Lauren Thompson, Communications Manager for Jewelers of America, shares how shoe brand Geox is getting it right when it comes to email marketing:
For Christmas, I bought a pair of Geox shoes as a gift. While I went to the retail location, during the rush of the holiday season, I found it easier to buy the shoes online – which featured the same services and discounts that I would have received in store. Ever since I made the purchase, Geox has sent follow-up emails. As JA’s communications manager, I have been impressed with the brand’s soft sales approach and customer service in their direct email marketing. These emails remind me that for future shoes/gift purchases, Geox needs to be on my list of retailers to visit.
Here are some lessons from the Geox marketing team that you can apply to your jewelry marketing:
- Make It Personal: Each email addresses me by name and mentions the exact style of shoe I purchased. Start synching your customer databases to your email marketing platform. If you aren’t storing this information on a computer or in an online database, this is an investment you should consider as targeted marketing becomes key to driving repeat sales. You can start simply by creating files that list each customer’s basic info and update them with their latest purchase. You can use these files to upload to your email marketing provider, like Constant Contact.
- Say “Thank You” in a Timely Manner: Two weeks after I purchased shoes from Geox.com, I received an email thanking me and providing more information about the Italian shoe brand and its patented technology. This information was interesting enough that I forwarded it on to my giftee. Sending email “Thank Yous” is a great opportunity to show off your jewelry expertise -– and remind your customers why a purchase from you is better than a purchase with an online-only retailer or non-specialty jeweler.
- Make It Meaningful: This is where jewelers and jewelry suppliers have an advantage. Jewelry consumers often do not know much about jewelry materials or how products are sourced and crafted. Use your emails to educate your customer, and they will not only be inspired to purchase again, but will view you as the expert who they can trust with that purchase.
- Remind Them of New Styles/New Seasons: For a seasonal industry such as ours, you should be taking advantage of this opportunity to reconnect with your customers. Geox.com sent an email at the start of spring, mentioning that it had been a “full season” since my last purchase and providing quick links to new spring styles at their website. For jewelers, you can send style updates after the New York fashion shows, after your trade show visits and/or new inventory delivery. The emails can announce that you have new product in store –- or describe how your existing inventory fits with current trends. Be sure to link to a webpage that highlights this jewelry product with images that sparkle.
- Extra Tip: See how your jewelry merchandise reflects current fashion trends by reading JIC’s Jewelry Trends Reports. Click here to see 2010 Spring/Summer and Fall/Winter jewelry trends.
- Make It Easy for Mobile Users: An email that consists of one beautiful image, unfortunately means nothing to those quickly viewing it from many PDAs and Blackberry’s. If you use images, add alt tags so people can read what the images would display, and always include short text introductions quickly summarizing your content, if nothing else.
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