Trade Marketing: what is it and how to achieve a successful strategy?

When talking about marketing there is a tendency to generalize, however there are different variants of this discipline and one of them is trade marketing, focused on the point of sale.

When talking about the retail industry, it is inevitable to mention trade marketing. Today we will tell you what this variant of marketing is about, its objectives and functions, and what benefits its implementation provides to businesses. But first, we need to start by answering the question: what is trade marketing?

In a short definition we can say that trade marketing is the set of actions focused on achieving a strategic positioning of the merchandise in order to increase sales in a certain POS. However, it has a dual focus; if we focus on B2C, the strategies tend to revolve around the point of sale in order to attract the final consumer, always thinking of improving their shopping experience and obtaining an ever-increasing result in terms of increased sales.

On the other hand, the B2B model shares the same objective of increasing sales, however, in this case our target would be distributors and sellers. The key here is to create strategic alliances between all the participants (manufacturers, distributors and/or retailers), since this is the way to guarantee a growth in profits for all parties.

In short, we can say that the main objective of trade marketing is to work with distribution channels, although sellers and wholesalers must also be consistent with this. The important thing is to develop tactical improvements that guarantee a better commercial output of the products. To do this, we must not forget the brand management actions that are intended to delight the consumer.

Difference between trade marketing and marketing as a whole.

Marketing is a much broader discipline that aims to deliver value to customers through a set of actions and strategies aimed at building a long-term relationship between the brand and consumers. To do this, many more aspects are covered, such as: sales process, brand image construction, loyalty strategies, etc. The most involved agents are those responsible for the creative and communication processes, who are involved in many more ways than trade marketing.

In a nutshell, we can say that it is the process of presenting the products to the buyer in such a way that it affects their purchase decision.

On the other hand, trade marketing is based on the need for communication between the manufacturer and the distributor of a certain product within the company, that is, trade marketing has the function of influencing the internal decisions of the entity. On the other hand, marketing is responsible for direct communication between the company and customers.

In addition, trade marketing pays attention to the shipment of products, while marketing is only that moment of purchase between the products of the company and the consumer. Likewise, the second places more emphasis on stimulating the senses through the use of attractive designs, etc. although trade marketing, for its part, also operates in the application of marketing mix concepts, product category management, display techniques, incentive campaigns, distribution, etc.

Trade marketing goals.

As we explained before, the main objective of trade marketing strategies is to improve product sales in the establishments themselves, boosting their demand and consumption. To achieve this, we must highlight the following functions offered by this variant of marketing:

• Improve rotation at the point of sale.
• Promote and accelerate consumption and sales by planning and coordinating promotions.
• Develop merchandising, and in turn, manage a set of actions at the point of sale to encourage purchase. In this last aspect we highlight, for example, the use of tastings, exhibitions or product tests, which are strategies that help the customer make his purchase decision.
• Apply branding strategies.
• Generate more traffic at the points of sale.

To prevent consumers from abandoning their purchase decision at our point of sale and ending up choosing the competition, all these objectives must be taken into account.

Understanding what trade marketing is about and what its objectives are, we can talk about creating strategies that lead us to commercial success. Carrying out a successful trade marketing strategy is no accident, the steps to follow must be very well designed for satisfactory results to be produced. Here are some things that will help you create a foolproof strategy:

• Branding. Through branding it is possible to encourage consumption. To do this, our brand has to develop online marketing strategies that improve its positioning and recognition in the sector. It is about gaining the preference of consumers and, to achieve this, the brand image must be properly managed through the management of social networks, email marketing, use of POP material, establishment of public relations at events, etc.
• Equipment. All professionals and assistants involved in the sales processes must be coordinated, committed, aware and well motivated, since they are responsible for increasing consumption at the point of sale. To maintain this motivation there are many options, such as using extra commissions, betting on meritocracy, facilitating training, etc.
• Communication. In these processes there are several agents involved in the supply chain, it is essential to reduce any communication barrier as much as possible. In this way, we will be able to resolve all types of incident, regardless of the department in which it arises, since we know where to transfer it, who to contact, what is the procedure to solve it, etc.
• Audience behavior. Analysis is always decisive to make better decisions in a company. A measurement with the appropriate tools will allow us to understand the behavior of our users, how they become leads, why they buy from us, what the profile of the target audience is, what products are most in demand, etc.

If you want more information about trade marketing strategies, don't forget to visit our article "5 Benefits of implementing a Trade Marketing strategy".

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Until next time! ;)