What is the right offer?

Be sure to pick up some peanut butter.

I went to the grocery store yesterday and picked up a few odds and ends. Mostly I was there to get some bread and cheese, although I knew of a dozen things that I could pick up if I had the time, but alas I did not (or so I thought). I picked out the whole wheat nut bread, the cheese, a package of tortillas and a couple avocados (on sale for $.99 cents each, not bad) and headed for the aisle with the least amount of drama. I picked #3 for many reasons, not the least of which had to do with the friendly way the checker was talking to each customer. As I started to pile my special selections onto the magic conveyor belt, I remembered that my wife had handed me a coupon a few days back, just in case I had a chance to stop by the grocery store.

I reached into my wallet and looked at the coupon for $10 off. Shiny and calling to me as long as I spent a minimum of $50 dollars and before November 13th. So I added up the things before me in my head (coming to approx $15) and started to put my stuff back into a cart and headed back into the store to get another $35 dollars in groceries, so I could get my $10 off. Kind of a pain I'll grant you, especially since I was in line already, but for me it was a great offer, one that demanded action and knowing full well that I had a bunch of other items I COULD pick up (or should pick up), it made much more sense for me to go back into the store and go grab the napkins, hamburger meat and organic peanut butter that I knew we needed, plus a few other things I figured it couldn't hurt to get now.

When the offer drives the sale.

Discounts in general are always subject to the stipulations that are placed on them, which is why I hate to shop in grocery stores that "require" you to sign up for a "free" card in order to get special pricing, I would much rather not give out my marketing and shopping habits to a nameless/faceless computer program and prefer to shop in places that make it easier to get in and out without those hassles. But in the case of the coupon, well that was different by golly and I wasn't going to let it expire or forget to use it, so when I had to option, I took it.

$10 off a min purchase of $50 knocks a solid percentage off of the bill and it's aggressive stance forced me to not only acknowledge it, but to react. It DROVE the SALE, and that is a very good thing. Wouldn't you like your customer to feel that they NEED to buy something from you, which is always better than wanting to buy something from you (trust me, it is).

Why FREE isn't the best choice.

I was the Training Director for a large chain of video stores in the early 80's, started as an Assistant Manager for the first store and opened multiple locations as Store Manager, ultimately training management and personnel for each new location (over 20 locations at one point). We worked on many promotional ideas to bring in new customers to pick up the latest in home video (yeah, VHS, I know...) and one of the things that proved itself over and over again, was the truth that FREE wasn't always the best choice. When giving out coupons for a FREE rental, we were inundated with concerns and questions about the other shoe. Y'know, the one that was ready to drop unsuspectingly on the customer's head.

We had so much trouble trying to give out FREE rentals that we ultimately discontinued the practice, though when we instituted direct mail campaigns with rent one, get one free, customers flocked to the store to redeem them.

FREE, people couldn't grasp - it seemed fake or phony and everyone wondered what the "catch" was, even when there wasn't one, but paying for something and getting something in return turned out to be not only more reasonable, but there was no explaining to do, no hidden agenda or secret handshake needed, this offer wasn't in code. This offer DROVE the SALE and we played on variations but never returned to a FREE rental again.

Make the promotion fit the customer.


Back at the grocery store I knew I had other things to pick up, but in the rush to get in and get out, all I wanted to do was head to the line and go home. Until I really thought about the coupon offer. Just like the video rental coupon, this promotional offer truly fit the customer and made me recognize that for just a few more dollars, I could save over 1/5 off my bill. The expiration date, the size of the discount, all of it together made it a promotion that worked.

Whether as a print ad or an in-store flier, be sure to consider the customer when designing your promotional offers. What would be meaningful to them? How can it help drive sales back into your store? Is the offer for new or existing customers and how should the offer be different for each. Would a date specific sale make more sense and if so, who are you targeting?

In every case you have to be flexible and try out many variations until you find a promotion that works for you, but whatever you do, be sure to keep it fresh, never make the same offer every month, because your customers will come to expect it and ultimately discount your discounted promotion. Evolve, change and promote your business in every way possible, and maybe your next offer will keep them coming back for more.

Until next time,

Sinohui Hinojosa
Creative Director
Emerging Artist Productions