Jump in, the water’s nice! It may seem scary to just take the plunge instead of dipping a toe in and testing the water first. Marketing requires repetition to drive the best result possible. In fact, the best response rates are seen when a consumer receives reinforcement of a sales message across a more prolonged period of time. Single, one-off campaigns generally do not provide the same level of response as campaigns supported with a series of waves. Each wave should be sent after setting a performance expectation and ensuring that a test is also incorporated.
Testing can and should be an ONGOING process and not necessarily an ON AND OFF process. The testing of package, creative, incentive, cadence, etc. can all be done as the message continues to be delivered, ensuring maximum impact and awareness. Each wave should utilize some level of test so more can be learned about the optimal way to communicate with your specific customer base, and what best captures their interest and engagement. Continuing this regular dialogue with targeted consumers—while making modifications along the way—will drive the highest response.
As the adoption of technology continues to grow and the ability to target at a hyper-personalized level advances, omni-channel marketing only serves to make repetitive messaging even more impactful… and successful. A single direct mail campaign can be supported with additional impressions through digital ads placed to those receiving the mailing. This level of targeting and reinforcement of message ensures that the consumer has a heightened awareness of the financial institution when they ultimately decide to switch providers.
Most consumers may make impulsive decisions on purchasing consumer goods and the like, but financial services have a longer decision-making process, more akin to buying a car. Because this process can be drawn out over a longer period of time, it’s all the more important to establish that awareness and remain in the consumers direct line of sight… or at least in the periphery until the time comes that they are disenchanted or displeased enough with their current institution to switch. And if the incentive and/or desire to switch is strong enough, that decision may come sooner rather than later.
When developing a campaign, dipping a toe in and running a single wave once or twice may seem like an optimal way to save money, but it can have a negative impact on the results. By building a schedule that staggers waves of messages approximately six to eight weeks apart, the marketing builds on itself, strengthening awareness about what the institution has to offer when a need arises.