When every grocery store has an aisle (or two) covered in red and pink signage and filled with heart-shaped merchandise, that must mean that mid-February is fast approaching. Love it or hate it (but hopefully the former!), Valentine’s Day isn’t just a sappy celebration of your significant other. It’s the perfect time to feel the love and show some love to friends, family, co-workers, and, for ecommerce brands, your loyal customers.
Ready to make the most of your Valentine’s Day marketing this year? We’ll explore why it’s an important time of the year for your business, ideas to engage your audience, and best practices you can use to make sure your customers feel all the warm fuzzies on February 14.
What you should know about Valentine’s Day
From elementary school kids giving cards to their classmates (featuring their favorite branded characters) to couples treating each other to a romantic evening or treasured gift, Valentine’s Day is a chance to remind the people in your life that you care. And most consumers spend the money to show just that.
Over half of Americans (53%) said that they planned to celebrate Valentine’s Day in 2024. That celebration added up: Americans spent $26B on the holiday for an average of $185. The top gifting and spending categories probably aren’t too surprising, either. Here’s how the National Retail Federation reports shoppers planned to spend last year:
- Candy (57%)
- Greeting cards (40%)
- Flowers (39%)
- Jewelry (22%)
- Clothing (21%)
When you picture a gift for a spouse or partner, these are probably the kinds of items that come to mind. But all of that spending doesn’t just go to roses and a box of chocolates. Consumers are getting creative with how they splurge for Valentine’s Day, from technology to baked treats to experiences or subscriptions. If you’re an ecommerce brand outside those categories, don’t write off February 14 in your marketing strategy. Instead, offer special deals and heart-themed gifts designed to capture your audience’s attention no matter who they want to celebrate.
The holiday isn’t just about romance, either. In 2024, 40% of women said that they were at least somewhat likely to buy a Valentine’s Day gift for themselves—so marketing messaging around self-love and self-care for February won’t go amiss. And don’t forget about Galentine’s Day: Originally made popular by the sitcom Parks and Recreation, February 13 is for the girls, as women everywhere spend time with their gal pals and treat each other to something special.
Whatever category your ecommerce brand is in, you can use Valentine’s Day to encourage shoppers to spend a little extra on their loved ones to make them feel special and remind them that they care. Even if your products aren’t a “traditional” Valentine’s Day treat, get strategic to show how a gift from your brand can make someone in their life feel loved.
Tap into digital tools with these strategies
Before you reach out through your ecommerce marketing, your brand might get lost in a sea of other gift options to buy on February 14. Get in front of consumers with thoughtful, playful, or unique offers and messages designed to capture their attention—and products that capture the hearts of their friends or loved ones.
On Valentine’s Day and all year round, digital tools are some of the best ways to reach your audience in real time, keep their attention across channels, and stay connected. Here are a few of our favorite strategies for driving engagement and sales on the day to celebrate love.
SMS campaigns
Want to reach your audience in real time with gift ideas or last-minute Valentine’s Day reminders? Texting your audience is the way to do it. SMS marketing is a high-engagement channel to reach your most loyal customers and help them take action to start planning their gifts for a friend or partner right away.
Send them a text with exclusive discounts, V-Day themed items, or limited-time offers—and give them a simple, straightforward way to take action or learn more. Earn more clicks for these campaigns by sending trusted short links branded with your domain, and track every engagement to see where your audience is located and which messages resonate most.
Get even more engaging with conversational commerce strategies like text-to-buy. With a quick text exchange over a few seconds, your customers can go from “Oh no, I forgot it’s almost February 14!” to “I’ve got this—something special is on the way.”
Print campaigns
Even for ecommerce brands that run their entire business online, physical or print campaigns are a great channel to appeal to your customers, remind them of the upcoming holiday, and stand out from the digital noise. Use direct mail, flyers, billboards, or other physical ads to get in front of your audience with clever messaging leading up to February 14.
Offline campaigns used to be notoriously difficult to track attribution and impact from. But with convenient touchpoints like QR Codes, now you can give audiences access to scan in seconds, make their Valentine’s Day purchase—and you can better track which of these campaigns appeal and drive revenue.
Link your QR Codes to gift guides to the holiday, exclusive content they’ll actually want to see, engaging product demos, or a discount they can cash in to gift for themselves or someone else.
