The Science Behind Weather Marketing- Top 8 Fall Email Campaigns of 2015

Eradium weather marketing fall

The Science Behind Weather Marketing- Top 8 Fall Email Campaigns of 2015

Posted at 15:29h in eCommerce, Shopper Marketing, Strategy by
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The best and the worst fall themed campaigns-The power of seasonal marketing

This article is from the weekly series of posts about e-commerce Email Marketing Best Practices.

Weather is an interesting phenomenon that humans have zero control over, but marketers can correctly use and drastically improve sales. It is a fact that weather affects around $3 trillion worth of business in the private sector alone. (1)

Rain and cold snaps persuade people to stay indoors and activates the use of holiday gift cards for ordering online. (1)

The most fundamental sales strategy was always as follows- lawn seed sells well in early spring, sun products in midsummer, outerwear in the fall, snow shovels in the winter.

North American weather had the following effect on the sales of various products (1):

  • When the temperature drops one degree colder – soup sales go up 2%.
    When the temp goes up one degree – beer and soft drink sales go up 1.2%.
  • One degree colder in the fall equals a 4% increase in children’s apparel sales.
    Just one degree hotter in summer translates to a 10% increase in sun care products.
  • Just one degree colder in the fall means a 25% increase in mousetrap sales.
    And just one degree hotter in summer – just one degree – results in a 24% increase for air conditioners.
  • After a tough winter this March, Torontonians will welcome Spring showers – so rainwear sales will be up by 10%.
  • By June, there will be a heat wave in Ottawa, so kids shorts and tee-shirts will be up by 16%.
  • Warmer July temps in Vancouver will result in a modest 5% drop in lawn tool sales.
  • Dry conditions in August in Montreal will push demand for lawn-watering equipment up by 15%.
  • Winter will come early to Winnipeg in September, causing sales of outerwear to jump by 9%.
  • And a chilly October in Edmonton will mean sweater sales will be up by 6%.
This week we are reviewing weather marketing based on examples of the fall email campaigns from the following retail brands: Old Navy, Saks Fifth Avenue, Lowe’s, Neiman Marcus, Gymboree, Crocs, ShoeMe, Indigo

Rating

All emails will be rated from 1* to 5*, where 1 means poor and 5 is great.

We review on a weekly basis:

Design

  1. Colors – colors have good contrast, consistent
  2. Typography – fonts have readable size, clear titles
  3. Images – clear, visible, easy to understand
  4. Formatting – blocks follow each other in an easy to navigate pattern
  5. Mobile Optimized – all elements are visible and formatted correctly on the mobile phone

Content

  1. Subject line – signals urgency and clear main offer that will be found inside the email
  2. Clear offer – one main offer with clear call to action
  3. Urgency to purchase – time, stock, shipping that motivates the buyer to purchase
  4. Product highlights – clear description of the products to evoke the interest of the reader

Winer 1st Place- Old Navy – WEATHER RELEVANT

Email 1: Old Navy

Subject Line: Ready for a fall fashion makeover? Up to 50% off all jeans & shirts‏

Eradium-back-to-school-email-marketing First Place
Eradium weather marketing Old-Navy 1.
Eradium weather marketing Old-Navy 2
Eradium weather marketing Old-Navy 3
Eradium weather marketing Old-Navy 4

Design

  1. Colors: 5*
  2. Fonts: 5*
  3. Images: 5*
  4. Formatting: 5*
  5. Mobile Optimized: 5*

Content

  1. Subject line: 4*
  2. Clear offer: 3*
  3. Urgency to purchase: 4*
  4. Product highlights: 4*

Overall rating: 4.5*

Conclusion-BUYING FACTOR: YES

Best thing about the email:

Covers all segments

Worst thing about the email:

Too many offers

2nd Place – Saks Fifth Avenue

Email 2: Saks Fifth Avenue

Subject Line: Westward-Bound: Fall Shoes‏

Eradium weather marketing Saks-Fifth-Avenue

Design

  1. Colors: 4*
  2. Fonts: 4*
  3. Images: 4*
  4. Formatting: 4*
  5. Mobile Optimized:  4*

Content

  1. Subject line: 4*
  2. Clear offer: 5*
  3. Urgency to purchase: 3*
  4. Product highlights: 3*

Overall rating: 3.9*

Conclusion-BUYING FACTOR: Maybe

Best thing about the email:

Images and product shots

Worst thing about the email:

No urgency to purchase

3nd Place – Lowe’s

Email 3: Lowe’s

Subject Line: Gear Up for the Cooler Evenings: Outdoor Heating Solutions‏

Eradium weather marketing Lowes 1
Eradium weather marketing Lowes 2

Design

  1. Colors: 3*
  2. Fonts: 3*
  3. Images: 4*
  4. Formatting: 4*
  5. Mobile Optimized: 4*

Content

  1. Subject line: 4*
  2. Clear offer: 4*
  3. Urgency to purchase: 3*
  4. Product highlights: 5*

Overall rating: 3.8*

Conclusion-BUYING FACTOR: YES

Best thing about the email:

Product Highlights

Worst thing about the email:

  • Text over images makes it hard to read
  • Snow blower is not appropriate for an early fall campaign

4th Place –Neiman Marcus

Email 4: Neiman Marcus

Subject Line: Chloe: Build your look for Fall

Eradium weather marketing Neiman-Marcus 1
Eradium weather marketing Neiman-Marcus 2

