Broker Roundtable: Daily Deal Sites and Email List Prices
Welcome to Broker Roundtable, where each week we ask list brokers to give their opinions on issues that matter to the marketing community. This week's question: What effect is the continuing popularity of daily deal sites likely to have on e-mail list prices?
Our panel includes Matt Kaiser of Veradata, Lori Kelly of DirectMail.com, Barbara Salles of Statlistics and Michele Volpe of Media Source Solutions. Would you like to be considered to be a member of our roundtable? Contact Larry Riggs ([email protected]).
Matt Kaiser, executive vice president of Veradata:
I don't think these sites will have much of an impact, at least in the near term. The daily deal sites are still working out the kinks in their systems. With the exception of Groupon and Living Social, the rest are serving very small geographies. Valpak has the penetration to be a player in this space, should it ever elect to aggressively pursue the business model. It also depends on the type of email list. Business-to-business email lists won't be affected at all. Some of the very general consumer email lists, whose prices are already bouncing along the bottom, will likely to be most affected.
Targeted consumer email lists, provided by third party list owners who deploy on behalf of the client, will not be affected by daily deal sites. Marketers need to speak to individuals on a one-to-one basis—they need highly targeted and customized communications. Daily deal sites don't offer that type of interaction. They are a different animal.
Lori Kelly, list manager/broker, DirectMail.com:
Email list prices have dropped within the past few years, but I do not believe it is a reaction to daily deal sites. The decline is likely due to the increasing amount of permission-based data that are available. Email pricing will probably remain steady until an upward shift in the economy occurs.
Daily deal sites produce good results for industry-specific businesses such as restaurants, bars, hair salons or spas. However, they attract bargain hunters—not those interested in building brand loyalty. Most sites only send your message to their subscribers, and there isn't a high percentage of customer retention. Conversely, email marketing provides targeted marketing tools that bring value to businesses.
Barbara Salles, marketing director, Statlistics:
Recognizing the recent growth in the daily deal sites, it is hard to link that growth to any impact on email list prices. As with any new marketplace, there is sure to be some opportunity to find sales, deals, or discounts on mailing lists, but as with any list purchase, the key factors are source and recency. As the old saying goes, you get what you pay for, and the same could be said of cut-rate, discounted lists as well.
Michele Volpe, vice president of sales and marketing, Media Source Solutions:
The daily deal sites are adding a sizable number of direct response emails to the email marketplace. I don't believe this increase will necessarily drive down the email list prices. When a flood of sweeps and other promotional responder email names hit the market, it didn't affect the overall landscape of email list prices. The information that is being collected on the registration pages is in some cases very detailed. It provides the potential advertiser with rich self reported demographic data. These files also provide a picture of just what pushes the hot button of these consumers.
I am always looking for direct response data that paints a full picture of the consumer and their direct interests. These daily deal sites will only add to the expanding universe of email names that allows us to target consumers we know have an interest in various products and services based on their own responses. In the e-mail world, the more we know about a consumer and their lifestyles, the more we can see a fuller picture of who they are and their buying habits.
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