Information: The Newest Currency
| Category: Database Marketing | Date: 2001-08-07 |
Database marketing has taken yet another turn, particularly as it applies to gathering information. Database marketing and its newest versions such as Customer Relationship Management (CRM) rely heavily if not exclusively on information - good information. To have a relationship with your partner, neighbor or anyone you want to get close to, you must have accurate and good information. This information must be woven into carefully threaded communication indicating you care about that person.
CRM applications can help you reach customers and meet their needs more effectively and efficiently. Why is this important? Companies are investing in CRM to provide competitive differentiation in a world where products can become commodities overnight. Thats why CRM is now the #1 priority for CEOs. The customer is king! And the customer information is the highest sought after asset.
So what is new about information is that appended household or census data is not accurate enough for the marketers of the 21st century. They don’t want to have anecdotal information compiled from subscriptions, registration cards (warranty cards) or credit scoring models conceived to aggregate masses of people together but actual real and current information from the customer or prospect and companies are willing to pay for it.
The information currency not only has marketing value it has real value to the corporation as CFOs and CEOs are seeking there most valuable asset is their customers satisfaction, history as a customer and potential advocate. Information has a price it can be either acquired through third parties or give by the customer themselves. The later self-described information is obliviously the most accurate and most valuable.
Permission Marketing made famous by Seth Godin, formerly founder of Yoyodyne now VP of Direct Marketing for Yahoo, postulated that consumers particularly online customers must be solicited differently. The customer was asked if it was all right if a company could send marketing materials in exchange the customer would receive awards or points good toward merchandise.
Today other companies who have not been saddled with the traditional mass marketing methods, even the more contemporary management methods such as Recency Frequency and Monetary value (RFM) used to identify historical best customers but did nothing to measure the customer potential, share-of-wallet or state-of-satisfaction are now looking for quicker and more accurate ways to asses their customers and prospects.
Working in real-time with the immediate need to get information from customers new Net based companies such as E*Trade who just pass the one million customers for their online securities trading, knows how much it costs to acquire a customer they want and they want to know exactly what customers potential is. To acquire this information about a customer they have offered 500 air miles just for the customer self-described information. After the customer gives their information they are given a certificate good for the first $50.00 investment with E*Trade just to get started.
Web sites built by self-reported data (mymusicboulevard, for example) have offered valued options for assisted and unassisted order entry on Web sites. Amazon.com and other companies are willing to provide incentives to traditional companies who can drive customers to their web site. Online companies know quickly how much a customer or set of eyeballs (the new online advertising model) costs. So if they can acquire targeted customers for less they are willing to pay for this information and the customer. As an example of this type of pairing consider the promotion that is happening right now between American Isuzu Motors, Inc. and their online partners.
At American Isuzu Motors the customer and prospect receive a mailer instructing them to go to the Isuzu web site www.isuzurodeo.com create their favorite vehicle on line, get a dealer quote and tell Isuzu when they are planning purchase their next vehicle. For this exchange of information Isuzu has teamed up with CDNow, CBS Sportsline and GreatFood.com with a gift certificate worth $10.00 on their next purchase from any of these online retailers.
The information is most powerful, American Isuzu Motors because it wants to develop a closer relationship with it’s customer as well as reduce it’s marketing expenses is collecting information from the customer such as what type of vehicle, trim level, color, model but most importantly when the customer is planning to purchase that vehicle and from what dealer. Armed with this information American Isuzu Motors can be in a position to deliver enhanced offers to those customers who have indicated certain preferences and timing. This becomes a win-win situation for everyone, with the customer driving the process entirely.
What about customers concerns over privacy, well customers are willing to trade off certain levels of privacy for some type of reciprocal value. They determine the value of that trade off. As in the case of Free-PC.com tie-in with Compaq Computer.
Their web site is flooded with 300,000 visitors after offer of free computers in exchange for personal online data.
Hundreds of thousands of people flooded the Web site for Free-PC.com to sign up for one of the first 10,000 computers the Pasadena company said it would give away to people who are willing to share personal information and receive targeted advertisements.
The Web site was visited by an estimated 300,000 people by midafternoon, with nearly all of them filling out the online application for the fully equipped PCs made by Compaq Computer, said Free-PC.com.
For every person who got through, there were untold others who tried in vain to connect to the Web site, at http://www.free-pc.com.
The demand demonstrates that a large segment of the public is willing to exchange some of their privacy for a free computer. Information and permission to market other products to this audience for information including what sites they visit on the Internet--so that it can make enough money from advertising revenues to recoup the cost of the computers and earn a profit.
What was asked was name, address, work number, home number, how many people live in the house, what is your income, what are you interested in, what type of magazines do you subscribe to. This is the kind of data that is compiled by other companies like Acxiom and Experian on registration cards and then projected or implied to other people who have similar household characteristics.
With so many people willing to share so much personal information, the company dropped its initial plans to make the first 10,000 computers available on a first-come, first-served basis. Instead Free-PC.com will collect applications over the next two months and give the first 10,000 PCs to applicants whose demographic profile most appeals to advertisers.
