The idea of a flash sale may have originated in the world of commerce, but there is no reason why a bricks and mortar store can’t create a sense of urgency among its fans using this technique.  The key is to make the offer very exciting so that consumers feel the need to respond right away.

One option is to offer goods that are in limited supply on a first come, first serve basis during the sale’s time period.  If you’ve just gotten a shipment in and know that it will sell out quickly, you can either use social media or an email blast to let customers know that they need to act fast.

The other option is of course to offer a significant discount for a limited amount of time.  This may motivate the type of shopper who likes to get a good deal and acts on impulse.  When deciding what to offer think about what is most likely to appeal to this type of customer.  You would probably do better with products aimed at women, I would guess, and perhaps something that is rarely offered on sale.

Unlike an ecommerce store, your shop stands to benefit from having the customer rush into your shop to take advantage of the offer. While she is there she is likely to look around and will hopefully find other products at full price to purchase.

Keep in mind the time of day your customers like to shop, and make sure they will have time to make it into the store.  Even though an online flash sale is often just a few hours, you might want to make yours last a whole day.   It is equally important to make sure that you are likely to have enough product to last the entire length of time of the sale.  When Amazon ran out of featured items within seconds of the Amazon Prime Day promotion beginning, consumers were not amused. 

In a way a flash sale is a bit like a loss leader — the classic lure of offering a staple item such as milk (in a grocery store) at a low price in order to bring in customers.  Loss leaders are sometimes even priced at below cost in order to make the offer truly amazing.  A blog posting by Suzanne Kearns on the the QuickBooks site will give you some tips if you are considering using loss leaders in your store.

You need to have a large enough following on social media, or a good size email list, to make a flash sale effective.  But if your offer is good enough, you will hopefully get shoppers sharing the information with their friends.  Creating a little retail excitement can go a long way to helping you compete in today’s market.

Happy Retailing,

Carol “Orange” Schroeder