ETD: 671 What I would like to know; United States of Europe;
Reaching your audience; List Server Alternatives;Garden Market
Forecast
E-Tailer's Digest
etd_post@gapent.com
Tue, 25 Mar 2003 06:48:17 -0500
E-Tailer's Digest --- Everything for the Retailer
Issue #0671 March 25, 2003
George Matyjewicz, Moderator mailto:georgem@gapent.com
Published by: GAP Enterprises, Ltd. http://www.etailersdigest.com
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CONTENTS
[1] Greetings
[2] What I would like to know...
[3] United States of Europe
----- ---- --- -- -> Important Offer <- -- --- ---- ---- --
[4] List Server Alternatives
[5] Reaching your audience
[6] Garden Market Forecast: Unseasonably Hot with Extended Sunny Skies
and Rising Sales
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[1] Greetings.
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Hi All:
Today we are trying a new list server, one that I discovered we had from
our ISP. It's called MailMan. Forgive me if you get this in error. We
downloaded the names from Topica, and hope the file is correct. As always,
you comments are very much appreciated.
I'm heading to Dallas today for three days. So, if anybody has a special
report, I will love you forever ;-). 2,000 to 2,500 words which will be
printed as a special issue, and will remain at out site forever.
http://etailersdigest.com/resources/Specials/index.htm
Two list members offered some excellent comments on our topic of "Reaching
Your Audience." Actually they posted on Market-L, and I am posting them
here as they are right on target. What do you think?
We have four requests for information from new list members, to which I
wrote some replies. How about helping them?
What do you think about the new United States of Europe? It may be coming
to a theater near you sooner than you think. Imagine the commercial
opportunities?
Now, let's get to everything for the retailer.
Sincerely
Dr. George Matyjewicz
Chief Global Strategist, GAP Enterprises, Ltd.
mailto:georgem@gapent.com
http://www.etailersdigest.com
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[2] What I would like to know...
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New list member John Husson wants to know:
"Right now I'm looking for some kind of flow chart covering receiving goods
from suppliers, logging into inventory, receiving orders, and fulfillment
(pick/pack/ship). I need to put a POS inventory system in place to report
sales, and I'm trying to chart out just what it is I want to do."
New list member Trent Sultemeier of eClerx wants to know:
"I'd like to see articles on any problems or issues e-tailers face with
managing data, web content, and support. I'd also like to find ways to get
involved with e-tailers through conferences, meeting, discussion groups, etc."
New list member Leora Langs of Frontline Specialists.com wants to know:
"News about who's selling & how to sell effectively in e-tail"
New list member Sheri Rolf, National Sales Manager of Hawaii.com wants to know:
"Travel destination e-tail results"
+++ [Moderator's Comments] +++
Let me try to help.
Regarding a flow chart of a retail business, if you search on Google for
"retail process flowchart" there are 3,800 entries. You can look through
them to see if you can find something. Another alternative, which may work
better for you, is to determine the processes you seek, document them and
talk to POS suppliers. For example, you want to order goods from a
supplier (via EDI?), receive goods at your store, scan the goods into
inventory, scan the goods at the register when sold, post the entries to
the accounting functions, etc. You also need to account for physical
inventory and measure it against your perpetual inventory to calculate
shrink. Then, of course, you need to know what's selling fast to reorder
timely, and what's selling slow to determine how much you need to discount
goods to get stale merchandise out the door. E-Tailer's Digest has some
excellent and very helpful POS software vendors who are always willing to
help. Perhaps some will add to this.
Trent's query of finding resources: E-Tailer's Digest is the largest and
oldest online discussion group dedicated to retailing/etailing. At one time
there were a half dozen or so, but I believe they have faded away. For
conferences, there are the semi-annual e-tail conferences brought to you by
WB Research http://www.wbresearch.com/ They have them worldwide. I
attended one of their earlier ones and wrote a piece on it in 1999
http://etailersdigest.com/resources/Specials/etail99.htm In addition,
Gifts & Dec Magazine http://www.giftsanddec.com has conferences as does
National Retail Federation http://www.nrf.com/
There are a lot of resources and stats on what is selling online. Travel
is one of the largest areas for online e-tailing. Many research
organizations publish stats on a regular basis. And the US Superintendent
of Documents reports on e-tailing now as a separate item.
Anybody have any other thoughts?
