Why? One-to-one marketing (or 1:1 marketing) has been shown to foster greater customer loyalty and better ROI. Fortunately, through CRM, email and other marketing software tools, it’s never been easier to target your prospects and customers with customised offers and content.

Here are a few suggestions – and a few tools – to help you do just that.

Know your audience

Putting customers’ first names into your print or email campaigns is a good start, but being able to offer tailored coupons or promotions can really boost sales and loyalty.

When you know who your customers are, you can create custom marketing campaigns to appeal to specific wants and needs. This sounds daunting, but being able to separate groups of customers by their interests or past purchasing behaviour gives you the power to target your marketing efforts to individuals.

So how do you do this? Start by using the information you have available. Use your email list and customer database (or CRM) and look for ways to segment campaigns. You can separate groups by purchase frequency, city, postal codes, services and much more.  Then you can use this information to send grouped special offers via email, postcard or even SMS messages.

Set up automated triggers 

Behaviour-triggered emails help you respond to how your customers are using your product or website. They’re a great way to get results and build interest.

For instance, if you buy something from Apple, you’ll undoubtedly get a follow-up email after you receive the item that asks you how you liked the product. And if you put something in your shopping cart and then leave the site without purchasing it, you’ll probably get an email a day or two later that says, “Hey, your items are still waiting for you!” These are both examples of behaviour-triggered emails.

Trigger emails are highly effective, with a 152% higher open rate than traditional emails. They’re a valuable communication tool that’s easy to automate with most major email platforms, and they can be used for up-selling, cross-selling, welcoming new customers and more.

Get the tools

Not sure where to begin in personalising offers for prospects and customers? Email platforms like MailChimp offer a wide variety of options for segmenting your emails (with some paid and some free choices), but there are also several online tools available that go beyond email:

• Marketo is some pretty full-on marketing automation software, offering real-time personalisation with targeted individuals through dynamically generated and personalised communication.

• Vero is a cloud-based email platform that helps businesses create and send targeted emails based on customers’ website behaviour, as well as offering complete data analysis.

• Intercom combines CRM and email tools to provide support, live chat, feedback and trigger emails so businesses gain an understanding of (and respond to) customer actions both online and in-app

• SparkPage is a B2C tool that helps businesses analyse where they’re losing customers in the conversion process, creating tailored messages suited to users’ needs.

These are just a few options to personalise your marketing. Depending on where you are in the process, your software and your marketing plans for the year, you can create plans for personalised promotions and efforts that will focus on each of your individual customers.

Need help personalising your marketing to get results? Contact Breathe Marketing today.

Have you been working on improving your website for mobile users? Fantastic. Now, what about improving your user experience across all devices and platforms?

Today’s consumers are on the go, they do their homework online (probably on multiple devices) and with the help of technology, they’re pushing marketing in new directions. With that in mind, let’s take a look at omni-channel marketing and the message you’re sending your customers.
What is omni-channel marketing?

Omni-channel marketing has to do with the change that’s taking place as consumers connect with your brand across an increasingly wide range of devices and marketing channels.

For instance, customers can visit your website, see your posts on Facebook, view an email on their tablet, call you to ask questions and then stop by your store. In all of these instances – and all devices – your marketing message and brand should be consistent.

If you have an e-commerce site, you want your customers to be able to see and order your products easily from any device. And if someone creates an account, places an item in their shopping cart from their phone and then leaves your site, you’ll want them to be able to jump back in later – even from a different device – and complete their transaction. (Ideally, you’d even send them an email reminder after 24 hours if they still have items waiting in their cart.)

The ultimate goal is to make visiting and purchasing from your company as easy and pleasurable as possible. The easier you make it to buy, the more likely customers are to make a purchase and come back in the future to do it again.

Tips for improving your omni-channel marketing

• Reach out in a variety of different ways – Customers will take different paths on their “journey” to buy your products and services. They may start by visiting your website from a phone, take a more in-depth look from a desktop computer, and then come by your store to take advantage of a discount you send them through email.  Think of all the different ways your customers can see what you offer and find ways to connect them.
• Track your results – Watch your Google Analytics (or other analytics) carefully and see how people are using your website, especially by device. Are they purchasing from their phone/tablet/desktop most of the time? Are they visiting your site by phone, getting a coupon and coming into your store? Are coupons sent via email campaigns more successful than those on your Facebook page? It’s critical to track what’s working and what’s not and make changes accordingly.
• Do an overall analysis – How does your site look and work from a phone and a tablet? Is it easy to see and buy the products? Have you mentioned your sale offers to your most loyal customers (i.e., the ones who like you on Facebook and are on your email list)? Do you offer live chat services, or is your phone number front and centre so customers can call if they have questions?Have someone – preferably a marketing professional, but definitely someone outside your organisation – walk through your site with you on multiple devices and various browsers, and take a look at how these compare with all your marketing messages and campaigns.  If there are questions or improvements to be made, this is a good place to get started.

Need help creating a consistent message?

Struggling to get a grasp on omni-channel marketing? Need to send a consistent message across different channels? We can help. Contact Breathe Marketing today to discuss your options.

1. Ask for feedback. If you have email addresses for your customers, consider sending out a short email survey after they make a purchase. (Survey Monkey and Zoomerang are two free online survey options to check out.) Ask about their experience, level of satisfaction, and suggestions for improvement. If you can act on their ideas, do so. Let them know you are listening, have valued their input and made changes as a result.
2. Encourage engagement. Social media offers you a fantastic opportunity to engage with your customers for free. Urge customers to “like” and “follow” you.  Notify them of updates at your business, and be sure to follow up. Even if you get negative feedback online, address issues quickly. People will see that you paid attention and take note.
3. Offer customer reward options. If you don’t already offer them, consider customer-only deals and incentives. For instance, you can build a customer email list and send out coupons or specials to those who sign up. You might also offer a ‘thank you event.’
4. Ask for testimonials. If you have a customer willing to share his or her experience with your company, use it to your advantage and share it. Post testimonials on your website or include them in your newsletters.
5. Consider referral incentives. Nothing beats a referral from a satisfied customer. Think about creating a referral program or finding ways to get customers to tell their friends about you. People are much more likely to make a purchase from a new company if they hear about it from a friend or family member.