Shoppers more likely to buy on Pi Day and other ‘special’ day-themed promotions

Call it “having their ‘Pi’ and buying it too.” A new study finds that consumers are more likely to make purchases during promotions associated with a special day, such as Pi Day (March 14), than during regular holidays or indistinguishable day promotions.

Researchers detail their findings in a paper, “Promoting Pi Day: Consumer Response to Special Day-Themed Sales Promotions,” published in the October 2022 print issue of the Consumer Psychology Magazine.

“We found that day-themed special sales promotions lead consumers to be more likely to use the discounts to make a purchase compared to the more standard promotions,” said Daniel Zane, an assistant professor of marketing at Lehigh University, who leads the way. co-wrote the article with Rebecca. Walker Reczek of Ohio State University and Kelly Haws of Vanderbilt University.

“We also found that the positive response from consumers to special day-themed promotions is essentially driven by consumers rewarding marketers for their creativity in providing a way to celebrate the special day.”

While many consumers associate discounts with traditional holidays and sales events such as Black Friday, Labor Day and Back to School, companies now often associate discounts with “special days,” new holidays that have not historically been associated with promotions.

Think pizza and pie promotions or a 31.4% discount for Pi Day, the annual celebration of the mathematical constant Pi (3.14…). Or sales of clothing, games or toys for Mario Day (March 10) and Star Wars Day, May 4 (May the Fourth Be With You). Businesses can associate promotions with National Ice Cream Day, National Dog Day, their founder’s birthday, or the anniversary of a customer’s first purchase. Lands’ End created its own special day when it launched National Swimsuit Day.

First Survey to Explore Special Day Promotions

The proliferation of day-themed special promotions on the market, including in social media and e-commerce, inspired the researchers to examine whether the companies using them saw a benefit, such as increased sales, new customers and increased brand loyalty. They are the first to systematically study the effects of day-themed special sales promotions, and the study is the first to examine how consumers’ perceptions of marketers’ creativity in associating promotions with special days can influence buying behavior.

Using field and lab studies, the researchers randomly showed participants one of two versions of a promotion, either a special day-themed promotion or a more traditional promotion, and rated their intentions to use the discount to make a purchase. to do. In one experiment, they found that consumers report that they are significantly more likely to make a purchase from a company when they are offered the National Picnic Day Sale, compared to the same discount framed as an annual One Day Sale.

Credit: Lehigh University

In another study, they collaborated with a company and found that consumers who received a 25% discount by email in honor of the day a company adopted its mascot dog were almost twice as likely to click a link in the email. clicking to shop on the company’s website. website compared to those who received an equivalent discount with no mention of the dog’s special day. The effect applies to national special days as well as special days that are more personal to an individual consumer, such as the anniversary of their first purchase from the company.

Their findings show that consumers are more likely to respond positively to a discount on a special day than to the same discount without a link to a special day. The key is that consumers should find the promotion both original and appropriate, Zane said. For example, a spa pedicure discount on National Barefoot Day, versus a discount on clothing on the occasion of a National Food Day.

Creative, appropriate promotions encourage engagement

When consumers see a good match between a company and a special daytime-themed promotion, the perceived creativity leads to heightened intentions to use the promotion, the researchers said. However, when consumers see a low fit, even with the positive influence of creativity, the perceived impropriety “ultimately hurts purchase intentions enough to negate any positive effect of originality,” they said.

More traditional sales promotions are known to generate negative thoughts about a company, as consumers assume that marketers are just trying to convince them to spend money, or they suspect the company is trying to unload old inventory, Zane said.

“Perhaps the most surprising aspect of this research was what we discovered as the psychological driver of consumers’ positive response to special day-themed promotions,” he said. “They’re really thinking about how the marketer who created the special day-themed promotion was creative in providing a way to celebrate the special day. Essentially, consumers then reward marketers for their creativity by being more likely to get a special day discount to make a purchase from that company.”

Knowing the impact that day-themed special sales promotions have on shopping behavior can benefit marketers and consumers alike, Zane said. For marketers and businesses, there is a promise for more sales, new customers and more engagement in such promotions. “The findings suggest that linking a discount to a company-generated special day could have a positive effect on real customer behavior,” the researchers said. “It is possible that consumers who receive special day-themed discounts feel that they are unique or belong to an exclusive subset of consumers who receive the promotion.”

With technology and availability of customer data, there are increasing opportunities to create special days and promotions specific to a customer’s interaction with a company, potentially offering additional potential, Zane said.

“For consumers, this work may help them think about the many hidden forces that shape our market behavior,” he said. “Being aware of this can help curb unnecessary or impulsive purchases.”