New Experian CheetahMail report highlights missed opportunities in multichannel marketing
London, 13 August 2010 – Experian CheetahMail, Europe’s leading email marketing provider, today released a report highlighting best practice advice for brands engaging in multichannel marketing. The report entitled, ‘The perfect digital blend: engaging customers through email, SMS and social media,’ reveals that 57 per cent of consumers do not feel marketers target them correctly. Consequently, the report identifies how return on investment can be realised from effective multichannel digital communication.
The study illustrates the types of messages that resonate with consumers across three digital channels: email, SMS and social media; and suggests brands that integrate activity through a multichannel approach will engage customers more effectively. Experian CheetahMail urges brands keen to navigate the digital landscape and understand how to engage with consumers to take into account the following key considerations:
Email
• Relevance continues to be critical, with targeting based on web analytics leading the way. Consumers expressed the highest willingness to respond to emails including a discount offer for products they had been recently researching online (45%). This was followed by reminder emails regarding shopping baskets that had been filled online but not checked out.
• Geographic and demographic targeting is also important, with consumers confirming that they would be more likely to respond to emails relating to products/services available in their area, or to their lifestyle or age group.
Social Media
• 51% of young people (18-24 year olds) indicated they would be happy to follow brands on social media sites, with the main reasons being to ‘find out about sales and special offers’ (33%) or to ‘hear other users experiences and reviews’ (17%).
• Brands need to identify and reward advocates that are actively sharing content on social media. This could include sharing new/pre-release information with them first.
• Adding an email address collection box on social media networks can provide a noticeable uplift in subscriber bases for future email campaigns, creating long term customer engagement.
SMS
• Post purchase, service-based messages are most welcome. These include ‘confirmation of a purchase or appointment’ (45%) and ‘confirmation of a delivery date’ (51%).
• SMS works very well as a call to action in above-the-line advertising. This is an effective way of generating an immediate response from consumers and of capturing their contact details for future mailings.
• Offer based SMS campaigns are of interest to consumers as long as they are timely and relevant. They can draw on techniques such as geo-fencing to drive local customers in-store.
Steve Lomax, Managing Director, Experian CheetahMail EMEA, comments “Brands that intelligently integrate digital channels will be most effective. A good example includes ITV which has integrated email and social media to build and engage its online audience.”
“It’s vital to present customers with the right offer, at the right time, through the right channel mix. When implemented correctly, campaigns that are relevant and timely are likely to generate significantly higher return on investment than standard bulk mailings,” Lomax concluded.
ENDS
CONTACT:
Marielle Legair
PR Manager at Experian Marketing Services
T: (+44) 07966 102 823
marielle.legair@uk.experian.com
Notes to Editors:
All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc. Total sample size was 2316 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken between 21st - 23rd April 2010. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all UK adults (aged 18+).
About Experian CheetahMail
Experian CheetahMail is the trusted service provider of email marketing and customer intelligence technologies for top enterprises worldwide. With the industry’s largest client services teams, feature-rich email technology and a broad range of data management options, Experian CheetahMail enables clients to build data-driven, relevant relationships with their customers.
Servicing the world’s most recognisable brands, Experian CheetahMail’s globally diverse client base includes 1800Flowers, Barclays, Boden, Discovery Communications, ITV, KLM, Neiman Marcus and Wyndham Hotels. Experian CheetahMail, a business unit of Experian (LSE:EXPN), was founded in 1998 and is headquartered in New York City, with offices in Los Angeles, San Francisco, London, Dublin, Düsseldorf, Amsterdam, Paris, Barcelona, Madrid, Sydney, Auckland, Singapore, Hong Kong, Beijing and Melbourne. For more information, please visit http://www.cheetahmail.co.uk or email info@cheetahmail.com.
About Experian
Experian is the leading global information services company, providing data and analytical tools to clients in more than 90 countries. The company helps businesses to manage credit risk, prevent fraud, target marketing offers and automate decision making. Experian also helps individuals to check their credit report and credit score, and protect against identity theft.
Experian plc is listed on the London Stock Exchange (EXPN) and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 index. Total revenue for the year ended 31 March 2010 was $3.9 billion. Experian employs approximately 15,000 people in 40 countries and has its corporate headquarters in Dublin, Ireland, with operational headquarters in Nottingham, UK; Costa Mesa, California; and São Paulo, Brazil.
For more information, visit http://www.experianplc.com.