Tag Archives: Consumer Retail

Sightings: Valentine’s Day 2011

Posted on February 9, 2011 by Paradysz Research

While traditional Valentine’s Day presents like gourmet chocolates, jewelry and roses remain ever popular, here are some marketers we’ve tracked promoting unique, and often customizable, gift options.

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

Assuring the gift giver that the recipient will “fall in love again and again,” an email from Apple promoted its iPad as a truly memorable gift this Valentine’s Day. Romantic images appear on three iPads, highlighting the wide selection of apps, games, movies, books and more available via the tablet. Free personalization for the iPad (“Write your own romance”) and free shipping were offered with online orders.  Options in the Apple Store’s Engraving Gallery include the upcoming holiday (e.g. “Happy Valentine’s Day. I’m all yours. And so is this.”) as well as other occasions like birthdays, congratulations and thanks.

Vitals: email, delivered 1/30/11

An email from modern decor retailer West Elm encouraged recipients to “Give from the heart” and shop for gifts “you’re sure to fall for.”  The email featured several products that all incorporate a Valentine’s Day sentiment, including frames (“Now 20% off”), eGift Cards and handmade papier-mâché heart ornaments.  The hearts for Haiti are designed in coordination with the Hand/Eye Fund which is the philanthropic outlet of Hand/Eye magazine supporting an artisans collaborative in Port au Prince, Haiti.

Vitals: email, delivered 2/2/11

Ralph Lauren took a unique approach for Valentine’s by featuring dog polos in an email with the subject: “Puppy Love & Perfect Gifts: Valentine’s Day 2011.”  Shoppers were encouraged to “Find something special for your Valentine” by clicking through to categories like Men, Women, Boys, Girls, Baby, Pup.  Deadlines were given for holiday delivery and the email offered free shipping with $195+ orders and $8 flat-rate shipping on orders under $195.

Vitals: email, delivered 2/2/11

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Rewind Paid Search Index Released for January 2011

Posted on February 7, 2011 by PM Digital Research

If the holidays were marked by the return of meaningful growth in paid search, then post-holiday may long be remembered for…snow, more snow, and even more snow.  But the past month can also be credited with another type of accumulation:  more sales generated by paid search.  PM Digital’s January 2011 Rewind Index, which measures monthly paid search performance for online retail clients, shows that year-over-year revenue from this source was up 36%.  PM Digital clients achieved this growth with a 28% increase in spend.  Clicks and conversion also showed healthy increases, while average order (AOV) also continued to climb.

Click here to continue reading on the PM Digital Blog.

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Rewind Paid Search Index Released for December 2010

Posted on January 5, 2011 by PM Digital Research

Holiday 2010 was the best season online retailers have had in several years, by all early accounts.  You may have read some of the welcome growth figures that have been released so far:  12% year-over-year from comScore, 15.4% from MasterCard SpendingPulse; those are for holiday e-commerce overall—but what about sales driven only by paid search?  The December edition of the PM Digital Rewind Index, which measures monthly paid search performance for online retailers, shows that year-over-year revenue for this source was up 47% for PM Digital clients during this most important shopping month, and that the top sales days came early in the first and second weeks.

Click here to continue reading on the PM Digital Blog.

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Rewind Paid Search Performance Index Released for November 2010

Posted on December 3, 2010 by PM Digital Research

The online holiday shopping season has started off with a bang.  The November 2010 edition of the PM Digital Rewind Index, which measures U.S. paid search performance for online retailers, confirmed this was especially true for search marketers, who saw compelling growth in key metrics on and around Thanksgiving, Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

To put the key holiday shopping days in context, monthly data for November showed that paid search revenue was up 60%, year-over-year.  PM Digital clients achieved this growth with an increase of paid search spend of 69%.  Clicks, conversion and AOV were also up in November.

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Rewind Paid Search Performance Index Released for October 2010

Posted on November 4, 2010 by PM Digital Research

The positive trends for online retail continued in October. This month’s PM Digital Rewind Index, which measures monthly paid search performance for online retailers, shows that year-over-year paid search revenue was up 45%.  Paid search spend was similarly up for PM Digital clients, by 63% compared to the same month in 2009.  Clicks and conversion also grew in October, while average order value (AOV) remained flat. 

