Database Marketing

SUMMARY: If you want email subscribers to respond to a call-to-action, you need to understand what motivates them. The problem is, different groups within your database have different motivators.

See how the marketing team at the American Heart Association solved this problem with a take on segmentation called "mind type." By researching its database and uncovering the key interest areas of four unique groups, the AHA created an email nurturing campaign that spoke directly to subscriber motivations and increased donation rates 42.5%. read the complete case study

SUMMARY: Launching new products and designing marketing campaigns that stand out would be much easier if you knew your competitors’ plans. While they are unlikely to send you a blueprint, there are ways you can gain insight.

Check out these five tactics we gleaned from a competitive intelligence expert with more than 15 years of experience. We include tactics for interviewing customers, listening at industry conferences, and monitoring public information. We also explain why you should keep your strategy honest. read the complete article

SUMMARY: Last time we checked, Office Depot's ability to integrate multiple channels had their ecommerce engine humming to the annual tune of $3.1 billion. Well, that was 2004. They've since upped that number, reaching $4.5 billion in 2006. Sounds like they didn't get to be the #1 online office supplier without doing a few things right.

Let’s peek at this leading retailer’s key multichannel strategies, which are constantly being honed not only by the marketing department -- but also by the customers themselves. You see, Office Depot is all about CRM. read the complete interview

SUMMARY: In high-end business technology (software, IT tools and related services), it's marketing's job not only to generate demand but also to gauge which leads are worth following up on.Because, let's face it, the one impossible-to-grow resource is your sales reps' time. They have limited hours in the day, so you need to focus them on the accounts that will close. (Plus, reps will love you for it.)Here's an exclusive look at new b-to-b behavioral-buying research that's the next best thing to a crystal ball. Use it to figure out which types of prospects to go after harder. read the complete article

Are you about to send a special "warm fuzzy" holiday card or gift to your top customers? Here's an idea I love from Teri Schacker, head of marketing for the Credit Union Executives Society...

This fall she researched to find out which common attributes her top 100 best customers all shared -- aside from being great customers of course. These might be location, number of employees, types of purchases, email open rate, whatever....

Then... read the complete blog post