Most people are driven by price when purchasing online. This makes it hard to convert new customers and harder to get them to come back. Naturally, your thoughts will gravitate towards using promotions and sales.

Here are some tips and tricks using promotions in Magento to better engage your audience, improve your conversation rate and average order value (AOV).

1. Send coupons to subscribers of your mailing list

Newsletters are one of the most powerful marketing tools but trying to get people to sign up can be hard. One technique is to offer a small discount after a customer has signed up and verified their email address. This way customers immediately get something back and you gain an opportunity to re-market to them at a later date.

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Here is an example on the Adidas website where they offer a small discount in exchange for a customer subscribing.

2. Offer discounts for people who spend more

A common mistake is to create coupons and discounts that can be applied to any order value. This might work well for some but for others, can significantly reduce profit margins.

A possible solution is to create discount coupons with the minimum order value. A good tip is to create a coupon that is a little higher than your average order value.

So, for example, if your average order value is £40 you might want to create a coupon for a 15% discount when people spend over £50. This will make sure your margins are safe and encourage customers to spend that little more to apply a discount coupon.

3. Automatically apply coupons by email

Anything that requires people to do something extra is a barrier to completing their order. Entering a coupon code is no different. When offering coupons by email you might consider automatically applying them to their basket to make the checkout process a little easier.

4. Product bundle discounts

Bundling products together is a great way of increasing your average order value and offering discounts and promotions to your customer.

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You’ve probably seen this type of promotion on sites such as Argos, Currys and Amazon where the customer receives a discount when ordering from a specific group of products.

Not only does this make the customer happy, but it’s also a great way of selling add-on accessories with a higher margin.

5. Multi-buy discounts

Everyone loves a buy one (or more), get one free sale. If you have the profit margins this can be a very lucrative way to get people to bulk purchase items.

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Remember it doesn’t just have to be a “buy one get one free sale”, you could offer “buy three and get one free” or “buy two and get one for £1”. People love these kinds of discounts because the perceived savings are high.

6. Offer free shipping

Most sites now offer free shipping and it can be a make or break for some customers. Offering free shipping is a great way to encourage people to order from your site but the margin on the items doesn’t always allow for it on all products.

Consider offering free shipping on orders above a certain amount. Similarly, to use a discount coupon, you might want to price free shipping just above your average order value.

It’s important to consider the implementation of this offer. Make sure it is very prominent on your website. At iWeb, we normally place important USP’s below the main navigation. A cute tip is to add a “Spend £2.93 more for free delivery” message on the basket to encourage people to increase their order value.

7. Reward existing customers with discounts

Not all sales need to have immediate gratification. Consider marketing to existing customers to offer them unique discounts. Building a relationship with customers who have previously ordered will encourage them to purchase more through your website in the future.

8. Consider a points or rewards scheme for redemption later

We all have a Tesco Clubcard right? Where we collect points for future redemption against something. Well, you could set up the same for your eCommerce website. If you have lots of repeat orders, customers can collect points that they can exchange in the future. You can also tie points into sales or promotions by offering double points on selected products.

9. Limited time sale or product of the day

Flash sales have become really popular in the last few years thanks to the likes of Groupon, LivingSocial and more recently Amazon’s Deals of the Day. The concept is you discount a product for a certain period of time before it reverts back to its original price.

It’s great for boosting sales and for promoting yourself on social media. Also, deal sites such as HotUKDeals can drive additional footfall giving your whole catalogue additional exposure.

10. Member-only sales that require registration

Giving members exclusive offers can help your store look more desirable – giving the appearance of being part of an ‘exclusive club’. This allows you to reward customers loyalty with closed sales. This can be particularly popular with premium brands.

Christopher Ward (a premium watch brand) regularly offers exclusive sales to those who have previously purchased. You also receive a regular magazine though the letterbox.

Sales are everywhere but by being a little more creative you can create sales that don’t hurt your bottom line, increase social media interaction and attract customers who shop with you again and again.

Want more?

Get in touch with us to learn about tailoring promotions with Magento to your marketing strategy so you can achieve those desired business goals. We’re always happy to help!

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