Who is a promoter and how to become one?

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, many new professions came to our country with foreign names incomprehensible to a Russian person, one of which is a marketing worker called a promoter. Translated from English "promoter" should be understood as activity, promotion, assistance. The work that the promoter does is usually called another English word - "promotion". The promoter's activities are related to advertising and business. The person involved in the promotion must contact potential buyers directly, informing them about the product, its properties, quality and price. This is done by distributing advertising brochures, leaflets, souvenirs. In this article, we will take a closer look at who a promoter is and how to become one.

The name of the profession, promoter-consultant, sounds very unusual and alarming for the layman, but if you translate this pretentious phrase in simple words, it means work to attract the interest of buyers to a particular product that already exists on the market or has just appeared and is unfamiliar to the consumer. The promoter is one of the participants in the BTL sales promotion chain. And although the role of a promoter is rather modest in this chain of specialists, it is nevertheless in demand and necessary.

Young people of student age and a little older are most often promoters. This activity is a good part-time job for those children who study and earn extra money in their free time. To work as a promoter, you need to have about 2-3 hours a day of free time, as well as the skills to communicate with people. Some promotion organizers, before hiring promoters, are interested in their education and conduct courses in which they teach methods of communicating with an unfamiliar audience and the basics of marketing in the field of promoting services and goods.

Job for promoters is usually temporary and involves a free schedule. Advertising agencies form a base of potential employees, and as soon as there is a need for an advertising campaign, these people are invited to work. Promoters can work on the street, next to the outlet where the product they advertise is sold, or in the premises of the shopping mall. To get noticed, promoters use various attention-grabbing methods: shouting into a megaphone, dress up in life size puppets, use musical accompaniment.

Despite the fact that the profession of a promoter does not require special knowledge and skills, it has its positive and negative aspects. The main advantages of the profession are as follows:

• there are no requirements for the presence of higher or special education;
• suitable for those who need additional income in their free time;
• free work schedule and working hours;
• quick wages - on the day of going to work or immediately after the end of the advertising campaign;
• develops the skill of communicating with strangers;
• if something does not suit the organization of work, you can always refuse it and find yourself another advertising agency;
• records of transitions from one employer to another are not displayed in the work book.

It is worth noting the following negative points in the work of the promoter:

• the period of employment is not included in the total length of service;
• labor remuneration most often comes from the gray fund, without paying insurance premiums, social guarantees, paying for vacations and sick leaves;
• work is temporary and episodic, and the level of earnings is unstable;
• people may react negatively to handouts offered to them;
• piecework wages and depends on the hours worked or on the number of leaflets handed out;
• you have to work outside in any weather and constantly on your feet for several hours without a break;
• career growth or other prospects are absent;
• unscrupulous customers can cheat with payment.

Control over the work of hired promoters is carried out by the staff of the company, called supervisors. They can come to the distribution of a sheet at any time and check how well the process of attracting buyers is going on. If during such a check the promoter is not in place or he is busy with extraneous matters, then at best he will be reduced in salary, and at worst he will be asked to leave without compensation for the hours worked as a fine.

The usual job description of a promoter is that before starting work, a person is explained his responsibilities - what he should do and how to work correctly. The promoter's functionality includes the following tasks:

• informing potential customers or buyers about a service or product through a speech message or handout;
• demonstration of the qualities and properties of the goods on an advertising sample or by organizing a tasting;
• if necessary, you need to give the client detailed advice related to the properties of the advertised product or the terms of the promotion;
• encourage buyers and customers to make a purchase;
• carry out the distribution of prizes and gifts provided for by the rules of the promotion;
• collect consumer feedback on the quality, price of the product and the degree of satisfaction with the purchase by conducting a survey.

The listed responsibilities indicate the general functionality of the promoter, but this does not mean at all that he must perform all these functions within the framework of one promotion.

With the development of IT technologies, the promotion began to be carried out not only on the street, but also in the virtual space. Street workers involved in distributing leaflets have become a common feature of life in every city, and the profession of a promoter is one of the most widespread. Such work can be the first step to starting a career in marketing or advertising. Today, there are 3 types of promoters involved in a particular area of ​​business.

