E-mail the Direct-Marketing Rock Star in Recession

Looks like the current recession is helping push email into full maturity as a full fledged, reliable and valuable direct marketing channel.  Email has been proven to help increase brand loyalty and retention, and increase the value of a customer over the long term. That, of course, is on top of its cost effectiveness  and its traceability (when executed correctly). AdAge reports on this story.

“The economy has energized this channel,” said Ryan Deutsch, VP-strategic services and market development at StrongMail. “It’s become the rock star of direct marketing in a lot of these retail organizations because it’s the most cost-effective and most trackable.”

Thanks to its cost-effectiveness and retailers’ recession-era emphasis on retention — Shop.org says that the number of companies focused on retention has nearly doubled in the past year — experts say few cuts are being made to e-mail budgets, while areas including paid search, affiliate marketing and social marketing are coming under scrutiny.

And I thought being an email marketer made me “sexier”…but I guess not.

“It’s not sexy, but it delivers results, and it’s focusing on existing customers,” said Scott Silverman, executive director of Shop.org. “E-mail technology continues to advance and allows retailers to be smarter. It’s not about sending more e-mail; it’s about more-targeted and more-relevant e-mail.”

I’m glad to see someone is saying, “It’s not about sending more e-mail…”. I hope more marketers get that message, “…it’s about more-targeted and more-relevant e-mail.”

It’s all about the results.

Thoughts on International Domains and Usability

I responded to a question on Linked about the use of domains. Here is the original question:

I am about to start an internet marketing campaign in Canada for a product that I am importing from the USA. Their website (example) is www.CoolProduct.com, my question is: do I promote www.CoolProduct.ca, or www.CoolProductCanada.com, in my marketing? I have both registered, and one will have a redirect to the main site I end up using.

Here are my thoughts:

The focus of domain selection process should always be on usability. So, you may want to do some research on the most common used domain (whether it is .com or .ca). If .com is the most common domain, you will find that many users will mistakenly recall the CoolProducts part of the domain, and automatically assume it is a .com domain. If this is the case, I would suggest using CoolProductsCanada.com.

If, on the other hand, it is common and popular to use .ca domains in Canada, and other similar or industry brands are using a .ca domain, then the more “expected” domain would be a .ca and I would recommend going with the CoolProduct.ca domain.

The key is user memory retention — which one are they most likely to recall–and ease of use (easy to spell).

Another approach is to do some benchmark research or competitive analysis. If your competitors are using one or the other, that is an indicator. Also, look across industries or product lines to see what other retailers/marketers are doing.

The final thing would be to see if there is any research available on internet usage in Canada (or your particular country). This would give you the most factual data.

The LinkedIn user followed up via email with this thought: “If I get coolproduct.com to link to me for my Canadian customers, I think I am better off using coolproduct.ca as it is shorter and easier to remember.”

I would agree with his thinking in general there. Another key thing is he would have the need to brand the regional nature of your market (Canada only), so the .ca may do that best.

Streaming radio station's audio on an ad-driven website?

LinkedIn member, Kelley Boster, Owner at Corporate Promotions & Incentives LLC. asked a compelling question through the LinkedIn Answers section.

Would Radio Stations allow their streaming to be accessed on other websites?

I have a Client who’s primary product is website advertising and we would like to see if we can add the “sound” dimension by partnering with a radio station with a matching demographic that offers “streaming” through their website? Would radio stations be open to this idea to allow streaming through another website that is not their own? What would the obstacles and/or objections be to this suggestion?

In dealing with potential radio content partnership, it is key to realize that a radio station’s revenue model is advertising as well. Radio ad sales have not been doing all that well, considering the current economy. Most radio stations build custom “player” interfaces that allow them to sell banner ad space to online listeners. So, I don’t see how any logical radio station would give up their revenue “inventory.” Also, while most radio stations are not making their bread & butter from online ad revenue, they do use online ad inventory to “sweeten” the deals for traditional radio advertising. I worked for a website property of a major radio conglomerate, and we would regularly have to display ads for “radio” customers (while not really seeing any revenue for it).

But, here are some thoughts to consider:

1. Independent or locally owned radio stations who might not yet have an online stream may be open to letting you make money of it, assuming you pay for the cost of the stream.

2. Stations already online may consider sharing revenue (50/50, 40/60, etc.) if you make it worth it. What can you offer the radio station that they don’t have already?

