Those in the marketing and direct mail arena may say these are better than the kind you find nestled between the shells of an oyster.
Unlike pearls, personalized URLs (PURLs) can't be strung around your neck or ground into cosmetics. But they do have their uses and often create a more direct relationship with a person of a certain audience a company or organization is interested in reaching. Data has shown that businesses that have used PURL campaigns saw a spike in levels response as compared to more traditional direct mail and e-mail campaigns.
Nevertheless, to truly understand the benefits of PURLs, companies must comprehend what they actually are and how they work.
A PURL is a personalized website used for marketing and data collection, which is used to gather information for future marketing campaigns or sales. Typically, a site greets a visitor by name and presents them with products, services and information based on a database of preferences. The site can be an ongoing campaign that changes depending on the data collected from the visitor or the site can be used as a one-time marketing announcement for registration purposes.
A common example of a PURL is a web page with a URL such as www.abcmagazine.com/joejones. "Joe Jones" is the receiver of the message, either via e-mail or direct mail, who is encouraged to visit the web page.
PURLs have benefited business at Edison, New Jersey-based Prodigital Printing, A Consortium Company.
Bill Doehler, Prodigital executive vice president, said the company started using PURLs nearly two years ago because the technology seemed like a "natural add-on." Initially, Prodigital produced its first campaigns through another licensee with zero profit. Eventually, Doehler noted it took the "proverbial plunge," purchasing a Mindfire license.
"Our decision to purchase a Mindfire license coincided with our adopting a new strategy for promoting ourselves within the distributor community. I had run across the concept of permission-based marketing, at the center of which is sharing your 'intangibles' (knowledge, experience, etc.) with your target audience expecting nothing in return beyond their remembering you. Having the software required to invite people to educational webinars, and to do so using PURL technology gave that new strategy a real jump-start."
As an aside, Doehler remarked he is a believer that good business decisions should have more than one objective. In this case, Doehler explained the company not only raised its profile in the distributor community through its educational programs, it also uncovered "a few hundred feet on the street opportunities we could collectively pursue."
Though he did not provide specifics, Doehler said the company has enjoyed "significant revenue deploying PURL campaigns sold by distributors."
John Shanley, president of Woodinville, Washington-based Labels West, couldn't comment on how PURLs will impact its business because it just installed the capability to use PURLs in June. The decision to do so was based on customers' requests for several months.
Shanley also believes the "technology has tremendous potential."
"We believe that it will increase sales and allow our distributors to add significant value to many different products they provide their customers."
And for the benefits, the investment wasn't much. Doehler said the initial licensing fee was approximately $11,000 with an annual fee of $2,000. The only other "hard" cost is a modest price per PURL address created, which is paid to the licensor. He added, all other costs are internal for the resources Prodigital uses to build and administer the websites.
"The more of them we do, the more efficiently we do them," Doehler remarked.
Label Wests' costs were steeper.
"It represented a $250,000 investment for us to start producing them," Shanley commented.
But, no campaign comes without challenges. Doehler said the biggest hurdle is managing customers' expectations.
"There has been so much hyperbole surrounding PURLs and the whole one-to-one marketing notion, making sure that you and the customer both understand what would constitute success/improvement is vital for both the longevity of the relationship with the customer and your personal well-being—dealing with disappointed people is no fun."
For Shanley, he remarked, "getting a good targeted prospect list is always a challenge."
Doehler did have some realistic advice for those interested into getting into the PURL game.
"Direct marketing is a tough game (especially for the uninitiated), and using PURLs does not make it that much easier," Doehler pointed out. "The basic components of successful campaigns have not changed. [They are] a good (if not great) target list, a compelling offer and attractive creative. As such, the PURL should be thought of as merely another means by which a person might respond to the marketer. It provides the type of immediate gratification that a toll-free number (vs. a Business-Reply Card) does, and can attract respondents who might not be quite ready for a live interaction. From the marketer's perspective, the ability to capture data and trigger follow-up and fulfillment activities automatically provides enormous benefits."
Finally, he advised, "Test, test and test. There is no reason with today's technology to market intuitively. The days of 'spray & pray' (referring to inkjet addressing) are far behind us."
Shanley feels as though his company got into PURLs at the right time because "they will be used more and more."
"If distributors are not offering them to their customers and prospects, somebody else will," he added.
Regardless of the most cutting-edge technologies, Doehler believes the industry is on "the cusp of a real comeback to traditional direct mail. Electronic media are simply not delivering the results they promised, and no matter how inexpensive they appear to be, marketers need measurable results (sales & profits). I also see more people moving away from e-cards and the like, and beginning to send nice handwritten notes. If you do not have high-quality note cards in your desk drawer, get some and use them."
- Companies:
- Labels West
- People:
- Bill Doehler
- John Shanley