To identify current brand loyalty trends, we looked at the latest survey research from Experian Simmons (Spring, 2012 NHCS Adult Survey 12-month) and at loyalty emails sent between January 2011 and March 2012 from 43 brands.

Who are these brand loyalists?

Experian Simmons found that 34% of the adult U.S. population has been a ‘brand loyalist’ as of April of this year. Looking at that 34%, we have identified some key areas in which brand loyalists differ from the overall adult U.S. population.

The response to email campaigns reflects this mindset in a number of ways:

Dollars and sense
Offers are valuable, but purchasing the right product from a preferred brand may be more so. While 80% of brand loyalists said they do not buy unknown brands merely to save money, 69% are always looking out for special offers. Mailings without offers in the subject line had 24% higher transaction rates, but 11% lower revenue per email than loyalty mailings with offers in the subject line.

Consideration: Test whether including an offer will work best for your loyalty program.

The 1:1 – Value your customer

When looking for a ‘favorite store,’ emails with dynamic store locations in the subject line can help ensure that your loyalty members will easily find your brand. Loyalty emails with name, dynamic benefit or status updates, or dynamic store locations enjoyed unique open rates that were 83% higher than loyalty mailings that had no dynamic content in the subject line (loyalty mailings with dynamic content had unique open rates of 43.5% compared to 23.5% for those without dynamic content).

• “Spend $75 and Get a $10 Summer Reward Coupon at %storename%!”
• “Use your $%point_balance% in Instant Rewards on gifts for Dad”
• “Here’s Your Online Reward Dollars %fname%”

Keep it fresh
New ideas, new benefits — equates to more engagement. Campaigns mentioning new, updated benefits had more than double the transaction rates than other loyalty mailings (loyalty mailings with new benefits had transaction rates of 43% compared to 20% for other loyalty mailings).

Mobile Marketing and social media attitudes
Two areas in which brand loyalists expressed opinions that were stronger than the average U.S. adult population in the Experian Simmons survey are mobile marketing and social networks.

Loyalty email campaigns can be effective cross-channel marketing tools that boost your brand’s mobile and social media program engagement

Support mobile programs
Loyalty programs are crucial to the travel industry and travel brands are leading the way with mobile communications and mobile apps. Travel is not alone. Mobile loyalty programs are being started in many different types of brands including supermarkets, pharmacies, consumer electronic stores and office supply companies, just to name a few. Loyalty emails are a great way to increase mobile program enrollment and provide unique benefits to loyalty members.

• “Earn Bonus Points when you enroll in mobile messaging”
• “Introducing Quick Prints – The Fastest Way To Print From Mobile Phone to Store”

Use surveys and ratings and reviews
Sixty-seven percent of brand loyalists said they ask people for advice before buying new things. They are also 23% more likely than the average U.S. adult to say that they trust product information on social networking sites. Email is an effective way to obtain opinions and product reviews that can then be used on your social media site. Survey and review requests to loyalty members had 38% higher open rates and more than double the click rates of other loyalty mailings (surveys/reviews had unique open rates of 28% and click rates of 10.7% compared to non-survey loyalty mailing rates of 20.2% and 3.7% respectively).

• “Earn 1,000 Miles For Your Valued Feedback”
• “Tell us what you think.”

Take full advantage of social media

With 75% of brand loyalists saying they like to share their knowledge with others, it is likely that some of that sharing is happening on social media sites. The keen interest brand loyalists have in social media can be seen in their response to emails asking them to join or follow a site:

• Experian CheetahMail click analyses have shown that emails with invitations to ‘like us’, typically receive 43% of their total clicks on the main link to the social media site
• Social invitation emails sent to loyalty segments, however, received almost 70% of their total clicks on the main link to social media

Above all, the key to building and retaining loyalty is to know your customer, understand their mindset, acknowledge their individuality and tailor your brand’s messaging to meet their needs, wants and interests across channels. The extra efforts will be recognized by your brand’s biggest supporters and you will soon gain new fans along the way.

Brand loyalty was spotlighted in Experian CheetahMail’s Q3 2012 Benchmark Study. View the full Email Marketing Benchmark Study.

What should the marketer tell Hispanic consumers when selling a new Toyota Camry? Or what should the marketer tell Latinos when selling diapers? Should the communication and positioning approaches used be equally crafted to reach the Hispanic that can afford a new relatively expensive car, or a more common product like diapers?

