Speciality store ensures sustainable, healthy sales
A diving equipment store located in the centre of a city wanted to increase its market share among diving enthusiasts. The company had its own website, and it had previously used diving magazines and trade fairs as marketing channels.
Turning occasional visitors into regular customers
Diving equipment stores, like many speciality stores, often use a very similar marketing tactic: placing adverts and inserts in hobby magazines and making use of the membership registers of hobby clubs. This means that many dealers occasionally target their message at the same prospects. But this dealer decided to try another method: a long-term plan, approaching customers regularly and thereby strengthening customer loyalty. The goal was to turn one-time visitors into regular customers.
The dealer started to build up a customer register of people who had visited the store or the website. Contact information included in warranty cards was also recorded. As required, the dealer naturally asked everyone’s permission for direct marketing. The register was at first only used for sending offers, but nowadays the dealer also offers customers various seasonal services (maintenance, winter storage, bottle filling, etc.) as well as sending them Christmas cards, for example.
Mail bearing the customer’s own name is sure to be read. The fact that direct marketing is personal is one of its greatest assets!
Differentiating from the competition
The store’s turnover has grown steadily. The owner likes direct marketing because now competitors cannot keep an eye on the store’s campaigns. If it seems that sales are going to be slow next month, campaigns can also be launched very quickly.
The owner also gave unaddressed direct mail a try to test whether this would increase demand. He used Unaddressed Bulk Delivery to post direct mail items to households in districts where there are many well-educated, single young people according to the ACORN classification. The campaign resulted in numerous inquiries, and will undoubtedly also bring in new regular customers.
