Sentiment Data Gave Retailers an Inside Edge for Back-to-School Timing and Promotions
The lesson here is to let families enjoy the summer without pressuring them to start thinking about the school year too early. Advertisements and promotions pushed out before late July are wasted and may even hurt your image if they push too hard.
Promote Deals at the Right Time
While the research showed that merely running commercials provides little value, deals and sales receive positive sentiment year-round. Social sentiment suggests that retailers should time promotions to match the buying season of certain products — but not too early and not too late.
Matt Laukaitis is the Executive Vice President and Global General Manager of SAP’s Consumer Industries organization and is responsible for the team’s people and business strategies, solutions portfolio, partner ecosystem, performance, and customer success. Â
Since joining SAP as an account executive in 2004, Matt has held a variety of positions of increasing responsibility, and prior to his current role served as Senior Vice President and Managing Director of SAP’s Consumer Industries in North America. Along the way, he has been fortunate to work with a tremendous team of dedicated professionals helping SAP’s customers with their digital transformation into an intelligent enterprise for measurable outcomes.
Prior to SAP, Matt worked in sales and sales leadership positions at IONA Technologies, Netfish (IONA Technologies), RR Donnelley, and Apple.Â