At long last, I have discovered a company that knows how to use Groupon to their advantage. Too many businesses have fallen into the trap of getting “new customers” via Groupon at the expense of losing out on revenue from the discount and then perhaps never seeing those customers again.
Want to know a good way to use Groupon to your advantage? Then you will appreciate looking at The Body Shop strategy.
At the end of year, The Body Shop knows many people are looking to buy and give gifts. And many of those shoppers want a good deal – they want to give a nice gift and get a deal if they can. I’m one of those people. My mom always would buy gifts at the after-Christmas sales for the next holiday or birthday. That’s good ol’ New England thrift!
But I digress. The Body Shop is smart. They use the holiday time to put out Groupons that must be redeemed by December 20. You pay $10 for a $20 Groupon to The Body Shop. That’s a good deal. Those who buy the Groupon then go into store pick up a few items and voila they have some great gifts (for men and women, by the way).
Sure, The Body Shop doesn’t make much if you only spend $20 at the store, but here’s what I’ve observed:
- The staff is trained to be very helpful to Groupon holders – they embrace the shopper, instead of treating them with distain, as often happens with many companies who use Groupon.
- They have priced bundles and deals inside the store to compel the shopper to spend at least $30-$40 to get an even better deal – who can resist? (That entices the shopper to increase his final purchase amount.)
- An additional benefit for The Body Shop: They get shoppers to come into the store and look around and sample their merchandise. The shopper may not be a Body Shop regular (me, again!) but likes their products and knows they are good gifts. While the shopper is there, they may buy something for themself or at least think about returning to the store another time (for a sale that they don’t have to split with Groupon).
- Then there is the gift recipient. The person who receives the gift the shopper bought at The Body Shop uses the product and may enjoy it enough to go back to The Body Shop and buy more or buy something else.
I think this strategy is pure marketing genius. It makes the shopper / gift giver happy and it entices future purchases from the shopper and the gift recipient. What’s better than that?!
I’m grateful to see this thoughtful strategy in place.
Way to go Body Shop — great products made without testing on animals and a smart marketing strategy!
