Since then, five times a day, sometime more often, this young lady follows me around the internet, offering me a $75 coupon for something I have absolutely no interest in.
The marketing channel is called "retargeting".
There's a whole host of people who have contempt for direct mail, for that unwelcome intrusion in the mailbox from folks who destroy forests for the sake of wasteful marketing.
We have a surprisingly high tolerance for marketing that is fueled by harvesting coal from the ground ... heck, retargeting is "digital", so it is different, it "changes everything".
Storm isn't the only company that follows me everywhere I go. Cuddledown of Maine, via Google, follows me because I use them as an example on this blog from time to time. Amazon is chasing me all over the internet, trying to sell me an internet radio that I looked at but never had any intention of buying.
Few people care much about digital waste ... you're only spending tenths or hundredths of a penny per "impression". Some impression.
Marketing of all types is wasteful. Heck, even this blog consumes coal, so that's not so good either.
As we try to grow, we might think a bit about how we could spend less, or better allocate marketing dollars.
Hi Kevin, this is a bit of blanket damnation of remarketing!
ReplyDeleteI agree that excessively stalking customers across the web is damaging to customer relationships - perhaps misguided intentions or simple naiveté leads to the 'spray and pray' technique.
Google and others provide sophisticated controls to create a more nuanced approach - limiting impressions, conditions and rules for display - this takes quite a bit of effort setting up.
In a traditional direct marketing company where 'new media' approaches have to be done under the radar from the HiPPOs, remarketing is one of the few approaches that provide a return on investment.
Nick
Didn't you just make a blanket damnation of HiPPOs?!!!!!
ReplyDelete