What will you do for Valentine’s Day this Year?

Don’t let your customers alone with this question and help them to create memories they will remember for life.

Did you know that Valentine’s Day sales in the United States reached over 21 billion USD in 2021?

We can actually see the increasing popularity for this romantic holiday across the globe. For example, Spaniards spend an average of $150 on Valentine’s Day.

Seeing these numbers, it should be no surprise that Valentine’s Day is actually the 2nd largest commercial holiday after Black Friday.

But what can marketers do in terms of promotions to leverage this day for their brand?

Let’s look at another interesting statistic.

The largest part of Valentine’s spending (in the US it was 10.6 billion USD) went towards experiences, such as a restaurant visit or a night at a hotel.

So, why not give people what they want? If people are intending to spend their Valentine’s budget on experiences, you can capture their attention by offering these experiences for free when they buy your product.

This way you can actually benefit from the massive Valentine’s Day spending, even if your product does not fall into the convential V-Day gift category.

Let’s look at some experiences you could offer.

A Romantic Night Out

Now granted, due to the restrictions that are in place in many countries because of the pandemic, some of these options might not be possible in 2021. However, that does not mean that you can’t offer your customers an experience. Just turn a night out into a night in.

A Romantic Night IN

• Dinner delivery vouchers
• An online mixology class for two
• A free movie download for a romantic movie night
• Voucher for groceries for a fancy home made dinner
• A private chef
• A wine and cheese tasting gift-box
• etc.

These are just a few of the many possibilities to offer your customers a great experience with their loved one.

By doing so your brand is connecting with your customers on an emotional level and leaving a lasting impression.

But it’s not only about building a loyal customer base, it’s also about receiving a good return on investment. Let’s have a look at the numbers behind these rewards.

BUDGET

You are probably thinking that offering an experience like that for free would cost too much and you don’t have it in your budget. We’re here to tell you otherwise.

Let’s look at movie tickets with popcorn as an example. The standard price for movie tickets with popcorn is about $30. However, the cost to your brand for bundling your product with this reward would not be $30. Depending on the quantity, redemption ratio, redemption process etc. the actual price would be somewhere between 2 to 5 Dollars. The perceived value for your customer is still $30, but the actual cost is a fraction. Sounds too good to be true? Have a look at the De’Longhi case study, where we were able to offer a free international flight for $48.

CONCLUSION

To summarize, there are three main take-aways:

1. Recognize the opportunity
Valentine’s Day is becoming more important for people and spending for this special day are going up. Customer-centric businesses will recognize this opportunity to connect with the consumer over the 14th of February.

2. Connect emotionally
What people are looking for on Valentine’s Day is an experience. Offer your customers exactly that as a reward when they buy your product and you will build an emotional connection with them.

3. High perceived value for any budget
An experience based reward promotion can be done with any budget, no matter how small. While the method varies, the marketing message stays strong.

Of course, promotions take time to plan and prepare. So, by the time you read this you might not be able to pull an experience based reward campaign off for the 14th of February.

However, the same underlying principles can be equally effective for other holidays, such as Easter, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day and so on.

Just start planning your promotions from the consumer’s point of view and you will see your brand grow as a result.

Would you like to find out how we can help you bring your sales promotion to the next level? Then schedule a free consultation today and get some unique ideas that will help you stand out from your competition!