A promo announcement without coming across as spam

There is a moment when a page tips. From "nice to follow" to "that business just wants to sell something". That moment doesn't come because you posted a promotion. It comes because you only posted promotions, and because they all sounded like a flyer.

You're allowed to sell. That's why you're on those channels. The question is how.

The ratio that matters

The rule of thumb that holds up in practice: for every four posts that give something, one may ask for something.

Giving is: showing something, explaining something, thanking someone, letting something human show through. Asking is: buy, call, book, come.

Those who respect that ratio can sell without anyone experiencing it as pushy. Those who reverse it slowly lose their audience, and only notice when it's too late.

Why promotions don't work

The problem is almost never the discount. It's the announcement.

"-20% on everything! Come by soon! 🎉🎉" is a shout without substance. There's no reason in it, no deadline that means anything, no human being.

Compare with: "We ordered too many summer flowers. Twenty percent off this weekend, because by Monday they won't look good anymore."

Same discount. The second one works because there's a reason, a real deadline, and a tone that sounds like a person being honest about their problem.

The four parts of a promo that actually works

The reason. Why now? Surplus, season, the business's anniversary, a supplier closing down. A discount without a reason feels like a trick, and customers quickly learn to wait for the next one.

The specifics. What exactly, how much exactly. Not "discounts up to 50%", but "these twelve chairs, thirty euros instead of fifty".

The real deadline. Until Sunday, or until they're gone. And then actually stop. Those who extend their deadline teach their customers that deadlines mean nothing.

What needs to happen now. Call, come by, send a message. One action, not three.

The format that feels least like advertising

Show the product in use, not on a white background with a price tag over it. A photo of the chairs standing in a kitchen sells better than the same chairs in your stockroom with a red sticker.

And write the announcement in your normal voice. If you don't speak with exclamation marks and firework emojis at the counter, don't do it in your post either. The contrast stands out, and not in your favour.

The build-up is half the work

A promo that comes out of nowhere has to rely on the discount. A promo you've built up to over three posts doesn't.

Show the week before what's coming in. Let it be seen that there's too much. Say that you're going to do something about it. By the time you post the offer, someone is already waiting.

What to avoid

Permanent discounts. Those who have something on promotion every month no longer have promotions but a pricing policy, and nobody buys at the regular price anymore.

False urgency. "Only 2 spots left!" when there are ten available gets seen through sooner or later, and it costs you more than those two spots ever brought in.

Everything at once. One offer per post. Those who put three promotions in one message sell none of them.

For those who rarely offer discounts

Not every business should be dropping its prices, and for some it's even damaging. You can just as easily make an announcement without discounting: a new product, a newly available slot in your diary, an extended opening day, a package you've put together.

"There's an appointment available on Thursday at 2pm" is an offer. It costs you nothing, and it's more urgent than any discount.

The conclusion

Promotions are not a dirty word. Poorly announced promotions are.

Give four times before you ask once. Explain why, be specific, set a deadline you honour, and write the way you talk. Those who do this can sell without embarrassment to people who are glad they heard about it.