Get the most out of daily deal campaigns
Daily deal campaigns can be a valuable part of your overall marketing mix, as long as you do your research and ensure the deal is properly structured.
Using a daily deal site such as Scoopon or Living Social is a good way to market a business, but there are some important things you must consider before signing up.
Part of the whole
Daily deal campaigns can have beneficial results if they are part of an overall marketing plan for your business. Ideally, your marketing plan might also include social media marketing, search engine optimisation, online advertising, print advertising, direct mail, email and SMS marketing, and – where possible – radio and TV advertising, media and publicity.
Expense, not profit
What is essential to understand is that any daily deal campaign is a marketing expense rather than a means for instant profit. Your business is essentially paying for a database of new clients. In effect, if you can break even on your daily deal campaign then you are already ahead.
The key to making your daily deal campaign truly successful – and where the profit lies – is in ensuring customers return to your business.
Ways to reduce risks:
- Plan the campaign and do the mathematics (see below)
- Limit the maximum number or timeframe of coupons
- Control the promotion and presentation of your offer
- Negotiate the revenue split with the daily deal site – it is surprising how infrequently small businesses attempt to negotiate the terms
Want more articles like this? Check out the online marketing section.
Understand how daily deal sites operate
If you have not done so already, sign up to a few daily deal sites and take note of the offers and the advertisers. Follow them on their Australian social media pages (Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn). Look at what customers are saying on their social media pages as well as in other places (e.g. Coupon Advisor). Ask your own family and friends about their experiences as buyers or sellers, positive or negative. It is often easier to find negative feedback than positive, so try to find out some of the positive experiences people have had with daily deals.
Read about a daily deal campaign case study here.
Do the maths
Calculate the outcomes for the best- and worst-case scenarios – will your overall campaign be profitable or break even? Breaking even can be a great result if it has brought new loyal customers through your door.
Shop around
There are lesser-known daily deal sites that specialise in certain products and services and offer advertisers a more targeted customer audience than others. For example, there is a daily deal site that exclusively sells restaurant deals.
How are your competitors advertising?
You may gain a competitive edge by using an advertising medium they have not yet used. Alternatively, your competitors might be avoiding daily deal sites for good reason, such as where they are unsuited for the relevant category of products.
Daily deals can be a valuable addition to your overall marketing strategy; just be sure to research what makes a good campaign and what deal site is the best fit for your business.
What’s your experience of daily deal campaigns as a consumer or business owner?
Comments