eCommerce Analytics

One question that we’re repeatedly asked by our customers is how they compare to the “average” online marketer or retailer in terms of conversion rates, number of campaigns, customer acquisition, etc.  Many times it’s hard to pinpoint exact numbers with much accuracy because of differences in business model and marketing channels, but a new survey that just came out on eMarketer gives a fairly nice overview of how current online retailers (limited to the US) are doing in regards to email marketing.

Read Better than average? »

Marketing Sherpa put out the 2009 Email Marketing Benchmark Guide today. One of the insights from the report is that email, in a down economy, is the comfort food that direct marketers curl up with next to the fire. That is, retailers will depend on it more than ever. At Istobe, we’re not surprised. Email marketing, after all, is a mature medium where smart retailers can meaningfully personalize content at a low cost.

Read Marketing Sherpa Says Importance of Targeted Email Will Increase During Economic Downturn »

I had planned to write about new businesses and business concepts that I observed at the unConference last week. But given the economic meltdown that only seems to be accelerating, I thought that I’d better continue along the lines of Chris and Doug the last two days and address how multi-channel retail businesses can profit from customer analytics in an economy where consumers are wary of spending money. The truth: customer analytics will better help you protect your customer base from larger retailers who dangle lower prices.

Read Protecting Your Customer Base in Bad Economic Times »

This economy thing looks bad.

As we all prepare ourselves for diminished consumer spending in the months ahead we can expect to see price play a pivotal role in buyer decisions.  Is there any way retailers can avoid engaging in price wars and destroying margins this holiday season?

Read Avoiding Price Competition this Holiday Season »

Since every news site and blog I look at seems to be focused on the economy, I felt it only appropriate that I change it up a bit from my usual analytics rants and write a post that looks at the recent financial concerns.

Read What’s happening: the economy and analytics »

Participated in the MassTLC unConference as a sponsored entrepreneur last Thursday (thanks Bill Warner) and came away with the impression that the Boston startup community is still thriving despite the continuing downturn in the economy. However, money is apparently going to be a much scarcer resource for startups in the coming year.

Read MassTLC unConference Serves Startups Economic Reality Check »

(Read the entire Customer Analytics: A Guide to Getting Started series)

Last time we left off, we put together a plan to help us to use customer analytics to understand which marketing campaigns were worth pursuing and which to kill. This is a valuable analysis that can yield real profit growth without requiring any advanced predictive modeling. But what if we want to do something with a little more sizzle that really boosts the bottom line?

Read Customer Analytics: A Guide to Getting Started (Part 4) »