It’s great to dissect retail email marketing campaigns to look for ideas.  In past Jericho blog posts I’ve called it spying .  Because I’m an online shopper, I received this targeted campaign from Countdown last week.   Countdown is our local supermarket chain.

‘Shop online and Win an iPad’.

But wait a second…

‘Shop online anytime in the next month and win a 1st Gen iPad’?

Now my consumer and marketer hats do a quick switch, I’m reading and I’m scratching my head.

Why can’t I win a new one?

Why spend multiple thousands of dollars on this campaign to win the superseded model?

As you are reading this, it’s likely we are a lot like you – we have at our core a focus on the ‘art’ of email marketing as well as the science.  So we remind clients and prospective clients many times a day that it costs the same to send an ugly email campaign as it does to send a great email campaign… But the real cost is that of missing the sweet spot – misses hit you in the brand and directly in the pocket.

Or in this case, for the sake of a couple of hundred bucks, every time more money is spent to bring eyeballs to this campaign over the next month Countdown are going to look off the boil, off the ball, so… like.. last month, and yes a little bit cheap.

Everything looks spot on in this eDM campaign, and other than the iPad it’s a great example of a retail email campaign.

Here at Jericho, we love our 1st Gen iPad’s.  But we ‘covet’ the new one.  What do you think?  How much cooler would this campaign be if we were in to win a 2nd Gen iPad?  Worth the extra 1% of budget?

In follow up to the two earlier posts (it’s not my birthday, and it is my birthday)! about the opportunity to use date fields in your database to send personal and relevant eDM’s to your clients, I am here to report that a grand total of 2 organisations have used my birthday for an email campaign.

Robin Judkins is from New Zealand, the longstanding master of the Speights Coast to Coast.  Robin’s email is personalised in great detail (click on it to see detail), focuses on the fact that birthdays are a good time to review and set goals, and he reminds me that I haven’t re-registered for my second shot at the world’s most gruelling multi-sport race.  Simple, effective, personal and appreciated.  (P.S. I’m planning for a repeat in 2012 if you’re up for it?)

Banana Republic is from the USA.

I only subscribe becuase a lot of our clients are retailers and we like to get the best form the rest to be continually able to offer tips and advice as well as examples of best practise.  I haven’t ever purchased online from them, but they clearly have a triggered date program that sent this to me.

No personalisation as such other than they sent it in November which is my birthday month, but it’s better to do something than nothing, and this is a something.

I’m sad to say none of our own clients sent a birthday campaign, automated manual or otherwise, clearly we have a lot of work to do to convince them that this is worth doing or they would be doing it, surely?

Hey retailers? Suppliers? Ecommerce websites? Professional services?  You have my birthdate on file, why not use it and see how much money you can get me to spoil myself with – it’s only once a year and you might just find out that I’m worth it.

I’m so sure this is a great opportunity that I’m happy to talk to you and get something started as soon as you are ready – let m know.

Conversely – if you don’t do birthday or anniversary eDM campaigns and you think you have a good reason why not – tell us why in the comments below, please.

Lastly – there is NO linking or promoting to Social Media going on here… when I know for a fact that most people who do know its my birthday find our via a Facebook update.  There is the perfect and relevant opportunity to wish your customers the happiest of days, and also encourage them to share the wishes with their networks, allowing you a branding opportunity that will reach as wide as their peer group does.  Now that’s bang for your buck.  For other posts about this type of sharing see SWYN, and Free Money.

I’ve got a year to get some action round these parts – how hard can it be?

See this post in the same topic http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=151226