Database marketers who develop their contact strategies without adequate information are committing a deadly sin, says Jeff Hassemer, director of product strategy at the data management solutions division of marketing solutions provider Broomfield, CO-based Abacus.
During a recent Webinar hosted by MULTICHANNEL MERCHANT and “Direct” magazines, Hassemer explained how a flawed contact strategy can cause problems – and what marketers can do about it.
“For many companies, one of the most pressing marketing questions is, ‘what is the optimum frequency of customer contact to maximize profit?'” Hassemer said. “I’m not here to tell you that there is a magic bullet to this answer, because there isn’t, but a database will help you get closer to the answer.”
If you create a contact strategy without the right data, you shortchange yourself in several ways, including:
- Leaving money on the table by not contacting customers when they are likely to buy
- Wasting marketing dollars by over-mailing customers not likely to respond
- Limiting customer loyalty by not providing relevant information with every interaction
The problem can result in overlapping contacts and wasted marketing dollars, and occurs when marketers fail to track how often they contact clients through multiple channels.
But Hassemer said database marketers can take several steps to include the right data in a contact strategy plan:
- First thing – determine the value of your customers by segment
- Find out when and where your customers are buying
- Find out what they buy by segment
- Determine your metrics such as LTV by first purchase channel and offer
- Develop contact strategies that provide the best return across each segment and channel
For the rest of Hassemer’s Webinar, “The Seven Deadly Sins of Database Marketing,” log on to https://multichannelmerchant.com/events/webinars/seven_sins/ for a free replay. And if you have questions for Hassemer, you can send them to him directly at the “Ask the Experts” section of MULTICHANNEL MERCHANT’s Website: