Pricing products and services can be daunting for your commerce clients. Discounts and promotional strategies can complicate things even further but they can also help your clients get more traffic and sales. That’s because discounting is a selling strategy–it doesn’t always mean your client has to take a loss.

In this guide, we'll go over eight discount strategies you can pitch to your commerce clients to re-engage them and help them earn more revenue during the holiday season.

1. Discounts for new subscribers

Discounts can be a great way to attract new customers. Whenever possible, they should be meaningful and align with the brand. If they enhance an interaction with your client’s brand, they won't cheapen the product or perception.

Discounts for new subscribers can help retain customers by giving them a bonus for the commitment. You can tier these types of discounts based on the customer's level of intent. For example, a client could offer Welcome and Welcome Back discounts to new subscribers and re-subscribers, respectively. This gives your client an opportunity to have a positive interaction with a customer that enhances their brand connection and can potentially lead to a sale they wouldn’t have made otherwise.

Your clients can also set up different membership experiences using Member Sites.

2. Promotions on holidays and special occasions

Special occasions are great opportunities to help out customers and drive business. Some brands offer discounts to customers on their birthdays or on the anniversary of them becoming a customer. This time of year, specifically, there’s an increase in online shoppers and they’re all looking for the best deal. With so many options for goods and services available, you have an opportunity to help your clients’ stores stand out by creating a promotional strategy.

There are many options when it comes to holiday promotional strategies. Just make sure your clients are clear on their overall pricing strategy before they lean into deep discounts. The bottom line is the bottom line, but giving discounts can be an effective strategy because it can increase customer loyalty and convert recipients into customers.

3. Discounts on bundles

If a client didn't sell as many units as they expected, they may consider bundling these items with other products. Discount bundles are a great way to increase sales and reduce overstock. They work especially well if you're selling complementary or related goods, such as wine and cheese. The holidays are a great time to offer bundled discounts because many shoppers are looking for gifts, so if they can purchase two gifts at once, that’s a win for everyone.

Discount bundles can help drive sales and increase the average order value. They don't have to be reserved for overstock items. For instance, yoga classes can be paired with apparel and mats.

Offering bundled discounts can also be used as an upsell technique. You can help clients set up related products will suggest a complementary item to shoppers. This way, the customer might be encouraged to spend a little more than they would’ve previously.

Read more about managing inventory on Squarespace.

4. Promotions on holidays and special occasions

Special occasions are great opportunities to help out customers and drive business. Some brands offer discounts to customers on their birthdays or on the anniversary of them becoming a customer. This time of year, specifically, there’s an increase in online shoppers and they’re all looking for the best deal. With so many options for goods and services available, you have an opportunity to help your clients’ stores stand out by creating a promotional strategy.

There are many options when it comes to holiday promotional strategies. Just make sure your clients are clear on their overall pricing strategy before they lean into deep discounts. The bottom line is the bottom line, but giving discounts can be an effective strategy because it can increase customer loyalty and convert recipients into customers.

5. Partnerships with aligned brands

Business partnerships can be a creative way to gain new customers. When different brands, products, and customers align, everyone can win.

Businesses can swap leads, curate and recommend products, bundle, or feature goods as a daily deal. The audiences here are already customers so there's an established level of trust.

These types of discounts can help drive traffic, increase brand exposure, and bump up sales. Clients should work with brands where there's natural alignment. To simplify the process for a partner business, prepare collateral for social posts and email blasts.

6. Retargeted discounts

Customers are busy comparing products, climbing down internet rabbit holes, taking phone calls, and living life. Retargeted discounts can help a customer regain interest and get through checkout.

No matter the reason, it's smart to reach out when someone leaves an item in their cart. Try to collect customer info with forms at the beginning of the funnel so you can bring them back with momentum.

Learn more about abandoned cart recovery.

7. Loyalty rewards

While most businesses need new customers, retention may be more vital to some businesses' success, depending on the products or services sold. It's important to treat loyal customers well so they keep coming back.

Loyalty rewards can come in a number of forms. Certain customers may have a member status that qualifies them for free shipping or bonus items. For example, returning customers may get a free purchase after buying a certain number of products.

8. Early-bird and launch discounts

When a deal won't last forever, it matters to consumers. Early-bird discounts can encourage people to make a buying decision sooner. When you offer early-bird discounts, make sure to set clear parameters on how much time customers have to act and communicate those clearly.

Similar to early-bird discounts, marking down new products is an effective way to attract early adopters. This can help clients generate product reviews that will give more conservative shoppers the social proof they need to try something new.

If your client doesn't want to open up a product launch discount to new customers, they can treat it as a loyalty reward and give repeat customers early access.

Conclusion

Discounts are often discounted as a tired marketing strategy, but there are many opportunities to make them meaningful. They can create new connections, deepen existing ones, and bring businesses together.

Squarespace simplifies the process of distributing and tracking these offerings—from inventory and customer management, to marketing and analytics.

We can’t wait to see how you help your clients thrive this holiday season and beyond.

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8 Discounting Strategies for the Holidays and Beyond