotion is also a short term plan to boost sales and there are several different tactics can be are used in order to do this. Some of this includes:

* Coupons

* Competitions

* Discount Vouchers

* Free Gifts

* Point of Sale Materials

* Loyalty Cards

TNT Travel Show

As the TNT Travel Show is a free event they have to ensure that they are able to attract a larger audience in order to make some sort of profit through other areas. They attempt to entice audiences by giving them the option of entering competitions on the TNT Travel Show website or at the show itself. However, the results of the competition would be announced at the show, therefore, encouraging audiences to attend.

Also, tickets for the show can be booked in advance via the Travel Show website, for free as opposed to paying £2 at the door. However, audiences have the option of booking a VIP package for a charge of £10 plus a £1.25 service charge. The contents of the package are shown below.

Posters and banners are also used as point of sale materials to advertise and promote the event. The TNT Travel Show website allows audiences to access these posters an banners as a way of helping to promote the event. Although, the same material is used on a larger scale in public areas such as London.

Carling Cup Final

This major football event is sponsored by a popular larger in the UK. This gives event organisers the advantage of using this a part of their sales promotion. Also, this automatically helps to boost the awareness of the event. The two teams competing in the final was confirmed on January 25th when Liverpool beat Manchester City 3-2 on aggregate. Meaning they gained a place against Cardiff City in the final at Wembley. 

Tickets for this event went on sale at the beginning of February, giving season ticket holders of each club priority. Also, each football club was allocated a specific amount of tickets dependent upon which stand they are in: 

* Cardiff City - West End - 31, 372

* Liverpool - East End - 31, 735

The prices differed  depending on which category fans choose. The price list is as follows, with half price concessions throughout:

* Cat. 1 - £90

* Cat. 2 - £72

* Cat. 3 - £56

* Cat. 4 - £40

Before tickets officially went on sale Carling ran a competition titled 'That's Brilliant'. This asked fans to submit their experiences, stories or brilliant moments from the past three months of the Carling Cup. The prize for the ultimate brilliant moment is tickets to the Carling Cup Final, as well as a chance to have the brilliant moment showcased at Wembley Stadium.

Fans of football and  mainly the Carling Cup are already persuaded to purchase tickets for the event, however, these sales promotional strategies are a way of trying to encourage others to attend.

The TNT Travel Show and the Carling Cup Final use sales promotion as a sort of incentive in order to persuade audiences and fans to attend the event. Most people enjoy receiving free stuff and even more people enjoy winning. In this case, both of the chosen events use competitions to keep audiences attention and encourage them to purchase tickets or attend events. Therefore, competitions are a great way for event organisers to entice audiences.

:)