Expert became a data-driven marketing master after implementing the right email marketing and automation technology

“Custobar helped us to better organise and make use of our data, therefore opening possibilities to us we thought wouldn’t be possible yet.” – Daniela Sarlo, Commercial Director

Since Expert took Custobar into use in the fall of 2021, their key KPIs have improved significantly. Custobar’s focus on data and personalisation has made it the perfect match for developing Expert’s data-driven marketing strategy and creating better customer experiences.

Breaking email marketing technology barriers

Expert, a well-known consumer electronics retailer in the Netherlands and a well-known household brand across Europe and beyond, used to struggle with their email marketing process on several levels:

• The email marketing process was overly complicated and time-consuming.
• The marketing team’s email marketing efforts yielded limited results.
• The tool in use offered no segmentation or targeting capabilities, which made it difficult to do personalised marketing and/or utilise automations.
• Striking the right balance between taking ownership of the process and receiving adequate support was a continuous struggle.

Expert’s marketing team knew exactly where improvements would be needed. Furthermore, Expert had some very specific criteria in mind when looking for a new platform to meet their marketing needs.

• A quick and cost-effective setup was a top priority.
• They were looking for a solution to help them with their data challenges.
• Most importantly, Expert was looking for a long-term partner to help them develop their data-driven marketing strategy.

The Custobar Customer Data Platform (CDP) and Marketing Automation proved to solve all their needs and challenges. It has also in many ways continued to exceed them.

Towards stronger customer relationships

Here are some examples of what Expert’s marketing team has accomplished since implementing Custobar:

• 150% increase in newsletter subscribers. While the frequency of sending out emails has remained relatively constant, the number of recipients has grown by 150%.
• After having Custobar in place for just one year, 53% of Expert’s newsletters scored above their benchmark. The benchmark they set for themselves was based on earlier results and industry standards. With the email marketing provider they had before Custobar, their newsletters scored 33% above their benchmark.
• Expert’s first ever email automation done with Custobar achieved a conversion rate of 30%.

“We love working with Custobar because of the segmenting and targeting possibilities through an easy and comprehensible user interface.” – Stephanie Bourgonje, Marketer

It’s not all just about the numbers, however. As a martech (marketing technology) toolset, Custobar offered easy ways of customer segmentation (audiences) enabling personalised email marketing. And as a marketing automation system, the time saved in the email marketing process itself has given Expert’s marketing team the time to focus more on the content of the newsletters. Previously, the newsletters were largely about what the company esteemed important to talk about, whereas now the emails cover trends and season-sensitive topics based on customers’ real interests and needs.

“By working closely with us to customise our B2C communications, Custobar has helped us build stronger relationships with our customers.” – Daniela Sarlo, Commercial Director

Data quality, solid support, and tailor-made solutions

Data and support were both challenges that Expert’s marketing team was struggling with before Custobar. It was especially with data that Custobar excelled. The platform’s great APIs and open data schema made it easy for Expert to accommodate their data requests.

People at Expert also appreciated the support and expertise that Custobarians provided. Whenever any issues or questions arose, timely and helpful assistance was readily available.

“We appreciate the unwavering support and approachability of Custobar. They have always been willing to go the extra mile, learn more about our business, and provide us with tailor-made solutions. No matter how challenging the question or requests, we can count on them to find a solution." – Stephanie Bourgonje, Marketer

What Stephanie is referring to here with the store owners’ unique needs and tailor-made solutions is a local store module. As each of the over 140 Expert stores is privately owned, Expert’s marketing team needed to allow store owners to communicate with their respective customers individually. Built to meet Expert’s specifications, store owners can add personalised messages to the regular Expert newsletters, addressing their customers specifically. The module is, for example, being used to inform customers about new store locations, local events, and job openings.

These messages are only sent to the customers who have selected the store in question as their preferred one. This strategy of offering highly relevant and personalised content has clearly paid off based on customer feedback. The personalised part of the newsletter is always highly engaging, encouraging customers to visit the store.

Actually, even on the more general level, the use of product modules has also contributed to an improvement in email marketing KPIs. The overall email deliverability has improved as well, almost as a side product.

Taking email marketing into still new height

Having kept significantly improving their KPIs with Custobar, Expert’s marketing team has already defined new goals to achieve:

• Taking targeted email marketing campaigns to the next level by accompanying their customers throughout their customer journeys and providing relevant content that benefits the customer at each step of that journey.
• Keeping the personal approach while taking more automations into use, for example, by using personalised product recommendations in the future.

The overriding objective is to take major steps in improving customer retention by creating value for both the business and the customer.