For those of you who are looking for some inspiration for your next cross media/multi-touch/multi-channel campaign, here is a case study everyone can take something away from. PIP Printing and Marketing Services had recently initiated a multi-touch, cross media campaign that generated a phenomenal 27% response rate.
The mastermind behind the campaign is Zachary (Zach) Schwartz,  [...]

A preview from our latest personalized URL strategy article:
One of the jobs of any marketing professional is to make sure that the explosions generated by any marketing campaign are controlled and kept to a minimum. Everyone wants an “explosion of customer interest”, but no one wants a “firestorm of customer complaints” or an “eruption of [...]

This week, we announced the launch of the personalized URL strategy guide.
We’ve posted it up on Slideshare for you to view or download.
We were originally inspired to produce the guide when we saw marketers making the mistake of relying too much on the “URL” rather than the true benefits of using personalized URLs in an [...]

So, why are some of us still reluctant to use PURLs as an ingredient in our direct marketing mix. Does it not generate higher response rates than GURLs or CURLs ? Is it not cost efficient? Implementation is difficult and time consuming? If you nodded and/or answered “yes” to any of these questions, you probably [...]

The current economic conditions, intensity of rivalry and reduced consumer spending makes all marketing initiatives seem like uphill battles. As veterans of marketing wars, you are all probably accustomed to fighting uphill battles. Fighting under the overcast of massive media clouds and content contamination, maybe uphill battles are the only battles in a marketing war. [...]

You know passive income, what about passive marketing?

While the term has been used by some to refer to the lack of proactive-ness - not getting out to network with people, making presentations, cold calls… I would like to think passive marketing works for you in getting leads while you spend more time going out to meet people and following up with leads throughout your sales cycle.

You could do that with static microsites that ends with a form or you could get much better response and lead conversion with automatically created personal urls. L2 has been building one such site to allow marketers and digital service providers to testdrive L2’s Fuse product. Like a microsite, it involves a static data collection page ( www.1to1campaigns.com ) which collects basic information like first and last name to create a purl along with some contact information.

Once this information is filled out, prospects are taken to their very own personal url (1to1campaigns.com/firstname.lastname) which tracks interest based on what the prospect saw. For insurance companies this would be knowing whether the prospect is interested in auto insurance, health insurance or disaster insurance even before you make the call!

It also sends an automated email to remind prospects of the URL so they can return to the site easily keeping them involved and participating on the personal url.

With an entirely automated campaign like this one, you will have the time to focus on the other elements of your marketing (following up with leads, direct mailers, conferences, telemarketing…) but still ensure you get good response off PPC ads, print ads, your corporate website, etc.

Marketing that works for you 24/7, what a concept!

Joetheplumber.com may have already been taken up, but picking domain names for your Personal URL campaigns should not be a difficult task. Here’s some tips for making sure the domain name you pick improves your marketing response.

1. Leverage your company name and domain name.

You would have already done the hard part of getting your company domain name. Use a sub-domain name to increase credibility and assure your prospects that the email is from you.

For example:

Promotions.CompanyName.com/firstname.lastname

Rewards.CompanyName.com/firstname.lastname

2. Pick a new domain name with your name in it

Use a new domain name to spread a message or use a catchy phrase to generate interest.

PayLessWithJoe.com/firstname.lastname

Joecleansyourpipes.com/firstname.lastname

3. Use the same URL with subsequent campaigns

Using the same URL in each campaign you send your prospects might be a good idea, if you do not expect them to buy immediately, but want them to remember you when they’re ready to buy. Car dealerships, Insurance companies, real estate agents… for example can get their campaign response rates limited by the low frequency of purchases. Keeping the same URL keeps you in the back of your prospect’s mind for when they’re ready to buy.

Remember to vote, Joe wants to buy the plumbing business!

What are Personalized URLS?
Personalized URLs, or Personal URLs are webpages with a unique identifier tied to them. Typically they take the form of www.yourwebpage.com/Firstname.Lastname or firstname.lastname.yourwebpage.com.
They allow you to more effectively segment and target different propects/ customers in a datalist. For example a campaign by Virgin could be narrowed by customers that use their travel, [...]