When Zip Code Forensics Meet Multichannel Forensics

In a world where customers receive discounted offers for computers offered on Twitter, it may seem unusual that some customers still prefer to mail an order form to the brand they wish to place an order from.

Those of you with 1.21 gigawatt cable broadband speed can get up off the floor now and go use FriendFeed to notify the world of this shocking development.

Customers who mail their orders to brands are different than other customers. This is where Zip Code Forensics and Multichannel Forensics play a role in managing the customer relationship.

Here are repurchase indices for a brand that has a lot of customers who place orders via the mail. We appropriate the repurchase index across the four Zip Code Forensics segments. Take a look at zip codes that prefer catalogs, and have low sales potential. The Online channel has a very low repurchase index.

In other words, customers who live in low potential zip codes that prefer catalog marketing (i.e. rural areas) are unlikely to use the online channel, while all other customers who mail their orders have a reasonable chance of using the online channel in the future.

Eventually, we're going to see marketers divide their audience into sub-segments. Some customers simply want to have a traditional relationship with a brand. Other customers want to have a digital relationship with a brand. In catalog and e-mail marketing, we'll execute different versions of our marketing efforts for the traditional audience. This is the audience that can stomach 16 catalogs a year, twelve of which are remailed catalogs. The digital audience will require a different, more personalized strategy.

And we'll use Zip Code Forensics and Multichannel Forensics to help us identify the tactics we need to employ.

Marketers: Spaces are filling up quickly for the beta test version of Hillstrom's Zip Code Forensics. The first ten marketers get to participate in the product for free. Contact me immediately if you wish to participate in the free version of the product.