Offering Discounts to Customers: How Creators Can Optimize Sales --

Aug 4, 2022

 The last update was on August 4 2022

The selling of your digital goods or services on the internet requires the same level of preparation and planning for creating them. You need compelling marketing and a receptive audience and a dependable selling platform. What happens if all of that doesn't translate into higher sales?

An excellent place to begin is by offering discounts to customers.

Everyone loves a sale With a survey finding that 88% of American customers used coupons for discounts for 2020.

What do you need to successfully promote deals for downloads, subscriptions as well as memberships on the internet? This is what digital creators have to be thinking about prior to cutting costs.

Do not offer discount offers before considering the basics

Selling online is a great method to make money from whatever you like to do. But, remember why you're doing it to make money. You should consider the following elements when deciding whether, how, and when to offer discounts to customers.

 What is your margin of profit?

It is possible to offer your products on the internet with little upfront cost is an advantage being an online creator. Still, you need the right business strategy to succeed.

Prior to offering discounts to your customers, you must calculate:

  • The business costs (subscription charges for graphic design software social media management tools and maintenance, hosting for websites as well as selling platforms. )
  • The profit you should aim to achieve

Adding these two amounts will give you the number that you have to reach each month. This will help you figure out what to charge for your goods and then apply discounts according to.

 Who is your client?

Everybody loves sales, regardless of age, gender or financial status. However, keeping these aspects in mind can help you know which deals to offer and how to make them available.

The creation of customer personas is a excellent way to accomplish this. These are some categories to get you thinking about potential customers who are interested in your products and the best way to provide them with discounts.

  • Age
  • Gender
  • Location
  • Profession
  • Income
  • Family (marital status and children)

So how do these data help in the way to make a decision when it comes to promotions?

In the beginning, if established the monthly minimum amount you'll need to spend, estimating your customer's budget will help you focus on that discount 'sweet spot' -- an amount which entices customers but nevertheless makes a profit.

Secondly, solid buyer personas are able to help you decide which products to include in sales bundles or purchase one and get one deal.

 What is your schedule and store look?

The process of getting your merchandise in front of customer eyes is an accomplishment in itself. When you've achieved it, your first impression matters your storefront must provide background information on yourself, detailed item descriptions, and a simple checkout process. This shows legitimacy, boosts buyer confidence, and makes a lasting impression.

If you've got a variety of goods, it's important choose which you can discount for customers to be enticed to buy more. This is where having an accurate persona of the customer makes a difference: It will help determine what items serve best as a discount or offer, and which can be used for full price.

As a coach or instructor that offers free consultations and trials it is not a good idea to book your schedule to attract more clients. You will need to review your current client volume and availability before launching such promotions.

What kinds of discounts to provide

Professionals who are smart know there's more than a sale to be made when they offer discounts to clients. Getting the most out of special deals means giving an appropriate discount at the right time.

Digital downloads (Ebooks, printables, presets, sewing patterns etc. )

 Percentage reduction

It's the most common form of sale, and it's those who shop online love it the most. Recent research shows the fact that the 74% of digital coupon customers favor a percentage discount over other kinds of offers.

 What to look out for

Customers who purchase cheaper items tend to see a greater value in percentage reductions versus dollar amount discounts, even if they are the same savings. As an example, a promotion that offers $20 T-shirts for sale at 25% discount will attract much more attention than an offer of the same price at $5 off T-shirts.

 How do you use it

  • Attract new customers and grow your email list with a 10% discount on your first purchase when they sign up for your newsletter.
  • Rewards loyal customers by giving them a discount of 20% when they make the subsequent purchase.

 Fixed Discount

A different type of discount is one which provides a set amount of the price of the product. As with percentage reductions, messages are the most important thing.

 What should you look for

You can get the most value from discount coupons that are fixed in amount by applying them to more costly products. Check out how much different $50 off a 150 digital print poster appears when in comparison to offering the exact item at 33% off. You might want to consider applying this discount to more expensive products that haven't been performing consistently over the years.

 How to use it

  • Provide a predetermined discount for purchases that are at least. As an example, you can get 30 percent off any purchase greater than $100.
  • allow customers to purchase and send digital gift vouchers worth $10, $20, $50, etc.

 Buy One Buy One, Purchase One

BOGO offers are essentially offering two goods at 50% off. It's no wonder why this kind of deal is that is favored in 64% of consumers across the board. The type of discount you offer is a great way to sell items to other customers and expose your customers to goods they would have never thought of buying.

 What should you be on the lookout for

Be smart about which products you bundle and consider the needs of your customers. Does the possibility of bundling products of different categories greater than the risk of abandoning your cart? Should you be playing it safe by offering the same products even though you have to give something that may be purchased independently?

 What is it and how to utilize it

  • Send BOGO discounts to your mailing list. Offer customers a complimentary item when they purchase a new product at all price.
  • Promote Buy One, Get One deals via social media. Create a multi-slide reel of every product that consumers can mix and match to get the discount.

 Bundle discounts

Giving multiple items at a discount is a great opportunity to boost sales and improve the AOV (average purchase value). The research shows that 29% of customers would purchase an item they hadn't originally planned on purchasing if it's heavily marked down. Brick and mortar stores make use of this kind of discount to quickly move out stagnant inventory so that they can make room for the latest products.

 What to watch for

As a digital creator with infinite storage space, you must be aware of your profit margins prior to offering multiple products at a reduced cost. Remember that when it comes to bundle discounts the timing of your offer is crucial A popular strategy is offering this promotion toward the end of the buyer's journey. Once someone has decided to purchase something, you can offer similar items to purchase at a reduced price the checkout.