3. How about recording the radio shows, and offering them as “podcasts” or on-demand streaming, as opposed to “live.” The radio station gets a “secondary” market (through shared revenue) they probably would not have otherwise (most are not yet into podcasting as they see it as competition) while your website does not eat into their live radio audience. You could also arrange it so the radio station website can also provide the podcasts to their users directly.

The radio industry is an “old fashioned” industry, and from my experience, they are being slow to adapt and jump into the online world. When they do–and many radio/media companies are–they tend to have old fashioned radio industry mindset about how to do things, and revenue sharing and open-source are usually not included in there. Its a tough industry, so you’re going to have to be real creative in proving you can offer something of worth to their listeners and to their bottom line.

Below I provide a link to my previous employer’s web property. It is a very good model of the sharing of audience between radio and a website. Notice that several of Salem’s major radio hosts are bloggers who provide content on the website. They also regularly mention the website in their daily live radio shows. In exchange, the top 5 radio hosts get prime placement on the website, with direct links to the show websites and prime advertising of the radio host’s books. In this case, though, both the website property and the radio network are both owned by the same parent company, enabling the “innovation” leaders to “force” the change needed to make this work.

I’ve also posted below 2 links to an Economist set of articles on the convergence of old media with new media. Since you are in the web world, a lot will make sense to you, but you should read it from the point of view of what it communicates about the radio and traditional media industry. It is revealing of how far behind they have been and may be insightful into figuring out a model that will be tempting to your potential radio station partners. The first link is to the whole set of articles. The second Economist link is to the article on podcasting and radio.

Here are some articles and reference links that might be worth checking out in reference to the above:

Links:

* http://www.townhall.com
* http://www.economist.com/surveys/displaystory.cfm?story_id=6794156
* http://www.economist.com/surveys/displaystory.cfm?story_id=6794210

RelevantNoise: Keeping track of the political buzz

I’m a big politics buff, so I thought this article was rather interesting as it brings together my interest in interactive media and the world of politics (and its related to a tool I have used and can recommend).

Bloggers and social media enthusiasts on the Internet have weighed in on the recent McCain – Palin ticket, and the responses have pulled the Republican nominee into a virtual tie with Senator Barack Obama in the blogosphere.

I’ve had the opportunity to test-drive the technology behind this — lots of powerful intelligence and analytic tools to help you interpret the “noise” out there.

…according to RelevantNoise(TM), Zeta Interactive’s technology that mines the Internet’s social media landscape — including over 100 million blogs, as well as countless message boards and online communities — the buzz on the Internet regarding John McCain has skyrocketed by more than 12 percent since the announcement of Palin as his running mate, bringing him virtually even with Obama for the first time in the campaign.

I’m rooting for McCain, and was happy with his pick for VP, so its nice to read the good news. From a political strategy point of view, it seems to me that all the attacks on Sarah Palin is backfiring for the Obama campaign and has them off-message.

Since announcing Palin as his running mate, McCain also has benefitted from an increase in positive posts on the online media landscape. According to RelevantNoise, the number of posts that were determined positive in tone increased from 47 percent in the month prior to announcing his VP to 59 percent positive on the day that McCain named Palin. (Click the URL to see the volume and tonal charts) – http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080903/NYW144

Integrated Marketing: Aligning offline and online efforts

Lack of marketing strategy and execution integration seems to be a common challenge to many companies face when there are “silos” within the marketing channels. Inevitably, your customers will end up seeing different creative, different offers, and different price points.

Your integration efforts would probably needs to start at your “List” level. For best integration, you’ll want to make sure all channels are working of a shared List/customer database. Depending on who your customer is, you would then build an integrated segmentation strategy (who gets what channel as well as what offer/incentive, etc.). You will also want to make sure to pay attention to touch points and marketing calendar — you don’t want customers getting a flood of communication from different channels, so keep things on the same marketing calendar and decide how much is appropriate for each segment/channel.

To determine the best strategy, you could run some tests — select a control group and then do some split or A/B testing (DM vs Email, or DM & Email, etc.).

Most experts agree that the evidence supports sending mail first and following with email a week after a timed in-home mail date. You can find some case studies with more information on this at the DMA (Direct Marketing Assocation) website: www.the-dma.org.

