OKANAGAN CRUSH PAD

Sales Promotion
The sales promotion tactics used by OCP throughout this campaign were sampling, buying allowances, and advertising
specialties. OCP also provided sales staff with support materials for retail assistance, and offered occasional 15 - 30% off
discounts for VQA, family & friends, and shareholders. Their objectives were to increase awareness amongst end consumers by
pushing sales through retail/ restaurant outlets.
Sampling
OCP sampled their wines within OCP facilities and at trade and wine shows/ events, in order to establish and position OCP’s
brand. Sampling was primarily aimed at new users, such as competitive brand loyals, who currently sold competitors’ wines,
and non-users, who currently did not sell wine on tap. Current customers, including switchers, were targeted for new product
releases. Their partner, Trialto, also did sampling at the retail outlet level.
Sampling allowed OCP to demonstrate to specific target market behavior groups, indicating that OCP is a prestigious and
exclusive brand that produces high quality wines. Also, by allowing the audience to experience the wine’s superior taste for
themselves, product benefits could be communicated without the difficulty of conceptualizing them through advertising alone.
OCP uses their own employees to run the sampling booths. This is done to meet the objective of showing off the friendly and
energetic personality of OCP, and build relationships with customers; also reducing costs. For example, the inbound sales
representative and/ or key shareholders, like David Scholefield, would converse with customers and prospects while serving
them wine; personally creating relationships with not only the brand, but the people behind it. Tasting cards also referred to as
sales support are handed out along with samples, as a take-away reminder of the delicious wine they tried.
Sampling is one the most effective tactics for new users in OCP’s target market, as well as similar behavior groups among end
consumers, who attend the events/ shows. Sampling meets OCP’s objectives of driving consumer demand, and creating
awareness of the brands’ wines within the industry and marketplace.
Although sampling reaches the specified target markets, the limited production of OCP wines for 2012 made sampling an
expensive and limited tactic. On average, OCP will go through one case of wine per event, or a sales loss of approximately
$250. Wastage also occurs, as current retailer and restaurant customers and many industry “friends” and staff sample the wine.
This means sampling did not necessarily equate to increased sales.
Advertising Specialties
Advertising specialties were given away at trade shows and wine events to merchandise OCP’s sampling booths, create free
advertising around the events, and create residual value by act as future reminders to trade and end consumer markets.
The swag consisted of OCP pens, humorous mouse pads, and magnetic lapel buttons featuring little sayings or brand logos.
Pens and mouse pads are very appropriate for OCP’s primary target market, as they are usually sitting at a desk, filling in order
forms in front of their computer. See Appendix E-1 for mouse pad example. Magnetic buttons were encouraged to be worn on
booth visitors’ lapels, which then acted as conversation pieces and walking billboards for OCP around the event (see Appendix
E-2). Buttons included quirky sayings to launch their new boxed wines, such as “Bag It”, “Keg It” and “Box It, and could be reused
as fridge or whiteboard magnets.
The merchandise represents OCP’s high quality, as the items are well made and look sophisticated. They also help establish and
promote OCP’s fun brand character. They have lasting value as and interact with the consumer through usage.
Buying Allowances
OCP offers buying allowances to their customers in the form of quantity discounts. They offer discounts on case-lot purchases
through their own store in Summerland, their website, and to trade customers. These discounts also apply to the approximate
200 restaurants and liquor-primary license operators they service in the lower mainland.
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