I’ve spent much of lockdown attempting to learn a difficult piece of software. It’s technical, it’s involved, and it’s unlike anything else I’ve ever tried, which might explain why I’ve struggled with it. I considered an online course. I considered the cost as it’s more than I wanted to pay for just a hobby, especially as I would need around half-a-dozen of them to crack it.

I’m a subscriber to the email marketing list of the company that sells well-reviewed courses; the problem is they tend to charge premium prices. I don’t mind paying something worthwhile but there are limits. So imagine how I felt when an enewsletter, followed by a marketing email, dropped into my inbox offering the courses I was interested in at a much reduced cost. In fact, it was a reduction of all but 87%. That’s got to be good.

There was a time limit to the offer. Although it wasn’t stated in the enewsletter, the implication was that if I merely took advantage of the lower price for the first course, by the time I had completed it, the other five in the series would be back to normal prices.

This was quite clever as the threat was never overt, so one could not take offence. They did not total the six courses, although there can be few potential customers who failed to do so, and discover, like I did, it was less than the original price for the first one. An opportunity not to be missed?

Whichever way you looked at it, there seemed little risk. So why not go for it?

The course is a grounding for a career. We are told that unemployment rates are increasing, and are likely to continue doing so. It is probable that people are looking for a change in their career and are searching for opportunities. If the reported recession continues, the importance of qualifications to go alongside experience on a CV will improve one’s marketability. The offer in the marketing email might well have come at an opportune time for many subscribers, perhaps fearing their job might not be there for them much longer.

Further, it was a six-part foundation course. Implicit in that is the requirement for further courses. If I was after a change in career, I might feel that a successful foundation course, which resulted in a spectacular portfolio, might encourage a new employer to fund the additional courses, or they might have in-house structures to continue education.

It’s not such a risk for the company either as it gives what must be a welcome cash flow at a time when customers generally are husbanding funds. It takes a lot for me to bring out my credit card after losing a couple of contracts, but the offer was too good to miss, which was the intention.

Timing of an email marketing campaign isn’t just about ensuring your subscribers don’t receive emails when they have little time to open and respond to them. This one was perfect for both me and the company.