6. The popularity of sales promotion has grown steadily both in the United States and overseas. A survey of executives conducted by Stimulus, Canada's leading advertising journal, revealed a shift from media advertising to sales promotion. Compared with five years ago, three of five firms had moved to spend more of their advertising budget on such nonmedia alternatives as trade shows, point-of-purchase displays, and publicity. According to a POPAI (Point-of- Purchase Advertising Institute) -Du Pont study of shopping behavior in the United States, almost 70 percent of all non-food purchases in supermarkets are generated by in-store decisions. If the same decision-making pattern is prent outside the United States, sales promotion should prove to be just as indispensable.

7. Sales promotion is effective when a product is first introduced to a market. It also works well with existing products that are highly competitive and standardized, especially when they are of low unit-value and have high turnover. Under such conditions, sales promotion is needed to gain that “extra” competitive advantage. A Japanese firm created a great deal of excitement in Thailand by including game cards in its detergent boxes, and consumers could not resist buying more and more in search of the winning cards, Likewise, most gas stations in Thailand at one time gave free washcloths with a gas fill-up. Middlemen were also allowed to participate in the sales-promotion program. Stores were informed of the display, and their salespeople or sales clerks were made aware of the program and benefits.

8. The effectiveness of sales promotion can be tempered by psychological barriers, and this fact is applicable to middlemen as well as consumers. Some foreign retailers are reluctant to accept manufacturers' coupons because they fear that they will not be reimbursed. Consumers, on the other hand, may view rebates, mail-in coupons, and money-back guarantees with suspicion, thinking that something must be wrong with the product.

9. Much like many other marketing aspects, sales-promotion methods may have to be modified. The techniques employed, to be effective, should be consistent with local preference. Philips offered a set of dominoes as a premium for electricity purchase in Brazil, where the game is national pastime and electrical products are treated as commodities. A player holds the colored side up to prevent an opponent from seeing the dotted numbers side. Since the company's name was on the back of every domino, electricians were often reminded of the brand.