Don't let your promotions fall flat - here's why

In the blink of an eye, we're already nearly halfway through the year.

This means we've got a ton of upcoming events to plan promos around.

Father's Day, Independence Day, Back to School Season, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Black Friday…

The list goes on.

The truth is…

Planning a successful promotion needs more than throwing together a discount code.

Here's where most brands go wrong:

Marketers look at data in silos.

They don't account for offline sales, which may be cannibalizing online revenue. 

They set CPA targets thinking about profitability goals.

They fail to adjust for conversion lag, especially for high-ticket items.

And worst of all, they don't compare year-over-year performance.

If you’re a serious brand, you want to be thinking long-term.

Without that context…

How can you see if your promotion is truly successful?

Think about it:

If you're not carefully analyzing your promotional performance, you might be pouring money into ads that aren't driving conversions.

Or wasting resources on underperforming channels.

The stakes are high, and the margin for error is slim.

These events only come once a year.

We've run hundreds of successful promotions for clients.

So, we thought we’d share a few mental models that have allowed us to grow our brands yearly.

1. Setting a benchmark

When planning a promotion, looking at the previous year's data is crucial.

Compare the promotion period to the same timeframe the prior year.

This gives you a benchmark for expectations.

What do you anticipate this year regarding volume and profitability compared to last year?

Analyze the data in both Google Analytics and Ads.

In Analytics, look at overall business performance.

In Google Ads, dive into the campaign specifics.

See how Google Ads performed during last year's promotion.

Was tracking the same?

You need to ensure you can compare the results when the sales come round.

2. Live tracking

Now, here is where we want to get into the meat of it.

When the promotion is live, keep a close eye on the performance.

Is revenue down compared to last year?

Find out why.

Look at metrics like conversion rate, average order value, and sessions.

A decreased conversion rate is a red flag.

Increased sessions from top-of-funnel channels like TikTok could be bringing lower-quality traffic.

If online sales are down across channels, not just paid search, this suggests an issue with the promotion itself.

Perhaps the offer isn't as compelling as last year's.

Another important factor is the impact of conversion lag, especially for high-AOV products.

Recent conversions may be much lower than conversions by time since many conversions happen weeks after the initial ad click.

Finally, align with your targets and goals.

If CPA targets aren't adjusted and conversion rates increase, Google may scale spending while hitting the same CPA.

Great if the goal is maximizing volume, but not if profitability is the main goal.

For a lot of brands, these promotional periods make up a massive chunk of their revenue year-on-year.

This month, we’re offering free account audits for a few brands.

You’ll get a complete review of your ad account.

And we’ll give you an action plan for the next 90 days, no strings attached.

Click here if you’re interested.

See you in the next one.

Jackson,

CEO of Echelonn.

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