I would certainly advice on a cohesive messaging and offer value. We tend to do DM first (strong branding effect, as its in-hand and tangible) followed by a reminder email that reinforces the offer (one week later). I have also seen it to be effective to send “reminder” emails on regular intervals during the promotion period (this will depend on how long your promotion is to last).

Finally, all channels are usually tied to a custom-built micro site that pulls the promo together. Usually, the micro site should be created to match your corporate or product brand. I also like to use tracking links and unique URLs on DM vs Email to be able to measure which creative caused the customer to take action or respond, as well as to test various email creative.

Social Media Marketing and Relevant Brand Building

Neha Gohad, a Student at Manchester Metropolitan university posted an interesting question on LinkedIn Questions. She asks what is the commercial appeal of Social Networking Sites for Brands?

I am doing a Research on Social Networking Sites in UK and their implications for Brands and effects on future consumers as a part of my Masters Dissertation at the Manchester Metropolitan University. The top Social networks in UK such as Facebook, MySpace, Bebo are amongst the most popular destinations . eMarketer reports predict the UK advertising spend on these networks would be well over £115 million in 2008 and forecasts this figure to go up to £285million by 2012.

These were the two parts to her question with my thoughts on each:

1. Do you think the Social Networks would fail to attract users if they are exploited excessively by Marketers/Brands?

Certainly. We saw the backlash to Facebook’s “recomendation” engine that caused concerns among users. Privacy will continue to be a concern among the general population, and exessive exploitation usually tends to cause privacy concerns. But beyond that, brands/marketers need to pay careful attention to how their “social interactions” impact the user’s experience and the user’s ability to interact.

The new paradigm of advertising is all about user-control or user-influence–something difficult to handle by traditional legacy agencies and corporations. Slapping “banners” on a social portal is a losing proposition for the most part when you consider the saturation and the click throughs — still worth it in some cases, but quickly fading as an effective approach as far as social media marketing. According to the brand, marketers need to be either subtle or in-your-face — the point is to be engaging according to the audience.

2. What factors/ approaches do you think should be considered most important in future for Brands on Social Networks? [eg: peer recommendations, highly targeted approach, interactive/ entertaining/ engaging campaigns etc]

Certainly targeting is a major factor — even more so in social media marketing than ever before. Without the right market segmentation strategy, it becomes challenging to craft an engaging and relevant message. It seems to me that peer recommendation has a lot going for it, but with some minor exceptions, it is yet to be executed to its full potential. For example, in Facebook, I keep seeing a recommendation-based ad for Visa Small Business from a couple individuals I do know and trust, but the thing is — I don’t have my own business. So, while the referring social aspect is right-on, the message is still not relevant to ME!

Not all social marketing needs to be entertaining. Just look at Mint.com — I fully enjoy using their “comparison” charts that show my spending against others in my city or state. The key is to make it relevant, useful (if its not easy to use, it will never be “engaging”) and what the user wants.

Honestly, I’m not sure that the old phrase “content is king” is valid anymore. Not because content is un-important, but because the phrase is not consumer-focused. Its now about the user — what it wants, how it wants it, when it wants it, and in a language and style most relevant to him or her.

There is the paradigm in which social media marketers need to start shaping their strategies.

How can offline marketing support online marketing and vice versa

I came across a great question in LinkedIn Answers and I think I’ll share it here. The question from Ann Lacres was, “How can offline marketing support online marketing and vice versa?”

Here is my 2 cents:

Online marketing can serve as another way to better segment your marketing dollars. So, while you can do “email reminders” to reinforce direct mail drops, you can also allow customers to choose how you communicate with them, giving them more control over how they interact with your company. This will allow you to increase the relevance and the effectiveness of each channel.

Another approach is to use offline marketing to drive customers to an online “funnel” where you can identify the customer and serve-up targeted offers or content. The value of offline is that you can do mass-communication reaching millions, but the weakness is that it’s not interactive–the customer can’t respond to your offer on-the-spot. So, use offline marketing to drive to a micro site where you can provide more depth, as well as breadth, of information–and customer-unique targeted offer.

I’ll ad to my initial answer that another power of using online as a response tool for offline marketing is that by using an “opt-in” mechanism, you can actually measure your promo costs ahead of time and get more “intelligence” out of the whole campaign. At my current employer, we do opt-in promotions tied to a customer’s spending habits, so we are able to track ahead of time what the total max cost of the promo is going to be months ahead of when the rewards are delivered.

