Birthday blues

It was my birthday last week. People had warned me that it wouldn’t live up to the hype and they were right. But it’s not the party that let me down (the “big 0” celebration was fabulous), it’s the lack of promotional emails I received on the day that disappointed me.

“Event-triggered marketing” is such a buzz phrase—and some online retailers are better at it than others. But even Asos, which has sent me a “happy birthday” message for my last two birthdays didn’t bother this year. The only saving grace was an email from snow and surf gear etailer Blue Tomato which offered my €10 off my next purchase of €50 or more.

Retailers, take note: when you ask customers for their dates of birth, they fully expect something in return for divulging this delicate information. The least you can do is send them a special offer on their special day. Act smarter by analysing transactional history: for example, if the customer usually spends £40 or less, send an email offering 10 percent off a £60 spend. Even if the offer is never taken up, just the notion of “remembering” your customer’s birthday can make the recipient feel warm and fuzzy about your brand.