Glossary
The field marketing glossary
Plain definitions of the terms used in brand activation, sampling, merchandising and trade marketing, including the ones you'll hear in Nigeria and across West Africa.
A
- Above-the-line (ATL)
- Mass-media advertising aimed at a broad audience, such as TV, radio, billboards and national press. It builds awareness but rarely puts the product in someone's hands.
- Activation report
- The summary a brand or agency receives after, or during, a campaign: coverage, results against target, best and worst outlets, and photos. Also called a recap or campaign report.How to prove an activation happened
B
- Below-the-line (BTL)
- Marketing that reaches people directly and in person rather than through mass media: sampling, in-store promotions, roadshows, events and merchandising. Most field marketing is BTL.Brand activations on eNsight
- Brand activation
- Any planned, in-person experience that gets a target customer to engage with a brand: to taste, try, hold or buy it. Sampling, in-store activations, roadshows and pop-ups are all brand activations.What is brand activation?
- Brand ambassador
- A person hired to represent a brand in person during an activation, usually talking to shoppers, giving samples or running a promotion. In Nigeria the term is often used interchangeably with promoter.
C
- Campaign brief
- The document a brand gives its agency or field team describing a campaign: objectives, target audience, outlets or locations, dates, budget and how success will be measured.
- Check-in
- The moment a field agent records their arrival at an outlet, ideally with their location and the time captured automatically by their phone. It is the foundation of proof that a visit happened.
- Conversion rate
- The share of people engaged during an activation who then take the action the campaign wants, such as buying after trying a sample. It is usually more telling than the raw number of people reached.Field marketing KPIs
- Coverage
- How much of a campaign's planned outlet list was actually visited, and how often. Low coverage means part of the market never saw the campaign, whatever the totals say.
D
- Days of cover
- Roughly how many days the stock currently on hand will last at the current rate of sale. It is calculated as units on hand divided by average daily sales.Stock tracking on eNsight
E
- Experiential marketing
- Marketing built around a live experience of the brand, such as an event, pop-up, demo or game, rather than a message. The aim is for people to remember how the brand made them feel.Experiential marketing in Nigeria
F
- Facings
- The number of units of a product visible at the front of a shelf. More facings generally means more visibility, which is why brands negotiate for them and merchandisers count them.
- Field agent
- Anyone working in the field on a brand's behalf, such as a promoter, merchandiser, sampler or auditor, who visits outlets and records what they did and found.How to manage field agents
- Field marketing
- Marketing carried out in person, in the places customers shop and gather, by a team in the field. It covers activations, sampling, merchandising, retail audits and trade marketing.What is field marketing?
G
- General trade
- Traditional, mostly independent retail: open markets, kiosks, neighbourhood shops and wholesalers. In Nigeria and much of Africa it carries a large share of consumer goods sales, which is why field teams spend so much time there.
- Gift with purchase (GWP)
- A promotion where a shopper receives a free item when they buy the product, often run by promoters at the point of sale.
I
- In-store activation
- A brand activation inside a shop or supermarket, such as a tasting, demo or promotion, placed as close as possible to the buying decision.
K
- KPI (key performance indicator)
- A number used to judge whether a campaign is working, such as coverage, samples given, conversion rate or stock availability. Good field campaigns track a handful of them daily.Field marketing KPIs
M
- Market storm
- A Nigerian and West African term for a high-intensity activation that floods a market or neighbourhood with promoters, branding and sound over a short period, usually for awareness and trial.
- Merchandiser
- A field agent responsible for how a product is stocked and displayed in outlets: checking stock, arranging shelves, setting up displays and reporting problems.Merchandising audit checklist
- Merchandising
- The work of making sure a product is available, visible and correctly priced at the point of sale, through stocking, shelf arrangement and displays.Merchandising on eNsight
- Modern trade
- Organised retail chains such as supermarkets and hypermarkets, with central buying and fixed shelf layouts. It is growing across African cities but still sits alongside a large general trade.
O
- Out of stock (OOS)
- When a product is missing from the shelf at an outlet that should carry it. Every day out of stock is sales that usually do not come back.
- Outlet
- Any point of sale a field team visits: a supermarket, shop, kiosk, market stall, bar or pharmacy. A fixed outlet list is what makes coverage measurable.
P
- Planogram
- A diagram that shows exactly where and how products should be placed on a shelf. Merchandisers check shelves against it.
- Point of sale (POS)
- The place where a purchase decision is made and paid for, such as a checkout, counter or shelf.
- Point-of-sale materials (POSM)
- Branded items placed at the point of sale to attract attention: posters, shelf strips, stands, dispensers and fridges. Field teams install them and check they are still in place.
- Product sampling
- Handing out free samples so people can try a product. Its success is best measured by how many samples turn into trials or purchases, not just how many are given out.How to run a sampling campaign
- Promoter
- A person stationed at an outlet or event to promote a product, often running tastings, demos or price offers. See also brand ambassador.
- Proof of execution
- Evidence that field work happened as planned: which outlet, when, where the agent was, what they recorded and photos taken at the time. Without it, campaign results are hard to defend to a client.Proof of execution explained
R
- Rate of sale
- How fast a product sells at an outlet, usually in units per day. Comparing stock counts between visits is one way to estimate it.
- Reorder point
- The stock level at which a product should be reordered so it arrives before the shelf runs empty.
- Retail audit
- A structured check of what is happening in outlets: stock, prices, shelf position, displays and competitor activity, recorded visit by visit.Retail audits on eNsight
- Retail execution
- How well a brand's plans actually happen in stores: whether the product is stocked, displayed, priced and promoted as agreed.
- Roadshow
- A touring activation, often with a branded vehicle and sound system, moving through markets, motor parks and neighbourhoods over several days.
S
- SKU (stock keeping unit)
- A single, distinct product variant that is tracked separately, such as one flavour in one pack size.
T
- Through-the-line (TTL)
- Campaigns that combine above-the-line and below-the-line activity, such as a TV advert supported by in-store sampling.
- Trade marketing
- Marketing aimed at the trade (distributors, wholesalers and retailers) rather than consumers, to win distribution, shelf space and visibility for a brand.Trade marketing explained
V
- Visit compliance
- Whether field visits happened the way the brief said: at the right outlet, at the right time, with the required photos and data.
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