George
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[3] United States of Europe
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In Sunday's Parade Magazine, there was an article that stated Germany and
France are discussing merger. Imagine that - just like two companies
merging! Should prove interesting.
Seems they held a joint meeting of both parliaments, and they are now
considering the creation of a confederation with joint government agencies,
joint diplomatic missions and shared defense and foreign policies. Of
course, they do share a common currency - the Euro.
IMHO, this is just the start. Once Europe talked about a common currency,
it was only a matter of time before countries started seeing the economic
opportunities.
What does this mean for retailers? U.S.E. would be the strongest economic
block in the world, next to the U.S.A. Can you imagine what that would be
for those of us who do business internationally?
What do you think? Will there be a U.S.E.?
George
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[4] List Server Alternatives
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I use a software call Mail List King (www.xequte.com). It gives me the
option of sending plain text email or HTML email and is able to manage the
list in that it can subscribe / unsubscribe automatically, etc.
It can send personalized emails where the TO is the recipient's address or
send blind carbon copies.
The basic version is USD 49 and their customer support is good.
You can download an evaluation copy or get in touch with nigel@xequte.com
for more info.
HTH,
Maya Rao
+++ [Moderator's Comments] +++
Thanks Maya. Starting today, I'm going to try MailMan. If it doesn't
work, I will try others.
George
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[5] Reaching your audience
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Our moderator wrote...
>It's time to evaluate what works best to reach your audience. Over
> the past 10 years, the advertising and marketing arena has changed
> drastically.
List member Walt Boyes responded on the Market-L list, and I felt obliged
to post it here. His answers are interspersed.
> 1. Trade shows. Are they as effective as they once were? Do
> they get the traffic they once did? Are they effective for you?
I don't think trade shows were ever as effective as we thought they were.
In these times, it is senseless to exhibit at most trade shows. Many
companies in the industrial B2B space are simply holding their own trade
show, and inviting only those exhibitors that make the host company look
good...and people are going to them in droves. For the past few years, I
haven't exhibited at a major tradeshow, and have only had clients exhibit
seldom. There are better ways to reach out and touch your customers that
you can do for $50K to $250K for a booth at a big show.
>2. Seminars. Are people all seminared out? Do they turn out
> for seminars? Are executives inundated with seminar marketing?
For most seminars, Gertrude Stein comes to mind, "There is no there,
there." In order for seminars to work, they have to be good, and they have
to have real value, real new information. Most of the seminars, especially
webinars, I've seen lately have not had what it takes. In addition, you
have to have teaching and presentation skills to do seminars, and many
people putting them on are as dull as brick.
>3. Telemarketing. Is anybody using telemarketing?
Not traditional telemarketing. But personally "dialing for dollars"
through your rolodex still is effective. Harder to do, but if you follow
Jacques Werth's rules, you can make a LOT of calls in a relatively short
time. But I give telemarketers 30 seconds to get to the point, and then I
hang up.
>4. Direct mail (snail). Is the Internet replacing direct mail? What
> kind of return can you expect with direct mail? Is there anything that
> works with direct mail vs any other form of advertising?
I think that spam has forced a direct (snail) mail resurgence. I find I am
more willing to look at an offer I get in the mail than one I get
unsolicited online. I think that is because it cost the sender quite a bit
to send it out, and so I see potential value there.
>5. Paid ads. I notice some magazines had far less pages. Are
> companies advertising less? Do paid ads work?
Advertising in magazines is down overall over 50% since 9.11 and the trend
appears to continue. Part of this is the economy. Part of this is the fact
that it is possible to do real metrics on online advertising, where you
can't in print. Since the results from e-advertising stink, and you can
count _them_, advertisers assume that the magazines have been lying to them
all along, and they are cutting budgets.
>6. Keyword ads (Google). Are pay per click ads effective on the
> Internet? Do you click on them? Have you ever used them?
Keyword ads are useful, because they continue to be cheap enough to be an
"afterthought" with whatever money you have left over from your "real"
campaign. They also work. One of my clients has had unique visits per
month go from 6500 to 30,000 in 11 months after buying a Google "right side
of the page feature ad."
123456789012345678901234567890123456789012345678901234567890123456
>7. Banner ads. It appears as if they have lost all of their appeal,
>except to serve as an awareness campaign. Anybody have recent
> experience with banner ads?
Awareness. If that is worth it, do it. DON'T do popups. It is eyespam.
