Plush Search: Invitation Only Deal Sites and Impact of Search Marketing

Plush Search: Invitation Only Deals Sites And Impact of Search Marketing
March 23, 2011
Michael Perlman, Managing Director Online Media mperlman@compete.com
Confidential Information. Do not distribute.

Introduction to Compete
Founded in 2000, joined WPP/Kantar in 2008
Passionate about understanding consumers to inspire great marketing
Fastest-growing operating company within Kantar in terms of revenue and new customer growth
World-class advertiser, agency and media clients
Strategic partnerships to enable marketing optimization and provide holistic view of consumers
Leading the creation of a global, multi-screen, single-source consumer-panel with Lightspeed Research for WPP

What is a “Flash Sale” Site?
Membership only communities that provide daily sales on branded inventory
Sales last 30 to 72 hours
Incentives offered ($10 to $25) to refer new members

Flash Sale Sites Are Becoming Major Players in Online Retail…
Increase in average unique visitors from 322K in Feb 2009 to 1.05M in Feb 2011 – 226% growth!!!!

…And Consumers Are Hooked On These Sites
5
3
Average Monthly Visitation to Flash Sale Sites
Average Monthly Visitation to High End Retailer Sites

Visitation to Flash Sale Sites And High End Retailer Sites Is Intertwined
14% of all visits to Flash Sale Sites Result in Consumer Visiting a High End Retailer Site in Same Session
4% of Visits to High End Retailer Sites Result in Consumer Visiting a Flash Sale Site in Same Session >200% growth over past two years

Flash Sale Site Visitors – High Earning Women
Demographic Profile Of Site Visitors

Significant Cross-Shop Activity In Category
Top Referring Sites To Ruelala.com
(February 2011)

How Do Flash Sale Sites Generate Traffic?
Top Referring Categories
(February 2011)

Competitive Brand Terms Drive Search Traffic
4th largest referring site from term “gilt.com” and 9th largest referring site from term “ruelala”
15th largest referring site from term “hautelook”

Flash Sale Providers Vary In Reliance On Paid Search As Traffic Acquisition Source
Paid Search Referrals As % of Total Search Referrals
(February 2011)

HauteLook Drives Traffic From High Value Generic Terms
Top Destination Sites For Search Term “Designer Jeans”
(% of Traffic From Term Dec-Feb 2011)

Big Takeaway…
Flash Sale sites are certainly using search marketing, but it does not appear to be as critical to their customer acquisition strategies as it is to other online apparel retailers
Flash Sale sites can increasingly leverage search to grow overall user base, but might diminish “exclusivity” branding that has been core to growth

Plush Search: Invitation Only Deal Sites and Impact of Search Marketing

by Compete on Mar 29, 2011

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Plush Search: Invitation Only Deal Sites and Impact of Search Marketing — Presentation Transcript