Flash sale text message examples

Share a clean and relevant discount code

Since your flash sale happens for a very limited time only you want to make it extra easy for subscribers to shop. One of the ways to do that is by handing them a relevant and easy-to-remember discount code.

Benefit Cosmetics does a great job at this with their “LASHFLASH” code. It’s related to the mascaras that are on sale and because it rhymes, it’s even easier to remember.

Use emojis

When done right, emojis can really grab a receiver’s attention. Relevancy is key here as well. Lovesac uses lightning bolts to announce its flash sale. It’s a fitting choice, but the emojis do more than that. They also add some spunk to a text message that otherwise might have seemed a bit dull and robotic because of its very short phrases.

Make them feel special

Who doesn’t love an exclusive deal? Organize a flash sale solely for your SMS subscribers and make sure they know how special they are. Dana’s Bakery does this in a rather subtle way, hinting at the VIP status of the recipient.

Go for strong copy

Just because you have a limited amount of characters to use in a single SMS doesn’t mean that your copy doesn’t need to rock. This flash sale text message by Blume stands out because of its description of the Whirl moisturizer. Where most ecommerce businesses use ultra-short sentences in their SMS marketing messages, Blume opts for an inviting longer phrase.

Tie your sale to an event

Holidays and other types of recurring events are always great opportunities to host a sale. In the example above, Fuego Box is promoting its Midsummer Flash Sale with a related discount code.

If you want to do a flash sale but don’t want to make it seem like you’re organizing one “just because,” linking it to a seasonal event is the easiest way to go. The new year in January, Valentine’s in February, the start of spring in March… There is always something worth celebrating… and worth shopping for.

Keep it short

Jewelry store Zales combines surprise (“Poof!”), scarcity, and a nice discount offer in this short but powerful flash sale text message. It’s a great example of how powerful short copy can be.

Send a reminder

It’s quite common for marketers to send follow-ups for their promotional emails. Nothing prevents you from doing the same for your SMS flash sale campaign. After all, you don’t want your subscribers to miss out on your sale, and neither do they.

Remind your list that their time to shop is running out. You can do this a few hours beforehand if your sale lasts for an entire weekend for example, or closer to the deadline if you’re doing a 24-hours only sale. Experiment with keeping the deadline a bit vague, like Chubbies does in the example above (“tonight”) or be more specific and communicate the exact time and date the sale will end.

Create a separate flash sale list

Flash sales can be a bit intense. If you plan on texting your subscribers a lot to promote yours, it can be a good idea to ask for their permission ahead of time. Peter Thomas Roth gives its subscribers the chance to sign up for flash sale alerts separately. By doing so, they avoid annoying customers that just want to get the occasional promotional text message and increase the chances of success for their flash sale messages to customers.

Offer free shipping

A flash sale doesn’t always need to involve a big discount. Sigma Beauty offers its subscribers free shipping on any order they place during the sale. An incentive like this can be just enough to sway shoppers who’ve been on the fence for a while.

Of course, you can also always offer both a discount and free shipping. That’s what Alloy Apparel did with the flash SMS message above. Note how the discount code is relevant to the Cyber Monday sale.

Add a sense of scarcity

A flash sale by definition has a sense of urgency to it, but nothing prevents you from adding some scarcity as well. Cosmetics brand Stila organized a one-day flash sale for their mini and travel-size products, adding that the recipient better hurry if they want to buy some because they “won’t last.”

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