As a rule, such an employee is hired by an individual or organization, which needs to be assisted in an advertising campaign related to advertising a product or service. The purpose of this work is to bring the level of sales to a higher level, to make the product recognizable and to win the loyalty of consumers.

Attracting attention to an organization, product or service can be carried out by holding a club entertainment event, which will bring together interested persons as potential buyers. The club promoter will be the person who can organize and conduct such an event, focusing on the advertised product and generating loyalty from potential customers.

In the world of sports, where the victory of an athlete or a fighter can also become a reason for a promotion, since sports achievements today are the same product that makes money. To help an athlete of various types solve legal issues related to participation in competitions or demonstrations, as well as to attract spectators to such events, a specialist promoter is involved who works in a professional sports environment. Often a promoter is called a manager because his level of knowledge is very specific and he usually has a higher education in law or economics.

Despite the fact that the work of the promoter is not strictly timed, he is required to constantly be in touch with the organizer of the advertising campaign and notify him of no work 48 hours in advance. Before starting to fulfill his duties, the promoter receives an introductory briefing, get to know the supervisor and exchange phone numbers with him in order to quickly resolve any issues and situations that arise during the campaign.

The promoter who arrives at the workplace must have a working phone, passport, if necessary, a medical book, a power of attorney for the right to represent the company during the promotion, as well as instructions showing the mechanics of the promotion and information about the advertised product. If the promotion is held in the sales area, the supervisor finds the administrator 30 minutes before the start of the event, coordinates with him a place for the promoters to work and assigns employees to their specific places.

In the process of carrying out his activities, the promoter must clearly follow the instructions for holding the event, know the text of the advertising message and be able to advise buyers, answering them all their questions regarding the advertised product or service. After the end of the promotion, the promoter must contact the supervisor, clean up the workplace and hand over the used inventory.

To become a distributor of leaflets, a specialist in the field of holding themed parties or concerts, as well as eventually grow to a sports manager, you need to improve yourself and acquire the necessary level of knowledge. Career growth from a promoter to a serious specialist is possible only on condition of obtaining a higher education. The direction of study can be considered in the field of marketing and advertising, economics, management. Graduated graduates who worked as promoters during their studies already clearly represent the essence of the work and the mechanics of the advertising campaign. In the future, their career growth, such experience will be very significant, since the theoretical base and practical skills will help them become demanded and competent specialists.

To find a job as a promoter, you need to contact advertising companies in your city. Usually, promotions customers turn to specialized agencies for such services, since it is impractical to keep permanent promoter employees on staff due to the fact that promotions are held from time to time, and not on an ongoing basis. An advertising agency places an advertisement in local newspapers or on electronic city platforms and announces that promoters are being recruited.

After responding to such an ad, the applicant is interviewed, and his data is entered into the database of potential employees for promotional actions. As soon as the advertising agency is ready to provide you with a job, the company's manager will contact you by phone and invite you for a briefing, during which the working conditions and payment will be explained in detail.

It is worth noting that today advertising promotions are a fairly frequent occurrence, so promoters will always find a part-time job and will be in demand throughout the year. If you are a responsible and sociable person, physically enduring and morally balanced, then possessing these qualities and hard work, you can constantly be involved in a wide variety of thematic advertising projects. Both an experienced distributor of leaflets and a beginner can get such a temporary job.

How much a promoter in the advertising field earns depends on his personal motivation and desire. Often, customers pay bonuses to the main contractual amount for good employees, and a system of fines is provided for negligent performers. Such motivation for labor relations is fully justified and understandable to both the customer and the contractor. Sometimes promoters of competing companies work on the same site. In this case, the customer will always encourage the spirit of competition in their employees and the desire to be the best team. Sometimes, competitions are held between promoters within the same company for the effectiveness and efficiency of their work. The winners of such an internal competition are awarded with branded gifts, souvenirs or cash payments.

The average salary paid to promoters in Russia, as a rule, is no more than $ 3 for each hour of work. The amount of payments is influenced by the image of the customer company, the number of hours worked, working conditions and the region. According to analytical studies, a promoter in Moscow, subject to active daily work, receives about 30,000 rubles. The second place in terms of earnings is occupied by the Yaroslavl region, where the promoter's salary is 20,000-22,000 rubles. And in third place was the Ivanovo region with a salary of 18,000–20,000 rubles. per month.