10 Marketing Tricks I Learned From Victoria’s Secret

As a marketer, I’m always looking to learn more about what works in marketing, and I’m always noticing things that other marketers (and companies) do that make me want to buy stuff from them.

My latest case study is about Victoria’s Secret.

Victoria’s Secret has a top notch marketing department…

I recently got a Victoria’s Secret credit card and I’m now on their mailing list (physical and email). I’ve since learned a TON about marketing from Victoria’s Secret.

Here are the top ten marketing secrets I’ve learned from Victoria’s Secret.

1) Make Them An Offer They Can’t Refuse

First of all, I didn’t even want a credit card in the first place. Last time I purchased something in person at the Victoria’s Secret store, they basically made me an offer I couldn’t refuse in exchange for my opening up a Victoria’s Secret credit card… so I did.

This is also exactly what happened recently with Amazon Prime and I joined that as well. And now I will never NOT have an Amazon Prime account because it rocks… and I never would have known that if they hadn’t figured out a way to get me in the door.

Sometimes you just need to get people in the door so that you can prove to them that your product or service is valuable.

The key is to make your target marketplace an offer they can’t refuse, and then once you get them in the door dazzle them with value and over deliver with quality.

Getting them in the door is key so that you can you can show them what’s ‘behind the curtain’. Making an offer they can’t refuse is a great way to do this.

2) Be Consistent With Your Message

So many of the people I’ve helped coach and train when it comes to marketing are afraid to email their list on a daily basis. They are afraid it will be too much and scare their subscribers away.

My advice is that the more you stay in touch with your audience, the better. This is because when the day comes that they ARE ready to buy, you will be there to make it easy for them. And if they have no intention of ever doing business with you, they can always unsubscribe.

Victoria’s Secret is a great example of this.

Since I got onto their email list, I receive AT LEAST one email a day consistently, without exception. And I receive stuff in the mail regularly as well. They are SUPER consistent.

3) Offer a Deal or a Bonus- Daily

Each day when I get my Victoria’s Secret email in my inbox, it includes a deal or a bonus (and it differs from day to day to keep things interesting).

For example, one day they may offer a “Free Panty With Purchase- Today Only!” and the next day it’s a “Free Scarf With The Purchase of Any Sweater”.

In any case, when I am ready to pull my credit card out, this creates a sense of urgency because I know that if I procrastinate I will miss the daily deal.

Not to mention, this is just one of the many ways they like to over deliver for their customers which makes them want to keep coming back for more.

4) Spice Things Up With Good Looking Graphics

Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock, you’re probably aware that Victoria’s Secret has beautiful pictures all over their marketing (hot women to be more specific). There’s no doubt about the fact that these graphics cause people (men and women alike) to want to read their catalogs and shop on their website.

They add the graphics to ALL of their emails as well, which massively improves their click-through rates (people like to click on pictures… especially ones they are attracted to).

5) Appeal to Multiple Markets

Although this one is not necessary (or even applicable in all situations), it certainly doesn’t help if you can apply it to your business.

Here’s what I mean… let me ask you this,

“Who shops at Victoria’s Secret?”

Of course we all know that the clothes and lingerie are designed for women… but women are NOT the only ones who buy them.

As a matter of fact, every time I go into the Victoria’s Secret store, there are just as many men in there as there are women.

Why is this?

It’s because the marketing just flat out works. When men see the pictures of the women in sexy lingerie, they are able to picture their wife or girlfriend wearing it, and they are drawn to go buy it.

So, in this case, Victoria’s Secret is marketing to men just as much as women. Multiple markets.

6) Make the Price Right

One of the keys to having lots of people who are willing to take out their credit and buy from you is the price.

When people see your product (or service) as the answer or solution to a problem they have… they will buy it as long as the price makes sense in relationship to the extreme of the problem they are looking to solve.

In the instance of Victoria’s Secret, lingerie does not answer a life or death problem, but it can help to enhance people’s sex lives and relationships.

The price point they have chosen is not gonna break the bank for anyone, it’s affordable.  So, in this case they make it easy for someone to buy based on impulse without having to give it much thought.

