Occasions such as Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and Christmas are always associated with sales and discounts in the world of shopping. In fact, thousands of people make their major purchases exclusively during these times, and not seeing any discounts might cause disappointment.
In Q4, mailboxes are filled with 30% off coupons, and brands join in a race to offer the best deals. If you've decided to skip it this year, that's perfectly fine. But you still need a strategy for the festive season to remain relevant and top of mind for your customers.
When you shouldn’t run a discount campaign
Before discussing anything else, let’s see the situations when you shouldn’t run a discount campaign.
Luxury brands
Luxury brands such as Gucci, Prada, and Rolex consistently avoid running promotional offers or discount campaigns. They ensure product scarcity and refrain from offering discounts to maintain their luxury image. This approach ensures that every transaction feels like an investment in luxury rather than just a purchase.
If your brand has a similar story, not running a discount campaign can reinforce its positioning as a ‘true luxe’ brand.
Conscious brands
Eco-conscious brands like Veja or Patagonia choose to opt out of Black Friday, too. Since 2023, Veja has been running a Repair Friday campaign and offers to fix worn-out sneakers of any brand for free.
Patagonia are pioneers in anti-consumerism – they never discount their products on Black Friday, arguing that price drops drive overproduction and harm the planet. Instead, they encourage their customers to buy pre-loved gear and repair their own clothes. The brand also donates to environmental grassroots groups to support their cause
Low margin products
Another reason to avoid running discount campaigns is your product margin. For brands with tight margins, offering discounts could actually harm their business. Unless you’re a cash-rich startup, it’s generally better to run a modest and sustainable operation.
Brand story
Brands tend to have their own unique stories and identities, and not offering any discounts can be part of that identity.
Take Fathom Analytics as an example: they clearly explain why they never plan to offer discounts, yet people still love and use their product.
Value customers who bought at regular price
While discounts typically please most consumers, they can also upset those who recently purchased the same product from you at the original price.
Situations like this may lead your customers to believe they were overcharged, creating a negative perception of your brand and hurting brand loyalty. So if you do run a Black Friday sale, make sure to segment based on last purchase and exclude recent buyers (or offer them something else instead).
What to do when you aren’t going for discounts
Now that we know when you shouldn’t offer a discount, let’s explore which strategies you can use instead.
Give more instead of charging less
Create product bundles, offer a gift with every purchase, free or faster delivery, or extra time/value for the same price. For SaaS and creators, this could be a bonus resource, an extra month of subscription, or a free onboarding call.
This is a win-win strategy. You move your stock, keep your regular prices and maximise your sales, and your customers are still getting a great deal.
Convey message with clarity
If you’ve decided not to run any sales or discounts, then the first thing you should do is make a public announcement to address all your customers who are probably waiting for a sale to go live.
You can either use your social media channels or send out a newsletter announcing that there will be no discounts along with a quick explanation.
Here’s an example of a post on X (formerly Twitter) by a solopreneur announcing the decision not to offer any discounts for Black Friday or Cyber Monday, along with the reasoning behind it.
Note: While most of the messaging was acceptable, some areas could benefit from refinement, as indicated in the annotated image below.
This approach will not only provide clarity to your customers but also motivate those waiting for a sale to make a purchase.
Continue your marketing campaigns
In addition to being open, as a brand, you should continue marketing even when there are no offers or discounts available. Keep showing up in people's mailboxes as usual, and perhaps take this time to tidy up your list and focus on your biggest fans for these campaigns.
You should also run dedicated email marketing campaigns throughout this period to ensure brand visibility and engagement. These campaigns can include personalised product recommendations, the brand story behind not running sales and updates about new products or services.
Moreover, you can use your other marketing channels, like social media, to reinforce your brand strategy with hashtags like “#noblackfriday”. In your posts, you can continue talking about the reasons behind not having discounts.
Here’s an example of how occasions can be creatively linked to products.
Charity instead of discounts
If you fall into a category where not doing discounts is a choice, this might be the right alternative. You can donate to charity for every sale you make during the holidays, adding a feel-good factor to purchases.
This is also a great way to ensure that your brand and your community help those less fortunate when the whole world celebrates.
For example, here’s a blog post by WEGLOT, a SaaS company that donates 50% of its profits during Black Friday and Cyber Monday to various charities.
In 2022 they were able to raise 52K euros, which showcases the extent to which people support such causes. This can be a strong alternative to just offering discounts.
A noteworthy fact: at EmailOctopus, we believe in giving back to the world we live in. Visit our dedicated page to learn more about how we contribute.
Conclusion
While sales and discounts are common during the festive seasons, it’s also important to recognise when they may not align with your brand’s objectives or identity.
Communicating clearly that you’re not offering discounts can help build trust with your customers. Innovative marketing and offering other options, like charity initiatives, can increase brand loyalty and show your dedication to your customers and society. Use these strategies to handle the holiday season while staying true to your brand values.
