Reaching the right consumers in the most successful way has long been a grey area, with brands often finding it hard to quantify the impact their messaging has on its target audience.
With the rise of social media and e-commerce, it might seem logical to push more traditional forms of advertising aside. However, for Yardley London this couldn’t be further from its current strategy.
Karen Cullen, Head of Marketing at Yardley London, talks to Cosmetics Business about why having a detailed understanding of the brand’s demographic has led it back to direct mailing in the age of digital.
What customer data findings led to Yardley London's decision to launch a new Direct Mail campaign?
Yardley London has a number of ranges - this campaign relates to its Classics range, which is a quintessential English fragrance range, inspired by a diverse variety of flowers, offering authentic and quality fragrances and naturally derived ancillary body products, predominately used and worn by women 40+. Working with Yardley’s largest customer data analysis team, the brand has built up a detailed understanding of Yardley’s customer demographic profiles, relating to their age, life stage and Experian mosaic group. The research highlighted that the brand’s customer over indexes with direct mail and is 28% more likely to engage with it than any other media.
How many properties will be sent personalised letters?
The campaign consists of three drops over the next 6 months, with the objective of raising new product awareness; build its database and drive sales both in store and online during key selling periods in the run up to Christmas 2017 and Mother’s Day 2018. The first drop specifically targeted 60,000 females aged 46+ in the South of England. The Christmas and Mother’s day campaigns will be mailed out to different & larger groups.
Why did Yardley decide to use a personalised strategy here?
In a very crowded market, it is very important for a brand to build a more personalised relationship with its customer, especially one who is more responsive to a mail out addressed to them than a generic one. Personalisation also helps to build brand loyalty; 73% of consumers prefer to purchase from brands that use personal information to make their shopping experiences more relevant.
How does the brand go about finding the names/addresses of residents in order to personalise?
This has been a very targeted campaign and required the brand to partner with a Direct Mail specialist, Nelson Direct Marketing Ltd. A very targeted profile brief was given to the agency who work with Experian to purchase data. The brand also used its existing, relevant customer data.
Why was it important to also launch a Facebook campaign to complement the direct mail strategy?
The research data also established that Yardley London has customers who are engaged online and this segment is growing and will eventually replace those who respond to DM. Prestigious beauty brands are now using integrated campaigns combining direct mail and online activity to communicate with their customers. A complementary Facebook campaign with PMA Digital has enabled Yardley London to broaden the reach of the campaign to the targeted audience.
Why has Yardley decided to focus on women located in the South?
The data highlighted that Yardley London customers over index in the south of England compared to the rest of country.
What are the advantages of direct mail campaigns over e.g. online alternatives?
Direct mailing is highly targeted and campaigns can be tailored to specific customers to suit their individual needs and buying habits. It also gives a brand the opportunity to personalise a tangible piece of material which is more likely to lead to them responding and purchasing. Many older customers are still sceptical about receiving emails and trust more a mailer that is received through the post. Results of a direct mail campaign can be measured relatively easily through a response mechanism. Yardley London has offered a luxury weekend break to encourage sign up to the database and also offered a 10% off unique voucher code to drive online purchase. The results of this will be evaluated four weeks post the campaign. Integrated with other marketing activity, direct mail can enhance brand awareness and encourage customer loyalty.
What key piece of advice do you have for another brand thinking of launching a direct mail campaign?
Direct mail can help in creating awareness, establishing a more personalized relationship with a customer and help with driving sales both to store and online. The key to a successful campaign is to target the relevant audience and then encourage this customer to engage with the brand. It is then vital that the brand engages with the consumer in a relevant manner, such as exclusive offers; new product previews; back stage films etc., so that they build a long term & loyal relationship.