Impact Of Promotional Activities On Product

1.1 INTRODUCTION
One of the major pillars of marketing is the provision of goods and services to satisfy the needs and wants of the consumer at a profit to the firm. Thus the provision of product for the satisfaction of the consumer or customer is the focus of marketing thereby making product a fundamental tool of marketing. But Ebue (1990:1) stated that if you product, package it brilliantly, price it, rightly distribute it well and position it to best meet the needs of customer you must have wasted all the marketing skills if nobody knows you have those things. Your customers will only know through promotional activities.
It becomes imperative that a firm must not only create high quality goods that meets the expectations of the target market but tell success story. That is disseminate information about the product attributes and benefits to the target market.
Adirika, Ebue and Nnolim (1996:35) see promotion as the component used by the organization to inform, educate and persuade the market regarding the company’s offerings:- advertising, personal selling sales promotion, publicity and public relations are the major variable of promotional tools.
The myopic thinking in Nigeria, that the money spent in promotional activities is a waste should not crop up at all although, we are operating in a sellers’ market, where companies can sell their goods and services even without adequate promotion. There is no guarantee that such a situation will continue forever. Promotion like distribution is one of the elements of the firm. Marketing mix and it seeks to inform the public of the availability of goods and services and their communication cycle between those engaged in production and those in consumption. The need for product promotion exists in both surplus and scarcity condition. This is because in trying to inform, promotion can often persuade and so can be a useful means to a desirable social change if well utilized.
Modern marketing companies are increasing, recognizing the value of an effective communication and promotion Programme for their entire public. This includes Beverage industries. Their product encompasses vegetable commodities that significantly affect our life’s. (According to onah and Nnolim (1988:9) decisions with these components of promotional mix in order to accomplish the objectives of any given organization) the Beverage industry for sometimes now is very lucrative, this has brought so many Beverage industries into their market, thus leading to competition in other to survive the competition beverage industries should pay adequate attention to the issues that involve decision making in designing an appropriate promotion strategies for survival. It is because of the importance of promotion not only as tool for informing the company that the researcher tries to examine the impact of promotional activities on Bornivita products.

1.2 STATEMENT OF PROBLEM
Here, many consumers do not patronize a company’s product when they are ignorant of its existence. Insufficient and inadequate use of marketing communication tools lead to low sales turnover. Given the competitive pressure attributable to escalating cost, increased industrial concentration as the result of acquisitions and mergers, the threat of product obsolescence inherent in accelerating technological innovation. It is clear that promotional policies have becomes questions of acute importance to the manufacturer as well as the marketer.
There has been a sharp increase in the number of Beverage products (both locally manufactured and imported) thus leading to competition and this competition is becoming fierce and cutthroat. Infact, the creation of an effective promotional strategies would be an essential step towards creating a marked.
Consumers find it difficult to make repeat purchase of a product whose communication is not motivating and captivating.
Improper application of marketing strategies sometimes rob Cadbury Nigeria PLC the opportunity of winning new customers for tom and Bournvita to be precise.
The problem goes a long way to hinder the growth of the firm if urgent solutions are not offered to deal with them.

1.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
These objectives are
1. To know how effective each of the promotions has been increasing the beverage’s market shares in the market.
2. To know the impact of each promotion such as advertising, sales promotion, personal selling public relation and publicity on the Bournvita product.
3. To know if the success of the product is due to the dynamism in the company’s promotional Programme.
4. To determine the relationship between promotion and consumers patronage of the product.
5. To determine the impact of promotion in creating consumers awareness on Bournvita product in Enugu metropolis.
6. Promotional activities adopted by Cadbury in Enugu Metropolis in increased profitability.
7. To recommend solution on how to effectively use promotion in increasing sales in an organization

1.4 RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS
The following hypothetical statements are designed to help us in representations in both null and alternative.
HYPOTHESIS 1
Ho: Promotional activities of Cadbury Nigeria PLC do not leads to high level demand for the product.
Hi: promotional activities of Cadbury Nigeria PLC lead to increase in the demand of the product bought by buyers.
HYPOTHESIS 2
Ho: Promotional activities on Bournvita product does not encourage customers patronage.
Hi: Promotional activities on Bournvita product encourage customers patronage.
HYPOTHESIS 3
Ho: Promotional activities on Bournvita product do not lead to increased sales volume of the company.
Hi: Promotional activities on Bournvita product lead to increase sales volume of the company.
HYPOTHESIS 4
Ho: Promotional activities on Bournvita impact negatively on the profit of the company
Hi: Promotional activities on Bournvita impact positively on the profit of the company

1.5 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
Promotion is not complete until the product ends up being consumed. The study will be of great benefit to the industry as well as individuals. Their promotional resources the company to their product to still buy. This study will help the research appreciate how to use promotional activities in introducing and increasing sales of any product. it will also help the customers to improve their standard of living as they had been made aware through promotion. it will equally be of great benefit to readers and researcher as it may form a base for further researchers and more over it will widen their scope of understanding and knowledge of promotion.

1.6 SCOPE OF THE STUDY
This study is designed to examine promotional activities of Cadbury Nigeria PLC on the sales of its product Bournvita. This study is restricted to Enugu state. It will cover the management staff and consumers that are been exposed to the product.
This study concentrated on the impact of marketing promotion on improving company’s performance with particular interest on Cadbury Nigeria PLC within Enugu Metropolis.
The study intends to point out how the promotional tools techniques – Advertising personal selling, sales promotion, publicity and public relation will be used in improving the company’s performance with particular interest on Bournvita product within Enugu metropolis

1.7 DEFINITION OF TERMS.
Promotional campaign: this is an inter- related services of promotional activities designed to communicate the target group of people to produce change in behaviour.
Product sampling: this is one of the effective means of persuading and encouraging the consumers to try a new product when the product is being introduced.
Premium offers: this is the offer of a merchandised item either free or at a substantially reduce rate to stimulate the purchase of the product.
Point of purchase display. The points of purchase material act as an inducement to buy the product. it consists of display of materials and sign placed inside a certain product package.