Up to XX% Off Sales are Gimmicks. Change My Mind.
The Copywriter Column #111
I’ve been offline the past week vacationing out of the country.
Yes, it was lovely.
No, I didn’t think about work.
But I logged into my email just in time for Prime Day, which means I had 300+ emails in my inbox from DTC brands running on-site sales adjacent to Amazon’s Prime Day Sale.
The bulk of them go something like this:
Up to 35% off sitewide!
Shop up to 20% our bestsellers!
Prime Deals: Up to 25% off!
UP TO 40% OFF, MATT.
I hate these types of sales. They all feel like gimmicks, especially the ones offering large percentages off.
Most of the time, there’s only one product (or category) marked off the largest amount and they’re clearance items or products brands are overstocked on because nobody wants them.
The things you really want may not even be marked off, or they’re only marked off 10% (and you still have to pay for shipping because they haven’t figured out how to roll that cost into the prices of their products).
I mean, I get it. I’ve written thousands of these sales emails in my lifetime. The client wants what the client wants.
The problem is when you do this too frequently, you erode the trust and authenticity your customers genuinely crave.
I’d much rather see this in my inbox:
We’re Running a Sale! Here’s the deets…
Amazon has better deals, but we have this…
15% Off Premium Backscratchers
Additional 10% Off ALL Rubber Stamps
Don’t tease me with “up to 40% off.” Just tell it like it is.
What’s your opinion?
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