Using data from the Simmons National Hispanic Consumer Study that was collected between April 25, 2011 and June 1, 2012, I created cross-tabulations of the TGI Socio Economic Levels in the Simmons database by those “agreeing a lot” with cultural attitudes and behaviors that will be specified below. The TGI Socio Economic Levels are a composite of education, ownership of selected household durables, mobile phone ownership, credit card ownership, usage of Internet and air travel. The scale results in four levels of socioeconomic standing: The top 10% of the population, the next 20% of the population, the next 30% of the population and finally the remaining 40%.

The bar charts below report the percentage of Latinos in each of the Socio Economic Levels that stated they “agree a lot” with each of the cultural statements.

^{Source: Simmons National Hispanic Consumer Study}

^{Source: Simmons National Hispanic Consumer Study}

^{Source: Simmons National Hispanic Consumer Study}

The way to read these results is, for example: Of those Latinos that are in the lowest 40% of the TGI Socio Economic Levels, 30% “agree a lot” with the statement “I often encourage Hispanic children to participate in traditional Hispanic games and activities,” and 25% of those in the next higher 30% level state they “agree a lot” with the statement. Twenty percent in the next higher level and only about 16% in the highest Socio Economic Level similarly “agree a lot.”  Meaning that strong agreement with the statement is heavily concentrated in the lower socioeconomic classes. There is a monotonic trend that indicates that as socioeconomic levels rises, attitudes and behaviors endorsing Latino cultural elements decrease. There are other attitudes and behaviors that do not conform with the above trend, for example:

^{Source: Simmons National Hispanic Consumer Study}

The cultural value of being gregarious and enjoying family and extended family appears to be consistent across the Socio Economic Levels, and to an even higher extent at the upper levels of the socioeconomic scale. In general, however, the percentages are very high and they speak more readily about how certain cultural values persist even as people become wealthier and more educated. It appears, then, that some values and behaviors decline as Hispanics climb the social ladder and others persist regardless. This highlights the complexity of the Hispanic market. Further, those higher on the socioeconomic scale are more likely to endorse values of U.S. society as reflected in the chart below regarding the priority of speaking English in the household.

^{Source: Simmons National Hispanic Consumer Study}

The findings are consistent and surprising, in my opinion. Those who are less affluent and less formally educated are the largest share of those indicating they engage in culturally related behaviors as well as holding attitudes and beliefs that are culturally-based. Nevertheless, there appear to be values that survive Latino prosperity, like the value for family get-togethers. It may be that those better-off have more family around to get together with and that those less well-off tend to be more geographically separated because of lack of economic resources.

These findings corroborate what our book “Hispanic Marketing: Connecting with the New Latino Consumer” says about how lower socioeconomic classes are more likely to be attached to their culture to a larger extent. It is also likely that having roots, of any kind, is more important to those who have not fared as well in society. Nevertheless, this data shows that there are exceptions and that more affluent Latinos are likely to endorse U.S. values to a larger extent. That may not be too surprising but certainly the trend points to the importance of socioeconomic considerations in marketing to Hispanics.

Another factor to point out is that recency of immigration to the U.S. should be correlated with socioeconomic level. That may also explain to some extent why lower levels endorse cultural attitudes and behaviors to a larger extent.

The consistencies are important and we will report some more of these in future postings. The trends have powerful implications for those who, for example, plan business-to-business campaigns, or plan approaches geared to the more affluent. In a business-to-business setting, if targeting relatively well-to-do Hispanic business owners, a culturally based approach may not be as relevant as when targeting Latino employees of that business.

Three trends were highlighted here:

• Specific cultural attitudes and behaviors that differentiate Latinos of diverse levels tend to be more strongly endorsed by those in the lower 40%
• Other more general cultural attitudes and behaviors seem to be relevant to all Hispanics
• A tendency for better-off Hispanics to endorse U.S. values to a larger extent

Marketers should, in my opinion, pay close attention to these findings. Marketing in culture may render more robust results when campaigns are directed to the lower socioeconomic strata. It appears that cultural heritage loses some prevalence as Latinos become increasingly affluent. Thus, having a campaign in Spanish with Latino themes for better-off Hispanics may not be as productive as once thought.

The data used here is from the Simmons National Hispanic Consumer Study and was collected between April 25, 2011 and June 1, 2012. The sample contained 8,252 Latinos.

