Analysis of Sales Promotion Effects on Household Purchase Behavior

drinks, fruit juice, c<strong>of</strong>fee, potato chips, candy bars, pasta)) are used to test the hypotheses. The
most interesting findings are mentioned in the summary below.
9.2.1.1 Drivers <strong>of</strong> <strong>Sales</strong> <strong>Promotion</strong> Response
Which household characteristics determine whether households respond to a promotion?
Since the 1960s, managers and researchers have tried to identify the characteristics <strong>of</strong> those
households that are responsive to sales promotions (e.g., Webster 1965, Massy et al. 1968,
Bell et al. 1999). However, prior research led to conflicting findings. A clear, unequivocal
relationship between household variables such as demographics, socio-economics,
psychographics, purchase variables, has not yet been found. This research investigates these
relationships in depth across six product categories (s<strong>of</strong>t drinks, fruit juice, c<strong>of</strong>fee, potato
chips, candy bars, pasta).
The following household characteristics are related to the probability <strong>of</strong> responding
to a promotion: social class, household size, age, employment situation <strong>of</strong> the shopping
responsible person, presence <strong>of</strong> non-school age children, store loyalty, basket size, and
shopping frequency. The promotion responsive households can be pr<strong>of</strong>iled as larger
households consisting <strong>of</strong> older children and a somewhat older (≥ 35 years <strong>of</strong> age) shopping
responsible person that works out <strong>of</strong> the house and shops not very <strong>of</strong>ten, but purchases larger
shopping baskets. Practitioners can make use <strong>of</strong> this information to improve their promotional
strategies.
<strong>Promotion</strong>s can influence household purchase behavior inside or outside the store.
Some households scan newspapers and leaflets for interesting sales promotions, whereas other
households only pay attention to promotions inside the retail store. It is interesting to know
whether the probability to respond to these different types <strong>of</strong> promotions, in-store and out-<strong>of</strong>store
promotions, is related to different household characteristics. It is found that households
without non-school age children in which the shopping responsible person has a paid job are
very promotion responsive, especially with respect to in-store promotions. A sufficient
grocery budget combined with time pressure results in more in-store promotion response.
These types <strong>of</strong> promotions are used as time saving cues. As unplanned purchasing is
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