Focus on Friends and Family

December, 2005

‘Tis the holiday season. We’ll all spend lots of quality time with friends and family enjoying good fun and great food. Well, as we mulled over how RRW could relate a marketing topic to the holidays, we couldn’t help but thinking of a tried but true marketing ploy. Hence, this months’ friend and family newsletter theme. (OK, we do realize it’s a stretch!).

In the ’90s, MCI came up with the brilliant idea of asking customers to refer “Friends and Family” to join the MCI network. The offer was that anyone in the family circle could benefit from lower rates on Long Distance Calls if they were all MCI customers. It was a wonderful success and gained them a lot of new customers.

Since the ’90s, this idea has exploded, especially with the growth of the Internet and the newfound ability of people to spread news, jokes and even marketing offers quickly and vastly with a few clicks of the mouse. Marketers have made this a science, calling it Viral Marketing, Guerrilla Advertising, Word of Mouth Marketing, even Loyalty Marketing.

Overall, the idea is to exploit existing social networks to produce increased awareness, and ultimately increased sales. People will pass along and share ‘cool’ and entertaining content. Likewise (as in the case of the MCI example), they’ll share a great offer, if they feel it may benefit their friends and family.

If you’re looking for some good information on this concept, RRW has put together a series of weblinks that provide a diverse amount of content on this topic. We’d be happy to share results of our web research. Of course, we are also available to talk with you about your specific program and explore how some of our direct marketing expertise may assist you in your loyalty and word-of-mouth marketing programs.

Just give us a call at (503) 206-5255. Or, please visit our website: www.rrwconsulting.com for more information on our experience and capabilities.

And, enjoy Happy Holidays with your friends and family!

Intelligent Data Management

October, 2005

Over the last two months we’ve focused our newsletter topics on the customer. In August, we talked about the importance of Customer Service and how every interaction with your customer base is important in building long-term customer loyalty. Then, In September, we talked about improving overall customer profitability by turning your “average” customers into “very profitable” customers by cross-selling and up-selling them. This month, we’d like to focus on the importance of Intelligent Data Management to help to accomplish these two goals.

As Savvy Marketers, common sense tells us that we need to be able to understand our customer relationships and what drives our customers to buy from us. With all of the “silos” that occur within large organizations, sometimes having a good handle on the entire customer relationship can be a little tough. This is where customer data integration tools can assist you in pulling all of that disparate customer data together so that you have a realistic picture of each customer – allowing you to communicate with them appropriately.

Surfing through the myriad of data management tools can be a daunting process at times. What type of technology do you need for your data management goals? Will merge/purge technology suffice in your environment? Or, if you are a company with many divisions (aka silos), do you need a higher tech solution like a real-time ID that tracks your customers across divisions and product lines?

The answer to these very valid questions begins with a look internally. There are any number of vendors who would embrace the opportunity to sell you on their technology, however, first you need to assess your specific needs – starting with the technology and your marketing users, then working backwards to the best solution.

RRW believes that (here’s a surprise) an analytical approach is the best (and perhaps the only successful) approach. Analyze your situation, starting with a needs assessment. Talk to the various “power” users of your marketing data or database and determine their wishes in a perfect world. Then, figure out the list of “need to have” and “nice to have” in order to cull it down to a manageable set of requirements. This way, you can then figure out which vendors have products that best solve your problem and come up with a much more succinct list of providers to have discussions with.

If you’re looking for some good information to start with, you’re in luck! We have created a White Paper on Data Management Strategies which we’d be happy to sent to you. Of course, we are also available to talk with you about your specific needs and/or consult with you, thus taking the burden of this analysis off of your shoulders and putting it onto ours! If you’d like to know more about RRW’s capabilities in the area of customer data integration and data management strategies, please call us at (503) 206-5255, or visit our website: www.rrwconsulting.com for more info.

Growing Customer Value: Cross-Sell and Up-Sell

September, 2005

Sales and corporate goals tend to be centered around customer acquisition (how many new customers were we able to generate with Campaign X?) or around retention and churn (how many customers left us last quarter?). More rare is it that success is measured by overall profitability. Oftentimes that’s because companies have a tough time understanding profitability. And, when you factor in lifetime value (which is REALLY difficult to get a handle on), the whole profitability issue becomes a bit mind-boggling.

However, common sense tells us that the more profitable customers are those that have the deeper relationships-those customers who purchase multiple products and services from you. Those who are loyal and those who stay with you longer than the average customer.

The goal, then, becomes: How do we turn the average customer into a highly profitable customer?

