Consumer attitude towards sales promotion techniques: a multi-country study

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine and compare the influence of age, education, income, product involvement and sales promotion (SP) characteristics on consumer attitudes towards SP across eight culturally dissimilar environments. Design/methodology/approach A multi-country mall intercept and mail survey was conducted in Brunei, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore and Thailand (n=4,125 respondents). Findings Country, education level and income significantly influence consumer attitudes towards SP. Some countries show a significant monetary value interaction effect. Consumers using delayed-reward SPT reported a significantly more positive attitude towards SP. Discounts and coupons are the two most highly ranked SP across the sampled countries. Research limitations/implications Limitations include the use of intercept and mail sampling. Extending the study to include additional Asian countries and other regions would benefit the understanding of cultural influences on SP. Practical implications Multinational marketing managers should consider three aspects of SP implementation strategy: cultural and demographic factors, interaction between delayed-reward SP and socio-demographics variables; country specific SP preferences to promote both sales and brand equity. Originality/value This study investigates and extends research on SP across cultures. In particular the research helps better understand the impact of demographic factors and culture on attitudes towards SP, and implementation of global promotions.