Chase Cards Targeting Affluent: Market Segmentation

Here's a marketing tip in segmenting a customer database.

Chase Card Services, a unit of JPMorgan Chase & Co., said Wednesday it will now offer a rewards card designed for wealthy customers. This is according to an Associated Press report.

The new card, called Chase Sapphire, is designed for the top-earning 15 percent of U.S. households. It offers travel services, access to round-the-clock customer service and a rewards program.

All businesses may have a need to segment their database and position specific messages and offerings to certain types of customers.

How deeply you segment depends on many variables including pricing, product offerings available.

I’ve met several Professional Employment Organization (PEO) representatives in the last few months and many of them deal with businesses ranging from 10 employees to hundreds.

The number of employees in a company will determine some of the needs of that prospective customer. And those needs will then determine the type of message and approach taken.

The value in segmenting a customer list is it aids greatly in the sales process: the right message for the right target audience delivered with the right media.

Is SEO or PPC Best for Marketing?

How do seo and pay per click (PPC) compare? I always thought organic search engine rankings through seo were the best and most credible links for a company.

However, a recent study I came across is making me think differently.

"According to a new study by Engine Ready, based on traffic to 26 e-retail sites in a 12-month period that ended June 30, visitors who arrive at a retailer's site from paid search ads are 50% more likely to buy than those who come from clicking on a natural search link. The conversion rate from paid search is 2.03% versus 1.26% from organic search, according to the study as reported by Internet Retailer."

The article is on MediaPost Publications written by Jack Loechner.

One of the first questions I had after reading the study was questioning if the sample was large enough to draw conclusions across the internet. After all, 26 e-retail sites out of how many retail sites on the web?

Nevertheless, this shows that when search engine users are looking for a product to purchase then they're not going to question the credibility of whether the link is "credible" or not.

If it shows up on a search engine site they're using then they're going to click.

This is also good news for the internet advertising model that it is relevant and worth paying ad costs.

Utilizing both seo and ppc is another part of the overall marketing mix.

Is Traditional Media Relevant in Today's Market?

Is traditional media relevant, or still important, in today's market?

Marketing decision-makers know how online social media is . . . choose your word: exploding, dynamic, raging, or ubiquitous.

The need for this post came to mind when I was on Twitter, @donsimko, and saw a Tweet from @barbomalley. She's the Associate VP Communications at the University of Akron. Btw, I like "post" more than "tweet."

She linked to a free webinar of the Public Relations Society of America sponsored by Vocus Communications with the title "Does Traditional Media Still Matter?" The webinar is Thursday, August 13 at 3pm EDT.

Does traditional media still matter?

Since I enjoy asking assessment questions, ask yourself:

• Have you read a newspaper in the past 48 hours?
• Have you read a magzine?
• Did you receive "junk mail" at home today? Or in the office?
• If the phone is considered traditional media, have you received a sales call in the past week from home improvement companies?
• Have you received a sales letter at work in the past 10 days?
• Are there billboards in the city where you live?
• Along the beaches, do airplanes fly with their banners flailing behind?
• Do you see ads on TV?
• When did you last listen to the radio?

Traditional media still has a vital role to play. Rather than set aside one medium in favor of another, understand the uses of each medium and the best ways to utilize them to send out a corporate message.

Effectiv marketing strategies understand that target audiences need a media mix, or marketing mix, to maxmize reach.

The benefits of interactive media include more accurate measuring of behaviors and responses.

But traditional media still has relevance. It certainly matters.