We are currently working on the 2010 instalment of our annual email benchmark study, Hitting the Mark. I was therefore particularly interested to see a great example of an email that was sent from STA travel to an Australian friend of mine who has just been to stay over here in the UK.
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My friend had booked the trip through STA Australia and upon arrival in the UK he was pleasantly surprised to find an email waiting in his inbox from STA UK checking that he had a good flight and offering tips and advice on what to do during his stay. This included making sure he had all the necessary local STA contact details in case there were any problems.
STA scored very well in our 2009 Hitting the Mark report so it is good to see them keeping up the high standard.
Sending the right email at the right time
So often in email marketing, timing is everything. Getting that email to the right person at the right time with the right information is crucial in maximising conversions.
And it doesn’t just help with acquisition. This STA email is a great example of how email can be used to increase retention, by building a positive image of a brand in a customer’s mind.
By linking their booking database and CRM system with their email marketing, STA are making use of event based triggers, personalisation and dynamic content features to gear this communication to the specific needs and circumstances of my friend.
They used existing customer insights to great effect; they knew when he was flying and where he was flying to and responded accordingly.
This isn’t just an example that can be used by travel companies. I wrote an article the other month for the DMA looking at an equally good example from Apple, where they used the information they held to better target the timing of their email marketing .
Here are the three steps you should take in order to make the most of the customer insights at your disposal:
1. Work out what absolutes you know about your customers – e.g. purchase dates, planned activities or events, repetitive behaviour profiling
2. Develop ways to make the most of this – e.g. dynamic content, triggered emails
3. Create content that fits – e.g. offers, advice, up-sell/cross-sell
And, of course, don’t forget to test and segment all these variables so that you maximise your success.
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