My friend Tom over at WME Blogs brought to my attention a post that appeared on Media Post's Email Insider Blog on Monday titled "Sweepstakes as Acquisition Tool: What Do You Really Win?". Since he knows that I am blogging about sweepstakes he figured I'd be interested in reading this and possibly commenting. Which he was right.
I read the post by Jamie Schisser and immediately had to leave a comment. Which now is leading me to expand on this topic more in my own blog. I do agree with Jamie in that email marketing is still "hot, hot hot" and that "Mass media is on its way out — at least mass media as we know it. Relationship marketing is in."
Going back to the first time I heard Seth Goodin speak at a the DMA Days in New York, back when he was promoting his first book "Permission Marketing", he said there's no question that sweepstakes are a great tactic to invite customers to opt-in and ask there permission to BEGIN the dialog. He further engaged me by saying " But it's also true that Opportunity Seekers are not the core group of people participating!". I was so excited after listening to him this first time that from there on I knew the Internet was going to be great for my business... which focuses on executing sweepstakes.
In my comments back to Jamie I said that I work with many brands as well as their agencies and I believe that interactive promotions, those that contain sweepstakes, games, and contests, if done correctly are one of the most powerful ways to connect with key customers and grow those relationships. With interactive promotions you can motivate behavior by connecting with an unidentified person and converting them into a registered prospect. This enables the start of a dialog for a permission-based, data-driven relationship.
However, I caution marketers on not asking for too much information at first. The amount of personal data requested during the initial contact should be minimal to avoid turning people away. One or two closed-ended questions together with the personal data collection are all the first stage should include. It is better to learn more about your new prospects over time than all at once. The idea is to at first just get that little bit of information along with their permission. Then you can invite them to tell you more about themselves by further offering value and new incentives.
Jamie does brings up a good point in that "you have to have a program to support those people who sign up. If you ask your target to opt-in to receive valuable information and discounts, you must have a communication plan in place to deliver on that promise. Budget for, plan, and set up your ongoing email program before soliciting names."
A promotion as well as an email blast should not be done in a vacuum. It's about pulling it all together just like any other tactic used in the marketing mix. Where I disagree with Jamie is that I believe sweepstakes can be a great PART of your aquisition strategy.
And as far as costs, new technology today is making it much more affordable to offer chances to win. See my previous post on Caffeine, a great new promotions platform for marketers to run sweepstakes and instant win games for literally dollars. Also, consumers today are more willing to provide some personal information for as little as a chance to win a $20 gift card.
So, to sum this up, if done correctly, interactive promotions (including sweepstakes) are a very powerful way to connect with key customers and grow those relationships. They can....
- Initiate a one-to-one dialog with permission-based programs that open a direct line of communication with customers
- Engage customers through online experiences that build the brand and the product/service features and benefits
- Gather customer intelligence accurately and cost-effectively to build databases
- Connect online and offline messages into an integrated campaign
- Motivate customers to take action: register at a website, visit a retail location, demo/try a new product, refer a friend/associate, complete a survey, train and educate, build brand loyalty and increase purchases
And of course the whole consumer-generated content phenomenon is another conversation to have regarding online promotions. So please share with us some successes you have had using email and promotions as part of your acquisition strategy.
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