The takeaway
Your active subscribers are the likeliest buyers in BFCM week and cost nothing to reach. Open the offer to them in the portal for three days before the sitewide sale, as add-ons to their next order at the BFCM price. They buy through the subscription they already have, so the revenue arrives without a new signup, and they have no reason to cancel and rejoin at the public price.
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An example
Illustrative example: a brand with 20,000 active subscribers and a 40%-off add-on offer on the $15 items from Box Tiers.
| Step | Share | Subscribers |
|---|---|---|
| Active subscribers told the portal is open | 100% | 20,000 |
| Log in during 23–25 Nov | 30% | 6,000 |
| Add at least one item to their next order | 15% of visitors | 900 |
At two items each, $18 per order at 40% off, the window adds 900 × $18 = $16,200 to orders that were shipping anyway, with no extra shipping cost per order.
Put it into practice
- Set the offer so subscribers never beat the public sale. Choose what subscribers can add and at what price. The subscriber price must be equal to or better than anything the sitewide sale will show from 27 November, or early access becomes a reason to wait.
- Create the campaign with its audience and window. Audience: active subscribers. Window: Mon 23 Nov 00:01 to Wed 25 Nov 23:59. Follow Campaign Scarcity Mechanics for scheduling and banner copy. [confirm with product: whether a portal campaign can show add-on products directly in the banner.]
- Remove the login step. Send an email and SMS on the morning of 23 November with a link that opens the portal already signed in. [confirm with product: whether a passwordless or magic-link login is available from campaign messages.] A subscriber who has to reset a password during the window usually doesn't come back.
- Make adding one tap. The add-on should join the next scheduled order and charge on that date. [confirm with product: whether one-time add-ons charge immediately or with the next order.] Say which in the banner, so nobody is surprised by the charge.
- Verify with a test account. Log in through the email link, add an item, and check the next order shows the item at the BFCM price and the right charge date.
Watch out for
- A public offer that beats the subscriber offer. Subscribers see the sitewide banner on 27 November and feel penalised for subscribing.
- A login wall. Early access that starts with "forgot password" loses most of the window.
- Add-ons that ship separately. A separate parcel doubles the shipping cost and removes the reason to add to the next order.
Measure the result
Track the share of active subscribers who add at least one item during the window, add-on revenue per active subscriber, and cancellations in December among subscribers who bought. Review on 26 November, before the sitewide sale, and again after the December cycle.
Related entries: Campaign Scarcity Mechanics · Order Now · Box Tiers
Prompt: 02 Portal early-access banner