No more $5 off a $35 purchase or $10 off a $50 purchase or whatever you have been doing; STOP IT RIGHT NOW.
Really.
At least for now.
Here’s what you do instead:
You give FREE Gift Certificates away. Say, a $10 Gift Certificate with every $50 purchase. No strings, just a nice Gift Certificate, exactly as if they’d bought one. They can use it themselves, they can give it as a present, they can add it to the gift they are buying, they can even donate it to their favorite charity.
Why?
Why do I suggest you try this?
Reason One: Everyone loves a holiday gift. Your recipients can use it themselves and feel like you have “given” them a present…even though what you have done, really, is given them a discount on their NEXT purchase.
Reason Two: An attractively packaged Gift Certificate is….giveable! They might just tuck it into a card and give it to a friend, neighbor, office-mate or relative…and you might just gain another thrilled customer.
Reason Three: Giving away Gift Certificates propels the selling of Gift Certificates. And the perception by your current clientele that yours is a shop where they can discover the perfect gift for a special someone. Just imagine: the shopper finds a cunning little [fill in the blank] that’s just right for Cousin Billie for $35, and they receive a $5 GC…which they can add to the gift package or keep for themselves or put in a greeting card for the girl who walks the dog.
You see what this does? It rewards the shopper with extra value, but rather than leaving the money in their wallet (where goodness knows it could be spent on a latte or something equally as frivolous)…it is money which will come right back to you, today or tomorrow or after the holidays. It’s festive and something fun for the shopper. It calls attention to the Gift Certificates that you sell. It’s WOM-worthy. And it may just get you a few new customers. How great is that!
So just for the season…try giving away Gift Certificates rather than reducing your prices. You can go back to your old system later on.
For more Holidays in Resale suggestions to build your consignment or resale business, we have a lovely and idea-packed PDQ.
Auntie Kate The Resale Expert 
Hello.
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Hi Sandra! Delighted that you’d like to receive more consignment/ resale info from TGtbT, but to abide by anti-spam measures, only YOU can add your name to my lists.
I actually have 2: One for this blog, where you receive an email when I post (that’s about 2x a week): sign up in the sidebar (which, if you’re on a phone, could actually be at the bottom 🙂 )
And another list is for my broadcast emails. These contain further info, special offers, and lotsalove. The sign up for that is on the web site at TGtbT.com, towards the bottom, at http://tgtbt.com/#signup
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YOU ARE TRULY AMAZING Kate!!!!
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Hmmm…Interesting idea. I normally mail a postcard coupon for customers to use Black Friday/small business Saturday to get them into my store instead of the big boxes. I only do a coupon twice a year – Black Friday and for my store’s anniversary. I’m wondering if this will provide the same incentive over the holiday weekend. I think it would be fun for my Anniversary though.
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Coupons are one way of motivating people. Gift certificates as I suggest, are another.
Usually, when we talk “coupons”, it’s something… a percentage or a dollar amount… off of a purchase for a larger amount, say, $5 off a $35 or higher purchase.
Now I’m not one to turn a coupon down. BUT, and this is a big BUT: a coupon is an incentive… a bribe, if you will… to motivate the customer to buy more.
A gift certificate, on the other hand, is first and foremost a GIFT. From the shop to a customer: $5 off anything. Whether it’s $500 or $5. Naturally, we will do our darnedest to get them to buy so much that the $5 they are redeeming will not impact our bottom line too much (and of course, they bought, in our example, $35 worth of goods to get the GC to start with).
What this promotion does:
* Gets them back another time (in our example, during holiday gift-buying season when they otherwise might not think of shopping secondhand) thus helping them develop a habit of shopping with us, and permitting them to see how we’re “a new store every time you visit”
* Gets them thinking that we gave them a GIFT… something for NOTHING… and how often does that happen nowadays? It’s a shop local, mom and pop message.
* Plants the seed that our merchandise is “gift-worthy”… even if nary a single GC you issue during your promotion is actually given to a potential new customer, perhaps she’ll start thinking “you know, they have estate jewelry that BFF Melanie might love” or “organic soap, perfect for Aunt Hattie”, thus increasing the likelihood that these shoppers will not only buy to fulfill their personal wants and needs, but come to think of your shop as a resource for presents for others.
* A GC will also be KEPT. I cannot tell you how many unredeemed 20% off Macy’s coupons I have tossed out. Big deal, I didn’t save 20% on their stuff. So? It was just a gimmick anyway, right?
But the gift card Soft Surroundings gave me? I hoarded it and fingered it and finally used it, several purchases later, for a gift for myself, something I otherwise wouldn’t have purchased, and loved ’em for it. I loved ’em so much for that, that I just yesterday bought goods worth 7 times that GC happily, ’cause they liked me enough to give me that GC. Lots more good will there than the feeling Macy’s gave me.
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As always Miss kate great idea !!! We are so very lucky for all you share 🙂 Gerri
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[…] Stop Giving Cash Off in your Shop NOW […]
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Great article! I started a program in my store where we give out frequent shopper cards which are printed on the backside of our business cards. There are 10 blocks on the card and every time a shopper makes a purchase of $25.00 or more they get a unique stamp on the card. When they get all 10 blocks stamped, they receive a $25.00 gift certificate to the store. This has been a huge success and I’ve found that it encourages shoppers to spend more just so they can get that extra stamp on the card!
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Hi Fashion S: Yes, Frequent Buyer Cards are a GREAT way to sell more OFTEN and to sell MORE, 2 of the 3 areas any retailer needs to cultivate. Great that your FBC is working so well for you! For others who don’t have the time to design theirs, or who want to know more about FBCs, take a look at our Layout Ideas Page at TGtbT.com It’ll even help you with a Variable Qualifier, a MOST valuable way to begin your FBC program!
And Fashion S, I do hope to see your shop as a Sponsor at HowToConsign.com, our consumer-oriented site that educates, highlights, and promotes our industry, soon!
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Okay, I’ve gotten a lot of emails about how shops who steer clear of “technology” can implement the Gift Certificate idea. Here’s how: Print your own.
Use something like these supplies from Paperdirect: http://www.paperdirect.com/shop.axd/SearchResults?keyword=gift+certificates&x=0&y=0
Just be sure to keep what is, after all, “scrip”, carefully secured…it’s store money, and you don’t want that pilfered!
I’m particularly fond of the “letter-top certificates” as Paperdirect calls them, like these: http://www.paperdirect.com/Carnival+LetterTop+Certificates/item_no=BCTH1694P/page_no=1/keyword=gift+certificates/shop.axd/ProductDetails … you can put a “suggestion” list on top and print the actual, giftable GC below. After all, your MAIN GOAL with these is to have the GCs gifted to a NEW potential customer, so why not emphasize the issue with a few great suggestions?
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Love it..Using it in our next ad in the Holiday Guide..Thanks Kate.
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This worked really well with our costume buy back this year, and most of them spent it right away…so our $5 purchase of their costume turned into an immediate sale and we keep the costumes for next year.
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I LOVE this idea. Thank you Kate.
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Hey Kate, question.
How do I change this snowflake Avatar pic in my posts? TIA.
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Seriously Kate that is a fab tab u lous idea. You go girl! Thanks.
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wow. once again, wow. Thank you.
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