Posts Tagged ‘direct mail’
Tuesday, February 14th, 2012
 Apple iPad3s U.S. consumer technology hardware and consumable sales fell just one half of a percent in 2011 ending the year at nearly $144 billion, according to market research company The NPD Group.
Nearly 60 percent of all sales in 2011 were driven by the top five categories; PCs, TVs, tablets/e-readers, mobile phones, and video game hardware, according to NPD’s Retail and Consumer tracking services and Mobile Phone Track. PCs (notebooks and desktops) generated the most revenue with nearly $28 billion in sales, accounting for almost 20 percent of sales, but that figure was a decline of 3 percent from 2010.
Tablets/e-readers were the clear winner in 2011, nearly doubling sales to $15 billion in 2011. We have been using our Kindle Fire tablet and WiFi Kindle e-reader much more than we use the netbook we bought a few years ago. We still find that netbook easier to use for work due to its built in keyboard, but for reading, games, music, and surfing the web, the tablet is much handier. So we think the tablet revolution is much more robust than the the netbook surge was.
“U.S. hardware sales growth is becoming harder and harder to achieve at the broad industry level,” said Stephen Baker, vice president of Industry Analysis at NPD. “Sales outside of the top five categories fell by 8 percent in 2011 as consumers shifted spending from older technologies to a narrow range of products.”
Apple benefited from this shift as it was the leading consumer electronics brand for the second year in a row. Among the top five brands Apple was the only one to experience a sales increase, posting a 36 percent rise over 2010. By the critical fourth quarter Apple accounted for 19 percent of all sales dollars, almost twice as much as number two Hewlett-Packard.
Personally, we’re just not that into Apple. It sells good products, but many cost three times more than comparable PCs, Android or Amazon devices. We used Apple Macs for a decade in publishing until less expensive PCs flooded the market. We haven’t been back since except for a couple of test rides that didn’t convince us to switch.
At the retailer level, Best Buy came out on top once again, followed by Walmart and Apple. Staples and Amazon tied for fourth place to round out the top five, a repeat of 2010.
Non-retail channels up 7 percent
Sales through online, direct mail, and TV shopping channels jumped 7 percent and accounted for 24 percent of all sales, up from 22 percent in 2010. Sales through these non-retail channels captured 25 percent of industry revenue in the fourth quarter of 2011.
“While in-store sales fell about 2.5 percent in 2011, the growth in online volumes for retailers meant that retail name plates still accounted for well over four of every five dollars spent on CE hardware in the US,” said Baker.
“Despite their sales strength, retail stores still face serious challenges in 2012 as volumes in the traditional CE categories, which once carried these stores, continue to slide. It shouldn’t be forgotten, however, that a large majority of mobile phones and tablets/e-readers (the two fastest growing CE categories) have mostly been driven through in-store experiences.”
–comments by Allan Maurer, TechJournal Editor.
Tags: Best Buy, direct mail, leading consumer electronics brands, NPD Group. Apple Inc., online, Stephen Baker, TV shopping
Posted in Amazon, Apple, Hardware, smartphones, Studies, surveys, reports | No Comments »
Wednesday, January 18th, 2012
 Despite the apparent opportunities for growth in the life insurance industry, advancement remains sluggish. But digital marketing might rejuvenate the industry, according to a new study by Acxiom® Corporation (Nasdaq: ACXM), a recognized leader in marketing services and technology.
Nearly half of adults are uninsured or underinsured, bringing life insurance ownership to a 50-year low.
Though there are a number of factors for the decline in life insurance, the study largely concentrates on carriers not reaching Millennial, Gen X and Boomer generations, many of whom prefer interaction through digital media channels.
Research from the study, “Life Insurance Marketing at the Crossroads,” reveals that consumers want multiple touches that address their unique motivations and current life needs. To accomplish this, life insurance carriers need to consider supplementing broadcast advertising and traditional direct marketing strategies with digital engagement strategies.
Addressable digital channels are a good way to deliver more individualized messaging to specific target audiences, thus increasing the likelihood of interacting with consumers as they research for information.
The report puts forth clear evidence that digital is already a factor in life insurance shopping alongside more traditional methods:
- 68 percent of Millennials used social media as part of their life insurance shopping process
- 43 percent of Gen X conducted searches online to find information about life insurance
- 33 percent of Boomers report online information was among the top three influencers in their final decision
“Birth, death, marriage, divorce and retirement are all significant life experiences that represent valuable opportunities to re-examine life policy coverage,” said Rose Cahill, Acxiom vice president, insurance industry.
“Consumers are already using digital channels to educate themselves and solicit advice about life insurance; therefore carriers should consider using digital to augment their more traditional marketing practices to reach these audiences with personalized messaging. This can lead to a major uptick in upsell and new business opportunities for the industry.”
$5 billion annual potential
Additionally, the study cites that Millennials and Gen X are both still open to direct mail as a means for transacting life insurance business, yet strong portions of each consider email communication and to a lesser extent, website interactivity to be acceptable alternatives.
The data also suggests that conversion of just 10 percent of currently uninsured Millennials and Gen X represents a market potential of more than $5 billion annually.
The study was conducted in June 2011 and included responses from 3,027 respondents representing a sample of U.S. consumers age 18+. The survey addressed a wide range of questions regarding attitudes and behaviors pertaining to how consumers perceive life insurance and how they approach the shopping process.