 What is it and how to utilize it

  • Create a pop-up on your checkout page that displays an assortment of related items.
  • Feature a bundle discount on pages for products with complementary products listed below, or in an additional sidebar.

 Limited time/supplies & seasonal offers

The internet is open 24 hours a day and this reduces the urgency needed to buy when shopping online. Utilizing discounts that are time-sensitive or with special offers that are limited in supply encourages shoppers to take action immediately. In addition, you could make use of seasonal or holiday offers to make the most of the more shoppers or to highlight products that fit certain times of year.

 What to watch out for

Plan your discount calendar ahead of the time. This helps you to plan releases of new products as well as your content on social media. Also, be careful about timings for sales duration: You want to make the sales small enough to cause urgency, but big enough to ensure adequate marketing as well as customer recognition.

 How to use it

  • Send birthday discounts to clients who have already bought from your company.
  • Give digital Christmas coupons to those on your mailing lists.
  • Join Cyber Monday, with huge discounts.
  • Incorporate sales for seasonal goods within your newsletters. As an example, if, for example, you have created vegan cookbooks offer discounts on your best soup recipes at the beginning of the fall season.

 Freebies

Though technically not a discount, freebies can be a great opportunity for sellers to build recognition and increase traffic to their store. This kind of offer is perfect for digital creators as you don't suffer any financial loss.

 What should you look out for

Everybody loves free...but the point of giveaways is to encourage your customers to buy eventually. Be sure to provide examples that showcase your finest work , and keep your customers wanting more. If, for instance, you're a fitness coach You could give your customers a complimentary daily meal program that offers only lunch options, or workout routines targeted towards one specific area.

 What are they and how to utilize them

  • Download PDF free templates on your social media networks.
  • Mix less-popular items as freebies when customers purchase items for all price.
  • Advertise free products through your newsletters to customers as well as a link to your store page for increased visitors to your site.

Subscriptions, Memberships and Software

Think offering discounts to customers only involves downloadable products? If you're an instructor, coach or software designer, there are plenty of ways for advertising memberships in your courses, and subscriptions to your software.

 Free trial/Freemium trial

A free trial of your course material or program is an effective way to draw and keep new customers.

 What should you look for

For promotions based on products understanding your target market is essential: What exactly are the potential customers looking for? How do you present them with just enough of your services or programs to get them to commit to paid choices?

 How to use it

  • Give a trial version of your program that has limited capabilities.
  • You can offer a full version your software for a limited time.
  • Promote a free trial of workout plans or classes.
  • Save money by choosing to pay each year instead of. monthly.

 Consultation for free

Consultations for free are an effective opportunity for coaches and service providers to win confidence from clients. You can offer a short, live meeting over Zoom or via an online messaging system. Customers can describe their specific issues (weight loss, nutrition, parenting issues) and you can offer a structured plan that is tailored to the needs of their clients.

 What should you look for

First and foremost, you'll be able to figure out what time frame you'll have in your schedule. Are you planning to reach a local or international audience? Time differences may be an important factor in scheduling. To address both issues make sure you advertise only limited availability (i.e. the first 10 people to respond) and make clear to what you're offering and who it's suited for.

 How to use it

  • Create a "booking' button on your store's homepage linked to Calendly or other interactive calendaring tool.
  • Free consult offers to subscribers to your mailing list that haven't previously purchased or booked with you.

Free webinaror Questions and Answers

Live events are an excellent way of getting people talking regarding your offerings. Even though you might not be able to devote enough time to each particular participant, this approach might be easier as a one-on-one consultation.

 What to look for

Pick a general topic that your audience is interested in and be prepared to address any questions! Try to give valuable information but not trying to market your products but don't get too far into specifics and keep your audience wanting to know more!

 How to use it

  • Create an event live on Facebook and promote it via your account on social media, website, and email.

What marketing channels should you employ when offering discount for customers

The most thoughtfully planned discounts will fall flat when they're not properly promoted. Utilizing the right marketing channels increases the likelihood that your offers will be noticed by your intended audience and convince them to take action.

 Social media

If you've never established a Facebook page to promote your business, this is the best time to create one. This is the primary tool for getting your products or services found.

  • Creating an Facebook company page can help to make you look more professional. It also allows millions of users across the globe to discover them. Utilize your page to announce discounts, and engage with your customers. Join relevant forums to find out about your field and increase awareness about your products. You can also make use of the platform to organize and promote free live events in addition to paid ads.
  • Instagram is the ultimate tool to capture your audience's focus, show off your merchandise or services, and drive traffic to your storefront. A recent study found that 33% of respondents said they've used discount coupons that are available on store's Instagram pages to shop on-line. Posts that highlight sales items, and add discounts inside the post's caption. Add your store's URL to your bio as an easy way of directing visitors to your website in a matter of minutes.

 Email marketing

Marketing emails are infamously resented by consumers. However, don't abandon your newsletter just yet: A surprising 81% of shoppers are actually happy to receive emails that contain sales announcements or discounts. Grow your email list by giving sign-up bonuses and freebies, then use it to send customers special discounts, and bring more traffic to your store.

 Your website , storefront, or even your storefront

For a digital artist having an appropriate space to showcase your services and products is crucial. Use social media and the email market in order to boost sales to your shopfront which gives customers a more in-depth look at you and your inventory. Use pop-ups and related window displays to announce bundles, BOGO discounts and more.

No website? No problem! Connect your shop to your social media account and instantly link your items to millions of online shoppers. Learn how simple it can be by clicking here.

On average, online shoppers who use discount codes spend 24% more than those that don't. As a digital creator you have it in your most best interest to discover an efficient and easy way for you to give discounts to customers.

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