Mobile landing pages
Whether you’re spreading the word about Valentine’s Day on social, showing up in inboxes, or piquing interest through paid ads, you want customers to take the next step—and you need to build connection and engagement to do it. Create fun, themed mobile landing pages that offer a one-stop shop for Valentine’s Day enthusiasts, whatever action they’re ready to take. Customize your colors, imagery, and calls to action to match the Valentine vibe, and share curated selections based on:
- Who they’re buying for: Offer gift options (and a CTA button to browse) for a significant other, for co-workers or friends—or for yourself.
- What kind of gift they need: Guide them to a customized selection of gifts that are romantic, rugged, funny, or cozy.
- How much they want to spend: While most of us want a deal, Valentine’s Day is a great day to splurge, so sort your mobile landing pages by budget-friendly versus luxurious options.
For your loyal customers, you could even personalize campaigns based on the kinds of gifts they’ve gotten in the past. They can buy the same thing again if it was a hit or be sure to switch things up. Use a mobile landing page to direct them to either classic Valentine’s Day choices or unique, memorable gifts. The only limit is your creativity!
4 Valentine’s best practices and big ideas
As you’re planning the Valentine’s campaigns you’ll run using your favorite digital tools, keep these guiding principles in mind to drive sales before February 14 and build deeper connections with your audience.
1. Show your customers some love
Your customers will be looking for treats and gifts to delight the special people in their life on Valentine’s Day—so why shouldn’t your brand do the same thing for those customers? Take Valentine’s as an opportunity to treat your audience to something special and spread the love. Here are a few ideas:
- Flash sales. Before or on the holiday, offer a flash sale on great gift items or free shipping (with a Valentine’s-themed discount code, of course).
- Charitable initiatives. Invite your audience to partner with you to do some good and show love to your community by matching donations or promoting value-driven nonprofits.
- Gifts and giveaways. Send out a mobile landing page inviting customers to redeem a small free item with their Valentine’s Day purchase, or enter a giveaway meant to show your appreciation to shoppers who love your brand.
- Loyalty-exclusive products. Shower your nearest and dearest fans (like loyalty program members) with affection by sending a short link to exclusive products to show your thanks.
However you celebrate Valentine’s Day with your audience, offer them the kind of value they’re looking for. If you need ideas, look back at your past campaign data to see what calls-to-action they’ve responded to most, like the Bitly Analytics dashboard and its insights on every click and scan.
2. Enhance your branding for Valentine’s Day
You likely have a distinct voice, look and feel, and color palette for your brand. Holidays are a great time to step out of that comfort zone just a bit, while staying true to your personality your audience knows and trusts.
In campaigns to your customers, your messaging might get a bit extra playful or sappy to lean into the Valentine’s theming. Or you might find a pink or red that’s compatible with your brand colors to use in an email campaign or a custom QR Code that features your logo. Look for ways to keep your branding front and center while adding a sprinkle of Valentine’s spirit to your campaigns leading up to February 14.
3. Create a referral program where everyone wins
For February and all year round create ways for shoppers to introduce their family or friends to their new favorite brand (hint: yours!) while snagging perks for themselves, too. Take Curology, for instance. Their reward program invites loyal customers to “Give $20, Get $20.” Their order comes with a Bitly QR Code with a unique invite link to share, which gives a friend $20 for non-prescription essentials. In turn, the referring customer also receives $20 to spend themselves.
Programs like this are a great way to treat your customers and someone they love, while your brand gets a boost (and hopefully some new loyal fans).
4. Team up with other brands
Are there any brands you’ve been dreaming of working with that are a match made in heaven for your ecommerce site? Link arms with them to cross-pollinate their audience for the day of love.
Compare your product lines to come up with unique pairings and combo packs, then send a mobile landing page featuring each one so shoppers can browse them all in one place. Partnering your ecommerce brand with a brick-and-mortar location? Create QR Codes that shoppers can scan to buy their Valentine’s Day treat online directly from you or check out additional brand partnership products.
When two outstanding brands work together, both can gain new fans, build new connections, and capture hearts.
Market with heart, all year round
The rules of tugging on your customers’ heartstrings are pretty universal. You need to offer them clear and immediate value, engage with them beyond the sale, and make it convenient and easy for them to interact with you. Whether you’re sharing the perfect romantic gift or showering your audience with affection just to say ‘thank you,’ remember that your relationship with customers isn’t a one-off conversation. It’s a connection for keeps.
Like your customers’ relationships with their Valentines, you need to keep putting in the work—listening to them to personalize your offerings, providing what they’re looking for, and being there in the moment they need you. Bitly is here to help you take a customer-first, connected approach to every marketing campaign you send. Pick your plan, and sign up today.
