“You can’t run a successful business in Ukraine if you don’t provide special offers to the military,” say Promocodius experts in their research. And it’s not about force or restrictions at all. The need to change marketing strategies is not forced by a military dictatorship but by the laws of the market and the extraordinary consolidation of society, which Ukrainians have demonstrated in recent years.
Already in the first months of the war, many Ukrainian businesses began to transfer part of their earnings to the needs of the Ukrainian army. Pretty quickly, information about the donation (% of the profit that the company promises to give to the Armed Forces) began to appear on advertising banners, flyers and other promotions and almost immediately became a significant competitive advantage.
Data from an anonymous survey conducted by the Promocodius team among service users show that the presence of information about a donation in a brand’s advertising campaign not only increases audience loyalty but also motivates consumers to spend more:
- 93% of respondents always prefer companies that support the Armed Forces
- 83% are ready to try a new product or service if the organization supports the military
- 96% are ready to spend more than planned on goods or services of brands that support the Armed Forces
The results of the anonymous survey indicate that:
- The military actively uses discounts and loyalty programs:
- 95% of military personnel look for special discounts before purchasing;
- 73% prefer to use discounts on goods related to the military sphere;
- 22% choose discounts on any goods;
- 4% do not actively look for discounts, but use them whenever possible;
- 1% refuse or ignore discounts.
- The presence of discounts and special offers helps to increase the loyalty of military personnel and their families to the brand:
- 67% always prefer companies that offer military discounts;
- 43% are willing to try a new product or service if the company offers a military discount;
- 96% are ready to repeat a purchase or order a service from the company where they received a discount;
- 76% are willing to spend more than planned on goods or services from brands that offer a military discount.
It is interesting that this trend applies not only to Ukrainian companies but also to international brands. Many Ukrainians openly boycott the goods of companies that have not stopped working with the Russian market. An example of the scale of such boycott actions can be served by the information scandals surrounding Philips, Bonduelle and PepsiCo.
Bonduelle, a French producer of frozen and canned vegetables, suffered a significant reputational blow by continuing to operate in Russia. The scandal arose after reports of the transfer of food kits to Russian soldiers in Ukraine, although the company denied these statements. Some Ukrainian supermarkets, including Varus, Novus, ATБ and Auchan Ukraine, have removed Bonduelle products from their shelves.
PepsiCo, despite announcing a halt to advertising and beverage production in Russia following the invasion of Ukraine, resumed production of some of its brands later in 2022, drawing criticism from Ukrainian authorities and the public. This decision of the company caused outrage among Ukrainian consumers, which led to a boycott of its products.
Philips, the Dutch electronics giant, was on the boycott list drawn up by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine due to its continued operations in Russia. Although Philips said it was downsizing and discontinuing the supply of certain consumer products, its Russian online store continued to sell coffee makers, hair dryers and TVs. This fact also did not go unnoticed by Ukrainian activists, which further strengthened the boycott against the company.
Strategy for the future
Examining special offers for the military in Ukraine, Promocodius experts trace the gradual transition from the donation format, when the company transfers a certain percentage of profit to the needs of a unit or the army as a whole, to personal discounts and bonuses for military personnel and their families.
Such a transformation initially concerned mainly suppliers of military and sporting goods, electronics, and medical services, but later discounts and loyalty programs for the military began to appear in the most unexpected areas, from real estate to entertainment.
It is interesting that this approach not only allows you to express gratitude and demonstrates the consolidation of society. It also promises potential profits and a loyal, paying audience for brands that choose such a strategy.
Already today, military personnel and their families constitute a significant segment of the consumer market in Ukraine. According to data published in 2024, the strength of the armed forces of Ukraine is approximately 900,000 active troops and 1.2 million reservists. It is likely that as long as the war continues, the number of people directly or indirectly involved will only increase. Moreover, the military and their families are not just a large group of people, but a consolidated community, where the principle “attract 1 client to you and he will bring 10 more” works perfectly.
