We at Lenser recently had several clients begin the planning process for launching a second or third catalog title, seeking to extract ever more value out of their housefile and eager to present the market with an attractive new brand. The bar to marking success is getting higher and higher, however, as the new postage rates kick in. With postage representing such a significant percentage of catalog marketing cost, we’d like to design a test that mitigates this exposure.
Of the multiple channels of customer contact we leverage over the year, bouncebacks, or package inserts, often rank high in ROI. This makes sense when we frame this program as remarketing to our most recent buyers. Sweetening the deal for the retailer is the fact that the customer is essentially paying the postage cost of delivering that catalog since shipping and handling is often a zero sum proposition. So why not use this marketing channel to enrich your testing data at a lower incremental cost?
Just as with any test, tracking is important. Inkjet keycodes on all catalogs allocated to your bounceback program, do an A/B split when fulfilling orders, and then compare the response to the new offer versus your control. If you have a winner, continue testing in the broader marketplace.
Jude Hoffner is director of circulation, business-to-consumer markets, for San Rafael, CA-based consultancy Lenser.