For young fathers such as myself, Father's Day has a lustre and excitement which is akin to Christmas, Easter and birthdays as a child. My third Father's Day it is still a new event to share with my family, who have to shop for the proverbial "man who has everything".
With a few weeks reflection on Father's Day here in Australia, I look back at marketing opportunities won and lost for retailers. My wife and I received a myriad of advertising materials from hard-copy catalogues, through to e-mail links and text messages. One retailer got it right and reeled me in hook, line and sinker. "What separated the winners from losers?", I asked myself and the answer lies directly in front when at work: Active Enterprise Intelligence.
It got me thinking about who really understands me and knows what to offer buyers, who would in turn, buy for me. Let us compare two marketing campaign approaches to see where it is right or goes wrong in the context of the Four P's of marketing: Product, Place, Promotion and Price.
Case Study 1: The Big Fish
-----------------------------------------
Being a keen outdoorsman, I am a regular on outdoors forums, websites and online stores. I love getting away from the desk job in search of adventure and fun with my family. I wear things out and occasionally lose them but my "Bat Cave" of gear is pretty comprehensive. Anything new that I need must be very specific as I am pretty discerning. As Father's Day approached, my wife and I were sent well targeted e-mails and personalised deals. One offer was very interesting and aligned to my specific interests. It was as though the retailer knew my buying history, what I had that was outdated, or didn't own. When I did not flag interest on my "Wish List" or navigated away from a product page, similar products in a different class were neatly placed on the next, offering alternatives that might be a better fit. I flagged the suggestions and ended up receiving many of these items as Father’s Day gifts.
The retailer knew what products to offer at the right quality and price point balance as well as provide me with alternatives and simple ways to refine my shopping until I found what I wanted. Similarly, my wife was given incentives to order things from a "Wish List" I had compiled. They knew my name, address, details, how I preferred to order and delivery methods. With it all so well laid out, how could I say no?
Product: The right products aligned to my interests, needs and purchase history. Perfect.
Place: Well targeted placement of advertising, e-mails and deals at the right time. Postage and delivery was clearly and simply arranged to my home. Placement of alternative suggestions was excellent.
Promotion: The right brands and incentives were offered and my wife could easily buy them for me. The "Wish List" of items I wanted and discounted international shipping offered to us was ideal.
Price: You need an incentive to buy online from an overseas retailer. This retailer stocked quality products at prices which are excellent compared to my local market.
With all of the right customer insights on my buying history and habits: brands, products, quality and prices; my wife and sons were able to buy me the right Father's Day gifts simply and efficiently. This is a great example of having the right information at the right time to drive a customer buying decision. I could keep you all in suspense; however, you could probably already guess that the retailer is Cabela’s. Powered by Teradata Active Enterprise Intelligence, they provided tailored offers that hit the mark. We were happily reeled in for Father's Day.
Case Study 2: The One That Got Away
--------------------------------------------------------
I signed up with a profile for a fishing and outdoors online retailer about 12 months ago. While I have created shopping carts and wish lists on this site, I have never bought from this organisation as I had never felt comfortable or clear on how my international buying needs would be met. The range of products this company stocks is excellent with good budget brands that are competitively priced. The marketing material I was sent was not well targeted and included American game fishing, while relevant to US residents, is not here in Australia. Information about Nascar, US Army recruitment and sponsorship events, interest free and cheap shipping deals for US residents only made me feel less important and poorly targeted by marketing. Different types of fish need different tactics: just like customers!
Product: Right - an excellent selection but finding what I want could be easier.
Place: While generally right, the marketers had forgotten where I am placed. Products could have been sorted and categorised so I did not have to do all the looking – relevant items were not suggested to me.
Promotion: Wrong. There was nothing timed or targeted to promote this US-based retailer's products to me as an individual. They could have better leveraged their existing knowledge of my browsing history or used a "Wish List" to their advantage.
Price: Right - budget to best-in-class gear, all at competitive prices
It was all too hard and I gave up. Cabela’s, a direct competitor to the one described in Case Study 2, outclassed and out marketed this company. I am the fish that got away.
As you can see from these examples, one retailer had the insight into me as an individual to target my wants and needs by mastering the product, placement, promotion and price mix. They understood the interplay between buyer and gift receiver and proactively offered alternatives to products I didn't like in close to real-time. Cabela’s managed to catch this fish like a wise, patient old angler while their competition went hungry.
Related Resources:
Learn more about Integrated Web Intelligence
Podcast: Dean Wynkoop, Manager of Data Management, Cabela’s
RSS Feed
LinkedIn
Twitter
You Tube