Sales Commissions, Promotions, Advertising, Gifts & P.R.: Codes 6100-6203
Sage treats the cost of actively winning sales as a Direct Expense rather than a general overhead, since it's closely tied to generating the revenue it sits alongside in the profit and loss account.
The codes, and what each one holds
Code 6100 — Sales Commissions records commission paid to sales staff or agents for securing sales.
Code 6200 — Sales Promotions covers the cost of promotional campaigns, discounts, or offers run to boost sales.
Code 6201 — Advertising records spend on adverts across any media, from print to digital.
Code 6202 — Gifts and Samples covers free samples or promotional gifts given to prospective or existing customers.
Code 6203 — P.R. (Literature & Brochures) records the cost of printed marketing literature and public relations materials. All five are Direct Expenses codes and normally carry a debit balance.
Real-world examples across industries
FMCG or consumer goods
An FMCG skincare brand pays a supermarket chain a £3,600 (£3,000 net) listing fee to secure an end-of-aisle display for a new launch — a debit of £3,000 to 6200 (Sales Promotions), a debit of £600 to 2201 (Purchase Tax Control Account), and a credit of £3,600 to 2100 (Creditors Control Account). It hands out £960 (£800 net) of trial-size samples at events, excluded from the VAT "business gifts" rule regardless of value: a debit of £800 to 6202 (Gifts and Samples), a debit of £160 to 2201, and a credit of £960 to 2100 — no output VAT on giving them away, though input VAT on buying them in is still reclaimed. Glossy trade catalogues are zero-rated printed matter: a £1,500 invoice is a debit of £1,500 to 6203 (P.R.) and a credit of £1,500 to 2100, with nothing posted to 2201.
B2B or professional services
A consultancy pays commission to an independent, VAT-registered introducer, invoiced at £2,400 (£2,000 net): a debit of £2,000 to 6100 (Sales Commissions), a debit of £400 to 2201, and a credit of £2,400 to 2100. It sends an £84 (£70 net, £14 VAT) Christmas hamper to a top client — input VAT is reclaimed as normal, a debit of £70 to 6202, a debit of £14 to 2201, and a credit of £84 to 2100 — but because £70 is above the £50-in-a-12-month threshold for gifts to one recipient, output VAT of £14 must also be charged on handing it over, cancelling out the input VAT just reclaimed. Retaining a PR agency for media relations costs £1,200 (£1,000 net), standard-rated as a service rather than physical print: a debit of £1,000 to 6203, a debit of £200 to 2201, and a credit of £1,200 to 2100.
Retail chain
A retail chain pays store staff a sales-linked bonus through payroll — £1,850 is allocated via a payroll journal: a debit of £1,850 to 6100 and a credit of £1,850 to the wages control account, with no VAT since it's paid through PAYE. Paid search and social ads run through Google and Meta's Irish entities bring the reverse charge into play: a £2,400 spend is a debit of £2,400 to 6201 (Advertising), with VAT of £480 both added to and reclaimed from 2201 in the same return — a net nil VAT effect, but two entries rather than one. A social media giveaway buying in £480 (£400 net) of prize stock is a standard purchase entry even though the goods are given away: a debit of £400 to 6200, a debit of £80 to 2201, and a credit of £480 to 2100.
Why this matters day to day
Breaking marketing and sales-winning costs into these separate codes makes it far easier to see which channels are actually being invested in and to calculate a rough return on marketing spend against the sales it generates. Because these sit in Direct Expenses rather than Overheads, they directly affect gross profit — a useful reminder that a business's marketing spend is treated as part of the true cost of making a sale, not just a background running cost.