As you probably know, the FTC is planning to eliminate the safe harbor for testimonials with disclaimers. If you are concerned about these changes, make sure you sign up to receive updates from us on this issue. We will send occasional updates that will keep you up to speed. This is part of the grassroots effort we will be launching shortly and these updates will make sure you know about opportunities to get involved. Please make sure you don’t miss out - fill out the form here.
Retailers know that if there was ever a time to keep their customers happy it’s now. They also know that finding new customers costs more time, resources and money than keeping existing customers. One way retailers are trying to keep economy-squeezed consumers satisfied is with discounts, and the key to effective discounting — without sacrificing ROI — is understanding your customers’ needs and motivations.
Here are five ways to make sure your discounting is on-target, customer-centric and profitable:
1.   One size does not fit all
The same discount offer will not fit the needs of all customers. Some are impulse buyers willing to pay full price; some are “coupon clippers†who won’t buy anything at full price but will buy something they don’t need if it’s on sale. Then there’s a range in between. Understand the differences between your customers and then use that insight to vary offers based on their discount-sensitivity.
2.   Test for the right mix
Start to learn customer differences by looking at the percentage of total items they purchase at a discount. Then compare how they respond to communications with a discount vs. those without. Try replacing discount offers with more relevant, full price product offers for those customers less sensitive to discounts. The right mix of discount and non-discount oriented offers will gradually emerge.
3.   Don’t over-discount
Many companies use discount offers and coupons in most of their customer communications, trying to drive loyalty. Although it’s often an effective strategy that drives traffic and purchases, discounting constantly trains customers to look for and wait for deals – lowering the chance that they will buy at full price. And then there’s the ongoing cost of the discount itself.
4.   Accept their terms
Make your offers consistent with customer shopping preferences. For example, if they like to buy in-store, your offer should emphasize store location and convenience in addition to the discount. You might prefer them to purchase online, but offering free shipping if they purchase online is not likely to work.
5.   Don’t rush to slash
Try to understand what motivates or turns off individual customers. For example, you probably have a large number of customers who have abandoned online shopping carts multiple times. They may be hesitating to complete the purchase because they just can’t stomach the shipping charges. Try testing free shipping for these people before you rush to discounting the product. You might just increase your conversion rate in the process.
Andy Cutler is chief strategy officer at Mercury, a Boston-based, insight-driven marketing agency that drives growth and profitability for clients through enhanced customer experiences.
Please join ERA at the New York Networking Reception on June 18, 2009 from 6:00-8:00 p.m. for cocktails and great networking with senior leaders of the direct response industry. The reception will be held during DM Days at the Manatt, Phelps, & Phillips offices in Times Square.
Immediately following the reception we will be holding our fourth Meet the CEO Dinner beginning at 8:15 p.m. It will be an intimate gathering where you can mingle with our new CEO, Julie Coons, as well as our Chairman, Nathan Fagre, board members, and ERA staff.
To register, please contact Katie White at kwhite@retailing.org or (703) 841-8284.
As I was running through the forest this morning with my writing partner Scout (below), it occurred to me as we stopped along the way 28 times for the pooch, aka “Sir Spritz A lot,” to mark the route by broadcasting his pheromones, that the basic idea of Twitter may have been around for ages, having originated with dogs.
Rick Petry is a freelance writer who specializes in direct marketing. He can be reached at rick.petry@me.com.
In tough times like these, the first thing many marketers cut back on is marketing and related marketing programs.
Advertising Age recently reported a $600 million cut to advertising and promotional budgets. Even Federal Express is feeling the pressure. FedEx, along with several other advertisers, dropped out of the Super Bowl after having participated for the last several years.
Spending cuts are affecting many different businesses. However, media planners who anticipate cutting resources in these tough times may want to reconsider acting too fast without considering all the facts.
Conservative Consumer Behavior
Yes, the news is filled with negative stories about cautious consumers in this fledgling economy. But even though consumers are spending less, experts have noticed their spending behaviors mostly affect industries including shopping, traveling, entertainment and consumption of higher-end brands. As a result, consumers are responding to these tough economic times by turning to discretionary leisure activities that don’t cost a lot.
Connecting with Consumers
But advertisers can still benefit since more time spent watching television, surfing the Internet, playing video games and engaging in other at-home activities means it could be easier to catch consumers in a more receptive state of mind.
When consumers engage in activity outside of home, there are usually too many distractions like driving, cell phone use and interacting with others that easily diverts their attention.
Advertisers know that their messages are much more effective when delivered in a less distracting environment – whether it’s through television, a magazine or the Internet. This gives them the best opportunity to establish a connection.
Do you agree?
Peter Koeppel is a Wharton MBA and president of Koeppel Direct, a full-service media buying agency based in Dallas.
ERA member Geraldine Newman of NEWTHYNK was approached with a challenging selling problem. How do you sell world peace? Starting with anti-Semitism, specifically to the African-American community. The answer is her 30-second spot featuring Russell Simmons and Jay Z. Check it out below.
As a member of the Twitterati, I’d like to share my thoughts on what using the service can mean to marketers. The ability to send and receive short messages in real time is a logical next step in technological evolution. The service lengthens the list of communication options that includes e-mail, instant messaging, Facebook, LinkedIn, RSS, text messages, even the trusty old telephone. As a public relations and marketing consultant with expertise in Internet-based social media methods, my firm understands the importance of tapping into the newest new thing to reach audiences and hear back from them. So what have I learned about Twitter so far?
