Sales season is still an important time to get that garment, accessory or item you want at a lower price. With the rise of eCommerce and constant promotional tactics, the question arises: should you keep discounting products if prices are already low all year? How do you attract potential buyers who are used to constant promotions and discounts?
According to a report by Esade (Escuela Superior de Administración y Dirección de Empresas), consumer habits have changed. Shoppers looking for quality garments at low prices outside sales periods rose from 23.9% in 2014 to 27% in 2015. This trend shows that shoppers compare a lot, across several sites, before deciding to buy, which is a risk for multi-brand stores without competitive shipping and return policies, or that simply don’t know their own market.
With the repeal of the law regulating sales periods, stores have started offering discounts and promotions all year round.
With the repeal of the law regulating sales periods, stores have started offering discounts and promotions all year round. This, together with the economic crisis, has created a new kind of shopper who searches and compares just as in physical stores. No wonder promotions like Black Friday and Cyber Monday (November 27 and 30) were a sales success, driving up to 11% more online sales according to the Spanish Digital Economy Association (Adigital). Or that Amazon Spain recorded the busiest day in its history on November 27 (352 orders per minute) at 5:23 p.m.
So, faced with this new strategy of year-round promotions, the question arises:
Have sales lost their momentum?
Not at all. Despite constantly receiving emails with offers and discounts, online shoppers wait for January 6/7 to buy what they expect to find heavily discounted. But how do you boost sales this month, after so much Christmas spending?
In many attractive ways, but always with our audience in mind. To start with, many eCommerce stores have already got a head start and are selling at low prices days before the traditional start of the Sales (January 6/7, depending on the region), but using different methods.
Techniques for offering discounts
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Private sales for customers only. Rewarding loyalty:
Blazers, shirts, suits…Furest, the multi-brand menswear store with its own collection, is also launching a women’s section and offering a 30% discount for registered customers only.
Underwear and hosiery brand Punto Blanco has also brought its sales forward exclusively for members of its VIP Club, with 30% off the final price. Andreas’ platform bluchers and loafers also enjoy a VIP discount… In this way, these brands offer special discounts to customers days before the official start of the Sales. Other clothing brands have already adopted this practice, which lets shoppers buy Christmas gifts (if they’re last-minute) at lower prices than in December. So, with exclusive discounts for customers already registered with the store, user loyalty is rewarded.
- Let shoppers fill their cart in advance: one tip to avoid overspending during the Sales is to make a list of everything you need. The user signs up, picks the products they want to keep an eye on and waits for the Sales to start. That way, they already have what they want and only need to PAY! Brands like Oysho encourage shoppers to prepare their list so they just have to wait for the day products go on sale.
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Personalized offers:
If a user viewed a product, why not discount it just for them? Beyond offering previously viewed products, service, leisure and travel companies have the chance to hook users interested in one of their services with a personalized email marketing campaign.
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Get ahead of the Sales and discount products daily:
Another way to boost sales of selected items is to offer discounts by section, category or specific product. This gives discounted products more daily visibility. Depending on catalog size, it can be a good way to drive traffic (and sales) to sections where products aren’t moving.
And, as always, to reach every user, banners, discounts and promo codes should be shown on the homepage and even on inner category pages of the eCommerce site, as well as posted on social media. If we want people to buy, let’s tell them what’s new.
Despite eCommerce, the Sales remain one of the most anticipated moments of each season since they first appeared in the United States back in the 1930s. And you, have you made your wish list yet?
