By Elizabeth Boineau
Marketing Matters

Years ago the shrill of cash registers rolling in the dough and phones ringing off the hook were cause for celebration of solid cash flow, possibly even leading to those cherished year-end bonuses some may start to ponder about as we make the turn to the last and most critical quarter of the year.

Today the sounds of cash registers and phones are rivaled by the silent din coming from the Internet.

According to a recent study by Shop.org and Forrester Research, the e-commerce industry in the United States has experienced an annual compound growth rate of 33% and predictions call for revenue in 2006 to grow another 20%, topping $200 billion. Of retailers surveyed, 41% said the holidays count for 20% of annual sales. As we move rapidly toward the critical fourth quarter, there are some insights from that study and others as you look ahead and prepare to end the year on a successful note.

Phone solicitation and face-to-face time were once more than enough to make the sale, but that was yesterday. Today’s shop front is increasingly the World Wide Web, and the goods and services the consumer picks more often come from behind your virtual curtain. Many of us have traded blisters and the “shop till we drop” routine for the leisurely keystroke stroll we get to take from the comfort of our home or office.

With that knowledge, it’s wise to evaluate your current marketing strategy to ensure you’re doing your level best to attract the customer to www.yourbrand.com to take a browse, stick around and then buy. Better yet, they may send a link to a family member or friend and might even help improve your content or future e-outreach by offering input on what could enrich the experience for the next visitor. So how does today’s retailer drive the target to its storefront, be it brick and mortar or online?

Knowing who is online is a helpful tool: A Pew Internet study of second quarter 2006 shows 73% of adults, about 147 million, are online today, with men on slightly more than women. That’s could be described as beyond exponential growth from the 15% who were online in 1995.

As proof of one gender’s gift buying habits, a new survey by VoiceQuilt reports that 47% of all U.S. women buy gifts for 10 or more occasions throughout the year, 25% say they gave gifts for 15 or more events. Of the women surveyed nationwide, 69% purchased gifts online in the last 12 months.

Of that group, 50% purchased one to five gifts online in the last year, while 13% say they purchased six to 10 gifts online and 4% selected 20 or more gifts electronically. Though the vast majority of U.S. women spend less than $50 on a gift regardless of the occasion, there are a lot of us, and that $50 adds up quickly. Some of these women, and men too, are your ideal prospects, so what your company does to lure them to your site by smart Internet marketing has never been more important.

Findings are available in the Webtrends Online Retail Readiness Survey from Shop.org and Forrester Research, and reports are that e-mail marketing was considered the most important tool for generating demand in the holiday season, with visitor segmentation an important element to lead to the sale.

Just behind e-mail marketing is search engine marketing and search engine optimization—to which I could, and may, devote an entire column—ranked second and third, with print advertising and in-store promotions next. Broadcast advertising, coupons and online banner ads were lowest in priority. Repeat buyer discounts were popular with 28% of respondents yet 23% will not have a special offer of any sort this year; fewer retailers than last year are hawking free shipping.

Further proof of the Internet’s formidable buying power is demonstrated by Nielsen Media Research, which announced in early September that ad spending in the U.S. is up 5.1% in the first half of the year, with Internet advertising leading the way at 49%. Advertising on Spanish language TV was up 21.8%, with local magazines (10.4%) and national newspapers (6.5%) also showing gains.

As many retailers and other savvy marketers steam toward the heavy holiday sales season, or try to balance a lackluster year through smarter marketing strategy, what’s happening in the online marketplace can’t be ignored.

Targeting today’s highly connected, educated and informed consumer requires a new mindset and keener understanding of the online consumer, starting with who they are and how they buy. That knowledge should help make cash registers, online and off, ring to bring in the holiday season ahead with tidings of comfort and prosperity for all.

Elizabeth L. Boineau runs E. Boineau & Co., a Charleston-based strategic marketing communications and public relations firm. E-mail her at eboineau@eboneauandco.com.

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