July 2010

Sightings: New Nonprofit Efforts for July 2010

Posted on July 28, 2010 by Paradysz Research

A look at some notable fundraising direct mail promotions from MarketRelevance: National Women’s History Museum, Alaska Wilderness League, George W. Bush Presidential Center, Soaring Eagle, and Cheetah Conservation Fund.

Note: Click on any promotion graphic for a more complete view.

National Women’s History Museum Moves Forward with Mission
The National Women’s History Museum’s latest mailing is from their national spokesperson Meryl Streep, who solicits charter membership for the institution, set to be built right by the National Mall in Washington D.C.  The #10 package reads “Your Invitation to Make History,” with a window showing the enclosed temporary charter membership card.    A full color brochure explains the museum’s mission to “affirm the value of knowing women’s history and illuminating the role of women in transforming society.”  As no taxpayer dollars will go towards the museum, the organization must raise an initial $27.5 million in private funds to get things started.  The group hopes to break ground by 2015. Contributors of $25 or more (the lowest ask amount) receive a certificate of appreciation, their name listed on location at the museum, as well as the newsletter A Different Point of View.  Step-premiums are offered to higher donors, including a “Well Behaved Women Rarely Make History” button, a silver NWHM pin, and special museum privileges.

Vitals: direct mail, delivered 7/22/10, #10 package, ask array = $25/$50/$100/$250/$1,000

Soaring Eagle Tells its Story
An unusual polywrapped package from Cheyenne preservation charity Soaring Eagle includes a six page foldout letter, brochure, reply form and personalized note cards. The letter from founder Father Emmett Hoffmann describes how he started the nonprofit in order to build a home for elders on the reservation in southeastern Montana. He gives examples of how donations help fund payments on the building loan, operating bills, and food costs, and the note is signed “Your Beggar Friend.” The reply form suggests a donation of $18.50 to cover the costs of food and other basic necessities for one day for an elder living at the Heritage Living Center. Three personalized note cards featuring Cheyenne artwork are included freemiums.

Vitals: direct mail, delivered 7/14/10, 8½” x 7¼” polywrap

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Sightings: Back to School 2010 Email and Catalog Promotions, Part 1

Posted on July 26, 2010 by Paradysz Research

For marketers, back to school shopping season can be big business. Here’s a look at some of the more interesting promotions we’ve come across this summer from Land of Nod, One Step Ahead & Leaps and Bounds, Justice, Loserkids, PBteen, and Pottery Barn Kids. As usual, retailers heavily promoted backpacks and school gear, with discounts and free shipping common incentives.

Note: Click on any promotion graphic for a more complete view.

Land of Nod Catalog and Email Says Back to School is in Session
Children’s furniture and toy specialist Land of Nod recently mailed its “Core Curriculum” catalog with a collection of items for back to school and a bind-in titled “Is That Gum in Your Mouth?” The eight page bind-in features products such as the Academic Animal Backpacks ($20), Wooden Puzzles ($10 – $14), and the I can See Clearly Now Desk Mat ($29). A clever rebus-like email followed with a storybook theme. Entitled “Chapter 1: Waking Up is Hard to Do,” the message tells the story of Jacob on the first day of school, highlighting a number of essential products. Images of featured items are dispersed throughout the story, including an Alarm Clock ($24.95), Flashcards ($14.95), and a Cereal Bowl ($16.95). A teaser at the end of the message reads “Coming Up—Chapter II: Let’s Do Lunch,” followed with a link to shop the back to school collection. The email also promotes backpacks.

Vitals: direct mail delivered 7/16/10, 10½” x 8″, 80 pages; email delivered 7/20/10

One Step Ahead & Leaps and Bounds Outfit the Littlest Back to Schoolers
Even baby specialist One Step Ahead and Leaps and Bounds, which offers products for very young children, is in the back to school groove. A coordinated email and catalog campaign targets parents interested in a stress-free school year for their youngest students. Both the Summer 2010 Preferred Customer Issue print catalog and corresponding email focused on organizational gear, specifically its exclusive My First Backpack ($24.95) and insulated Lunch Bag ($16.95) set. The backpack is designed for “beginners,” as even daycare students will find it “rugged and rummage proof.” Both channels promote free shipping on orders greater than $85, while the email adds a free pair of Zori sandals with $75+ purchase. Merchandise from One Step Ahead (age 0-3) and Leaps and Bounds (age 3+) range from nursery items, clothing and safety products to toys.