>8. E-Mail marketing. More and more big companies are now using
> e-mail marketing campaigns, often spamming people. I know we have
> discussed this before. Has anybody been effective with e-mail
> marketing? I'm curious to see to what target they may work, i.e.,
> consumers, business, women, teenagers, executives, professionals, etc.
Yes, you can be effective with email marketing. Provided you market to
your own list, and you use other advertising to attract people to your
list. Anybody who sells you an "opt in" list is a liar. I am personally up
to over 50 unsolicited spams a day now, that all say "you opted in to
receive this email." When Yahoo released everybody's email addresses last
year, they pooped in the well bigtime.
>9. Web sites. Is your Web site generating business and if so how?
> What drives business to your site? Are you using the site to direct
> people to for more information?
I tell my clients to use their website as the central focus of the
integrated sales and marketing plans. When they do that, the website
generates business. When they have a website that hasn't been updated in a
year or two, it doesn't generate business.
Walt Boyes
---------------------
Spitzer and Boyes LLC
"consulting from the engineer to the distribution channel"
Maple Valley, WA 98038
Ph. 425-432-8262 Fx. 253-981-0285
walt@waltboyes.com
www.spitzerandboyes.com
--------------------------
+++ [Moderator's Comments] +++
Out of all those comments, folks on Market-L picked up on the spam
issue. Ignoring that, what do you think?
And on that same Market-L, our list member, branding guru and friend wrote...
+++ Next Post +++
To me the question is improper. What works depends on which audience you're
trying to reach. Since your question is mute on that point, chances are
that the answers may be "all over the place!"
If you are trying to reach women 18-49, one of the most common demographics
in media planning, chances are that TV remains your best bet. Same with
reaching kids and teens.
Of course the concept of TV advertising has changed because of the advent
of cable and the many choices it offers to pinpoint your audience. Yet, if
you have a budget of consequence, your choices remain limited by the mere
fact that good, reliable audience data is available for a limited number of
them.
Since I know you, however, I guess that you didn't have the usual consumer
target in mind when you asked your question.
I do not agree that to those audiences, advertising has changed all that much.
Sure, there is the internet and its banner ads and there's e-mail.
But marketers seem to have become wiser about banner ads and now see them
as promotion devices, as are cents off coupons to the grocery trade, and
not advertising vehicles.
As to e-mail, it is potentially a great device if the industry finds a way
to regulate it, making it opt-in, and more honest.
My two centimes.
--
Jacques Chevron - Partner - JRC&A Consulting - JP Group
Branding Strategy and New Product Development
URL: http://JRCandA.com
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[6] Garden Market Forecast: Unseasonably Hot with Extended Sunny Skies
and Rising Sales
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As American consumers emerge from their cocoons, they are turning their
decorating passion to the outside and are spending more money enhancing the
exterior living areas of their homes, according to a new market research
report from Unity Marketing, called Future Vision: Garden Market.
Consumers spent nearly $40.7 billion on garden-related products in 2001,
soaring 12.1% from $36.3 billion in 2000, with the average U.S. household
spending $444 on lawn and garden goods in 2001.
The fastest growing garden category is garden "hardware," i.e. the
accessories, products, furniture, tools and equipment that enhance the
consumers' gardening experience, rather than garden "software," i.e. the
plants, seeds, shrubs, trees and other plant material. Sales of plant
material grew only 5.8% in 2001 to reach $18.5 billion, while purchases of
garden accessories jumped 18% over 2000 levels, to reach $18.8 billion.
Three demographics distinguish the gardening market: Home-owning,
middle-aged, affluent. While 80% of all U.S. households bought something
for their lawn and garden, the prime market for garden today is
middle-aged, affluent home-owners. "The garden market is increasingly
morphing into a luxury market targeting consumers with incomes of $75k or
more.
Second most popular luxury purchase is luxury garden. Luxury garden items
like for high-end barbecues, luxury patio and pool furniture and decorative
garden enhancements, i.e. pools, fountains, and sculptures, were the most
widely purchased luxury product, second only to luxury electronics in Unity
Marketing's latest luxury market survey. Forty-five percent of the affluent
consumers surveyed purchased luxury garden products, with the average
household spending $1,000 on luxury enhancements for their yard.
The report, Future Vision: Garden Market, is a business planning tool that
provides marketers and retailers with the topline facts and figures they
need to build a vibrant garden business now and into the future. For more
information visit www.unitymarketingonline.com.
Pam Danziger
Unity Marketing
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Links to follow
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