 
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2010 Online Retail Holiday Planning Preview

Posted on September 22, 2010 by PM Digital Research

A look back at last year’s PM Digital Rewind report on paid search performance for retailers offers insights for planning Holiday 2010.

As the new holiday season approaches, we wanted to redirect readers to PM Digital Research’s post spotlighting the Holiday 2009 Rewind study that looked at paid search campaigns for the past holiday season, including peak periods for clicks, sales and conversion.

There are insights we can glean from 2009 performance to inform the outlook for the 2010 Holiday, but there are also other performance indicators from 2010 that shed encouraging light for this year’s holiday.  Most recently, we experienced a very strong Labor Day, and the rest of September so far, continues to show positive signs for online shopping, with paid search revenue, clicks, conversion and average order value all up.

Click here to continue reading on the PM Digital Blog.

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Rewind Paid Search Performance Index Released for August 2010

Posted on September 2, 2010 by PM Digital Research

Paradysz Research’s digital division has just released its Rewind Monthly Index covering paid search metrics for online retail in August 2010.  Paid search metrics for PM Digital’s online retail clients in August continued to reflect positive trends for online shopping.  The PM Digital Rewind Index, which measures paid search performance for online retail marketers during the prior month, shows that paid search revenue was up 57% in August on a year-over-year basis.  This growth follows YoY increases tracked previously for June and July.  Paid search advertising spend was up in August (68%) vs. the same month in 2009, and increases were also seen in clicks and conversion metrics.  After a slight dip in June and July (-1% to -2% YoY), average order size was essentially flat in August, with growth of less than one-half percent.  CPCs continue to trend upwards.

Click here to continue reading on the PM Digital Blog.

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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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Sightings: New Promotions for Father’s Day 2010

Posted on June 16, 2010 by Paradysz Research

A rundown of recent email, direct mail and insert efforts from the MarketRelevance archives, featuring Father’s Day offerings from The Sharper Image, Lucky Brand, Jitterbug, Gravity Defyer, Nikon and Bissinger’s.  Gadgets still rule for dad, but modern pops might also find themselves with a trendy shirt or a box of chocolates.

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

The Sharper Image comes back for dad

The once-defunct Sharper Image is back in the mail in time for Father’s Day. Two print catalogs were tracked reminding shoppers that Father’s Day is June 20th, and offering free shipping on $99+ orders. The new business venture features a product mix similar to its prior incarnation, with gadgety items for health, home and travel.
Vitals: Direct mail, delivered 5/11/10 & 6/1/10, 10″ x 8″, 68 pages, free shipping on $99+ orders.

Dad’s Lucky shirt

A recent email from Lucky Brand reads “Make his day with a cool, comfortable Lucky cotton shirt (or two) this Father’s Day.” Two options — a solid and plaid — short-sleeved western shirts are featured in the promotion, perfect for hip dads.
Vitals: Email, delivered 6/7/10.

Jitterbug for older dads

The easy-to-use cell phone Jitterbug promises “From set-up to service, Jitterbug is simply different” in an ad in News America’s SmartSource (a newspaper FSI co-op). It goes on to identify key features ideal for aging parents like a large keypad, powerful speaker, no contracts, and a “friendly Jitterbug Operator” upon dialing 0. The product is available at retailer Best Buy, plus a toll-free number and website are provided for ordering. A free car charger accompanies phone activation by 7/15/10.
Vitals: FSI co-op, delivered 6/6/10.

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Multichannel Snapshot: The Gardening Sector

Posted on June 9, 2010 by Paradysz Research

Now that warmer weather is here, we decided to take a look at retailers that offer seeds, bulbs, plants and trees, along with gardening tools and gift items for those with a green thumb.  A quick review of both online and offline data shows that the sector has done well across channels — particularly in these more frugal, back-to-basics times.

Interest in vegetable gardens, for example, has increased in recent years, as many seek more control over their food sources and look for ways to save money in a lean economy.  Per a National Gardening Association survey, the reasons consumers give for growing their own food include better quality, better taste, food safety and money saved on food bills. The NGA survey reports a 19% increase in the number of U.S. households growing their own fruits, vegetables, berries, and herbs in 2009. Even First Lady Michelle Obama put in a vegetable garden at the White House in 2009, the first in over 50 years.

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