Wunderkind was proud to be part of eTail Connect, an exclusive virtual event for senior leaders in the digital marketing and eCommerce space. During an exclusive fireside chat, we talked to Kyle Brucculeri, VP of eCommerce at Gorjana, about how Wunderkind is empowering the brand to fully leverage their owned channels to generate 5X growth year-over-year.
A quintessentially Californian jewelry line founded in 2004, Gorjana has retail stores and a digital footprint. Read on to find out how Kyle and his team navigated the pandemic, built a high-performing growth strategy through owned marketing channels and developed a 3-step litmus test for running effective text message campaigns.
How has Gorjana Navigated the Fast-Changing Marketing Landscape?
Like most businesses, Gorjana faced a great deal of uncertainty in 2020 and their in-person retail was affected by lockdown regulations. However, the eCommerce side of their business developed a strategy that enabled them to benefit from lower customer acquisition costs due to slashed marketing budgets and reduced competitor activity.
Since then, circumstances have changed again, and Gorjana had to pivot strategy once more when things picked up in Q4 of 2020. Kyle revealed that the brand is still growing, but their focus is now on sustainable growth with a conservative approach to customer acquisition costs.
What are Gorjana’s Tactics for Driving Growth for the Brand?
Kyle shared a number of growth tactics enabling the brand to meet its performance goals despite the challenges most, if not all, marketers are facing due to the fallout of the pandemic.
One game-changer for Gorjana was to move away from discounting. According to Kyle, acquiring full-price customers is more valuable in the long run, as discount customers are less likely to be loyal to the brand. Instead of offering discounts, Gorjana shifted their strategy to gifting.
Gorjana places high value on customer retention and making the customer experience amazing—from seeing an ad, to visiting the store, to wearing their products.
How does Gorjana Utilize Owned Channels as a Key Revenue Driver?
Reaching new customers through your owned channels without relying on cookies is becoming more and more essential for marketers today. Email and text messaging account for 11.3% of Gorjana’s revenue and reside at the core of the brand’s digital strategy.
Not only is email a significant revenue driver, but it’s also a powerful customer retention tool to keep the customer engaged with the brand and their story.
Email has been an essential part of Gorjana’s strategy for years, but Kyle was excited when Wunderkind integrated text messaging into their marketing tech stack, as it allowed the brand to take their owned channels to the next level.
According to Kyle, the main benefit of text messaging is its unparalleled reach and visibility. The team at Gorjana prides itself on creating amazing email content that their customers enjoy. Yet their email performance still can’t compete with the open rates seen with text messaging, which boasts 99-100% visibility.
What are Gorjana’s Different Messaging Strategies for Email and Text?
Email is an excellent way for brands to tell their story and keep customers engaged. Gorjana sends out quality email content on a daily basis that their customers enjoy.
Text, however, is much more intimate and personal, so Gorjana is more mindful of the cadence, frequency, and substance. Brands need to offer the customer genuine added value—otherwise, it is easy for customers to text “stop” and unsubscribe.
Since customers receive text messages directly on their phones, a text is almost like an alert. Don’t risk wearing that button out, otherwise, your communication will lack authenticity. Kyle has devised a simple Litmus test for his team to help them decide whether to send out a text message or not:
- Does this text add value?
- Will our customers click it?
- Will our customers like it?
Currently, Gorjana runs around two text message campaigns per week. Together with Wunderkind, the team is now testing Gorjana’s Partnership with Wunderkind
Wunderkind collaborates very closely with Gorjana and the partnership goes beyond simply providing the technology. Kyle explained that Wunderkind is like an extension of the internal team with the same level of care, attention to detail, and urgency as their internal team. For a lean team with stretched bandwidth, an extra set of eyes is very beneficial. From a sustainable growth perspective, working hand-in-glove with Wunderkind enables the brand to identify new opportunities that they may not have spotted otherwise.
Interested in Learning More About How Owned Channels Drive Sustained Growth?
With dramatic changes in the marketing landscape, strict data regulations, and iOS 15 looming, brands are increasingly looking to shift revenue to owned channels to drive sustained growth and retain customers. Truly owning your owned channels—like email and text messaging—puts marketers in a stronger position to drive growth and react to new changes in the market.
Wunderkind is on a mission to unleash the extraordinary power of individuality, where “web traffic” becomes a living, breathing customers whose wants and needs can be met with unique experiences. Grab your copy of our free guide to see how fashion & intimates brand Felina was able to drive over 25% of their digital revenue with Wunderkind Text & Email or request a personalized demo today to find out how to unlock incremental revenue and access more of your audience with Wunderkind.