Vitals: direct mail, delivered 7/14/10, 10½” x 7¾”, 56 pages, free shipping on $85+ online orders; email delivered 7/15/10, Zori sandal premium with $75+ orders & free shipping on $85+ orders

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Multichannel Close-Up: Susan G. Komen 3-Day, Other Programs

Posted on July 21, 2010 by Susan Davis

Since 2010’s first Susan G. Komen 3-Day for the Cure walking event takes place this weekend in Boston, we thought that we’d explore how and when the group promotes some of its fundraising efforts.  From participatory events and annual appeals to used cell phone donations, magazine stamp sheets and iPhone apps, Susan G. Komen continues to have an amazingly diverse suite of direct response acquisition programs in play.

While the breast cancer nonprofit Susan G. Komen may be best known for its Race for the Cure international series of 5K runs, other fitness events like Komen 3-Day for the Cure and Komen Marathon for the Cure also raise significant funds.

Publicizing the 3-Day event starts early. For several years now, our MarketRelevance database has tracked a similar selfmailer in January designed to solicit registrants. With its signature pink color scheme, the mailing lays out the schedule, provides a bit of background like the time commitment (3 days, walking 60 miles), minimum funds needed to raise ($2,300), and options for interested parties to register (online at The3Day.org or via perforated postcard.) Those who respond get an Inspirational DVD and pink Promise Ring. 15 cities are slated on the 3-Day 2010 line up, taking place through late November.

Unique Visitors

The number of unique visitors to The3Day.org site rises early in the year, as the group seeks event participants. Visitor numbers stay fairly stable through the summer months when events are actually taking place, and decline through the fall. The organization’s Komen.org site saw a big increase in October’s traffic, corresponding with National Breast Cancer Awareness month.

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Sightings: Promotions for “Christmas in July” 2010

Posted on July 19, 2010 by Paradysz Research

Given the warm weather, holidays and summer vacations, it’s not surprising that consumers can be harder to engage in the summer months, particularly early July which is one of the most lightly promoted times of year per our MarketRelevance tracking.  To combat this sluggishness, marketers have tried a variety of tactics to captivate summertime buyers over the years. One of the most popular themes is “Christmas in July, ” which has been used by advertisers as an attention-getting oxymoron since the 1950s.  The tradition continues today, as marketers promote limited-time sales, preview new merchandise and urge preparedness for year-end holiday gift giving.  With the advent of email and the relatively inexpensive and timely messaging online formats afford, we have seen a wider variety of “Christmas in July” variations in recent years.

Note: Click on any promotion graphic for a more complete view.

ShopElvis.com Email Series Celebrates 12 Days of Christmas in July

Elvis Presley Enterprises via ShopElvis.com counted through the first days of July using a limited time sale in order to spark a sense of urgency for holiday shoppers. While a sample email subject like “12 Days of Christmas in July – Today – Save 25% on Holiday Ornaments” illustrates how ShopElvis.com used discounts to lure summertime shoppers, we suspect the true hook remains the unusual merchandise itself, ranging from a gold Elvis 70’s Sunglasses Ornament ($5.99) to an Elvis Vegas Show Stocking ($17.24).  Each day of the email series concentrated on different categories of merchandise, like t-shirts, posters, signs, ornaments, and the discounts varied. For example, an email promoting “Save 20% on All T-Shirts!” was delivered 6/30/10 and “Save 15% on All Posters and Signs!” followed 7/7/10. In addition to the selected discounted items, the emails gave buyers a chance to pre-order the Elvis on Tour DVD ($19.97), How Great Thou Art FTD CD ($19.97) and get a first look at new merchandise. The emails also did a good job of keeping shoppers excited about the sale, as each set up the following day’s discount (e.g. “Tomorrow’s July 2nd Special:  Save 15% on Graceland Merchandise.”)

Vitals: email, delivered 7/1/10

Terry’s Village Catalog Offers Exclusive First Look

As it has for several years now, Oriental Trading Company’s home decor offering Terry’s Village is one of the first each year to focus on colder weather celebrations, moving directly from summer merchandise to holiday. Presenting “Fall’s Best, our Halloween Favorites & a Holiday Sneak Peek,” this catalog presents shoppers with all the trimmings required in the next few months:  pumpkins, witches, wreathes, snowmen, angels, pine trees, and ornaments ($7.99 – $39.99). An additional incentive is used here on top of the free shipping the merchant typically offers with $49+ orders. Here, $49+ buyers by 7/29/10 get free shipping and 15% off.

