Sales Strategy
Winning The Experience Customer | August 03, 2016 (0 comments)
Merrick, NY—The next time someone says consumers would rather spend money on experiences than things, take a leaf from Nordstrom’s book and offer them an experience that backs up the brands you sell.
The retailer sent this promotion (left) around to certain cardholders. The custom-size folder, titled “Extraordinary: Go Beyond Your Bucket List,” detailed four unique travel experiences, all (except one) tied to brands and merchandise the store offers. Included were a restorative spa and yoga weekend in Honolulu, HI, for lovers of the Zella brand of yoga wear. The trip includes a trip to Nordstrom’s Ala Moana store to select a complimentary yoga outfit and gym bag from Zella, followed by lunch and a return to the retreat.
Shoe fanatics could go to Newport Beach, CA, and design their own custom pair of shoes in conjunction with Jodie Fox, cofounder and chief creative officer of Shoes Of Prey, while perfume lovers had an opportunity to head to Seattle—Nordstrom’s home base—and visit luxury perfumer Antica Farmacista. The trip includes both a Spa Nordstrom visit and a behind-the-scenes look around Studio N, where all of Nordstrom’s catalogs are produced.
Finally, wine lovers were offered an opportunity to spend a weekend in Seattle and dinner and an auction at Chateau Ste. Michelle, one of Washington state’s premier wineries. A spa treatment was included, along with fine dining, winery tours, and other foodie delights, plus a fine wine auction to raise money for uncompensated care, cancer clinical trials, and autism services at Seattle Children’s Hospital.
Inside the mailer, above; the card deck explains each individual experience, below.
Of course, Nordstrom isn’t the only retailer to offer out-of-this-world experiences. Neiman Marcus is famous for its holiday fantasy catalog, chock full of such experiences—including one that was about as out-of-this-world as it gets without a spaceship: two hours floating 20 miles above 99% of the Earth’s atmosphere, more than double what commercial jets fly. That was one of the 2015 fantasy gifts.
Closer to earth, some independent jewelers have mastered the art of the experience. Stanley Jewelers in North Little Rock, AR, took advantage of the proximity of Crater of Diamonds State Park in Murfreesboro, AR, and chartered a bus to take 30 customers diamond mining in the park.
And just this summer, Maryland-based Smyth Jewelers hosted a series of parking lot concerts, complete with food stands and a real fire truck for kids to explore. The event was held to benefit a local volunteer fire company, below:
And Cathy Calhoun, owner of Royersford, PA-based Calhoun Jewelers, tries to do something for her top customers every year. Once she arranged for her six top female customers to meet and take dancing lessons with Maksim Chmerkovskiy from TV’s famed program Dancing With the Stars. She rented a limo to take the ladies from her store to Ridgefield NJ, where one of his dance studios is located.
She also every year takes over a local old-time movie theater on Oscar night and recreates the red carpet experience for customers to get dressed to the nines and come watch on the big screen as if they were (almost) there.