The retail world has always been hyper-competitive. And coming out of a year of lockdowns, uncertainty, and sporadic footfall every retailer is searching for ways to optimize their marketing strategy and increase their share of voice. As a marketing technology specialist, we here at Giftify understand where you’re coming from – and we’re ready to help. Read on for our Top 4 Tips for upgrading the marketing at your centre.
The retail world has always been hyper-competitive.
And coming out of a year of lockdowns, uncertainty, and sporadic footfall every retailer is searching for ways to optimize their marketing strategy and increase their share of voice. As a marketing technology specialist, we here at Giftify understand where you’re coming from – and we’re ready to help. Read on for our Top 4 Tips for upgrading the marketing at your centre.
Know Your Channels - and Who Uses Them
This one is deceptively simple. While its easy to categorise each channel with emails holding universal appeal, millennials and gen z scrolling on Instagram, gen x and the boomers connecting on Facebook, Twitter as a playground for trolls, activists, witty brands, and comedians, and Tik Tok is a barrage of sound/video/challenges/trends that change every 5 minutes, it’s much more difficult to get specific. What channels are more intriguing or influential to which of your core client groups – which go beyond age pure demographics – and how do you maximise your marketing on a platform that you aren’t familiar with?
So, before you dive into channel-by-channel strategies, have a good think about your customers: can you segment them into clear personas like Teenage Shopper, Sales/Budget Oriented, Shopping as a Leisure Activity, In-and-Out (Targeted) Shopper, Pensioner, Back-to-School... The potential lists go on and on. Once you put a descriptive name to a customer segment, you can much more effectively market to them.
Segment, Segment, Segment!
We all know how critical email is to retail marketing strategies. But how do you get the most out of it? Hitting your target Open and Click Rates is so much easier when you segment. Whether you use MailChimp, Klaviyo, HubSpot, or a different tool you should always tag and organize your subscriber list to increase engagement. You can use segmentation to ensure that your subscribers only receive information relevant to their interests/needs. One way to help drive this is to use the KPI and top redemption reporting you receive from Giftify to tailor content for your segments.
This applies to more channels than just email: Have a new retailer in your centre that shares their customer base with Lola Liza and Hunkemöller? Then head to Instagram to make a Gallery post and a Story. Feeling adventurous or have a Tik Tok-fluent employee? Plug into a trending challenge to share the new opening. Is the Oil and Vinegar Store running a promo? Time for Facebook! Updating your opening hours? Blast that across all your channels: email, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Tik Tok, LinkedIn, Google My Business…
when you know your customers and understand your channels, you’re set to succeed.
Stay Shopper-Centric
We all have ideas that feel great and the whole team falls in love with, but for whatever reason don’t seem to click with your customers. One possible reason for this is that your campaign focused on a feature – not the benefit. So stay customer-centric during your brainstorming period. How does the customer segment you’re marketing to benefit from the product/service/retailer/promotion? Once you’ve figured that out, centre your communications on the emotional elements of the core benefit. Happy shoppers that feel understood are not only more likely to spend more, they’re also more likely to be vocal ambassadors for you!
Data Makes The World Go Around
The only way to enjoy truly optimal marketing is to make it data-driven! Giftify tracks where your gift card customers redeem their cards, how much they spend where, which sections of your mall receive the highest [gift card-related] traffic, and more. These insights alongside what you learn from your email, social media, and website engagement reports give you the critical information you need to create top-performing marketing.
Feel like you need a bit more help?
Reach out to your Customer Success Manager and let us know what kind of marketing support you'd like so see from Giftify!
