Ever come across a new marketing concept and think, “I wish I had thought of that.” These “A-Ha” moments can prompt inspiration, creativity and innovation. During the recent 2008 Shop.org Annual Summit, Pinny Gniwisch of ice.com addressed the value of these revelations during a session on out-of-the-box marketing concepts for retailers. Together with Jacob Hawkins of Overstock.com, Gniwisch ranked her favorite “A-Ha” moments:
●Zappos. The next time you’re going through security at an airport, take a look at those buckets you use to send your shoes and bags through the X-ray machine. Zappos has placed marketing messages on those buckets urging airport visitors to log on to order a new pair of shoes.
●Southwest Airlines. Speaking of air travel, Southwest Airlines has turned to blogs to reach out to consumers with its “Are you Nutty Enough to be Southwest’s Next Blog Star?”
●Patagonia. When it comes to eco-marketing perhaps no one does it better than Patagonia. Through its Footprint Chronicles application, the retailer encourages its customers to explore the roots of their products online. Patagonia customers can trace the origins of a shirt from the cotton used to the end product. In addition, the Patagonia website allows site visitors to locate an item at a competitor if Patagonia doesn’t have it in stock.
Creativity in retailers’ websites was also discussed during a session at the Shop.org Summit:
●JCPenney. With its “Know Before You Go” campaign, JCPenney’s allows customers to verify whether a product is in stock before they head out to their local store. The campaign not only provided value-added service to customers, it also empowered store associates.
●EA Sports. In what could be a lesson in how to respond successfully to customers in today’s social media world, EA Sports turned a criticism into a light-hearted campaign. About a year ago, a YouTube post criticized a perceived glitch in an EA Sports’ Tiger Woods PGA Tour ‘08 video game that enabled golfers to walk on water. Instead of ignoring the request or posting a defensive response, the company, with a little help from Woods, posted its own YouTube response. The tongue-in-cheek video demonstrates that the act was not an “error” at all. Ultimately, the response from EA Sports created an innovative PR opportunity.
●Lands’ End. In order to better enable customers to locate their stores, Lands’ End added Google Maps technology in its online store locator section. The program also enables the store team to update store locations and hours within seconds. Knowing that many customers find value in the store locator button, LandsEnd.com is now using Google Maps in its store locator section. In addition to giving customers a visual of nearby stores in relation to their home or office, the program also enables the store team (not the web team) to update store locations and hours within seconds.
To submit feedback on this article or suggestions for newsletter articles, contact Nancy Pekala, Marketing Matters Editor, npekala@ama.org.