How a Seasonal Retailer Evolved fr from Promo Emails to Year-Round - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

How a Seasonal Retailer Evolved fr from Promo Emails to Year-Round Content Marketing

Mar arcia Oak Oakes Co Courtney Eck ckerle Senior Online Marketing Manager Manager of Editorial Content Calendars.com MECLABS

Session Speaker

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Marcia Oakes Senior Online Marketing Manager Calendars.com

Marcia directs the email marketing channel for Calendars.com, an Internet Retailer Top 500 site and the largest online calendar

• retailer. Marcia has 15 years of marketing experience, including 11

years in B2C marketing and six years managing email and loyalty

• programs. Prior to moving into the e-commerce arena with

Calendars.com, she directed marketing efforts for several restaurant concepts and also has experience in media planning and advertising sales.

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@Oakes96

About Cale lendars.c .com

The Problem

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Ideally images have no borders

• r background

The problem

• Compelling promotions in off-season is a challenge
• Deliverability issues from decreased engagement

and inconsistent mail volume

Hig ighly ly se seasonal l product

The problem

Trapped in endless “buy now” messaging cy cycle

• All emails were promotional

in nature

• All emails had high revenue

expectations

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The problem

Trapped in endless “buy now” messaging cy cycle

• All emails were promotional

in nature

• All emails had high revenue

expectations

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Ideally images have no borders

• r background

We needed a new way to engage

Problem solv lving

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The solu lution

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Create an email newsletter to deliver compelling content all year long.

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The Challenges – Part 3

Bridging the gap

Defin ining obje jectiv ives

• Engage subscribers in a new way
• Provide interesting and relevant

content all year long

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• Utilize our trademarked phrase:

Flip Day™

Defin ining Obje jectives: Promote so

socia ial l media ch channels ls

12

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The Challenges – Part 3

Finding our voice

Bein ing ourselv lves with … Strategic Desig ign + Content

• No boring, traditional newsletters
• Design that builds on our brand
• Content that entertains and informs

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You can’t always get what you want

… and it it takes a sig signif ific icant tim time in investment to get what yo you need.

Connecting content to consumers

• Develop quality content
• Identify “evergreen” content you may

already have available

• Create a content calendar – make a

plan for the resources and time you need

You can’t always get what you want

… and it it takes a sig signif ific icant tim time in investment to get what yo you need.

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Connecting to our content

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Connecting to our content

Themed days

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Connecting to our content

Real dates in history

Themed days

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Connecting to our content

Celebrity birthdays

Real dates in history Themed days

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Connecting to our content

Home organization tips

Real dates in history Themed days Celeb b- days

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Connecting to our content

Links directly to popular Pins

Real dates in history Themed days Home

• rg

tips Celeb b- days

The result lts

Blog traffic after Flip Day newsletter send

The result lts

*Other factors contributed

• Newsletter produces a

a pos

• sitiv

ive ROI, despite low conversion rates

• Good customer feedback

+71%

Open Rate*

• Newsletter produces a

a pos

• sitiv

ive ROI, despite low conversion rates

• Good customer feedback

The result lts +71%

Open Rate*

*Other factors contributed

“I enjoy reading your monthly Flip Day calendar.”

• Kim

“You nailed it.”

• Beverly

“BRAVO for your wonderful Flip Day newsletter!”

• Claire

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The challe llenges

Flip Day was developed during the of

• ff-season to promote

engagement …

In In-season, it caused messaging conflicts and concerns about list fatigue First tested combining Flip Day with a promo campaign, and saw poor results

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In-season messaging conflicts

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Solu lution

Strategically identified audience for Flip Day during high- frequency months of September through January

– Recent purchasers who are typically suppressed from promos – Subscribers who have previously engaged with Flip Day

98% Increase in open rates

Compared to Flip Day open rate during off-season months

In-season messaging conflicts

Current challe llenge

Subscribers opt-out at a hi higher rate e on Flip Day messages

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Unsubscribe rates

Current challe llenge

Subscribers opt-out at a hi higher rate e on Flip Day messages

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When using the filtered, or strategic audience selection, negative impact is minimized.

Unsubscribe rates

Solu lution: Unsu

subscrib ibe rates Preference Center ch changes are planned this year to provide a choice about receiving Flip Day.

• Assumption is that some

subscribers only want promotional messages

• Adding other opt-down

choices as well

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Current Preference Center: No Flip Day option!

The takeaways

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Don’t be afraid to try something new Manage expectations for the executive team

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Watch your metrics and adjust your strategy as needed Ensure your design, content and voice work together to positively reinforce your brand

Thank you to my team!

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Ashton Fasel Calendars.com Graphic Design Content Curation Sarah Farrar Calendars.com Email Channel Partner-in-Crime

Thank You

Marcia Oakes Senior Online Marketing Manager Calendars.com marciao@calendars.com Courtney Eckerle Manager of Editorial Content MECLABS @CourtneyEckerle

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