Black Friday and Cyber Monday discounts are great for the shopper and create a much-needed sales boost for the retailers. But, on the downside, they’ve become an annual expectation, so many consumers hold off making full-price purchases in anticipation of a forthcoming discount.
Constant discounting or low pricing is a risky strategy. It squeezes profitability and doesn’t create loyalty. Customers that want the lowest price don’t stay with one provider. Instead, they switch as soon as there’s a better deal.
So, what can you do to hold your pricing and differentiate your business from the competition?
Offer a guarantee.
Create an assurance for your customers that makes it a no-brainer for them to buy your products or use your services. For example, two years ago, I chose to install a boiler that was £500 more expensive than the other model I was offered simply because of the 10-year warranty that came with it.
Guarantees may seem only relevant to product-based businesses, but every company can explore some form of a warranty as part of their marketing offering.
How to create your marketing guarantee
Follow this five-step process to form your guarantee:
- Competitor research – what are your competitors offering?
- Identify your strengths – what area of your business is a strong point?
- Focus on the results – what good things happen when customers use your products or services? Answer in specific detail and then guarantee that outcome.
- Choose a payback – create an attractive assurance that won’t cost you much but will have a high perceived value. For your guarantee to work, the retribution must be fast and easy for customers to get.
- Test and monitor – test and measure how well your guarantee is performing so you can tweak it if necessary.
A good guarantee must be:
- unconditional,
- easy to understand and communicate,
- meaningful to the customer,
- simple and painless to invoke and collect on.
A guarantee sets clear standards and expectations for your customers and builds their loyalty. So, what can you guarantee?