Love For Sale – A Valentine’s Day story

Passionate marketing strategies to get your heart racing 

All you need is love!

Try telling that to your partner on Valentine’s Day and you’ll likely get a kick in the chocolate coated nuts. We also wouldn’t recommend pointing to the cost-of-living crisis, because that’ll just earn you a left hook – around 75% of Brits avoid this scenario every year, with about 25 million of them sending cards costing upwards of £1.4 billion. And that’s not the end of the Valentine’s spending story.  

In 2021 we drained our bank accounts to the tune of £926 million buying treats in the name of love, and if we copycat US predictions, sales are on the up for 2023. For marketing this matters more than ever, because catching the eye of a customer, while inflation has its foot on the accelerator, is a tricky business.  

Go-to expert for Forbes, retail analyst Natalie Berg recently elaborated on this idea. She pointed out that although the UK’s December sales grew in value terms, they simultaneously declined in volume. “In other words, consumers are spending more to buy less.”

Or in other other words, quality is becoming more of a consumer focus.

Diamond-coated, jet-set brand Gucci have sensed this for a while. Implementing it in their 2022 campaign – a vintage-esque fotonovella created by Los Angeles-based visual artist Ariana Papademetropoulos. The limited-edition zine features a love story where all the characters wear different Gucci outfits from that season’s collection. It’s the stuff of fairy tales – the star-crossed lovers are initially thwarted by their clothing sizes – he’s too big, she’s too short – something you never see on a Gucci catwalk. As tradition dictates, they live happily ever after, but who wouldn’t with all that fabulous clobber?  

But Gucci’s unique campaign isn’t the only way to grab a customer’s attention. Other upmarket and quirky brands are making full use of video and digital tools.

Before we illustrate this point, please put your drink down, then take a peek at this ad from Manscape. Notice how they didn’t use exotic locations, renowned artists or gorgeous models to make an impact – they commissioned a snappy and funny script and stepped outside the box. This is definitely one brilliantly effective direction to go for a brand on a limited budget.  

 However, as we all know, clever marketing isn’t saved just for Valentine’s Day. The year is positively stuffed with seasonal and ‘special day’ opportunities. We’re talking Easter, Halloween, the festive season, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, and even Anti-Valentine’s Week. Running the week after Valentine’s Day has shot its last arrow, you’d be forgiven for thinking that Anti-Valentine’s Week would stick two fingers up at commercialism. You’d be wrong.  

Because nestled in the middle of Slap Day, Kick Day, Flirting Day – you get the picture – is Perfume Day. That’s right, you go and buy yourself a bottle as a ‘treat yerself’. We think Mace Day would be more suitable, but who are we to judge? Even Mace has a series of Valentine’s campaigns, so don’t kid yourself that this doesn’t matter for some brands. Everyone should be going for it. 

The key with all occasion marketing is threefold. Firstly, it must chime with your audience.

Manscaping is unlikely to do huge business in the lead up to Mother’s Day.  

Timing is equally important to the implementation of an adequate marketing strategy. A good campaign is planned months before the launch, but not dropped a moment too soon. Who’s thinking about Valentine’s Day on 3rd January? Only retailers. Everyone else is focused on their waistline and overdraft. So, do some serious brand research – ask your customers when they usually start thinking about special day shopping trips? 

Lastly, nail down your message. In 2013, MegaRed, a company that sells a heart-healthy krill oil supplement, launched an ingenious digital Valentine’s campaign. Simply called ‘Whose Heart do you Love?’, the video urged viewers to give the gift of a healthy heart to someone they care about. The message was linked to MegaRed’s Facebook page where free samples were waiting to be snapped up. 

Sadly, even with rich ideas like these, marketing fails to reach about 25% of the UK population each Valentine’s Day. Whether that 25% are single, ambivalent or think it’s all humbug, perhaps they also represent an ideal promotional opportunity for animal shelters – because all any of us really need…is love! 

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