1. Promotion is fundamentally a tool to help apprise consumers of products and services available to them. However, promotional activities today include various forms of advertising as well as promotional gimmicks such as dirigibles at football games, coupons, and frequent flier miles. The goal of promotion is no longer simply product awareness, but brand awareness, product loyalty and even corporate image.
Many different promotions have come under criticism, particularly when they are judged to be illegal or unfair. Bait-and-switch refers to the practice of advertising one product at a low price, but having none of that product on hand when consumers arrive to make the purchase. Conveniently, this technique results in the seller having other, similar, more expensive products available.
Putting aside the issue of promotional activities that are illegal, there remain examples of promotions that may be unscrupulous, or perhaps merely prejudicial. The potential for this arises when promotional activities are not directly associated with the product or service that is ostensibly being promoted. As an example, Virginia Slims sponsored a women's tennis tournament for many years. The sport of tennis received the financial backing, and the cigarette was associated with a popular sport and received considerable publicity as its name was mentioned in legitimate sports coverage.
However, criticism arose since cigarettes are not healthy, do not have anything to do with tennis, and since most of the players did not smoke the product. Critics charged that the sponsorship by a cigarette company sent the wrong message to consumers (especially young consumers) and that the sponsorship was a blatant attempt by the cigarette company to associate its product with a healthy and youthful activity. Eventually, the sponsorship was withdrawn as attitudes toward cigarettes in general shifted and companies who manufacture them have taken a lo...