Free-PC.com ultimately plans to give away as many as 1 million computers, and if the companys business model works, others--such as America Online--are expected to follow suit.
For customer relationship management it becomes an imperative, to collect relevant and accurate information to make this new marketing method effective. Collecting customers experiences, interests and desires first hand allows marketers to be much more effective.
Marketing Automation - target the best customers, manage marketing campaigns, generate quality leads
Sales Force Automation - support the selling process from lead qualification to closing the business
Customer Service - resolve customer issues after the sale responsively and professionally
E-Commerce - automate marketing, sales, and service with an Internet-based system
In an IBM example, the company representatives reported that IBM offered potential customers a premium (a free T-shirt) in conjunction with a postcard mailing in exchange for answering a Web-based survey about brands, price, attributes and purchase likelihood by type of product. The offer also included an opt-in e-mail option, so IBM could respond to qualified leads based on the information provided.
The IBM offer garnered a sizable amount of customer preference and behavioral data, enabling the company to develop a communication strategy segmented by whether or not respondents were dedicated, casual or non- customers. Each of these audience tracks could then be provided key messages shaped by the very indicators that each segment said they respond to (price, service, ease of use, ease of purchase, etc.). The company used both Web sites and e-mail to support the ongoing relationship.
With Bermuda Tourism, consumers responding to print and broadcast advertisements were surveyed on their main interest in going to Bermuda, what activities they would like to pursue there, any needs they had for specific types of accommodations, and other travel data. >From this information, consumers were sent either a print-on-demand brochure, personalized and relevant to their specific interests, or were channeled to a special Web address. Here, the goal was to manage the expectations of a lead over the course of a travel buying decision.
In both cases, active surveying (with actual questionnaires) was performed, as well as passive surveying. Passive surveying includes monitoring Web traffic, pages visited, time spent, or call monitoring in a call center to better determine consumer motivation.
In using detailed information for targeted communication, your systems must be full-proof the cost of mismanaging such a high-touch relationship is a very angry customer. Getting it right doesnt always matter. Getting it wrong is dangerous.
The future of acquiring information will be lead by the Internet. The Web will offer personalization, customization, and unlimited choice. Marketers will get instant feedback, near perfect responsive transactions and deeper insights into the habits, feelings, likes and dislikes of their most elusive loyal customer. Customers will get what they want personalization about their next purchase or service.
The consumer will continue to demand that a company pay a price for information in exchange for personal information. It is a whole new paradigm; be prepared for that shift, your competition is going to be thinking about if not already paying for it.
About the Author.
:To contact see details below.
DBMarkets@aol.com
http://www.msdbm.com
CRM applications can help you reach customers and meet their needs more effectively and efficiently. Why is this important? Companies are investing in CRM to provide competitive differentiation in a world where products can become commodities overnight. Thats why CRM is now the #1 priority for CEOs. The customer is king! And the customer information is the highest sought after asset.
So what is new about information is that appended household or census data is not accurate enough for the marketers of the 21st century. They don’t want to have anecdotal information compiled from subscriptions, registration cards (warranty cards) or credit scoring models conceived to aggregate masses of people together but actual real and current information from the customer or prospect and companies are willing to pay for it.
The information currency not only has marketing value it has real value to the corporation as CFOs and CEOs are seeking there most valuable asset is their customers satisfaction, history as a customer and potential advocate. Information has a price it can be either acquired through third parties or give by the customer themselves. The later self-described information is obliviously the most accurate and most valuable.
Permission Marketing made famous by Seth Godin, formerly founder of Yoyodyne now VP of Direct Marketing for Yahoo, postulated that consumers particularly online customers must be solicited differently. The customer was asked if it was all right if a company could send marketing materials in exchange the customer would receive awards or points good toward merchandise.
Today other companies who have not been saddled with the traditional mass marketing methods, even the more contemporary management methods such as Recency Frequency and Monetary value (RFM) used to identify historical best customers but did nothing to measure the customer potential, share-of-wallet or state-of-satisfaction are now looking for quicker and more accurate ways to asses their customers and prospects.
Working in real-time with the immediate need to get information from customers new Net based companies such as E*Trade who just pass the one million customers for their online securities trading, knows how much it costs to acquire a customer they want and they want to know exactly what customers potential is. To acquire this information about a customer they have offered 500 air miles just for the customer self-described information. After the customer gives their information they are given a certificate good for the first $50.00 investment with E*Trade just to get started.
Web sites built by self-reported data (mymusicboulevard, for example) have offered valued options for assisted and unassisted order entry on Web sites. Amazon.com and other companies are willing to provide incentives to traditional companies who can drive customers to their web site. Online companies know quickly how much a customer or set of eyeballs (the new online advertising model) costs. So if they can acquire targeted customers for less they are willing to pay for this information and the customer. As an example of this type of pairing consider the promotion that is happening right now between American Isuzu Motors, Inc. and their online partners.
