The art of using coupon codes instead of sales

By Nickizzle

Theres a secret weapon sitting on most e-commerce platforms out there, it isn’t plastered all over the site but sits rather snuggly between the cart and the checkout. I’m talking about the coupon code box…also known as voucher codes, promotion codes, discount codes – I think I’ve seen many more variations too!

Don’t be quick to dismiss it as something you just give to your friends, employees and family – it can actually prove to be a very powerful tool.

Let’s put our hands up – how many of us looking for a bargain, search around for a coupon code on discount sites when they see the box? The answer “yes” will be a frequent occurance – maybe even more than you think.

Recent research conducted by Helen Legatt on behalf of Coupon Crazy has shown that 94% of adults have used a coupon code to make an online purchase. As soon as I see the box, I immediately check Hot UK Deals to see if I can get my purchase cheaper!

So I’ve shown how it can be of massive benefit to you as a person when making a purchase, but what about your business?

Whilst I still see sales as an effective tool and something you can target more to specific products, the coupon code also has a lot of potential – let me explain why.

Your customers do the publicity for you!

It’s hard to believe that promoting your store can be this easy, but it is! If you have a good base of users already, it is likely that some of them are using discount sites already and will post your codes to these sites for your behalf – otherwise you may have to do it yourself. Send out a newsletter to your existing customers saying something along the lines of “thank you for shopping with us, here’s 20% off your next order – the code is XXX-XXXX-XXX” – if you don’t see your code(s) appearing on discount sites shortly after (a week or 2), just add them yourself.

Even if your products are more expensive than your competitors, as customers think they are getting such a good deal straight away – they would be more inclined to make the purchase without checking price comparison sites.

Set an expiry date

Shoppers will always be more inclined to buy something when the pressures on. Set an expiry date for a month or two later – you can always run another promotion shortly after.

The research mentioned earlier also shows that a staggering 95% of coupon codes are found to be expired when entered, however very surprisingly, 57% of these shoppers still go ahead with the purchase…the perfect crime?! Remember though, if you are promoting a coupon code to expire on a certain date – don’t expire it sooner, or you could end up with many unhappy shoppers and bad reputation.

See an increase in returning customers

Customers feel more valued when you give them an offer that appears tailored to them – in addition to a newsletter, run special promotions for users on social media streams like twitter and facebook.

Theres no doubt in my mind that this method of shopping has become more popular and we’ll see many more companies adopting this technique in preference over standard sales – everyone does sales now, they are meaningless – get ahead of the game.

Don’t treat your clients or colleagues like idiots

By Nickizzle

I’ve seen it happen in the past – something even I’m guilty of having done myself…treating clients and colleagues like they won’t understand what you have to say.

You’ll be surprised to learn that people can handle a lot more than what the tech-heads think. Hopefully, with a few of these pointers you can learn to work with your customers to achieve a perfect result without a big list of changes at the end!

Customers are not inferior

Just because they don’t understand the in’s and out’s of developing doesn’t mean they can’t understand (at least, with a bit of guidance).

If you take the time to guide and educate them, then you may find the whole process is a lot easier in the long run – your customers will be able to see where you are coming from and you can work to their goals without having to spend weeks refining the end product just because “it didn’t work the way they thought it would.”

Be patient

Simply saying “it won’t work because the server load is too high” isn’t good enough. It takes patience to explain why something can’t be done a certain way and you need to explain it all – if they don’t know what a server is, explain it to them. If they don’t know what memory, etc all are – you need to let them know. Explain it to as greater lengths as you can.

If they still don’t understand, they will most likely just give you a nod and accept that it has to be done your way – simply because you have tried to make the effort to explain as opposed to saying “because I said so.”

Try to avoid Jargon

Most clients will understand what a Hard Drive or Memory is, but make sure they do before you start using terminology like this – maybe throw in a subtle “do you know what that is?” when you say it – but try to avoid sounding patronising.

Make sure they understand

Quite often I’ve had clients or colleagues just nod and pretend they understand just because they don’t like to come across as lacking knowledge. Keep questioning them like with the above “do you know what that is?” and make sure they entirely understand what you are telling them. They won’t feel stupid if you ask them, unless of course you say it after every sentence

Talk to them in person

Don’t e-mail or IM them to explain something, it just won’t work. Meet up with them in person to discuss functionality in more detail, preferrably with the work in question at hand to help visualise your points.

Text just doesn’t work…it doesn’t allow for the fine details and usually results in a lot of assumptions.

So talk to your clients and colleagues, explain things to them fully and you’ll find that in the long run it will save time!