It’s not every day that a business where your grandpa’s grandpa once shopped comes knocking at the door looking to make a splash into the digital marketing sphere. In fact, not many businesses that your grandpa’s grandpa even shopped at are still open! But that is not the case for Fresno Ag Hardware.
Last summer, Fresno Ag Hardware, the Central Valley’s largest independently-owned hardware store since 1876, partnered with us to develop a fourth quarter retail campaign with a singular focus on online marketing to increase traffic and sales.
Let’s be real. Fourth quarter advertising is always fun, because you have some of the best holidays of the whole year in only three short months. Halloween, Thanksgiving, Black Friday (yes, we’re counting it!) and Christmas, especially for a retail client, makes for an exciting time.
Our task at hand was to craft a campaign that could build awareness among Fresno Ag’s target audience that it is the one-stop shop for everything you need to complete your Christmas shopping, but would also translate into increased store sales. This would be a perfect collaboration between our graphic design and media buying teams.
You’ve got mail: Email marketing to your database
Like a sitting duck, we had access to a robust email database that we could market to. Because signing up for the list is voluntary, we knew we had a fan base we could activate with right calls to action (CTA) and design. From Halloween to Christmas, we sent eblasts that could appeal to a wide audience including deals on chainsaws and YETIs, and in-store specials such as Black Friday and No Sales Tax day.
Best part? On average, our eblasts had a 21 percent open rate that more than doubled the retail industry standard.
Turn impressions into clicks: Google AdWords and Display Advertising
When you’re looking for the perfect gift to give, chances are you are going to go to Google at least once. Which is why search engine marketing (SEM) has become one of the best marketing tactics to grow your business. Paired with display advertising (the banners and other ads you see throughout various websites), we helped Fresno Ag make its first leap using paid internet marketing strategies.
We had quite the “proud parent” moment when we got a 140-year-old business at the top of the search results!
Share more with your customers: user-friendly web design
Because of the strong tactics we were planning in SEM and display advertising, we knew we needed to have a landing page that gave our customers exactly what they wanted: all of the deals and coupons for the holiday season. The mobile-friendly design would be easy to use and would allow customers to show the coupons on their phones while checking out.
Want to see what else we’ve worked on? Go check out our portfolio of work. In the meantime, if you’re thinking about taking the leap and upping your online marketing game, give us a holler and we can chat!
–Nicole Maul, Social Media Manager
Kailey says:
Great post! Curious to know what the results were for sales as compared to previous years.