HERE’S ANOTHER example-although somewhat tenuous-of how e-mail marketing is working better than banner ads.
In May National Geographic Interactive, Washington, DC, staged a “Wild Cards” campaign in which Web surfers could send friends an online greeting card featuring a photo of, and information about, one of four animals-an elephant, lion, rhino or zebra.
Of the 25,000 people who received e-mailed cards, a whopping 32% clicked through to check out the National Geographic site (www.nationalgeographic.com). The company added almost 23,000 names to its database of e-mail newsletter recipients, increasing it by 12% to 220,000. The newsletter keeps people updated on National Geographic and has information on the latest TV specials.
On the other hand (and admittedly it’s not a perfect comparison-the offer is different), only 831 surfers, or 3%, who saw the banner ad enticing them to send a card to a friend clicked through to the site.
“It certainly exceeded our expectations,” says National Geographic Interactive senior vice president/managing director Larry Lux of the e-mail effort. He adds that the company is looking at doing a similar campaign this fall for its new software titles.
The purpose of the Wild Cards effort-done with Media Synergy, the same Toronto-based electronic card provider that Hallmark Cards uses-was to expand the newsletter’s e-mail list, generate leads and increase traffic (National Geographic sells memberships, magazine subscriptions, postcards, books and software at its site). Media Synergy’s system tracks activity within the site so National Geographic knows who’s visiting and how they’re using the site.
“Part of the design of the lead generation is you not only get the name of the recipient but of the person who sends the card,” says Media Synergy’s vice president of marketing Linda Hazzan. E-mail, she says, “is more effective because the message is being delivered directly to a highly qualified person. Banners are passive. We’re not suggesting that this should replace banner advertising, but [that it] should be in your marketing mix.”
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