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LEVERAGE SEEN IN CHAIN-SPECIFIC PROMOS

NEW YORK -- Brand marketers undertaking chain-specific promotions with retailers can help stores increase dollar sales, maximize gross profit, increase transactions, transaction size and increase store traffic, according to a Coca-Cola executive."The greatest leverage available to today's marketer is to get down to a store-by-store level," said Joseph Mangano, marketing manager for the Northeast at

NEW YORK -- Brand marketers undertaking chain-specific promotions with retailers can help stores increase dollar sales, maximize gross profit, increase transactions, transaction size and increase store traffic, according to a Coca-Cola executive.

"The greatest leverage available to today's marketer is to get down to a store-by-store level," said Joseph Mangano, marketing manager for the Northeast at Coca-Cola USA.

"In-store merchandising -- plus having the same look across all stores in a chain -- gives you the greatest tool. To actually be in there and interrupt the consumer as they make that trip through the store is a fantastic opportunity. Chain-specific promotion affords you the luxury of doing that."

He added, "You have to become a partner with that retailer and think about what is important to him or her, as well as yourself."

Mangano spoke to an audience of brand marketers and service industry companies at the Contest, Games & Sweepstakes conference here sponsored by The Marketing Institute division of the Institute for International Research.

He said that while 60% of all category purchase decisions are made in the home, 70% of actual product brand decisions are made in the supermarket.

"The consumer walks into the supermarket predisposed to pick up a soft drink, but then he walks smack into your display and suddenly he is walking out with a Coca-Cola product," he said.

Citing figures on soft drink sales from the updated Marsh Super Study, released in October, Mangano said a promotion using only a price reduction will generate a 32% product increase, while price reduction with an ad feature increases movement 92%. Movement increases 155% when a display and price is used, while ad, display and price working together increases movement an average of 403%.

"There is a tremendous opportunity to work with a retailer to partner a program based on mutual objectives that is going to garner ad, display and price for you," he said. Manufacturers need to sell retailers on the ability of their products to drive traffic, sales and profitability, he added.

Coca-Cola often tries to tie in unique chain-specific supermarket promotions with major league sporting events, said Mangano. In the New York area, for example, it ran a Super Bowl Fantasy Sweepstakes with A&P, while A&P's upscale Food Emporium had a promotion that tied in to the U.S. Open tennis tournament.

A&P's Waldbaum's chain has a long-running promotion with the New York Jets football team in which three customers are picked to participate in a field-goal kicking contest at Jets home games. The customer kicking the furthest wins a trip to the Pro Bowl.