Twitter on Main Street
One thing has come across loud and clear: Twitter is much more than just a means to inform others about your activities. Yes, the free messaging service poses the question: “What are you doing?†but effective users don’t waste time on pointless status updates. The Twitter-savvy take advantage of the tool to spread information instantly and add value to a conversation. What do the jet landing on the Hudson River and mayhem in Mumbai along with earthquakes, fires and riots around the globe have in common? They all got immediate attention when eyewitnesses tweeted firsthand accounts. Mainstream media have taken notice that news breaks fast on Twitter so they solicit input and news tips from users. CNN incorporates feedback it gathers via Twitter to shape subsequent broadcasts.
For marketers the ability to reach customers quickly—for free—has obvious merit. Twitter provides a handy way to address customer queries, comments and complaints. It’s a way for marketers to maintain a dialogue with customers that can establish and sustain relationships. It’s a way for marketers to listen and learn what their customers want.
Twitter Quitters
Number crunching by Nielson Media Research indicates 60 percent of Twitter users abandon the service after 30 days, meaning just 40 percent stick with it. That retention rate is far lower than social networking heavyweights Facebook and MySpace experienced when they launched. In fact, when they were emerging networks, their retention rates were twice as high as Twitter’s.
I recently had the distinct pleasure of attending the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. Wow! It was simply incredible to hear a legend like Paul McCartney and dance the night away to The Killers and MSTRKRFT.
Coachella was nothing like my experience at a Radiohead concert last May where weather complications prohibited the use of technology, forcing my friends and I to wonder aimlessly in the pouring rain sans cell phones. Coachella’s weather was perfect. Not only were we able to use our cell phones, Coachella was also completely up to speed in its use of social media. From an official Coachella iPhone application to a live Twitter feed, concert-goers were always in the know with updates and information. I even recently added Coachella as a fan page to my Facebook profile.
Corporate sponsors were also very visible to concert-goers. “Meet me at the Heineken beer tent,†became a popular phrase during the three-day extravaganza. Coachella will be forever ingrained in my head along with visions of sunshine, palm trees, mountains and the Naked Wizard? Yes, probably the most talked about event from the concert had nothing to do with musical acts. Now a viral sensation, the Naked Wizard definitely gives credence to Andy Warhol’s insightful prediction many years ago that everyone in the future would be famous for 15 minutes. I’m hoping my 15 minutes are dramatically different than the Naked Wizard’s.
Coachella aside, another recent event was the perfect move for a brand trying to connect with consumers via music.
This T-Mobile-sponsored affair is reminiscent of when Ferris Bueller sang “Twist and Shout†through the streets of downtown Chicago, except this is real life. As the media landscape continues to change and evolve, brands would be smart to follow the lead of Heineken, T-Mobile and others that incorporate themselves into consumers’ everyday lives in unique and engrossing ways.
Below are a few photo highlights from Launch DRTV Creative Director Drew Plotkin’s recent trip to Ethiopia for a Wheelchair Foundation drop and distribution. The trip was funded via a PSA spot produced by Launch DRTV and money raised from numerous DR industry players at the Los Angeles Wheelchair Foundation Gala organized by Imagine Fulfillment Services.
To make a donation, please call 1-800-584-0796 or click here.
If you answered yes, then you’ll love the recent cover features in Electronic Retailer’s April issue and Online Strategies’ spring edition.
Hot Ticket:Fandango’s Mitch Brody discusses how the online movie ticket company’s promo code business has helped brands and retailers extend their marketing message.
Inside the Clubhouse: TaylorMade Golf’s new website is the golfer’s ultimate web hangout–and a brilliantly executed example of online community.
Additionally, you’ll notice that you now have the ability to comment on and discuss Electronic Retailer and Online Strategies articles. Check out the debate readers have started concerning the TaylorMade article here!
As you probably know, the FTC is planning to eliminate the safe harbor for testimonials with disclaimers. If you are concerned about these changes, make sure you sign up to receive updates from us on this issue. We will send occasional updates that will keep you up to speed. This is part of the grassroots effort we will be launching shortly and these updates will make sure you know about opportunities to get involved. Please make sure you don’t miss out - fill out the form here.
Retailers know that if there was ever a time to keep their customers happy it’s now. They also know that finding new customers costs more time, resources and money than keeping existing customers. One way retailers are trying to keep economy-squeezed consumers satisfied is with discounts, and the key to effective discounting — without sacrificing ROI — is understanding your customers’ needs and motivations.
As I was running through the forest this morning with my writing partner Scout (below), it occurred to me as we stopped along the way 28 times for the pooch, aka “Sir Spritz A lot,” to mark the route by broadcasting his pheromones, that the basic idea of Twitter may have been around for ages, having originated with dogs.
In tough times like these, the first thing many marketers cut back on is marketing and related marketing programs.
As a member of the Twitterati, I’d like to share my thoughts on what using the service can mean to marketers. The ability to send and receive short messages in real time is a logical next step in technological evolution. The service lengthens the list of communication options that includes e-mail, instant messaging, Facebook, LinkedIn, RSS, text messages, even the trusty old telephone. As a public relations and marketing consultant with expertise in Internet-based social media methods, my firm understands the importance of tapping into the newest new thing to reach audiences and hear back from them. So what have I learned about Twitter so far?
I recently had the distinct pleasure of attending the 
Corporate sponsors were also very visible to concert-goers. “Meet me at the Heineken beer tent,†became a popular phrase during the three-day extravaganza. Coachella will be forever ingrained in my head along with visions of sunshine, palm trees, mountains and 
Last month I wrote a post about 
