Time to Heed Your Own Call

We field a lot of calls at promo from brand managers, agency executives, researchers, and other industry types looking for information.

“Can you tell me the average sales growth generated by a sweepstakes promotion?”

“What percentage of advertising contains promotional messages?”

“Do you have a ranking of promotional tactics by usage and effectiveness?”

“What percentage of marketing budgets are being used for Internet-based programs?”

Voice-mail messages often begin with those types of queries, and almost as often end with, “I’m putting together a presentation for tomorrow, so I’d appreciate it if you could get back to me today.”

The folks down at the Promotion Marketing Association tell us they get the same kinds of calls – often from the same people.

Problem is, we don’t always have the answers to the questions.

Information is crucial in this industry. But it can be very costly to commission and compile – one reason, no doubt, that those in need so often call their friendly neighborhood trade magazine before trying other, costlier routes.

That’s why, for the last nine years, promo has undertaken the difficult task of compiling an Annual Report of the U.S. Promotion Industry (which, if you’re reading this, should be on your desk right now).

And that’s also why we joined with the PMA this year to launch a survey that would burrow even deeper than the research we’ve conducted in the past – and also provide a better understanding of the marketer side of the equation. PMA wanted to learn more about the trends and issues affecting its members. promo wanted to strengthen its editorial coverage. Both sides wanted to find the answers to some of those questions we’ve been hearing.

I think it’s safe to say we succeeded. More than 200 industry executives identified through PMA’s membership list and our readers responded to the survey, answering more than a dozen questions about their promotion spending and strategy. The results, dubbed Promotion Trends 2000, were first released at the PMA Update conference in March. They’re now featured both in our report’s introduction and throughout the segment-specific analyses.

I’d like to thank everyone who took the time to fill out the survey – which wasn’t exactly as tough as a tax return, but did require respondents to look back through their marketing plans and ponder their own practices. You know who you are, even if we don’t. (Respondents were promised anonymity, and that’s exactly what they got.)

With your help, we were able to answer some of the questions we’ve been fielding for the last few years: Promotion-driven messages will account for 23 percent of all ad spending in 2000, up from 18 percent in 1999; the typical marketer will spend six to 10 percent of his total budget on Internet activity this year; most brand managers spent less than five percent on the Net in 1999. Check out the report. It contains a lot more insight like that.

Both promo and the PMA were pleased with this year’s results, and we plan to do it again in 2001. But we’re going to need more support to turn this report into a resource that will help drive even stronger growth in the promotion marketing industry, and get more of your questions answered.

So when the survey turns up on your desk next year, please take a few moments to reply. Then, the next time you need some information, you won’t even have to call us: The answer will be right there on your desk.