RRW believes that an analytical approach is the best (and perhaps the only successful) approach. There are a few key customer attributes that you really do need to isolate and understand:

• Can you isolate the buying habits of your customer segments? Perhaps simple profiling of the customers of your distinct product lines will provide valuable insight.
• Undertake a “Market-Basket Analysis” to understand what products/services are commonly purchased by the same customer.
• Then, obtain an understanding of the buying “Sequence”. Try to answer the question: If Customer X purchases Product A, which is the next product she typically purchases?
• Finally, tie all of the learning together by developing statistical models to predict the next best product to offer (either to existing customers, or to prospects).

If you can accomplish the above, you’ll have come a long way in increasing up-sell and cross-sell efforts. If implemented correctly, the profit per customer will rise-life-time value will increase dramatically.

Unfortunately, while the strategy is easy to understand, the implementation is the tricky part. RRW has specific experience in solving these very same problems and we’ve successfully impacted the overall customer profitability for some key marketers.

In fact, we’ve published a case study that relates our experience in a multi-product campaign that significantly improved overall customer profitability. We’d be happy to send it to you. Of course, if you’d prefer to speak with us directly, or would like to know more about RRW’s capabilities, please call us at (503) 206-5255, or visit our website: www.rrwconsulting.com for more info.

Focus on Customer Service

August, 2005

As business-people and as consumers, intuitively we understand the importance of great customer service. We base future buying decisions on how well the sales rep understood our needs, how nice the person was and how much they listened (instead of being overbearing and just trying to ’sell’ us something). In our personal life, it may be even more immediate-sometimes the difference between that 12% or the 25% tip!

It’s easy, however, to forget about the importance of service. In a marketing environment, we often focus on the business of acquiring new customers-supplying leads to a sales-force, making those phones ring or causing response rates to rise. Of course, if our leads never result in new sales – even though we marketers may have done our best to bring in the business – then our overall goal of increasing profits is not going to be realized.

Hence today’s focus on customer service.

Maybe it’s time to take a look at the processes in place in your organization. Perhaps a review of each and every customer touch-point (from web to call-center to outside sales) may point out areas where service could improve-where you could isolate concrete ways to improve each customer’s experience. This, in turn, increases your number of closed sales and loyalty within your customer base – two very important keys to any company’s success.

In our experience, we’ve seen spectacular changes result after such a process review. Sometimes, it’s the simple things that are isolated as breakdowns in your process – and with some small changes, great improvements can be made for the better.

RRW brings an outside perspective and a focus on the customer to help clients understand where they may be able to make positive changes. Sometimes these changes seem obvious (where you just want to kick yourself and wonder why policy wasn’t changed sooner!). But, sometimes, the problems are not so apparent. And, you’re so immersed in your daily work, it can be difficult to see those things that need to be changed.

If you’re interested in a real-life example of the sort of process review that resulted in a more positive customer experience, we’d be happy to send you our Case Study titled: “Call Center Review–A Case Study about In-Bound Sales“ Of course, if you’d prefer to speak with us directly, or would like to know more about RRW’s capabilities, please call us at (503) 206-5255 or visit our website: www.rrwconsulting.com for more info.

Effective Networking

July, 2005

As consultants, we realize daily that numerous and deep client relationships are the keys to success and to building our business. The challenge, however, is creating and cultivating those relationships. We get busy with work and personal life. Sometimes it seems just too difficult to take the time to network and meet new business contacts.

Last week RRW attended the WBENC Women In Business conference in Las Vegas. A group of 2,000 women business owners convened with the main goal of matching corporations who want to work with women suppliers to the appropriate suppliers (the theme of the conference was: Turning Contacts to Contracts). As we wandered the exhibit hall and were faced with the daunting task of being effective networkers (so that we could win those big contracts down the road!), we realized the importance of effective networking skills.

Here are some of the things that we found helped us make new contacts—some that we feel strongly will result in new business:

• Keep it real. People like to do business with people they like. Of course, it’s imperative to always act professionally. However, it’s always more fun to talk to someone who is nice, funny and smart. There’s no need to be stiff and buttoned-up. Trust me, you’ll be better remembered if you have a sense of humor and can show your value and industry knowledge in an open and friendly manner.
• Get rid of the “What’s in it for me?” attitude. Isn’t it especially annoying when someone takes a look at your name badge and then walks away if they don’t like the company name they see on the badge? You never know when a contact may be useful to you. Treat people the way you want to be treated and you’ll be a much better networker.
• Don’t forget to follow-up. You’ve bitten the bullet, gotten over your shyness (which we all have when we’re networking), initiated a great conversation with a key prospect, and have promised to send them something (white paper, testimonial, resume, etc.). Then, you get back to your office—you’re busy and you simply fail to do the followup. What a waste of a great networking opportunity! It’s key to do what you said you’d do. Timely follow-up not only keeps the door open, but also demonstrates your responsiveness and commitment.

Whether you are a vendor or a client, networking is important. For all of us, it’s a way to keep a fresh perspective (by meeting new and different people). It’s a way to understand the changing marketplace (you never know when you may need to switch positions). Finally, for vendors effective networking is an unbeatable way to meet new prospective clients.

