The secret behind Sitewide Sale success
When it comes to driving sales, our Sitewide Sale campaign proved that a compelling offer and clear messaging can make all the difference.
Posted September 2024
Last summer, Razorfish and Audible teamed up to promote the Sitewide Sale using direct mail. This was our first use of this channel for sales programs, so we prepared a test design that included both audience learnings and sale/offer presentations. We used a promotional oversized postcard as our format to ensure overall campaign success.
Results that speak volumes
The campaign delivered impressive results. The combined result across all designs was a 5.6% lift in cash purchases—driving $719k in incremental revenues. For every dollar spent, the campaign brought in $2.36 in cash revenue and $3.18 in total revenue (including cash and credits). This shows the impact of a well-crafted direct mail campaign.
The winning formula
The creative process behind the campaign was meticulous. We crafted four unique designs, each with a distinct focus. Some emphasized popular ASIN content, while others highlighted the sale offer more prominently. The design that truly stood out featured an 85% off offer combined with a compelling sale name. This balanced and appealing offer proved that simplicity and clarity can often outperform more complex presentations.
Looking ahead
The success of our Sitewide Sale campaign demonstrates the effectiveness of targeted direct mail, especially for engaging less responsive audience segments. By focusing on clear and compelling offers, we achieved significant lifts in take rate and ROI. This campaign is a strong example of how direct mail can drive sales and boost customer engagement. Many of these learnings were applied to a Q2'24 Monthly Member sales—and we'll plan to share those results in a future issue.
At Razorfish, we are committed to applying the insights gained from this campaign to future projects. The Sitewide Sale has provided valuable lessons on the importance of simplicity, clarity, and targeted audience engagement. As a full-service agency, we are dedicated to continuing our innovative approach, delivering exceptional results for Audible and exploring new opportunities to leverage direct mail and other strategies in our marketing efforts.
How direct mail revived Audible memberships
The Formers Winback campaign highlights how effective direct mail can be in driving membership renewals for Audible.
Posted September 2024
The Formers (Winback) program has seen five years of successful direct mail tests, earning its place as a SMART-E program thanks to its high incrementality and low cost per additional listener. This campaign consistently renews memberships at a fraction of the allowable cost, showing that direct mail outperforms email alone, even among email-engaged audiences.
Testing new waters with ATOM/SmartNode
Building on this success, we integrated direct mail testing into the new ATOM/SmartNode program to see if additional gains could be achieved from a 4-touch email stream. We conducted several tests, including targeting validation between model alignment versus the core Formers audience, and audience testing with email opt-out customers and email non-responders after completing the ATOM stream.
Exploring creative formats
We tested different creative formats, comparing the successful tri-fold/proof points messaging against a postcard format. This allowed us to determine the most effective approach for driving renewals.
Key findings
The results were clear. The email opt-out group outperformed the email non-responder group significantly, achieving a 6.5% lift compared to 0.4%, a 16x better performance.
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Top Decile Performance: The top decile (90-99) of the model within the email opt-out group drove a 9% lift, an ROI of 121%, and an ie%ccp of 83%.
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Creative Format Success: The tri-fold format achieved double the lift and ROI compared to the postcard format. Within the top decile, it was the most successful approach, achieving an 11.4% lift, an ROI of 165%, and an ie%ccp of 61%.
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Email Non-Responder Group: The highest success within the email ATOM non-responder group was seen in the next level decile (80-89). The postcard format had a slightly better ROI, showing that a brief format can work well as a reminder.
Lessons learned
These tests showed the effectiveness of direct mail in re-engaging former members, especially those less responsive to email. The tri-fold format, with its detailed messaging, was particularly effective in the top-performing deciles.
Looking ahead
The success of the Formers Winback program highlights the value of integrating direct mail into broader marketing strategies. Clear, compelling messaging and strategic audience targeting led to significant lifts in renewals and ROI. This campaign continues to show the power of a promotional self-mailer format in delivering a strong offer with compelling product benefits.
At Razorfish, we are committed to applying these insights to future projects. The Formers Winback program has taught us the importance of targeted audience engagement and effective creative formats. As a full-service agency, we continue to innovate, delivering exceptional results for Audible and exploring new opportunities to leverage direct mail and other strategies.
Holiday member upgrade program delivers results
Targeted approaches made our holiday upgrade program a standout success.
Posted September 2024
The Member Upgrade program has become a holiday tradition, relaunched each year to secure customer commitment to longer-term plans. This approach helps reduce churn and boost Lifetime Revenue. Last year, we saw remarkable results that showed the effectiveness of our smart channel use and compelling offer.
Strategic targeting for maximum impact
For the third year running, we focused on three key audiences: Prime Day Offer Expirees, High ALOP/ECB Buyers, and Medium Risk Churners. These groups were chosen based on their past behaviors and potential value. By using a mix of Direct Mail and up to three Email touches, we tested the cost-effectiveness of Direct Mail.
Audience test results
The ALOP/ECB Buyers group continues to be the top performer with a 5.27% incremental take rate (ITR). Prime Day Offer Expirees and Medium Risk Churners followed with 1.93% and 1.03% ITR, respectively.
Lessons learned
These results highlight the power of integrating direct mail with email to drive membership upgrades. The consistent success of the ALOP/ECB Buyers group shows the importance of targeting high-value customers. The strong performance within the Email Engaged group reaffirms the effectiveness of multi-channel approaches. We see some risk with the “medium risk” churn audience—and propose pulling back on those who are also “email unengaged”—as they are more resistant to the message and drive up the overall campaign cost per upgrade.