Learn more about the Simmons National Hispanic Consumer Study.

About the author:

Dr. Korzenny is a Professor of Advertising and Integrated Marketing Communication, and Founder and Director of the Center for the Study of Hispanic Marketing Communication at Florida State University. He independently consults with major U.S. corporations on their Hispanic marketing strategies, and speaks to them about approaches to better connect with Hispanic Consumers. For other articles in this series please visit: http://felipekorzenny.blogspot.com/

Fast Track Couples consist of young couples and families already on the road to upward mobility. Although 90% are under the age of 35, most are married, work at good jobs and own their homes. About one-third of Fast Track Couples have already started families, and others might look to start one soon. Other key characteristics that describe this segment include the following:

• Nearly all have at least some college education, which has helped them obtain decent-paying jobs in sales, white-collar professions and technology. More than half of these households have dual workers in the labor force.
• These young couples live comfortably in homes valued close to the national average, though they have yet to sink deep roots. Most have lived at the same address for fewer than three years.
• Fast Track Couples are informed customers, not impulse shoppers. They’re acutely aware of demands on their budgets, and they want to make sure they get good value for any purchase.
• Fast Track Couples are focused on their careers. A significant number are entrepreneurial and dream about starting their own business.
• They are mostly novices when it comes to financial investments and have not saved much money nor invested in many stocks, mutual funds or bonds. A high percentage have 401(k) accounts, and those with young children have started 529 College Savings Plans. Their balances, however, are still relatively modest.
• Many members are comfortable with debt. They’re still paying off student loans and have added auto loans and first mortgages to their liabilities.
• Fast Track Couples lead socially active lifestyles. They enjoy going to bars, movies, comedy clubs and rock concerts.
• They prefer their vacations to be filled with heart-pounding sports, including skiing, scuba diving, water skiing and backpacking.
• Self-described early adopters, they like filling their homes with the latest customer electronics and technology.

The best channel to reach Fast Track Couples is the Internet. They are highly receptive to digital advertising via online search and sponsored links. Few segments spend more time in cyberspace. They are enthusiastic Internet users, going online to simplify their lives. They use the Internet to manage their financial affairs, make travel arrangements and check out new job, car and home listings. They also use the Internet as their chief form of entertainment, downloading music, listening to Internet-only radio stations, watching videos and sharing digital photographs. In addition, they’re comfortable telecommuting and shopping online. Having grown up with communication on demand, they don’t care how they get their Internet access. They bounce seamlessly between cell phone, laptop and wireless connections. Although they dislike email ads, they respond to sponsored Websites and links — especially when doing product comparisons. They like shopping for games and software to improve their online experience. In a list of popular Websites, it’s difficult to find any that they don’t visit, opening up many possible touchpoints for marketers looking to engage this segment.

We hope you’ll join our webinar this Thursday at 1:00 p.m. EST to hear what every digital marketer needs to know about channels, benchmarks and trends, and what we call the New American Consumer – check out the tidbits below from page 11 of the report. Insights like these will be put into perspective and practical advice for how to leverage these insights will be dispensed!

• Twenty-eight percent of marketers noted that creating effective targeting profiles was one of their biggest marketing challenges last year.
• An increasing percentage of college graduates are returning home to live with their parents.
• Households that contain adults and children from multiple generations are a mega-trend.
• A study by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) found that in 2006, one out of 12 first births was to women age 35 and older.

Register for The 2012 Digital Marketer webinar: Powerful insight for today’s digital-savvy marketer.

“Don’t waste my time” is the mantra because we are busier than ever…

In addition to being harder to find, today’s consumers are more demanding of their brands. They expect brands to listen, interact, behave well and most critically, be relevant. “Don’t waste my time” is the mantra because we are busier than ever, have more choices than ever, and get bombarded with more messages than we can possibly make sense of. A typical path in the customer’s journey helps illustrate the challenges of cross-channel, or multiple touch-point marketing. Effective marketing strategies must connect many dots in order to lift sales. Each stage of the customer’s path to purchase requires a different tactic to plan, manage and execute.

To read an in-depth analysis of what marketers need to do from a marketing technology standpoint this year, download The Experian Marketing Innovation Report 2012.

Studies show that I am not alone.

