The digital age has largely contributed to shifting the power from sellers to buyers: consumers are now in the driver’s seat and always seem to be on the hunt for new deals. Hawk Incentives found that 89 percent of shoppers name price as a top factor affecting their purchasing decisions. Long gone are the days when customers were letting themselves be brainwashed by TV commercials and radio ads. Technology has empowered customers and educated them in ways that were inconceivable even just two decades ago. Coupon websites have become increasingly popular and modern price-conscious consumers often visit them with hopes of getting their money’s worth. In today’s dynamic marketplace, retailers also face stiff competition and need to ensure that they embrace the latest demand management technologies to satisfy bargain-hungry shoppers. However, sales promotions can be especially challenging to manage, as they may involve hundreds of people across the enterprise, from merchants to marketing, and even store managers and associates. Here are five tips to help retailers create successful sales promotions all year round, so they can drive more foot traffic into their stores and increase their online and offline conversions.

Invest in the Right Tools

Effectively managing promotions can be an expensive and time-consuming process that involves multiple departments across the organization. Cutting-edge retail solutions can simplify the process by coordinating promotions across all departments and measuring the success of the promotion. These key insights can then be used to drive smarter decision making. What’s more, modern promotion management tools can help retailers predict how well a product is going to perform, so they can plan their purchases, allocations, and communication strategies.

Make Smarter Decisions Quicker

Modern technology can empower retailers with the tools they need to take their strategy to the next level. Actionable analytics can provide a competitive advantage to retailers who can understand and even predict customers’ shopping patterns. That way, they can seize every selling opportunity proactively and with ease. To get the best returns possible on their promotions, retailers should both analyze relevant data in real-time, and once promotions have ended.

Prepare for Important Events Ahead of Time

Are you planning a back-to-school campaign? Does your software provider offer the promotions your customers demand, such as BOGO, buy X get X free, buy X get X percent off, or spend x get x off? Can you limit your promotions hourly, to offer specials only during lunch hour, for instance? Can you include or exclude certain products or entire product categories? Can you limit promotions only to certain stores or channels? Retailers can go the extra mile by investing in a modern promotion management solution that places no limits on the type of creative promotions they can run.

Remember that Consistency is Key

Ensuring you offer the same promotions on your ads, website, store signage, etc. is essential. There’s nothing more frustrating to customers than finding out they could have paid less for the same item if they had decided to shop on a different channel. Connected shoppers expect a consistent customer experience across all channels, so your promotions must be an integral part of your omni-channel strategy. By providing the outstanding customer experience today’s shoppers crave and offering attractive price reductions, retailers can increase brand awareness, attract and retain customers, and achieve higher ROI.

Personalize Your Offers

Rewarding some of your most loyal customers by offering them personalized promotions is an effective way to make the customer experience more engaging and encourage further store visits. Retailers can use POS solutions to identify who their most valuable customers are and reward them accordingly. Promotions are also an excellent way to increase up-sell and cross-sell opportunities, as they can attract more customers to your stores. Customer loyalty programs are another great way to ensure the prosperity of your business by increasing brand recognition, attracting and retaining more customers, and driving sales.