One-to-One Marketing Just Got Easier: A Case Study
Ron Daly, DigitalMailer, Inc.

Walk into any sales strategy meeting, and one-to-one marketing is likely to be the hot topic. But with a diverse membership, and varying interests and needs, how can you offer promotions personalized for each member?

Until recently, marketers have been limited to a few channels that only allowed modest targeting on the Web site, and in online-banking and bill-pay services. Now, through unique enhancements to DigitalMailer’s email alerts technology, marketers have access to two new channels for sending emails with the offers showing: eStatements and email alerts. Add technology that mines data and creates marketing campaigns, and you have offers directed to specific needs or interests – one member at a time.

With upwards of 63 million adult Americans handling their personal finances online, this is the ideal time to make the leap to more targeted eMarketing. Fort Belvoir Federal Credit Union, Woodbridge, Va., provides a case study on how to use eMarketing channels to best advantage.

Communicating one to one

Fort Belvoir FCU made a strategic decision to refit its eMarketing strategy to better reach its members who regularly use online services. Gone are the days of “one-size-fits-all” offers with minimal targeting capabilities. Instead, the credit union has evolved from macro-segment marketing (spray and pray) to micro-segment marketing (one-to-one).

“Our primary reason for moving to a one-to-one marketing approach was to get the right message to the right person at the right time,” said Jacque Connor, Vice President, Marketing and Business Development, at Fort Belvoir FCU. “We were looking at ways to target more specifically. We knew we wanted to have more than just a generic set of banners through the usual channels on our Web site.”

As an early step in the credit union’s shift from macro-segmenting, Fort Belvoir FCU began inviting members to preference-based email alerts.

“Many of our eLerts are used for sharing transactional information with members,” said Connor, explaining that the credit union focuses on opt-in offers both to enhance member communications and control. “eLerts have helped us significantly reduce the volume of calls to our contact center. We used to receive an inordinate amount of calls on the first and 15^th of the month from members asking if their checks were deposited.”

To further develop its eMarketing efforts, Fort Belvoir FCU turned to DigitalMailer and AdeptMedia, which teamed up in 2006 to offer multi-channel targeting capabilities.

 “After the two companies began partnering, DigitalMailer was very proactive, calling us with a ‘here’s something more we can do to help’ approach.”

Connor said DigitalMailer’s email marketing tools and AdeptMedia’s “DeepTarget” data-mining and tracking tools made for the right combination: a system that would be responsive to members’ needs. As a result, Fort Belvoir can now reach members across all online channels – Web site, online banking service, eStatements and eLerts – with information tailored to individual requests and needs.

Putting it all together

Essentially, says Connor, Fort Belvoir FCU creates various stacks of offers to share with members and determines which stack to send to which members, based on their MCIF data. The data is forwarded to DeepTarget, which sets up the ad and pulls the groups to receive a particular offer; the credit union delivers these individualized offers to members using DigitalMailer’s email system.

Connor says she likes the fact that DeepTarget is constantly running in the background. “When staff get busy they might not have time to suggest other products or services, but DeepTarget always asks. Once it’s in the computer, based on the pre-set conditions, it will ask.”

“Now we’re able to be fairly precise in getting the right offers to the right markets,” said Connor. “Members sign up for eLerts using their account numbers, so the system can identify the appropriate stack of ads. And once they’re logged on to the Web site with their username and password, members who have car loans with us won’t see car-loan offers appear. Similarly, if a member has a checking account, he won’t see checking account promos, but may see bill-payment banners, or other offers. Members receive information about products they don’t have with us instead of those they already use.”

Gathering feedback, getting results

According to Connor, an important step in shifting the credit union’s marketing strategies was getting member feedback, which was gathered through focus groups. “What we heard was, ‘We know you know us. We want you to tell us what we need. Make suggestions for using the services that would be beneficial to our needs.’”

The feedback reinforced Fort Belvoir FCU’s decision to further develop its online marketing strategies. And the credit union has achieved impressive results:

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