mediapost: Retention Is The New Acquisition Strategy

by David Baker, Monday, June 1, 2009, 11:00 AM

The market is forcing marketers to address more complex questions than most have the bandwidth, resources and budgets to address. There's a lot of talk about retention marketing these days. In down times many organizations constrict, focusing on retaining customers, maximizing profits and controlling expenses. In good times, companies tend to think about new acquisition options, testing new channels and expanding reach in the marketplace. Two years ago the major goal of most companies we talked to was growing their consumer/b2b database. Today, it's about making money with what you have.

If we are in a constricting market, with the dollar not stretching as far as it has in the past, consumer confidence not as high and new "free" channels emerging to challenge the inbox, what do the small email teams do to make an impact in their companies? I think our Email Insiders are on the right track based on the topics of recent columns: strategy, focus on the database, understanding what metrics truly impact your business and where to place your strategic investments. These topics speak to the basics of what makes email marketing successful; I'll add to them with a few key "recession" nuggets you can pose at your new team meeting...read on


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