AND, it’s still just pricey enough that it comes across as valuable and classy (not cheap) and makes a much better gift than Walmart lingerie.

 7) Be Professional

Although Victoria’s Secret is marketing sexy lingerie, they are extremely professional in their marketing.

I’ve yet to ever see them do anything unethical or ‘sleazy’… at all.

This is important when it comes to gaining and building the trust of your audience.

All too often, I watch marketers do things that cross lines just to get the sale… and they are not thinking about the long-term value of their customers.

In the case of Victoria’s Secret, they keep their customers coming back again and again because they have proven to be ethical and reliable.

Once you lose the trust of a prospect or customer, it’s extremely difficult to get it back. So ALWAYS be professional.

8) Stay Focused

Although Victoria’s Secret is marketing to more than one target audience (men and women), they never get off track with their marketing message.

They are basically selling sex appeal, in the form of women’s lingerie and clothing. And they stick to that message and never stray from it….

In other words, they never get off track and start marketing men’s underwear or snow shovels. That’s NOT what they sell.

Many marketers have ‘shiny object syndrome’ and often get off track in their marketing. When they see something else they can market that they may be able to make a quick profit from, they decide to sell it even though it takes them away from their primary focus.

Don’t do that… stick to ONE message.

9) Make Them Feel Special- Reward Regular Customers

One thing Victoria’s Secret is exceptional at is rewarding the people that buy from them and making them feel special.

Ever since I got my Victoria’s Secret credit card, I get emails on a regular basis that are for ‘Angel Card’ holders only. They have special deals in them that only go out to their card holders.

They also send discount cards, etc in the mail to their card holders on a regular basis.

Both of these techniques are super effective because it makes me (and all of their other credit card holders) think about the value of being a Victoria’s Secret credit card customer on a regular basis.

It makes me feel good about my decision to open up that credit card account, and it also makes me want to use it often.

10) Give Them What They Came For, and More

One thing I personally love about the Victoria’s Secret products is that they look and fit exactly as I expect them to.

Even when I order something from the catalog, I’m never disappointed by the fit or the color or the quality of it. It’s exactly what I expected.

And, unlike most of the other stores I shop at, it seems that I never have to return or exchange anything.

Also, the staff at Victoria’s Secret are all over-the-top good at what they do.

When I go into the store to shop, they can problem-solve like nobody’s business and find the perfect fit for my body type so that I come away feeling good about myself and my purchase.

They make it easy to shop by guiding me through the store based on what I’m looking for.

And, they even go as far as to teach little tips and tricks that might come in handy. For example, last time I was in there I bought a négligée and, although I had already tried it on and it fit great, the cashier went out of her way to show me a trick that I could do with the straps to make it look entirely different, in case I ever wanted a different look and feel.

Again, this made me feel really good about my purchase because I felt like I was getting 2 négligées in one.

11) BONUS- Awesome Headlines Never Hurt

I know I said I was giving you 10 Marketing Secrets… but I just wanted to throw in number 11 as a bonus.

Another thing that Victoria’s Secret has totally mastered is the art of awesome headlines.

They not only have have captivating headlines in their emails, but they also have them on every page of their catalog and on their website. Like this one. ——–>

Doesn’t it just make you want to buy something? It worked for me. 🙂

 

I hope these tips and tricks have shed some light on a few ways you can start today to make your marketing more effective.

Please let me know if there’s something that works well for you that I didn’t mention here. I’d love to hear from you!

And I’d also love to hear about any ‘aha’ moments you had while reading this post, or what you are going to do to improve your marketing.

I look forward to hearing from you in the comments below…

Have an awesome day!

To your success,

xo-Amy

 

 

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Questions? Comments? I’d love to hear from you…

Did this post (and Victoria’s Secret)give you some tricks you can use in your marketing? Is there anything you’re currently doing that I didn’t mention? I’d love to hear from you! Please leave your comments below…

 

The ‘Mobile Money Mom’

 

 

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DISCLAIMER: My results are not “average” because I chose to not be “average” myself. Instead, I chose to commit 100% to my business and I was willing to work it with persistence and focus.

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