Looking ahead
The Holiday Member Upgrade program’s success highlights the value of strategic targeting and multi-channel marketing. By combining direct mail with email, we achieved significant lifts in membership upgrades and ensured cost-effectiveness. This campaign shows just how important direct mail is in our overall marketing strategy.
At Razorfish, we’re committed to using these insights to enhance future projects. The Member Upgrade program has taught us valuable lessons about targeted audience engagement and multi-channel marketing. As a full-service agency, we continue to innovate, delivering exceptional results for Audible and exploring new opportunities to optimize our marketing strategies.
Pushing Credit Hoarders to act and redeem
With over 2 million members holding credits, our mission is to drive engagement and maximize redemption.
Posted September 2024
We’re proud of our work inspiring credit hoarders to use their credits and secure revenue recognition for Audible. With over 2 million members holding credit balances across consecutive marketing seasons, it’s crucial to pull every lever to maximize redemption and maintain campaign performance. Here’s what we’ve done and our plans to boost this program further.
Channel mix testing results
In all segments, adding Direct Mail was the most effective. It doubled the take rate compared to using email only in all email-permissioned audiences. Among email-engaged users, we noticed a surprisingly low cost per upgrade: $11 for Direct Mail alone and just $7.57 for Direct Mail and Email combined.
Direct Mail alone also performed well for Email Opt-Out groups, showing a significant increase and resulting in a cost per upgrade of about $15. It's worth noting that pairing Direct Mail with Email improved results for this group but at a higher cost per upgrade, which may warrant reconsideration. Overall, Direct Mail provided a cost-effective solution with greater gains in all segments, resulting in a total of 22,000 upgrades at an approximate cost of $21 per upgrade.
Innovative testing and strategies
We’ve tested various message propositions and visual showcases, including:
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New York Times vs. Audible Best Seller Content: Prioritizing different types of popular content.
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Genre Personalization: Tailoring recommendations to individual preferences.
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Editors’ Seasonal Recommendations: Highlighting timely and relevant picks.
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Use Cases: Showcasing practical ways to use credits.
To add variety, we’ve experimented with Double-Gate and Postcard formats. Coming soon in Q3, we’re reintroducing Use Cases in a brand-new format, tying the work to the recent brand launch.
Focus on audience insights
The most important lever in CRM is the audience. We’re partnering with GIDS to evaluate the Credit Hoarders population more effectively. Our focus includes:
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Long-Term vs. New Customers: Monitoring results for different tenured customers.
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Engagement Patterns: Comparing those who regularly redeem and listen to those who don’t.
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Membership Types: Analyzing annual members vs. monthly ones to identify usage patterns.
The goal is to understand our audience better, refine our campaign lists, and craft new messages that address where members are in their relationship with Audible. By hypothesizing and analyzing diligently, we aim to discover what delivers the best results for Audible.
Is Audible getting the most from its reviews?
Ideas to maximize the value of Audible’s exceptional reviews and rankings.
Posted September 2024
Audible is the clear leader in the audiobook space, boasting the highest membership and over 500,000 outstanding titles. But is Audible fully leveraging its rankings and its raters to maximize value from its fan base? Here are a few ideas that might help Audible get even more success from its “rising stars.”
Looking ahead
We’re always looking for ways to get better results for Audible. By constantly refining our strategies and digging into audience insights, we’re making the Credit Hoarders program even stronger.
At Razorfish, we’re excited to use these findings to shape future projects. The lessons from the Credit Hoarders program are helping us connect more effectively with audiences and to come up with fresh marketing ideas. We’re all about pushing the envelope and finding new ways to succeed.
Celebrate top titles
Publish a 50,000+ Stars Page
Highlight titles that have achieved stellar ratings and widespread acclaim. This shortlist of standout titles could drive additional engagement and attract new members by showcasing the best of Audible’s offerings.
Encourage milestone participation
Drive participation with milestone ratings
Encourage members to rate and review top listens, especially those nearing significant milestones like 10k, 50k, 75k, 100k, and 200k ratings. Announcing these milestones can motivate past listeners to contribute, driving more listens and engagement within the membership base.
Reward top reviewers
Start a “Top Reviewers” Club
Create an exclusive club for your best reviewers, giving them early access to new Audible Originals. This not only makes top reviewers feel valued but also boosts the profile of your proprietary library through early, enthusiastic reviews.
Foster a referral movement
Build a Member-Get-Member program
Empower your top raters and reviewers, along with your most loyal members, to drive new memberships. Offering extra credits to both new members and those who refer them is a proven way to enhance engagement and generate ongoing revenue.
Enhance and utilize rankings
Improve and use your rankings
Capitalize on opportunities to drive app ratings (Audible is at 4.9 with 5M raters, while Spotify is at 4.8 with 32M raters). Additionally, leverage ASIN ratings to encourage member listens by promoting and showcasing top-rated content for discerning listeners.
We believe a formal audit comparing Audible to its competitors could identify additional programs to further boost ratings and reviews. This would help Audible continue to lead the industry in both quality and member satisfaction. That's just a few ideas to get started on making more of a passionate membership base. At Razorfish, we're always looking for ways to connect our clients' brand purpose to performance.
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Targeting the right audience
We also analyzed how different groups responded: those who don’t usually engage with emails, those who do, and those who are somewhere in between. Direct mail really shines with the email opt-out and unengaged audiences—people who are less likely to see our digital ads. We saw the highest response lift from these two segments, showing the power of mail as a channel to reach and engage customers.