A CUSTOMER-RETENTION E-NEWSLETTER PROGRAM is doing so well for Pharmaton Natural Health Products that the company is carving out a best-customer database and planning to ramp up the electronic channel. And that’s based on the success of only three newsletter broadcasts.
Pharmaton began collecting e-mail addresses four years ago for two dietary supplements, Ginkoba and Ginsana. In the last year, the Ridgefield, CT firm stepped up its efforts, running a sweepstakes in stores and in its postal newsletters, giving consumers a chance to win a spa vacation for handing over their e-mail addresses. More addresses came from direct response offers tucked into jars of the supplements and from people registering at Pharmaton.com.
The e-mail database of about 20,000 records contained eager and qualified leads. “They’ve already purchased a product and responded to an offer,” says Mike Peterson, Pharmaton’s director of marketing. “They have self-selected and said they want to have a dialogue.”
Ginkoba (for sharper mental performance) and Ginsana (for increased physical energy) were thought to be ideal products for an online CRM effort. About 1 million people received the paper newsletter about the products four times a year, but the tracking possible online would allow the marketer to learn more about customer preferences for potential cross-selling.
The first issue of Destination Wellness broadcast in October. The clickthrough rate was 30%. Peterson learned so much about readers’ reactions during that first go-round that, working with newsletter company iMakeNews, he redesigned the publication and revised his expectations. The next issues in December and February had slightly improved open rates, and next month’s blast is expected to do even better.
Recipients see headlines and story summaries in the e-mail and click through to a microsite that contains the full articles, graphics and links to information-rich partner Web sites.
“The microsite gives the marketers two channels to work with,” says Kathleen Goodwin, CEO of Newton-MA-based iMakeNews, which tracks recipients’ activity on the site. “People bookmark the site and come back to it multiple times, and are able to spend a lot more time with the brand and the products and services of the company.”
The most surprising result from the tracking reports is that the product promotions did poorly, compared with the enthusiastic reaction to other areas of the site.
A promotion for $5 off Ginsana or Ginkoba produced less than 1% response — typical for a rebate offer in the mass market, “which says people are interested in information, not just price,” Peterson reports. Recipients delved into the e-newsletters for 10 to 15 minutes per sitting.
The other surprise was that the most popular article by far was the last story in the newsletter — and it had nothing to do with boosting brain power or energy. Instead, it provided solid information about the digestive system and how “good” bacteria keeps that tract on track. It also featured Probiata, a Pharmaton product that helped do that.
Now, Destination Wellness leads off with newsworthy health stories, followed by softer, general coverage, product information, links to partners’ sites and promotions.
Careful tracking led to the development of a customer profile. In 2003, the firm will acquire lists based on that profile. And it plans to grow online.
“We know about 70% of what we need to know to expand the program,” Peterson says.
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