Sales promotion news & analysis

Sainsbury's and C4 bag Grand Prix at Marketing Society Awards

Sainsbury's and Channel 4 triumphed at last night's 2013 Marketing Society Awards for Excellence, taking home the prestigious Grand Prix for their collaborative London 2012 Paralympics campaign.

VisitBritain boss says Government would be 'mad' to abandon Great funding

Sandie Dawe, chief executive at Visit Britain, has urged the Government to continue financially supporting its 'Great' campaign and said it would be "completely mad to walk away".

Nestle hires Iris for Kit Kat shopper marketing

Nestle has appointed Iris to handle its retail and shopper marketing account for its Kit Kat, ending the chocolate brand's relationship with The Big Kick.

Tesco Price Promise under investigation as Sainsbury's and Morrisons complain

Tesco's Price Promise is under threat, with rivals Sainsbury's and Morrisons seeking to get ads for the price match banned and the ad watchdog launching an investigation into the initiative.

Cheil UK boosts creative with Cargill and Perkins

Cheil UK has appointed Duncan Cargill, the former Fallon creative, as creative director and Emma Perkins, from Saatchi X, as its first shopper marketing creative director.

SSE fined record £10.5m by Ofgem for breaching marketing rules

SSE has been fined £10.5m by regulator Ofgem for breaching marketing obligations that led to customers being "missold" energy deals.

Groupon reprimanded for ad breach despite changes following OFT probe

Groupon has had its first ad banned since the Office of Fair Trading forced the discount site to change its practices after receiving a deluge of complaints.

McDonald's revives Monopoly-theme promotion with digital gaming functionality

McDonald's is reviving its Monopoly-themed promotion, this time offering customers the chance to win cash and product prizes via mobile devices.

Sainsbury's blasts Tesco for 'unfairly' price matching own-label ranges

Sainsbury's chief executive Justin King said the supermarket will not extend its Brand Match price promise to its own label ranges and has hit out at Tesco's rival price match scheme.

Unilever marks Lotus F1 partnership with new SureMen range

Unilever is seeking to capitalise on hype surrounding the new Formula 1 season with a SureMen anti-perspirant range showcasing its sponsorship of the Lotus F1 team.

Shell admits failings of garage food in tongue-in-cheek campaign

Shell is acknowledging the poor reputation of garage food with a tongue-in-cheek campaign that promotes Deli2Go, its forecourt food range.

Unilever takes stock as in-store promotions beat social-media ROI

Unilever's return on investment from in-store promotions can be as much as 50% higher than campaigns run across Facebook and Twitter, according to sources close to the company.

Are brand birthdays really a cause for celebration?

Coca-Cola, VW and The Financial Times are among the growing number of brands who have invited consumers to join in their birthday celebrations. But does anyone want to join the party? John Reynolds and Ben Bold investigate.

Weetabix online game ruled to be exploitative of children

Weetabix has been rapped by the advertising watchdog after a Weetabix-branded children's online game was ruled to be exploitative.

#aoty12: Promotional Marketing Agency of the Year - Haygarth

The agency went from strength to strength in 2012, cultivating significant new-business wins and devising ways to continuously evaluate the effectiveness of its campaigns.