‘Buy One Gift One’ Marketing Strategies Encourage Customer Acquisition As They Evolve To Meet Consumer Needs

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August 28, 2021

The implementation of buy one gift one purpose-driven marketing campaigns from retailers helped brands recalibrate during the disruption of Covid-19. Brands able to connect with consumers, be authentic and align their corporate social responsibility with current events are often able to increase engagement, gaining new customers and encouraging loyalty. 

With The Right Messages Delivered At The Right Times, Brands Can Reach Consumers & Acquire New Customers Motivated By ‘Doing Good’ 

A 2020 eMarketer podcast revealed that consumers are two-thirds more likely to buy a new product if it includes a donation to someone in need, with Generation X the most moved by this kind of promotion. Remarking on the trend, Eric Haggstrom, Forecasting Analyst at Insider Intelligence, said it “restores my faith in humanity. Charity through capitalism – I love it.” 

The impact of promotions, including “buy one gift one” offers, can be scaled with digital performance advertising solutions offered by Digital Media Solutions®(DMS). Our campaigns are designed to reach the right person at the right time with the right message to encourage action. Contact DMS to learn more.

Toms, An Early Buy One Gift One Innovator, Evolved Their Donation And Customer Acquisition Strategy To Encourage Loyalty

Toms shoes was one of the most high-profile and early adopters of buy one gift one, or “One for One” as Toms called it. So it was big retail news when Toms sunsetted their one-for-one program. The popular program was replaced with donations of grants given by the Toms Global Giving Fund. Toms now donates a third of net profits from each shoe sale, or $1 for each $3 spent by a customer.

The Toms donation still kicks in when a shopper buys a pair of shoes, honoring the concept of buy one gift one, despite the shift in the manner of giving. “We made the decision to decouple our impact from the One for One model we pioneered, and to expand our giving portfolio to include impact grants. This way, we can support organizations working to address some of today’s most pressing issues. As you can imagine, we didn’t make this decision lightly. But, we’re motivated by the opportunity to have meaningful impact in some new issues areas — areas that are important to us, and to you,” said Amy Smith, Chief Strategy & Impact Officer at Toms, in the Toms 2019 Global Impact Report. 

Digital Media Solutions helps advertisers de-risk their media costs as they deploy new and ongoing marketing campaigns. Buy one gift one marketing strategies can be supported through:

  • Subscriber acquisition campaigns that help brands build a list of opted-in hand raisers wanting to regularly get updates on the giving program
  • Multichannel digital campaigns through the DMS Performance Ad Market that help advertisers scale reach, engagement and conversions
  • Aimtell re-engagement programs that deliver updates and promotions directly to subscriber desktops

Contact DMS to learn more.

Warby Parker Buy A Pair, Give A Pair Program Appeals To Consumers Looking For Real Solutions, Encouraging Sales & Loyalty

Shutterstock_1420207253 African Female doctor looking through Operating microscope equipment with face mask Cape Town South Africa.

One of the criticisms of buy one gift one programs is that donating goods doesn’t always offer long-term solutions or integrate well with existing charities on the ground where donations are being made. Warby Parker solved for that by offering donations of eyeglasses with purchases, primarily to school children in the U.S., and also training men and women in under-served areas around the world to administer vision exams and sell glasses at “ultra-affordable” prices. Warby Parker’s programs have, in many cases, given much-needed glasses to adults for the first time in their lives. When crafting social responsibility initiatives, brands must be cognizant of consumer perception about their efforts, and should prioritize authentic, effective endeavors that resonate with consumers and facilitate re-engagement and customer acquisition.

Fleet Feet Partners With Feetures To Donate Socks To First Responders

Fleet Feet Partners With Feetures To Donate Socks To First Responders

During the early days of Covid-19, Fleet Feet, a brand committed to a number of social responsibility initiatives, partnered with sock brand Feetures for a buy one gift one program that provided socks to medical professionals in select regions throughout the U.S. Running Insights reported, “Building off of Fleet Feet’s charitable arm, Do the Run Thing, they came up with a program that would support both medical professionals on the frontline and Fleet Feet stores who, like almost all small and locally owned businesses, have had to drastically alter operations over the past month. Through the Buy One, Gift One program, customers can place Feetures sock orders for curbside pick-up at their local Fleet Feet store and Feetures will match their purchase with a donation to medical professionals in select regions, up to 20,000 pairs.” 

Another sock brand, Bombas, also has a buy one gift one program, with donations going to homeless shelters around the country. According to the Bombas website, “Bombas has donated over 30 million clothing items through more than 3,000 Giving Partners across the country.”

Purpose-driven marketing strategies are gaining traction, and evolving thoughtful buy one gift one programs help brands amplify their social responsibility while prioritizing customer acquisition strategies.

Are You Looking To Scale Your Customer Acquisition Efforts?

DMS represents a comprehensive suite of digital performance advertising solutions that help brands flourish by capitalizing on consumer intent to engage and convert audiences. Contact DMS today to learn how we can scale your customer acquisition efforts.

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