The holiday season is quickly approaching and you’re probably already making plans to avoid your in-laws, but more importantly, for a big hitting holiday campaign. 

During this 5-day weekend last year an estimated 174 million US adults went shopping and spent over $17.8 billion online. (1)

Shoppers have so many choices this holiday season, and nearly all of them are looking for deals. Brands need to find a way to break through the noise and win these shoppers, which during the holiday season, has a lot to do with promotions. 

How can brands leverage promotions effectively? We put together a few tips to squeeze the most out of your promotions this coming Black Friday and Cyber Monday weekend. 

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TIP 1: CREATE EARLY ACCESS DEALS

Stores are opening earlier and earlier on Black Friday and winning crowds with door-buster deals. Brands now have the opportunity to get further ahead by offering early access deals. Create a “Pre-Black Friday” sale and give shoppers early access to drive interest and to acquire new shoppers.

Aside from generating immediate sales, by requiring an email or mobile number to access these early special offers, you also collect valuable shopper information.

Thrive Results: During a 5-day pre-holiday campaign, a Thrive client collected 2,718 mobile numbers via a data required promotion, which generated ~$38k of incremental marketing value in addition to revenue driven from sales.

TIP 2 : BUILD PROMOTIONS WITH PROFIT IN MIND

Online and in-store promotions don’t have to erode margins; they should be designed with your brand’s key marketing goals in mind. After all, the “black” in Black Friday means profit (2).

With so many types of shopper incentives to choose from, it’s important to maintain margins and profits as the primary goal. For the upcoming holidays, try creating promotions with spending thresholds such as “$25 off when you spend $100 or more” or use bundled offers, such as “Buy 3, Get 4th item free.” All of these promotions have been proven to increase average order value while protecting the perception of your brand.

TIP 3 : CONTROL DISTRIBUTION & ATTRIBUTION OF DEALS

Single, one-time-use codes are a great way to provide an incentive while controlling the distribution of your codes. 

With 93% of millennials reporting they would look for deals during the 2018 holiday season (3), single use codes allow brands to give shoppers the deals they are already looking for. At the same time, they keep codes from going viral or becoming abused by predatory 3rd parties. 

Protect your codes and better control which shoppers receive them, by adding exclusive access for special groups of shoppers, loyalty/rewards members, or social media followers.

BONUS TIP : PERSONALIZATION

Although it’s the buzzword of the decade, leveraging machine learning technology to power your promotions can drive a significant boost in conversion. At Thrive, our clients have found that presenting their shoppers with personalized deals based on their interests not only improves their shopping experience, but also increases conversion rates by up to 178%!  

Good luck on Black Friday & Cyber Monday!