Email has remained a linchpin in retailers’ marketing efforts, even as omnichannel trends and strategies continue to take shape. Because consumers have access to such a variety of content and resources through mobile and social media, marketers have to find creative ways to engage shoppers — and compel them to purchase — using email marketing.
ShopRoxx, a young women’s fashion retailer, has established a loyal customer base across all brick-and-mortar stores. Located on high-traffic streets in New York City, the three total Roxx and Hot Point stores provide budding fashionistas with access to the latest apparel and accessory trends.
To expand its growing business beyond the four walls of the store, ShopRoxx is honing its email marketing strategies to drive engagement, sales and loyalty across channels. Although the retailer’s current campaigns provide subscribers with updates on sales, new arrivals and trends, ShopRoxx is partnering with eWayDirect to make these messages more relevant to specific customer segments.
Advertisement
As ShopRoxx established its online presence, “we found a lot of our sales were come from email blasts that we were delivering,” said Steven Shrem, President of ShopRoxx, in an interview with Retail TouchPoints. “But we have been very limited in our overall ability to know how many people receive our emails, who opens them and what their exact behaviors are after interacting with them.”
Using the Calibr platform from eWay Direct, ShopRoxx will have access to a robust dashboard that will offer real-time campaign statistics, detailed delivery and sales campaign information, and even subscriber-level email activity over a specific period of time. This data will then help the retailer separate customers into specific segment buckets, and further tailor messages based on overall engagement with the brand and even specific products.
“We signed up with eWay Direct to better focus our emails to customers and in turn, increase overall sales and engagement,” Shrem explained. Data, he added, is a primary reason for the investment. “I was sending emails that were getting results, but I wasn’t getting the data I needed.”
Building An Optimal Database
Currently, ShopRoxx focuses on sharing relevant content with customers who frequently visit its brick-and-mortar stores, as well as shoppers who are just getting familiarized with the brand. Email subscribers receive notifications regarding new arrivals and sales so they are up-to-date with the latest events, as well as perspectives on the latest fashion trends.
“Content is very important, of course,” Shrem said. “It’s just a matter of keeping in touch with our customers and letting them know they can come to us. We’re just trying to show our online customers what we do and get them used to us.”
Before the retailer moves forward with segmentation, list building will be a top priority, Shrem noted. “We don’t have an enormous list right now, but as it grows we can move forward with tailoring emails to specific customers,” he said. “Without the right database, you can send as many emails as you want but you won’t get the best results.”
However, Shrem noted that ShopRoxx also is focused on creating a list of relevant and highly engaged consumers. “I don’t want a million email addresses; I want thousands of relevant customers who are interested in our products.”
To generate subscribers, a light box rests on top of the e-Commerce site home page, which encourages shoppers to register for the email program and receive 10% discount code. ShopRoxx has been executing campaigns on Facebook and Instagram, as well as conducting blogger outreach to increase awareness of the program.
Tablet devices also are stationed in brick-and-mortar stores to make email collection quick and seamless. Emails then will be segmented by store, “so we can send customers store-use coupons, and any store-related news to help increase our brick-and-mortar business, which is really our bread and butter.”
