One of the companies who mastered the scarcity marketing techniques is Kylie Cosmetics, who skillfully employs them on social media to sell millions of products. Find out more about scarcity marketing and see how you can use Kylie Cosmetics' best practices for your business:
Scarcity marketing is the business equivalent of playing hard to get. People want what they can’t have and scarcity tactics, if used well, can play on this desire to great effect.
It’s not a new method of marketing by any means and has been used to insight hysteria for decades, particularly with parents and their children in the run up to Christmas. But what has changed significantly in recent years is the platforms brands are using to deploy scarcity tactics.
In a bid to drive profits, social media platforms promise brands a direct line to engaged and highly targeted audiences. As a result, brands are able to dangle the carrot of low stock levels and limited edition products in front of an audience that’s chomping at the bit for the latest gear from their favourite brands.
So who’s doing scarcity best?
Kylie Jenner steals the crown. The youngest of the Kardashian clan, Kylie Jenner’s cosmetics brand, Kylie Cosmetics, uses scarcity extremely well. Her first makeup line reportedly sold out in a mere eight minutes and she hasn’t looked back since.
In the run up to Valentine’s day for example, Kylie Cosmetics posted repeatedly across all channels about the limited #ValentinesCollection, driving over 750,000 interactions on Facebook and 130,000 interactions on Twitter in the run up to the seasonal peak. However, according to one angry Facebook comment, the range sold out in under two minutes, and therein lies the challenge of scarcity marketing for brands. As much as it drives desire, it can also seriously annoy loyal customers.
How to get it right:
Scarcity marketing requires an agile, responsive approach to avoid disappointment and ensure customers aren’t left wanting. Here are our top tips to increase your chance of success with scarcity:
Scarcity marketing is a dangerous game to play. However, with the right formula social media can be the perfect platform for driving desire.
This blog originally appeared in the Digital Marketing Magazine. Follow James Lubbock to get his latest articles, and stay tuned for more of James’s articles here on the blog.