With consumers increasingly going online to research and purchase everything from prescription medications to automobiles, it should come as no surprise that shoppers are now purchasing major appliances and furniture online. The percentage of consumers who purchase these items online after researching them now stands at 31%. This is a substantial increase from the 9% of consumers who indicated an interest in buying major appliances online in August 2006. Here’s what drives the purchase decision:

• Price 43%
• Free shipping 20%
• Large product selection 14%
• Convenient shopping from home 12%

Share this trend with your marketers and recommend an increase to the online portion of the media mix.

Internet Retailer, May 2008

If your restaurant clients are looking for more effective ways to reach consumers, consider suggesting a mobile campaign. Large operators such as Starbucks, Hardee’s and McDonald’s have turned to mobile coupons and text message campaigns to drive traffic. Here are a few details about how these campaigns succeed:

• Target 18-34 year olds who tend to be heavy mobile phone users.
• Build an entertainment component into the campaign such as suggesting consumers invite friends to a restaurant and use the coupon delivered via mobile phone.
• Craft the mobile coupon campaign to prompt consumer action and make it part of a larger campaign such as print or television that builds awareness.

Nielsen Mobile indicates nearly ¼ of consumers who received such ads recall them and nearly half of those take action. The highest recall rates occur in the Asian American and African American demographics.

Sources:

Cebrzynski, Gregg, Mobile marketing drives guest traffic for special promotions,” Nation’s Restaurant News. April 2008.

Mobile Advertising Recall and Response Rising, FierceMobile, March 2008

Many media companies have noticed the shift to digital advertising on the part of auto manufacturers. A quick review of GM’s plans shows exactly how crucial online marketing has become. A recent Advertising Age article points out:

• By 2011, 50% of GM’s ad budget, or $1.5 billion will be spent on either online or one-to-one marketing
• The nearly $200 million the firm spent online in 2007 went to search, gaming and mobile marketing applications
• Regional dealers will be moving part of their TV spot budgets to online.

In general, auto industry advertising has developed a ‘pattern’. Manufacturers spend product launch budgets on TV and print while more detailed marketing and efforts to initiate, and occasionally finalize, sales transactions, occurs online. As your agency prepares to pitch clients in the auto industry, be sure to demonstrate your expertise in crafting multiple types of campaigns.

Source: Advertising Age

While some consumer segments spend money on corrective eye surgery or contact lenses in order to avoid wearing glasses, other groups are spending on the latest fashion trend – eyeglasses as accessories. Recent reports indicate rapid growth in the sales of fashion eyewear. At least one chain, LensCrafters, has begun advertising to this segment.

Eyeglass retailers can also increase sales by marketing to the nearly ¾’s of adults who need some type of vision correction. [Vision Council of America] A recent survey by The Media Audit indicates some professions skew more heavily to eyewear purchases. These include attorneys, physicians, teachers and engineers.

The study also noted that consumers who purchase eyewear use nearly 1/3 of their daily media time online. This group also tends to pay close attention to direct mail.

Share this information with your eyewear retail clients as you suggestion new campaigns or revisions to the current media mix.

Sources:

Media Audit

Smith, Ray. “Life After Lasik,” Wall Street Journal. 4.26.2008