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Newsletter #927: The “More Than Just a Deal” Issue

[Welcome back to the Damn, I Wish I’d Thought of That! newsletter. This is text of the great issue all of our email subscribers just received. Sign yourself up using the handy form on the right.]

Everyone loves talking about a great discount. There are entire websites devoted to them and bloggers who chase them down — there’s even such a thing as “extreme couponers.” In a world full of deals, before you throw out another random discount, why not find a way to make it remarkable?

Here are some awesome ways to give your customers a deal:

1. To make up for your mistakes
2. To help someone out
3. To make people laugh
4. Check it out: The Up-Goer Five Text Editor

1. To make up for your mistakes

Using a discount is a great way to show you’re serious about a promise. Swedish bus company Swebus offered a 1% discount on bus tickets for every minute the bus was late. Nobody likes when their bus is late, but Swebus gave their customers something better to talk about.

The lesson: Remarkable discounts can back up remarkable guarantees.

Learn more: Brand Flakes for Breakfast

2. To help someone out

Getting your bike stolen is awful. At State Bicycle Co. they try to lessen the blow by offering $100 off for customers who submit a police report of the theft when buying their new bike. That’s something people will love to share with their friends to try to help them feel better. It’s also a great way for State Bicycle Co. to start off a relationship of goodwill with their new customers.

The lesson: It’s this kind of coupon that makes you think of your friend who had their bike stolen even if it’s not immediately relevant to you.

3. To make people laugh

To get people to talk about their purifying air conditioners, Argentina’s BGH offered a coupon for customers who needed them the most: people with big noses. Customers can put their faces inside of a giant nose booth that holds a button just out of reach from their face. If their nose can push the button, a siren goes off and an employee will bring them a coupon. That’s a promotion that actually gets people talking, recruiting their friends to try it out, and gathering around the store to see if their noses measure up. This discount didn’t have a lot to do with air conditioners, but it did spread a lot of great word of mouth.

The lesson: People love to talk about companies with a great sense of humor.

Learn more: PSFK

4. Check it out: The Up-Goer Five Text Editor

Explaining a complex idea is even more difficult when you can only use the 1,000 most-used words to do it. You can try it out with this text editor or read how other people explain stuff like Hamlet, the moons of Saturn, or parliamentary democracy.

Check it out: The Up-Goer Five Text Editor

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