American Apparel, a multichannel retailer of sweatshop-free clothing, has launched a push to make its e-mail marketing more personalized.
The retailer, which manufactures all of its goods in its Los Angeles headquarters and markets direct to consumers as well as to wholesalers, is using the Lyris ListManager to power its global newsletter program in a move to make the e-mails more relevant.
In a departure from the company’s do-it-yourself approach to online marketing, the Lyris product has been integrated into the American Apparel in-house database.
“When it comes to online marketing infrastructure, we often build it in-house, but coming from an e-mail background myself, Iknew that was not going to be [easy],” said Charles Delauder, Web technology manager at American Apparel. “There are concerns about deliverability, spam, and performance, so it made sense to work with an outside provider.”
The new Lyris tool sends triggered messaging based on site visit behavior and past purchases, allowing for “deep segmentation and personalization within the e-mail,” according to Blaine Mathieu, SVPof Lyris Inc.
American Apparel sends 1 million to 2 million e-mails a month, within eight global regions, and it is aimed largely at 18 to 30 year olds. This includes both internal and external names to consumers and to employees and wholesalers.
The retailer combines e-mail with search, print, social media buys and display ads, often using e-mail to launch.
American Apparel has 300,000 e-mail subscribers worldwide, localized by market. Consumers can opt in on its site or in retail stores and get a 10% off coupon for doing so.
“Certain e-mail campaigns give subscribers exclusive offers, because we want to reward people for being subscribers,” added Delauder.
