Targeted Marketing, Part 2

It's happened again. I've received another email from the Quality Paperback Book Club.

Like I mentioned in my previous post, this one was headed at the top with: NEW & PERFECT FOR YOU.

The support copy read: We want you to be the first to know about this new arrival that matches your reading interests.

The title of this one?

CRAFTING WITH CAT HAIR
Cute Handicrafts to Make with Your Cat

Seriously.

Ode To Coffee

Oh coffee.

You stain my teeth

and coat my tongue

and I didn’t like you

when I was young

but now I crave you

every morning

I became addicted

without warning

to coffee.

Oh coffee.

Hot and steamy

from the carafe

sweet and creamy

with half and half

my morning nectar

in a paper cup

you serve me well

you wake me up

Oh coffee.

A Case Study In Targeted Marketing

I belong to one of those book clubs where you get a lot of books for free when you sign up and then you have to tell them every month not to send you any more.

I received an interesting email from them the other day. The subject line was "We've been thinking about you."

Now that I'm in the e-comm biz, I pay more attention to subject lines and email content than I used to, so I clicked it open right away.

This was the headline at the top: NEW & PERFECT FOR YOU.
(The use of caps is theirs, not mine.)

The support copy read: We want you to be the first to know about this new arrival that matches your reading interests.

Now I am interested. This email represents the beauty of e-comm marketing - looking at what you've ordered or declined in the past and tailoring an offer specifically for you. Target marketing. It's what Amazon does so well on their site.

Imagine my surprise when I saw the recommended book:

Penis Power
The Ultimate Guide on Male Sexual Health

Hmmm. Maybe just a little off-target in this case.

Happy Blog for Your Breasts Day

Just a couple quick thoughts now that it's October and Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

My sister was diagnosed with breast cancer about 25 years ago. She had a large, egg-size lump in her breast that the doctor ignored for quite awhile because it hurt and, according to him at the time, cancerous tumors didn't hurt. She had a mastectomy, no chemo or radiation, and luckily is alive and well and cancer free.

My friends Linda, Betsy and Kay are all breast cancer survivors.

Face it, we all know someone who's had breast cancer.

I joined the Army of Women because I love the concept: Using the internet to find women to participate in breast cancer research. I haven't qualified for any of the studies so far, but you never know, maybe I will some day. (You don't have to have breast cancer to do that, by the way.) 

In the meantime, I thought I could at least participate in Blog for your Breasts Day.

To borrow a phrase from another breast cancer support group, it's time to save the tatas.