At American Isuzu Motors the customer and prospect receive a mailer instructing them to go to the Isuzu web site www.isuzurodeo.com create their favorite vehicle on line, get a dealer quote and tell Isuzu when they are planning purchase their next vehicle. For this exchange of information Isuzu has teamed up with CDNow, CBS Sportsline and GreatFood.com with a gift certificate worth $10.00 on their next purchase from any of these online retailers.
The information is most powerful, American Isuzu Motors because it wants to develop a closer relationship with it’s customer as well as reduce it’s marketing expenses is collecting information from the customer such as what type of vehicle, trim level, color, model but most importantly when the customer is planning to purchase that vehicle and from what dealer. Armed with this information American Isuzu Motors can be in a position to deliver enhanced offers to those customers who have indicated certain preferences and timing. This becomes a win-win situation for everyone, with the customer driving the process entirely.
What about customers concerns over privacy, well customers are willing to trade off certain levels of privacy for some type of reciprocal value. They determine the value of that trade off. As in the case of Free-PC.com tie-in with Compaq Computer.
Their web site is flooded with 300,000 visitors after offer of free computers in exchange for personal online data.
Hundreds of thousands of people flooded the Web site for Free-PC.com to sign up for one of the first 10,000 computers the Pasadena company said it would give away to people who are willing to share personal information and receive targeted advertisements.
The Web site was visited by an estimated 300,000 people by midafternoon, with nearly all of them filling out the online application for the fully equipped PCs made by Compaq Computer, said Free-PC.com.
For every person who got through, there were untold others who tried in vain to connect to the Web site, at http://www.free-pc.com.
The demand demonstrates that a large segment of the public is willing to exchange some of their privacy for a free computer. Information and permission to market other products to this audience for information including what sites they visit on the Internet--so that it can make enough money from advertising revenues to recoup the cost of the computers and earn a profit.
What was asked was name, address, work number, home number, how many people live in the house, what is your income, what are you interested in, what type of magazines do you subscribe to. This is the kind of data that is compiled by other companies like Acxiom and Experian on registration cards and then projected or implied to other people who have similar household characteristics.
With so many people willing to share so much personal information, the company dropped its initial plans to make the first 10,000 computers available on a first-come, first-served basis. Instead Free-PC.com will collect applications over the next two months and give the first 10,000 PCs to applicants whose demographic profile most appeals to advertisers.
Free-PC.com ultimately plans to give away as many as 1 million computers, and if the companys business model works, others--such as America Online--are expected to follow suit.
For customer relationship management it becomes an imperative, to collect relevant and accurate information to make this new marketing method effective. Collecting customers experiences, interests and desires first hand allows marketers to be much more effective.
Marketing Automation - target the best customers, manage marketing campaigns, generate quality leads
Sales Force Automation - support the selling process from lead qualification to closing the business
Customer Service - resolve customer issues after the sale responsively and professionally
E-Commerce - automate marketing, sales, and service with an Internet-based system
In an IBM example, the company representatives reported that IBM offered potential customers a premium (a free T-shirt) in conjunction with a postcard mailing in exchange for answering a Web-based survey about brands, price, attributes and purchase likelihood by type of product. The offer also included an opt-in e-mail option, so IBM could respond to qualified leads based on the information provided.
The IBM offer garnered a sizable amount of customer preference and behavioral data, enabling the company to develop a communication strategy segmented by whether or not respondents were dedicated, casual or non- customers. Each of these audience tracks could then be provided key messages shaped by the very indicators that each segment said they respond to (price, service, ease of use, ease of purchase, etc.). The company used both Web sites and e-mail to support the ongoing relationship.
With Bermuda Tourism, consumers responding to print and broadcast advertisements were surveyed on their main interest in going to Bermuda, what activities they would like to pursue there, any needs they had for specific types of accommodations, and other travel data. >From this information, consumers were sent either a print-on-demand brochure, personalized and relevant to their specific interests, or were channeled to a special Web address. Here, the goal was to manage the expectations of a lead over the course of a travel buying decision.
In both cases, active surveying (with actual questionnaires) was performed, as well as passive surveying. Passive surveying includes monitoring Web traffic, pages visited, time spent, or call monitoring in a call center to better determine consumer motivation.
In using detailed information for targeted communication, your systems must be full-proof the cost of mismanaging such a high-touch relationship is a very angry customer. Getting it right doesnt always matter. Getting it wrong is dangerous.
The future of acquiring information will be lead by the Internet. The Web will offer personalization, customization, and unlimited choice. Marketers will get instant feedback, near perfect responsive transactions and deeper insights into the habits, feelings, likes and dislikes of their most elusive loyal customer. Customers will get what they want personalization about their next purchase or service.
The consumer will continue to demand that a company pay a price for information in exchange for personal information. It is a whole new paradigm; be prepared for that shift, your competition is going to be thinking about if not already paying for it.
About the Author.
:To contact see details below.
DBMarkets@aol.com
http://www.msdbm.com
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