What is trade marketing?
Trade marketing involves sales activities and strategically planned product displays at physical or online points of sale. In an interview with the ESPM blog, postgraduate program coordinator Marcelo Ermini explains that it serves shoppers through brand visibility, presence and stock availability, since many purchasing decisions happen in stores. He also discusses digital journeys, where customers may already know the products that interest them.
Trade marketing matters to retailers and wholesalers. It creates opportunities around shelf space, encourages competition between brands and improves the product range and shopping experience.
Why trade marketing matters to your business
Consumers change their habits in response to financial concerns. The EY Future Consumer Index study cited in this article found that eight in ten customers considered their finances a concern. Understanding buying needs and habits is therefore essential.
Trade marketing aims to strengthen sales and point-of-sale performance while building lasting customer relationships. It reinforces a brand's positioning and purpose by making products visible.
Trade marketing matters because it:
– Improves the shopping experience;
– Strengthens branding;
– Turns in-store strategies into a competitive advantage;
– Improves point-of-sale performance;
– Reinforces the retail brand in customers' minds; and
– Increases market presence.
Trade marketing strategies
Strategy is especially important in connecting manufacturers with end customers. The research cited here attributes more than 70% of purchasing decisions to the point of sale, with 50% made on impulse. Visual presentation plays a central role.
With competition growing, businesses and brands need to stand out in the sales area. Consider the following strategies in the context of your store.
Understand customer behavior
Market research can support campaigns that influence buying decisions. Use these insights while respecting Brazil's General Data Protection Law (LGPD).
Personalized strategies
Trade marketing can serve different market segments with strategies based on customer profiles and behavior.
Communication
Understanding how customers communicate helps shape effective in-store promotions.
Point-of-sale displays
Use displays and other visual aids to attract attention, highlight products and help customers decide what to buy.
Promotional materials
Correct positioning matters, as does clear promotion labeling. Posters, colored labels, stickers, shelf wobblers and freestanding displays draw attention to products.
Shelf availability problems
Good presentation and promotional labels support sales, but an availability problem can undermine them. Managers need to identify and resolve it promptly. Here are some types.
Assortment gap:
Customers look for an item they expect to find, but the store does not carry it.
Supply gap:
The store normally carries the product, but stock has run out because of purchasing or replenishment planning failures.
Display gap:
The product is in storage but not on the sales floor because replenishment and checking have failed. This communication problem needs prompt correction.
Phantom gap:
The product is available on a shelf or in a freezer, but poor placement makes it hard for customers to find.
Empty shelf, full stockroom:
Delayed replenishment leaves shelves empty. Problems with purchasing, deliveries and point-of-sale restocking can contribute.
These problems are not solely the retailer's responsibility. Suppliers and stores need to work together on corrective action.
How can availability problems be resolved?
Early identification helps protect sales and average purchase value. According to the 1WorldSync blog, methods for avoiding empty shelves should work together through management, control, monitoring and technology.
The following measures deserve attention.
Count stock in the store and stockroom
Regularly count products in storage and on the sales floor. Knowing the available quantities helps predict and prevent shortages.
Organization
Good organization solves many availability problems and provides useful detail about what is selling and when to restock.
Train your team
Train staff to use inventory systems and read reports. Availability problems can arise from delayed restocking or incorrect product placement.
Control inventory
1WorldSync describes inventory turnover in relation to the time between receiving and selling a product. Software that records stock movements and locations and warns of low stock can help.
Know your customers
Preferences and habits change with social and economic conditions. Ask customers which products they look for to understand their needs.
Each business should adapt its controls, combining stock counts, technology and customer research as appropriate.
Trade marketing: supporting sales with quality products
According to Adriano Amui, commercial strategy guides trade marketing, considering the product range, channels and regional cultures. Sales and marketing needs should be translated into practical implementation packages that make the salesperson's work easier (Amui, 2010, p. 70).
Understand demand and customer profiles to plan effectively. Embrast offers quality products that stand out at the point of sale and can increase your average sale. Contact our sales team through WhatsApp, telephone or email for competitive business terms.
Sources: - https://rockcontent.com/br/blog/o-que-e-trade-marketing/; - https://www.espm.br/blog/saiba-o-que-e-trade-marketing-e-como-funciona/; - https://maximatech.com.br/identificar-ruptura/; - https://1worldsync.com/br/blog/como-evitar-indisponibilidade-nas-gondolas/#:~:text=Garanta%20o%20abastecimento%20impec%C3%A1vel%20das,n%C3%A3o%20encontrar%20a%20mercadoria%20desejada.; - https://www.ey.com/pt_br/agencia-ey/noticias/brasileiro-muda-habitos-consumo-preocupacao-orcamento#:~:text=Isso%20porque%2C%20ainda%20segundo%20a,tentando%20n%C3%A3o%20desperdi%C3%A7ar%20comida%20(87%25; - https://lume.ufrgs.br/bitstream/handle/10183/83487/000906549.pdf; - https://www.agenciamagdala.com.br/blog/70-das-decisoes-de-compras-ainda-sao-tomadas-no-ponto-de-venda/.