Q: We are considering offering various discounts to our customers and would like to know whether LERN has any best practices or benchmarks that would be helpful to us.
Specifically, we are considering the following:
· Register early (by a specific date) to receive a discount
·<span times="" new="" "=""> Bring a friend (someone who has not taken a Continuing Education course at Brookdale) and receive a discount
Please let me know if you have any questions or need any additional information.
A: Both of the ideas you are considering are worth testing. Many programs offer a standard "early-bird" discount, and LERN recommends this. It helps to bring in registrations earlier, and can reduce the number of cancelled classes. We would suggest you test this to measure how well it works in your program.
Bringing a friend is also an excellent promotional idea. Programs have implemented this is a variety of ways--
1. Bring someone who has never taken a course from you and they get in free
2. Bring a friend and they get a discount
LERN does this with major events such as institutes and conferences. Our promotion is third-person free with two full price registrations. This can be very advantageous because it can create larger numbers in your classes and therefore a sense of value. It also can generate new customers because once someone has experienced your program, they are more likely to return.