Amazon.com
By mailing a catalog promoting several free shipping offers, Amazon.com has returned to a proven formula this holiday season.
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Achieving the right balance of merchandise is key for all under-one-roof retailers like Amazon, who, for the past six months, has been mailing catalogs dedicated entirely to books, movies or music. Not surprisingly, these products fill nearly half of its new holiday catalog (18 out of 40 pages). However, a balance is struck by highlighting other categories — toys, electronics, tools and hardware, and kitchen–which are emphasized further through free shipping incentives. The variety of gifts is visually represented on the cover by 12 carefully selected items that all come in red, from Tickle Me Elmo to a Palm m100 handheld with ruby pearl cover, supported by the tagline “Find, Buy, Give, Relax.” Amazon does take one step that is different from an average catalog. Nine magazine subscription offers are presented alongside related merchandise, such as Nickelodeon in the Toys R Us section.
Road Runner High Speed Online
Time Warner Cable’s latest effort markets its High Speed Road Runner Online service with a human-interest angle that ties in the needs of children to the advantages of high-speed Internet service.
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Entitled “Amazing Possibilities,” the 7″ x 5″ self-mailer resembles a marbled composition notebook. Crayon-scripted fonts, drawings, and photos of cheerful children in outdoor play help position the idea that high-speed cable is conducive to kids’ development: “For children, it’s a study aid, a communications tool and an essential source for research.” The kid connection is further advanced with the special offer that waives the $20 installation fee by donating it to one of four children’s charities of the customer’s choosing (Child Abuse Prevention Program, Learning Leaders, Police Athletic League or the WTC School Relief Fund). The fine print advertises a $44.95 monthly rate for current Time Warner Cable Standard Service customers and a $59.95 monthly rate for basic service and non-cable customers. Additionally, the special offer also includes the first month free. A toll-free number in black crayon and the Web site address are provided for additional information.
Children’s Cancer Research Fund and American Red Cross in Greater New York
Due to the recent surge in national pride, there has been an expectation that more mailers would begin using patriotic-themed incentives, specifically American flag address label packages. Two
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such solicitations have now been tracked for American Red Cross in Greater New York and Children’s Cancer Research Fund. Both of these mailers have prospected successfully with address labels in the past. The new American Red Cross solicitation replaces previous fruit graphics with an extreme close-up of a rippling flag. Children’s Cancer Research Fund has opted instead to use a mix of new patriotic graphics and the child-rendered artwork that has served the organization well in recent years. Neither organization has altered their donation ask ladders for the newly-revamped appeals: $6/$10/$15/$25/other for American Red Cross in Greater New York and $10/$15/$20/other for Children’s Cancer Research Fund.
The direct mail pieces appearing in Mail Stream are tracked and analyzed by Paradysz Matera, New York, through its online competitive direct mail and e-mail tracking tool MarketRelevance located at http://www.MarketRelevance.com/newsletter.cfm.