A new white paper from Experian Cheetahmail, The birthday and anniversary report: Benchmark data and analysis for email marketers, illustrates the impact that birthday and anniversary emails can have on your email program.

There are a number of key findings within the report, including the following:

• Total open rates for birthday and anniversary campaigns are 3 times higher than those of mass promotion mailings.
• Transaction rates are five times higher for birthday and anniversary emails than they are for bulk campaigns.
• Birthday mailings sent to all subscribers with known birthdays pull much higher transaction rates and revenue per email than those sent only to select or loyalty members.

I don’t know about you, but on my birthday, I want to be a bit extravagant and spend some money on myself, on decorating my home, or on a good time with some friends!

Here are a few examples of birthday/anniversary emails that have really caught my interest:

This email from Art.com offered me the chance to save some cash on a birthday purchase. In the study, emails that included discounts had the highest transaction rates and revenue per email of all the birthday mailings measured.

When it’s my birthday, I can’t afford forgetting to pamper myself. Aveda celebrated my birthday week by offering free gifts as a sign of their appreciation. According to the study, birthday campaigns such as these — mailed weekly or daily — had 40% higher transaction rates than those mailed monthly.

It’s always best to spend birthdays celebrating with friends. Sands Casino-Resort got my attention and really captured the birthday spirit with photo of a cake and the promise of good time. Our report doesn’t have data on the impact of cake imagery on email performance, but if I had to guess, I would say it helps!

Have fun with birthday and anniversary emails. Use these special occasions to connect with your customers, enhance their engagement with your brand, and increase your sales.

For our loyal readers, I thought I’d add some of my thoughts on the report and explain what these data points mean for the email industry at-large and the state of email marketing.

Let’s jump right in and have a look at what the report tells us:

Time Magazine was right

Way back in December 2006, a number of people (myself included) had a good laugh at the expense of Time Magazine, who named “You” as Person of the Year. At the time, the decision seemed like something of a cop-out and also bit out-of-touch with technology.

But looking at the data from our 2010 Digital marketer: Benchmark and trend report, I couldn’t help but think about Time Magazine and say to myself that they were right — maybe prematurely, but still correct nonetheless. Email marketing today, much like the rest of the Internet, is about you, sometimes even literally. Consider these points from our report:

• Four out of five industries (business products and services, consumer products and services, multichannel retail, travel and entertainment) used the word “you/your” more than any other word in their email subject lines. The fifth industry (catalogers) actually uses the terms “you/your” more than the other four industries (24% of the time), but they also happen to use the terms “free” and “ship” slightly more than that.
• The words “you/your” appear in 19.94% of all email marketing subject lines.
• According to the report, “The increase in usage of the term ‘you/your’ illustrates increased emphasis on businesses building more personal relationships with customers by addressing them directly.”
• According to the report, ”The top term — ‘you/your’ — indicates a clear connection between consumer product and service businesses and their individual customers. The percentages of any ‘top’ word are lower given the wide mix of businesses and product types in this vertical.”

Viral/WOM marketing is now a reality

Beyond these literal connections with “you, the customer,” the report also touches on the significant power shift in media today. The ability to empower consumers to act as marketers on your behalf — the phenomenon more commonly known as viral or word-of-mouth marketing — is no longer just a marketing pipe dream.

• The report illustrates that consumers themselves are embracing the concept of viral marketing and actually enjoy acting on behalf of the companies that they know and love; “consumers are increasingly likely to pass those deals on. The share of online adults who say that they are either likely or very likely to forward emails containing promotions or discounts on to others rose to 30 percent in 2009 from 28 percent in 2008.”

Email is key to driving website traffic

For all of the Internet proclamations pronouncing email to be a dead technology, the numbers say that on the contrary email is alive and well. In addition to providing direct, measurable revenue streams, email is also driving business website traffic in general. In the coming weeks we’ll look at how these numbers compare to traffic generated via social networking sites, but in the meantime we can see some impressive numbers from the report.

• “For most retailers, email messages are an important driver for return visits to their Websites. For example, in November 2009, 11 percent of the traffic to Overstock.com was referred from email, and 62 percent were returning visitors who had not visited the Website in the past 30 days.”

For more insights like these, as well as extensive coverage on related topics such as consumer insight, digital advertising, mobile marketing, and multichannel marketing, download a copy of the 2010 Digital marketer: Benchmark and trend report from Experian.com. And remember, it’s all about “you,” folks!