Would you repeat the display promotion?
Use shopper sales and trade costs to judge a display.
The question
You manage trade spending for a fictional U.S. cleaning brand. A supermarket ran a one-week display. Use the same stores and two weeks to judge the event.
| Value | |
|---|---|
| Baseline shopper units per week | 1000 |
| Usual units shipped per week | 1000 |
| Units shipped in display week | 1600 |
| Brand contribution per unit ($) | 1.2 |
| Allowance per promoted unit scanned ($) | 0.3 |
| Fixed display fee ($) | 100 |
Contribution is before the allowance and display fee. The shopper sales file has yet to arrive.
“Would you renew the display on these terms?”
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A strong answer, step by step
Open each step in turn. This is one strong answer, not the only one.
Step 1: What does the shipment number show?
What would you do here? Open the move you’d make.
Use the 600 extra shipments as the sales lift.
Tempting, but it misses something. Some of those units may still be in retail stock.
Ask for shopper scans in the display week and the next week.
The strong move. This gives sales for both weeks of the comparison.
Use the delivery record to calculate the allowance.
Tempting, but it misses something. The terms pay the retailer for promoted units scanned.
See how a strong candidate says it
“The brand sent 1,600 units to the retailer during the display week. I need register sales in that week and the next to check what shoppers bought.”
Why it works: A shipment can arrive before a shopper buys the item.
Step 2: How would you calculate the result?
What would you do here? Open the move you’d make.
Use the two-week change and the stated support terms.
The strong move. The method measures extra contribution after support.
Pay the allowance only on units above baseline.
Tempting, but it misses something. The agreement applies to each promoted unit scanned.
Subtract only the fixed fee from the shipment increase.
Tempting, but it misses something. That misses the register evidence and the scan allowance.
See how a strong candidate says it
“Compare two weeks of shopper sales with the two-week baseline. Multiply the extra units by $1.20. Subtract the allowance on all promoted units scanned and the fixed fee.”
Why it works: The support applies to promoted scans. Some would have sold in the baseline.
Step 3: What do the register records show?
The registers show 1,400 shopper units in the display week and 800 in the following week. Every display-week unit scanned at the promoted price. No allowance applies in the following week.
What would you do here? Open the move you’d make.
Report the 400-unit lift as the full event result.
Tempting, but it misses something. That leaves out the next week’s 200-unit shortfall.
Deduct a $60 allowance on the 200 extra units.
Tempting, but it misses something. The retailer earned $0.30 on each of the 1,400 promoted scans.
Use both weeks and report a $280 contribution loss.
The strong move. This compares the stipulated baseline and pays the actual trade terms.
See how a strong candidate says it
“Total shopper sales are 2,200 units, or 200 extra. That adds $240 before support. The $420 allowance and $100 fee leave a $280 loss.”
Why it works: The second week offsets 200 of the extra 400 units in the display week.
Step 4: Would you renew the deal?
What would you do here? Open the move you’d make.
Renew because the brand sent more units.
Tempting, but it misses something. The decision uses shopper contribution after paying the retailer.
Decline the current terms and test a different deal with a comparison group.
The strong move. This uses the observed result and sets up a better check.
End all displays because the same shoppers bought early.
Tempting, but it misses something. The file gives weekly totals, not each shopper’s purchase history.
See how a strong candidate says it
“I would decline these terms based on the two-week result. A different offer or a matched store test could show whether the brand can earn enough to cover the support.”
Why it works: The next-week gap affects the result. The aggregate numbers do not show who moved their purchase earlier.
The answer, in short
- Decision
- Decline the current display terms.
- Because
- Incremental shopper contribution is $280 below the cost of the display and scan allowance.
- What would change it
- A different event that earns more than its support costs on a comparable store set.
Common traps
- Treating shipments as shopper sales.
- Paying the allowance only on incremental units.
Check your answer
- What did the shipment file measure?
- Which units earned the allowance?
- Why include the next week?
- What would change the renewal decision?
Last reviewed Nov 11, 2026