Walking on Sunshine

Women’s shoe seller Aerosoles is developing a cross-channel database that integrates customer information from catalog, Web and retail channels.

“We need to have a better view of customers and create better infrastructure between our systems, which currently don’t really talk to each other,” says Magnus Gustafsson, vice president for direct marketing at the Edison, NJ company.

Aerosoles sells through its stores, print catalog and Web site, as well as wholesale to department stores and online retailers. The core demographic is women ages 35 to 55 who are married and have children. They’re college educated, work and have above-average household incomes.

The differences between the direct and retail Aerosoles shopper are small, according to Gustafsson. If anything, the retail customer may be slightly younger and more fashion forward, since the firm’s brick-and-mortar locations are concentrated on the two coasts. Because Aerosoles only delved into search engine marketing last summer, Gustafsson says it’s too soon to tell if the Web site can attract a markedly different prospect than the paper catalog.

Aerosoles’ first catalog was mailed in the fall of 1992. That year two drops of a 14-page digest-size book went out, a total of less than 250,000 copies. The initial goal was to generate awareness for the brand, which at the time was viewed as a comfort shoe.

“In the beginning the catalogs were more lifestyle oriented and inspirational,” says Gustafsson. “Now the catalog is more of a sales vehicle, with the shoe being the hero as opposed to the lifestyle image. It’s been a slow evolution, but we’re doing a better job of showing what’s unique about the product.”

Today the catalogs are still in a digest format, but have swelled to 64 pages. The company mails 10 million copies in 10 to 15 drops annually, split almost evenly between prospects and 110,000 house file names.

When the new database is in place, Gustafsson says the company will further refine its marketing strategy by looking more closely at what customers purchase at each touch point.

“Especially in the fall, we may lead with a suede boot for books going to the Northeast, but in warmer climates the book may lead with an open-style shoe,” he offers. “Conversely, if [certain customers] only buy sandals, maybe they shouldn’t be receiving a catalog with boots on the cover. And some customers might only need to receive a flier rather than a full catalog.

“We need to see a customer’s behavior across channels to know who she is,” he continues. “We want to send a strong message, no matter what a customer’s primary point of contact is with Aerosoles.”

The Web site went up in 2001 with minimal functionality. “It primarily took orders,” says Gustafsson.

The site was relaunched in January with several new features, including the ability to search for shoes by style, size and in-stock status, view color swatches and access enhanced “My Account” features.

In the last three years the site has shown 18% annual sales growth. It’s promoted through weekly e-mail blasts as well as search engine marketing, using keyword terms like “comfortable shoes,” “women’s shoes” and Aerosoles brand and style.

Aerosoles also is considering a loyalty program for its customers. This, however, is something that won’t be rushed into until everything is in place, for several reasons — including, obviously, getting the best ROI for the money and ensuring the program works across all channels, from retail stores to call centers to the Web site.

“It needs to be seamless, and we won’t do anything that doesn’t fill that requirement,” says Gustafsson. “That’s our priority. If we can’t build a program across all channels, we won’t do it. We want to do it right the first time.”

All creative work is handled in house. Aerosoles has four full-time employees devoted to direct sales, along with a 15-seat in-house call center that operates during business hours. Off-hours calls are outsourced.

Fancy Footwork

• Aerosoles founded: 1987
• Number of retail stores: In the United States, 124 in 20 states; internationally, more than 140 in 20 countries
• Catalog first mailed: 1992
• Current annual circulation: 10 million
• House file: 110,000
  — BNV

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