A couple other LinkedIn members had some good ideas, including this one from Ms. Jennifer Woodard:

If you have an brick and mortar store, your online marketing can support your offline marketing my including your address to your store and hours on your website. You can offer specials on your website that have to be presented in the store to be taken advantage of. You can offer in your store places to sign up for your company newsletter, refrigerator magnets with your company information and website address, etc.

I think the key here is to let the customer choose his/her preferred “channel” to shop, rather than having pre-conceived notions about what customers want. Otherwise, you won’t see the response rates you are hoping for.

Raising money for charity

I’m an avid user of LinkedIn, and today I saw a question that caught my attention and interest — enough so that I wrote up some thoughts and ideas.

The question is:
What are effective methods for raising money for charity in an event or adventure-driven manner?

I’m currently on a solo, round the world motorcycle trip for charity. I am raising money for the Alzheimer’s Association, the Pulmonary Fibrosis foundation, and RAINN. Currently I have a website setup for blogging and displaying pictures from my travels. I’m looking for ways to use that site and my trip to raise money for the 3 aforementioned organizations. I’m looking for ideas like allowing those who donate to use my pictures for commercial use, hiring myself out for travel journalism, charging admission to slideshows after the trip has concluded, etc.

The site is viewable at:

http://www.bylandandsea.org

Several other LinkedIn users provided some good ideas and suggestions, but I didn’t see anyone mention Facebook Causes, as well as some other viral marketing resources available out there. Here was my answer:

You have a lot of important and valuable insight in the other responses above, but one idea I didn’t see is for you to set up a Facebook page and a Facebook Cause page. Facebook Causes already allows you to collect funds for charity, and with a facebook page, you can provide a viral tool for people to let other friends know about your charity fund raising efforts.

Its a great place to upload pictures, updated, and link to your blog — as well as to the charity sites and donation pages.

Related to that, make sure to ad a “tell a friend” or “email this page to a friend” tool. You want to empower those supporters that already believe in you and make it easy for them to recruit more donors and supporters for you.

The YouTube video clips idea is a great suggestion — I’ll add another tip. Use Flickr to upload pictures of people you meeet, place you visit, etc. Keep a sort of “picture blog” on Flickr. The power of Flickr is that it has viral elements to it which allow current supporters to spread the word.

All these things, by the way, should include links back to your main blog and donation pages. This will all help increase your organic search engine rankings, which in turn can make your web efforts more visible and easier to find.

Bold: Modernista goes "siteless"

Marketnig Vox is reporting that Boston-based Modernista dismantled their site, and is going “web 2.0″ with their new modernista.com destination. I think this has to be the gutsiest web strategy I’ve seen, specially when considering it’s from an ad agency.

When users “Google” the agency and click on Modernista, they are brought to the same results page — with an added nav bar. Clicking on “About” brings you to either Modernista’s Wikipedia entry or Facebook page.

The agency’s past work appears on Flickr, YouTube and del.icio.us. For company news, users are directed to Google News.

As MarketingVox points out, it’s risky as it means that competitors and potentially disgruntled ex-customers might have a way to place negative information within their web destination. You have to give them credit for walking the walk when it comes to the web.

Hyundai Misses It: Campaign Geared To Hispanics

I just visited the new Hyundai Hispanic marketing website and was very disappointed. Not only was the site boring, but it took me 5 minutes to figure out the navigation — clever, but way to complicated.

The site lacks visuals, of all things! I didn’t see a single picture of a shiny new Hyundai. The copy was good, but why, oh why, would they not use images or video? I mean, buying a car is a cultural and emotional experience, and there is no better way to communicate that but through visuals. Even when checking the “design” section — nothing — No pictures, no colors, no videos.

I don’t know who LatinWorks/Austin is hiring these days, but someone there should know this! Time to move on to a fourth option…

The company has a new head of multicultural marketing and is riding its third Hispanic agency in less than three years.

I visited LatinWorks site, (beware of the urban music on their splash page…) and immediately you can see that their Flash animator has a love for words and animated lines.

Hyundai’s new Hispanic slogan is “Discover it for yourself” but all I did was read about it… They missed the opportunity to provide their customers a truly interactive discovery process through the power of the web.

I haven’t seen the TV spots, so I won’t include those in this critique, but as far as the website, not effective use of marketing dollars, if you ask me.