This is arguably the most “boring” issue in this series.
Because I’m going to give you a solid “how to” education. To lay out the 5-part structure that makes a Promotional Campaign (aka Launch) profitable.
In my experience, all successful (profitable) Promos come with 5 phases:
Phase 1 – Prelaunch
This is 1-3 days before you open the cart.
This is when you prime the prospects by implanting seeds of belief.
~ Why should they love your brand
~ Why is your product more expensive (or cheaper)
~ What makes your brand unique
etc
The question you’re asking yourself is…
“What do I want my prospects to know, understand, and believe before they see the offer?”
(This phase is very different when you sell a physical vs a digital product. For digital products, you want to tease the prospects as early as possible. But for e-commerce, not necessary. The sweet spot I’ve found is 1~3 days.)
Phase 2 – Open Cart
This is from the moment you open up the offer… to the first one-third of the promo.
But never more than 3 days.
This means…
If you’re doing a 3-day flash sale, the Open Cart Phase is the 1st day.
If you’re doing a 15-day BFCM, the Open Cart Phase is the first 3 days.
The prospects buying in this phase are usually your long-term fans. The loyal repeat customers who already trust you… and only need to know the offer.
You should send at least 2 emails a day during this phase.
I prefer 9 am and 6 pm.
Phase 3 – Middle Promo
This is where most e-commerce mess up.
They think –
“The longer I run my promo, the more I’ll make.”
That is why you often see 2-4 weeks-long promotions in the e-commerce world.
(Since when did BFCM start on Oct 28?!)
But this is NOT true.
Extending the launch for more weeks ONLY extends the Middle Promo. But the Middle Promo is usually when sales dip… and everything stagnates.
In this period…
You should be sending 1 email a day…
…and if you are a brilliant storyteller, maybe 2.
(I’ve helped a client send 60… yup, you heard it right, SIXTY emails in a 26-day promo. But this takes extra planning… and a lot of dead brain cells. Not worth it in most cases.)
Bonus Tip:
There are ways to boost the middle promo. Such as running flash sales inside a longer promo. But this requires careful planning and balancing of the emails.
Phase 4 – Close Cart
This is the last one-third… at most 3 days… leading up to the deadline.
This is when FOMO kicks in.
When urgency peaks.
When hesitating, on-the-fence prospects make the move.
In this phase, all you need to focus on is reminding the deadline… ideally in an entertaining way.
You should be sending at least 2 emails per day during the Close Cart Phase… and sky’s the limit on the last day.
I usually do 3… but I’ve seen up to 9 emails in one day.
Phase 5 – Post Launch
This is the most neglected phase.
Most business owners think:
“Sales over. Why would I talk about it anymore?”
But this phase is critical IF you want to ever sell your product at full price.
Remember, you just hammered the prospects with a ridiculously good deal.
(If it wasn’t a ridiculously good deal, why bother running the promo at all?)
Now, you are fighting against your own deal.
People know what’s “possible.”
30% off. 50% off. 50% off + mystery gifts.
How do you shift their mindset from “I’ll be paying too much if I buy now”…
…into “The full price is still a very good deal.”
The magic happens in this phase.
You send 1 email per day… for 1-2 days in this phase. Then, you can transition into your regular campaign frequency.
Okay. This is a lot of information.
Read it again, and let it sink in.
Tomorrow, I’m going to walk you through what to write in each phase.
To be continued…
– WYH