The Cyber Window

In my projects, I create a variable that measures if a customer purchases during what I call the "Cyber Window".

• The Wednesday before Thanksgiving to the Saturday after Cyber Monday is the Cyber Window.

My Elite Program clients recently learned how valuable all these customers are that are acquired at 60% off plus free shipping (plus 80% off clearance items).

One of the biggest problems you face is the "repurchase opportunity" for Cyber Window buyers. When you acquire a customer in September or October, the customer is very likely to buy again in November / December. You get to double-dip your chip, you generate a second order quickly. That dynamic drives an increase in future value. The Cyber Monday window? It's doomed to fail. You fulfill the need of the customer to get a gift for Christmas (in many cases), so the customer is dormant through Christmas, and then the customer is dormant in January / February because you are liquidating stuff and the customer isn't there for liquidated merchandise, the customer had a need met via a gift purchase at 60% off.  The "brand" (that's you) misses out on the "response opportunity", driving down future value.

So stop doing that!

I get it, you want to acquire customers, and it is easy to do so during the Cyber Window. So you can do that. But don't be a Lemonhead and acquire the customer at 60% off so you don't make any profit and then fail to generate profit downstream ... you're not here to fill the void with empty calories.

Tell me why I'm wrong (kevinh@minethatdata.com).