Now that the holiday rush has passed, you may have a little time to plan how to best contact all of those new names you have on your house file. One group that sometimes gets overlooked: the giftees (or ship-to’s).
These consumers can behave quite differently from your typical buyers. Many will not perform as well as a 12-month customer, but in some instances they can outperform older shoppers and requestors. Remember, these are folks who have received a package from your company. If they had a positive experience, they will be more inclined to order from you than a company they have had no experience with whatsoever.
If you have the volume and the ability to flag the giftees, it makes sense to segment them in their own group and track their performance. It gives you yet another option when developing your spring mailing strategy. You may want to segment gift card and gift certificate recipients separately, as well.
And don’t forget to promote your giftees next fall – if they liked the gift they received, they may want to purchase with you for their gift-giving.
Matt Morton is a marketing consultant with San Rafael, CA-based catalog consultancy Lenser.