Challenge:
Once a year the new IKEA Catalog is sent out. The IKEA catalog is distributed and in years prior, the store did nothing to entice people to come in to the store right away. However this year, in August 2008 IKEA Houston wanted to create a greater sense of urgency to get these people into the store and buy the new products. The furniture retailer asked Advanced Marketing Strategies to come up with a plan.
Strategy:
Advanced Marketing Strategies created a unique home makeover contest for IKEA Houston where one person will win $10,000 and the help of an IKEA furnishing consultant to design the makeover. AMS determined in order to get more people to enter, the contest should allow for everyone to win a prize. The message was communicated in all advertising mediums including radio & television (in English and Hispanic), print, emails, online, direct mail and an insert in the 2009 Catalog. Every medium directed people to IKEAgiveaway.com or IKEAHomeMakeover.com to find out more information about the contest and to enter to win. Everyone who entered the contest won a coupon based on the distance they lived from the store (i.e. free breakfast, lunch or dinner coupon, $10 off purchase or $50 off purchase).
Google Analytics was incorporated to track the conversion rate of the online ads. The coupons were then collected at the store to track the redemption rate.
Results:
Sales for the IKEA Houston store increased 19.4% during this time period compared to the same time last year. Customers increased 13% during the same time period compared to the year before. Visitors to IKEAHouston.com increased by 1157% one month. Additionally, the IKEA Houston customer database increased by 118%!