If you’d like a copy of our Tip Sheet titled: “Becoming a Better Networker”, we’d be happy to send it your way. Of course, if you’d prefer to speak with us directly, or would like to know more about RRW’s capabilities, please call us at (503) 206-5255, or visit our website: www.rrwconsulting.com for more info.

Creating Better Partnerships

June, 2005

With the scarcity of marketing-team resources, ever-expanding responsibilities, and shrinking budgets, it is more important than ever to select the best services, data and database providers to solve your unique business problems. Choosing your vendors/ partners can be really tough due to the sheer number of providers who offer solutions to our industry. Plus as technology is constantly evolving, it’s even more difficult to get a grasp on the available offerings.

For this reason, we thought it may be helpful to go over some of the things that we look for in solutions providers. These are the questions that we ask potential vendors to ensure that our clients end up with the best possible solution.

What level of support do they offer? What type of team have they assigned to manage your account? Is the firm proactive in assessing your needs and do they listen carefully to you as you outline your needs? How responsive are they when you call them with additional questions? And, equally important, once they’ve gone back to look for the answers to your questions, how well do they keep you apprised of their progress? Do they provide you with specific timelines for your projects, and then stick to them? Finally, are they able to share other client success stories (and client testimonials) where they’ve provided a similar solution?

These questions may seem like “no-brainers” but if you’ve ever managed a complex project, you know how important service can become. And (surprisingly) even some of the largest, most reputable firms fall short in these areas. In fact, it’s been our experience that oftentimes smaller providers are actually a better choice, primarily due to the support level you’ll receive.

If you are considering a new vendor/partner, are about to launch a new initiative, or if you have plans to solicit bids through a more formal RFP process, RRW has written a White Paper that will help.

If you’d like a copy of our White Paper titled: “Creating the Best Partnerships”, we’d be happy to send it to you. Of course, if you’d prefer to speak with us directly about your upcoming projects or would like to know more about our Solutions Integrator capabilities, please call us at (503) 206-5255, or visit our website: www.rrwconsulting.com for more info.

Just-in-Time Marketing

May, 2005

We’ve all heard how important it is to reach customers and prospects exactly at the point in time that they need our product or service; right when they’re ready to buy. In theory, this makes perfect sense—what a great way to boost response rates and make more sales! The challenge, however, is in the execution. If we could only consult our crystal balls and know that point in time when a consumer is ready to buy.

Well, while it’s not a perfect science, clever data mining can bring us a long way in finding that magical moment when our customers want to hear from us. For example, new triggering technology from the credit bureaus tells us when customers may be shopping with our competitors. One use of such a triggering program: a large bank has the credit bureaus monitor its customer portfolio. They are sent an alert the very day after one of their customers has applied for a loan with a competitor. In this case that lender now contacts their customer with a great ‘save’ offer and keeps that loan on their books—and away from their competitor. The consumer wins because they don’t have to hassle with the paperwork for a new loan and they receive a better interest rate, term, monthly payment, etc.

Similarly, the concept works in a prospecting environment. There’s a way, for example, to target wireless prospects who may be shopping for wireless service. Essentially, we can determine when an individual’s (or business’) service term is about to expire. With number portability, it’s easier than ever to switch providers. So, with this new knowledge, a wireless services provider is now able to contact that prospect with a good offer, and see if they can attract the customer over to their service.

Data mining can really help you to identify these types of consumer behaviors. It isn’t that hard to figure out how to use the power of data to help you to create more loyalty — and retain your valuable customers. And, even better, Just-in-Time Marketing can also grow your customer base — by beating your competitors to the consumer who’s ready to buy from you.

RRW Consulting has put together a list of ideas that illustrate the power of Just-in-Time Marketing. They are tactical and practical concepts that just may spark some Big Ideas you can use. We’d be happy to send it to you immediately. Of course, if you’d prefer to chat with us directly about your data mining and targeting strategies, just call us at (503) 206-5255, or visit our website: www.rrwconsulting.com for more info.

Utilizing Just-in-Time Marketing strategies is the best kept secret of maximizing response rates.

Advanced Segmentation

April, 2005

How many of us know exactly what our customer base looks like? We’ve done a pretty good job of understanding financial performance (probably because our CFO requires this!). We know which customers are likely to respond to our direct marketing campaigns. We can even predict what they’re likely to buy from us. We may have also invested some money in external demographic data and we’ve spent time profiling our customers in terms of their lifestyles and family composition.

However, commonly, what we see as we’re working with our clients is that all too often the entire customer base is treated the same. They are all presented with the same offer and the same creative package. Now we all know in our hearts that not all of our customers are created equal. Intuitively we know that there are distinct groups (or segments) that buy from us very differently—with different motives, demographics and financial characteristics.