Tags: Acxiom, digital marketing, direct mail, life insurance, social media marketing
Posted in Internet/New Media, social media, Studies, surveys, reports | 1 Comment »
Monday, October 31st, 2011
The Internet and social media have fostered a new type of marketing communication: inbound, vs. the outbound traditional marketing via TV, billboards, and radio.
Technology – such as the ability to skim past TV ads, listen to ad-free radio, and even block online display pop-ups – increases the importance of inbound marketing.
The two-way communications of inbound marketing requires a company to earn a consumer’s attention with engaging content, whether blog posts, podcasts, Facebook interaction or tweets.
Here’s an infographic from Voltier Digital examining the two types of marketing:
Tags: blogs, Digg, direct mail, earn consumer attention, facebook, infographic on inbound vs. outbound marketing, infographics, Internet marketing, LinkedIn, social media marketing, TV ads, twitter, vlogs, Voltier Digital
Posted in Blogging, Facebook, infographic, Internet/New Media, Marketing, Mobile, smartphones, social media, Twitter | 1 Comment »
Monday, October 24th, 2011
 New global e-commerce research from Pitney Bowes Inc. (NYSE: PBI) reveals that one-size does not fit all when it comes to consumers’ online shopping preferences around the world.
While international shoppers share some characteristics, the survey reveals key differences among consumers in many countries. U.S. retailers looking to expand their businesses online to international markets should consider the unique consumer shopping behaviors and preferences in each country.
Commissioned by Pitney Bowes, the polling firm ORC International surveyed approximately 10,000 adults across 10 countries regarding shopping habits and preferences. Consumers were polled in Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, Japan, South Korea, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
Online shopping a global habit
Online shopping is a truly global habit, according to the research. Overall, 93 percent of consumers polled have purchased products online, with 49 percent doing so during the last 30 days. Consumers in Germany,
South Korea and the U.K. were the highest for making online product purchases (98 percent) followed closely by Japan (96 percent). In Canada, where online shopping is least prevalent, more than four out of five (82 percent) reported having bought goods online.
The survey also found that international shoppers want four basic things when purchasing products online: competitive prices (71 percent); a broad selection of products (42 percent); easy, intuitive checkout (35 percent); and low costs for shipping, duties and taxes (35 percent).
Price of products was the most important consideration for purchasing products online in all 10 countries. However, other consumer preferences varied by country. For example:
- Ease and speed of the online checkout process was more important to consumers in Germany and South Korea (both 59 percent), but much less important in Japan (11 percent).
- French consumers were seven times more interested in the ability to track an order than Japanese consumers (37 percent versus five percent).
- Accurate delivery date estimates were more important to consumers in China and South Korea (both 20 percent) but less important in Canada (10 percent).
- A clear and easy to understand return policy was almost three times more important to consumers in China (36 percent) than to consumers in Brazil and the U.S. (both 13 percent).
“Given today’s economic situation, international e-commerce is becoming even more enticing as U.S. products are becoming more attractive and affordable for international buyers,” said Jay Oxton, president of mail services, Pitney Bowes.
“However, to be successful, retailers need to ensure they can offer a simple and seamless online shopping experience, and have a clear understanding of consumers’ purchasing, shipping and communications preferences in each market.”
Significant differences in why shoppers abandon carts
The study also showed significant differences in why the consumers surveyed abandon online shopping carts. High shipping costs (67 percent), additional fees at time of delivery such as duties and taxes (47 percent), and the delivery time (39 percent) were the top disincentives to complete purchases online. Consumers in the U.S. (83 percent), U.K. (79 percent) and Japan (78 percent) are three times more sensitive to shipping prices than consumers in South Korea (25 percent).
The survey also revealed insight on what types of products international consumers are more likely to purchase online than in a brick-and-mortar store. Top product categories for online purchases included books, videos and music (58 percent), computer hardware and software (41 percent), and consumer electronics (38 percent).
Consumers in China indicated they are more likely to purchase apparel (58 percent) and footware (53 percent) online versus in a store. As a matter of fact, for almost every category included in the survey, respondents in China are more likely to purchase products online with the exception of computer hardware and software (39 percent), and jewelry/watches and accessories (16 percent).
When asked about preferences for receiving information on new products, promotions or other offers from retailers/merchandisers, 59 percent of global consumers indicated they prefer e-mail communications.
A quarter prefer information from catalogs or direct mail
Twenty-five percent of respondents said they prefer to receive this information in catalogs and direct mail, indicating that mail is another strong channel for online retailers. Four percent of respondents prefer to receive information via text messaging, and social media channels (Facebook and Twitter).
Looking at all 10 countries, consumers in Brazil had the highest preference for receiving new product and promotional information via e-mail (72 percent). Consumers in Australia (33 percent) had the highest preference for receiving information in catalogs and direct mail followed closely by Canada (32 percent), Germany (31 percent) and the U.S. (30 percent).
Text messaging information had the highest preference with consumers in South Korea (13 percent), Japan (12 percent) and China (nine percent). Consumers in China (11 percent), and Brazil and South Korea (both five percent) responded the highest for receiving information via social media channels.
Tags: apparel, Australia, books, Brazil, Canada, catalogs, China, computer hardware, direct mail, footware, France, Germany, music, Pitney Bowes, pricing, shopping behavior differs globally, software, South Korea, U.S., UK< Japan, video, what online shoppers prefer globally, why shoppers abandon online carts
Posted in Internet/New Media, Marketing, Studies, surveys, reports, Tech Culture | Comments Off
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