Design

  1. Colors: 4*
  2. Fonts: 4*
  3. Images: 4*
  4. Formatting: 4*
  5. Mobile Optimized: 4* 

Content

  1. Subject line: 3*
  2. Clear offer: 3*
  3. Urgency to purchase: 3*
  4. Product highlights: 3*

Overall rating: 3.6*

Conclusion-BUYING FACTOR: YES

Best thing about the email:

Images

Worst thing about the email:

No clear offer or urgency to purchase

5th Place – Gymboree

Email 5: Gymboree

Subject Line: It’s ALL 40% off and going fast—like summer!‏

Eradium weather marketing Gymboree 1
Eradium weather marketing Gymboree 2

Design

  1. Colors: 5*
  2. Fonts: 3*
  3. Images: 3*
  4. Formatting: 4*
  5. Mobile Optimized: 4*

Content

  1. Subject line: 5*
  2. Clear offer: 3*
  3. Urgency to purchase: 4*
  4. Product highlights: 2*

Overall rating: 3.6*

Conclusion-BUYING FACTOR: YES

Best thing about the email:

Subject Line

Worst thing about the email:

No specific link to products shown

6th Place- Crocs

Email 6: Crocs

Subject Line: New: see flats go from basic to beautiful.‏

Eradium weather marketing crocs

Design

  1. Colors: 3*
  2. Fonts: 3*
  3. Images: 4*
  4. Formatting: 4*
  5. Mobile Optimized: 3*

Content

  1. Subject line: 3*
  2. Clear offer: 3*
  3. Urgency to purchase: 3*
  4. Product highlights: 3*

Overall rating: 3.2*

Conclusion-BUYING FACTOR: NO

Best thing about the email:

Layout

Worst thing about the email:

Confusing images and no clear product reference

7th Place – SHOEme

Email 7: SHOEme

 Subject Line: New styles for getting back to the grind‏

Eradium weather marketing SHOEme

Design

  1. Colors: 2*
  2. Fonts: 3*
  3. Images: 3*
  4. Formatting: 3*
  5. Mobile Optimized: 3*

Content

  1. Subject line: 3*
  2. Clear offer: 3*
  3. Urgency to purchase: 3*
  4. Product highlights: 1*

Overall rating: 2.6*

Conclusion-BUYING FACTOR: NO

Best thing about the email:

Catchy tagline

Worst thing about the email:

Terrible blurry image

Last Place 8th Place- Indigo – NOT really Fall Relevant

Email 8: Indigo

Subject Line: Trending This Fall: Dark Blooms For Home Décor, Style & More‏

Eradium weather marketing Indigo

Design

  1. Colors: 3*–
  2. Fonts: 3*
  3. Images: 3*
  4. Formatting: 3*
  5. Mobile Optimized: 1*

Content

  1. Subject line: 3*
  2. Clear offer: 2*
  3. Urgency to purchase: 3*
  4. Product highlights: 2*

Overall rating: 2.5*

Conclusion-BUYING FACTOR: MAYBE

Best thing about the email

Formatting

Worst thing about the email:

The offer is not really relevant to the subject line or to Fall season

Just for Fun

This is one of those tricky emails when you do not know what you are getting. Is it 40% of or 30%, or maybe 40 +30?

You be the judge.

Eradium weather marketing - Dillards

FINAL REMARKS

How to prepare a perfect marketing campaign for fall of 2015, whatever you are selling!

Fall 2015

Drier pattern from southern Ontario to Quebec

The fall will be pleasant overall across this region with an abundance of sunny days. Rainfall will be slightly less than average. Current signs point toward a favorable season for viewing the fall foliage later in September and into October. (2)

Based on this predicted weather information marketers should plan their campaigns regardless of an industry, whether you are selling clothes, home hardware or coffee.

Here are some examples of how this season campaign could be structured:

Dry Fall-2015

If you are selling Clothes:

  • Hold on to the umbrella and rain boots, promote more dry weather clothes such as suede and light sweaters.
  • Lighter colors are definitely in style when the sun is shining

If you are selling home related stuff:

  • Put emphasize on the dry weather by offering last minute deals on summer equipment clearance
  • Lawn care equipment and fertilizers are good to advertise when the weather is good

Warm Fall

If you are selling Clothes:

  • Ease on warm winter jackets and advertise more of the lighter styles.
  • Extend summer dresses promotions

If you are selling home related stuff:

  • Outdoor fire pit and warming equipment to help extend the outdoor season
  • Outdoor projects such as painting and decks

Use something as simple as weather to get the most of your marketing dollar. All you have to do is read the weather almanac and watch the weather forecast.

References

  1. “How Weather Affects Marketing – Home | Under The … – CBC.” 2015. 11 Sep. 2015, http://www.cbc.ca/radio/undertheinfluence/how-weather-affects-marketing-1.2801774
  2. “The 2015 Fall Outlook for Canada – AccuWeather.” 2015. 11 Sep. 2015, http://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-blogs/anderson/the-2015-fall-outlook-for-canada/51788301
Tags:
Anna Battrick
anna@eradium.com

Anna Battrick is Eradium’s Director of Ecommerce Services, has an extensive background in retail marketing and project management. With over 10 years of managing complex projects from inception to completion while always maintaining “it can be done” spirit. The world of retail is not only a professional interest but also a personal hobby which lets Anna see the other side of retail, from a shopper perspective. This helps create engaging marketing programs that speak personally to the shoppers interests and engage them in a conversation.



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