Vitals: direct mail, delivered 7/9/10, 10″ x 8″, 60 pages, free shipping and 15% off $49+ orders

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Seasonal Trends in Direct Mail for Apparel Marketers

Posted on July 15, 2010 by Paradysz Research

Paradysz Research is currently working through its review of seasonal trends in direct mail for the prior calendar year.  Released sector-by-sector, our Seasonality Study attempts to answer the following:  When did marketers mail?  When did consumers respond?  Are there any synergies between those two trends that represent future marketing opportunities?

Our first release looks at Apparel merchants who promote with catalogs.  Unlike merchandise mailers, men’s and women’s apparel catalogs drop regularly throughout the year, with peaks in spring and fall that correspond with fashion seasons.

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Posted in Apparel | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Rewind Paid Search Performance Index: June 2010

Posted on July 13, 2010 by PM Digital Research

Paradysz Research’s digital division has just released the Rewind Monthly Index, a new feature that highlights paid search performance for online retail marketers during the prior month.  Based on aggregated and indexed performance data, the PM Digital Rewind Index provides quick, ongoing perspective for the retail sector just a few business days after the close of a given month. 

Our first report covers June 2010 which, despite the mixed results reported for many offline retailers in the business trades, was actually a good month for PM Digital’s online retail clients. On a year-over-year basis, paid search spend for June was up a healthy 25%, but paid search demand was up far more (44% vs. prior year).  

Click here to continue reading on the PM Digital Blog.

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Consumer Direct Mail List Prices – 2Q 2010 Update

Posted on July 9, 2010 by Paradysz Research

Following the trend seen in 2009 and early 2010, our latest list price studies show minimal changes over the past 12 months for the three key consumer categories of goods, magazines and nonprofits. For 2Q 2010, all three categories saw price increases, but for each the change was less than 1% year over year.

Note that while there are a few list price studies available, Paradysz works only with pricing for list segments that are consistently comparable and impactful.  We assess all 2,700+ key lists in our studies individually each time out to make sure they still warrant inclusion.  For marketers, that means CPMs for either 12-month or active names, including 12-month select charges to avoid artificial price fluctuations.  We also focus exclusively on direct response lists with verifiable sourcing, avoiding enhanced, compiled and mixed source files.

Consumer Goods

The consumer goods category (merchandise and apparel) has seen the most change over the two-year study period. In 2Q 2010, the average list cost per thousand for the consumer merchandising market was $107.36/M, up $1.82 (1.7%) from 2Q 2008.  The increase over this past year was $.25 or .2%.

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Close-Up: Boden’s Multichannel Marketing in the U.S.

Posted on July 1, 2010 by Susan Davis

For this month’s Close-Up, we took a look at British casual apparel brand Boden, which has established a significant online and offline presence over its 19 year history, expanding both its product scope and global reach. Most notably for U.S. marketers, Boden has leveraged nearly every direct response channel available to strengthen the brand in the U.S., using print catalogs, mini-catalog newspaper inserts, paid search, site media, comparison shopping engines and more.

About Boden

After quitting his job as a stockbroker in 1991, designer Johnnie Boden started his namesake company with a small collection of men’s apparel.  The U.K.-based company now also operates in the U.S., Austria and Germany. According to Hoovers, the private company J.P. Boden & Co. had 2009 annual sales of $243 million. While not the first direct response British fashion import to the U.S., Boden is among the most popular based on U.S. buyer counts.

Apparel for Adults, Children, Babies – and now Teens

Boden sells stylish clothing for women and men (through the main Boden brand), children and babies (through Mini Boden) and now teens. Launched at the beginning of 2010, the most recent spinoff, Johnnie b, is for children 10+ who have grown out of Mini Boden. Broadly speaking, Boden’s apparel offerings are comparable style-wise to J. Crew or Banana Republic, with items ranging from basic t-shirts to dresswear. Many styles feature trendy prints. Prices run from $20 (child’s t-shirt) up to $274 (men’s suit jacket).

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