Beyond the Basket - 21/10/25

Tuesday 21st October | #55 | Join Free

Hey there, and welcome to Tuesday’s Beyond the Basket. BFCM prep is in full swing, and today we’re digging into how to offer real value this Black Friday, not just noise and markdowns. Plus, news that returns from serial returners are down 25%, and Meta’s testing new skippable ads à la YouTube. Let’s get into it 👇 - Mike Callachan (BtB Founder)

In today’s beyond the basket:
🛍️ Win Black Friday - offer more value, not just lower prices
📦 Serial returners drop 25% as UK retailers tighten policies
📱 Meta tests skippable ads on Instagram Reels
✏️ How to frame your Black Friday offer so it actually stands out

➕plus three longer reads, looking at how Marketers are replacing agencies with AI and how to integrate AI into your businesses systems.

20% off isn’t a strategy, it’s a reflex, and could be potentially ignored by shoppers.

Every brand is about to fill inboxes with the same numbers and countdown timers. But discounts alone don’t build momentum, they just train your best customers to wait for sales. The real win this quarter comes from how you shape the offer around real value, not how deep you cut.

Here’s what actually drives sales and protects margin:

✅ Make it feel deliberate, not desperate.
“Buy 2, get 1 free” or “Spend £75, get a mystery gift” feels like a treat, not a markdown. Tiered incentives, £10 off £50, £25 off £100, nudge higher baskets while keeping value perception high.

✅ Bundle around how people actually buy.
Forget clearing stock. Build offers around context: routines, gifting, or discovery. “Winter skin bundle” beats “30% off moisturiser” because it solves a need, is valuable, and not just a price drop.

✅ Use psychology over panic.
Authentic scarcity still works, but so do limited-edition colours or 48-hour bonuses. Rotate daily hooks across BFCM to see what actually earns clicks. The urgency feels fresher when it’s not the same “ends midnight” script.

✅ Stretch the value beyond checkout.
Add a post-purchase bounce-back or January-only perk in your thank-you email. It can turn deal hunters into repeat buyers and keeps the relationship going past Cyber Monday.

The best promos that really cut through the noise, don’t shout “SALE”, they make the customer feel like they’re getting something extra and offer a strong value proposition.

What to Consider: Before you lock in your BFCM offer, map incentives by customer type, new, lapsed, loyal, and test structure over percentage. Every customer is different, plan your offers around where they are in their journey with your brand. This can help protect margins, and rewards intent, ultimately making the deal feel like a considered decision, not a knee jerk discount.

Run a random surprise at checkout, a discount voucher, free shipping, or bonus item. It gamifies buying without heavily discounting. Consider signup form, formats like Omnisend’s spin wheel signup popup we’ve seen this format 2× signup rates.

TL;DR: The number of “serial returners”, shoppers who frequently send back items, has fallen from 12% to 8% of UK consumers, according to ZigZag. That’s saved retailers an estimated £1.7 billion in 2025.

Why it Matters: After years of rising costs, retailers’ tougher stance on returns is paying off. With 76% of major UK retailers now charging returns fees or withholding delivery refunds, behaviour is shifting fast. Asos, Next, and others are tailoring policies by customer type, rewarding loyal buyers while discouraging repeat abusers. But it’s not just about cutting costs: returns are now a loyalty strategy, with premium brands easing friction for high-value customers.

What to Consider: Audit your returns data. Who’s returning, how often, and why? Blanket fees risk alienating good customers, but segmentation (and nudging shoppers toward free in-store returns) can balance margin control with customer trust.

Users on Reddit and X are flagging Meta’s new “Related Media” feature being auto-enabled across campaigns, even without consent.

It’s reportedly swapping in old or off-brand creatives, hurting performance and confusing shoppers. It might be worth checking your ads and toggling it off if you prefer control over Meta’s latest “AI enhancement.”

TL;DR: Instagram is testing skippable ads inside Reels, similar to YouTube’s in-stream format, letting users skip after a few seconds. Meta confirmed the limited test but said it’s not sharing ad revenue with creators yet.

Why it Matters: This is Meta experimenting with balance: monetising Reels without ruining the user experience. Skippable ads could give advertisers new engagement data while avoiding the frustration of non-skippable “ad breaks.” With social media ad budgets up 10% year-on-year, Meta’s clearly chasing YouTube-style performance metrics to win back attention (and spend) in short-form video.

Your Move: If you run paid social, keep an eye on Reels CPMs and engagement. Skippable formats may offer cheaper reach, but they’ll demand better hooks in the first two seconds. Creative that earns the watch will outperform creative that assumes it.

Most Black Friday copy sounds identical, Up to 40% off, Ends midnight, Our biggest sale ever. It’s boring, it’s white noise.

Shoppers are being bombarded by offers, only the very engaged consumers will react to your offer. If your headline looks like everyone else’s, you’ve already lost attention.

What cuts through isn’t louder and larger discounts, it’s story telling, and sharper framing. You’re not discounting a product; you’re giving people a reason to act now.

Here are five way to frame your offer that work:

✅ Why now, Make the timing make sense.
“Stock up before prices rise in January.”
“We’re clearing room for next year’s collection.”

✅ Value over price, Lead with what they gain, not what they save.
“Spend £60, get your stocking fillers sorted.”

✅ Experience, Make it feel like a moment, not a markdown.
“The holiday madness starts now, beat the rush.”
“Forget Black Friday, this is the big (brand name) sale!”

✅ Honest and human, Drop the hype.
“Yes, it’s a sale. Yes, it’s a good one.”

✅ Limited, not loud, Real scarcity beats fake urgency.
“We only made 500. When they’re gone, that’s it.”

Quick Tip: Before you hit send, read your headline out loud. If it sounds like any other brand could say it, rewrite until it doesn’t.

November 7 - eBay Business Fashion Seller Meetup - Location: London, UK - Exclusively for Fashion Sellers: Learning, Sharing, and Connecting.

November 10 - 13 - Web Summit - Location: Lisbon, Portugal - The Iconic annual technology conference returns to Lisbon for their 15th year.

November 12 - E-Commerce, Packaging & Labelling Expo - Location: London, UK - Innovative solutions to enhance efficiency and drive growth in e-commerce operations.

Curated deep dives, longer reads and analysis shaping the future of eCommerce and digital marketing.

Marketers are replacing agencies with AI
Campaign (5 min read) Read Here ›
A sharp look at how in-house teams are using AI tools instead of agencies, and what that means for creative work and brand control.

How to actually implement an AI plan
Inc. (6 min read) Read Here ›
Practical steps for integrating AI into operations without overcomplicating or stalling progress.

‘AI slop’ is a feature, not a bug
City A.M. (4 min read) Read Here ›
A punchy warning that low-quality AI content is flooding feeds, and why brands need tighter quality control before it erodes trust.