We see opportunities, then, to take direct marketing to the next level of sophistication through the application of Advanced Segmentation. The new opportunity, in our opinion, is two-fold:

1. Use custom clustering techniques to identify those disparate customer groups that live within your overall portfolio. Really maximize available data—examine using credit data combined with demographic data to isolate those segments.
2. Then, do something about it! Why not tailor your offer to meet the needs of each group? Or, certainly your creative message could be ’tweaked’ based on demographic traits of each segment. For example, if you know that one segment is predominantly made up of families, why not include a photo of Mom, Dad and the kids. Just this simple change is bound to make your piece more likely to resonate with the recipient. And if they can relate, they’re more likely to respond.

RRW Consulting has put together our “Advanced Segmentation Game-Plan” that provides practical ideas and a game-plan to help you create, employ and then act on segmentation results. We’d be happy to send it your way.

Of course, if you’d prefer to chat with us directly about your segmentation and targeting strategies, just call us at (503) 206-5255, or visit our website: www.rrwconsulting.com for more info.

Consumer Privacy and CAN-SPAM

March, 2005

“Anyone who thinks the privacy issue has peaked is greatly mistaken. We are in the early stages of a sweeping change in attitudes that will fuel years of political battles and put once-routine business practices under the microscope” -
Jay Stanley, Analyst, Forrester Research, March 2001

Mr. Stanley was right—consumer privacy is a serious issue. Look at all the new privacy legislation, including the CAN-SPAM Act of 2003. This Act was created to stop fraudulent, unwanted and misleading e-mail. We recently spoke about this topic at a local American Marketing Association luncheon (CICAMA). Based on the groups’ interest, we thought we’d share some of the newer statistics in this months’ newsletter.

The bad news first—since the inception of CAN-SPAM, SPAM has become even more prolific! For example, unsolicited junk e-mail now accounts for 80% of all e-mail sent – up from 50-60% prior to enactment. And the cost to U.S. businesses in terms of technology and lost productivity was $17 billion in 2004 – up from $10 billion in 2003 (global costs were $50 billion).

On the other hand, the FTC believes that the Act has been successful. They have caught, punished and fined some of the serious Spammers with many of these fines numbering in the millions. Also, filtering software has become more adept at capturing SPAM. Finally, as more large ISP’s become involved in catching the Spammers (as Microsoft and AOL already have), the harder it will be for Spammers to hide themselves and successfully deploy their billions of e-mails.

Unfortunately, today, the SPAM continues. Spammers have to send out millions more e-mails to get the same response rate, but even with a low response rate, Spammers make money. As one Spammer says, “There’s way too much money involved…as long as the money is out there, we will continue to go after it.”

All in all, this is a complex issue, and it seems that only time will tell how successful the Act has been. If you are concerned that you or your clients are potentially in violation of the CAN-SPAM Act, we’d be happy to send you our white paper that contains the seven requirements of the CAN-SPAM Act. As an added bonus, it also covers best practices in e-marketing.

Of course, if you’d prefer to chat with us directly about your emarketing strategies, just call us at (503) 206-5255, or visit our website: www.rrwconsulting.com for more info.

Data Quality is So Important…

February, 2005

Garbage In, Garbage Out—a data processing reality. We all know that if the data behind a computer or operational system is bad, the system will never perform as designed. This is especially true in the Customer Relationship Management (CRM) world. We’ve all been exposed to early investments in high-dollar technology that were a complete failure simply because the data fueling the technology was faulty.

In January, RRW spoke on the topic of data quality both at the Southern California Direct Marketing Association luncheon and the following week at the San Diego DMA. Based on the number of questions from the audience and the interest generated after the luncheons, we’re convinced that this topic still resonates with direct marketers. Data reliability continues to be important, and not only from a postal delivery perspective.

In fact, we believe that as more and more users within organizations have access to customer and prospect information, the core capabilities of data hygiene and data integration will be in the spotlight. Let’s face it, it will be hard to ‘hide’ inferior data as more business people receive access to customer info. As direct marketers, we’ll be the lucky folks senior management will turn to to help ensure accurate information. I like the thought of this helping us with long-term job security!

But, it points out the fact that we need to be up-to-speed on the available data management tools.

RRW Consulting has prepared a White Paper that provides detailed information about data integration techniques. From standard address hygiene practices, to merge/purge to relatively new referential linkage technology, the White Paper provides information about the tools available to us. Additionally, it provides tips about when to use each process. Finally, we’ve highlighted some pitfalls to avoid (based on some of our painful experiences…). We’d love to share this White Paper with you, at no charge. Minimally, the White Paper should serve as a refresher course, but our hope is that you’ll get some BIG IDEAS to jump-start your data management process.

Of course, if you’d prefer to chat with us directly about your data management strategies, just call us at (503) 206-5255, or visit our website: www.rrwconsulting.com for more info.