http://dennyhatch.blogspot.com/2022/10/170-sv-list.html
#170
Blog Post - Tuesday, 11 October 2022
Posted by Denny Hatch
A
Mind-blowing Survey and the Unique
List of 20 Million Upmarket Consumers
Many, many years ago I somehow landed as a copywriting client in Toronto a tiny company called Shopper's Voice. I have no idea how we found each other. I went up for an exploratory visit and found I would be working for a peach of guy—perhaps the nicest, most knowledgeable client I ever had. The company was putting together a marketing survey of consumers and wanted some help with the verbiage for the questionnaire and messaging to persuade people to take the survey.
I don't remember my client's name, but my gosh he was a lovely, low-key young guy. I made a couple of trips to Canada for meetings. When I asked about the business model—how he planned to monetize the service—the reply was vague. I didn't pursue it. Instead I concentrated on the copy and he liked what I did. Whereupon after two or three months he announced the company was being acquired by Epsilon. My client was going to marry the love of his life and retire young. I had met Epsilon's John Groman—another lovely guy—who had his own copy staff. I was let go. It was all very amicable.
Revisiting Shopper's Voice
Last month on a whim I Googled Shopper's Voice. All I can say...
WARNING
I interrupt this blog post to alert readers that after joining Shopper's Voice I am suddenly being blitzed with torrents of JUNK EMAIL, SPAM AND OBVIOUS SCAMS.
Denny's Yahoo Inbox
I now continue where I left off as if this rude interruption never happened...
Imagine the profitability of a list of 20 million consumers who are guaranteed to read their mail and order products and services over distance—email, Internet, TV, telephone and direct mail.
What's more all 20 million folks (representing 40 million families) on this list happily blabbed everything about themselves—the entire intimate nitty-gritty of their lives. Among the specifics they shared for their entry:
name - street address - email addresses - family members' ages - occupation - income - retirement plans - investments - specific credit cards (and reasons for ownership) - credit limit - bank balance - health - ailments - medications - insurance - real estate - own or rent - hobbies - diet - eating habits - smoking - social concerns - religion - donations and specific non-profits - interests - sports - apparel and sizes of family members - magazines - political party - products & services ordered by mail (and from whom) - specific electronics owned - home technology - pets.
Here's a Sampling of How Deep into the Weeds
Of Responders' Lives the Survey Goes
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
As a reminder, responses may be used to provide you with information regarding heath conditions and products that might be of interest.
DIABETES
Do any household members have diabetes?
YesNo
1) What type of diabetes do household members have?
You Others in Household
Type 1
Type 2
Not Certain
2) Do household members use any of the following to manage diabetes?
You Others in Household
Glucose monitor
Insulin injection - 3+ times per day
Insulin injection - 1, 2 or 3 times per day
Insulin pump
Oral medication
Diet or exercise
3) What types of Insulin do household members use?
You Others in Household
Humulin 70/30
Lantus
Levemir
Novolin 70/30
Novolog
Other
RHUMATOID ARTRITIS
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
Forty-five years later, the business model and promises made sense.
In Shopper's Voice Own Words
Epsilon’s Shopper's Voice database is made up from a mix of online and postal survey responders who have taken the time to complete our comprehensive Shopper’s Voice survey, providing us information about unique, hard-to-find data points such as ailments, product usage, purchase intentions, lifestyles, and demographics.
With Shopper's Voice data, you can reach high potential prospects by targeting consumers with known interest and behaviors. Our precision targeting allows you to reach proven direct mail responsive consumers, maximizing your response rates and reducing your cost per responder. Find the right customers, target them with the right message, and increase your ROI.
Shopper's Voice—You Can Do the Arithmetic on a Cocktail Napkin
Let's say the average one-time rental order is $75/M plus 5 refinements at $10/M for a total of $125/M.
Assuming my arithmetic is correct (I sometimes get lost in zeros) why that's $2.5 million smackeroos every time the list of 20 million consumers is turned.
Expenses:
• Salaries
• Commissions to list brokers
• Minimal digital ad buys to attract consumer volunteers.
• Minimal expenses for gift premiums and "online thank-you goodies" for participating.
• No product or service development costs.
• No testing costs.
• No cost of goods sold.
• No manufacturing
• No inventory.
• No warehousing.
• No returns.
• Damn near pure profit from a few teensy spritzes of electricity.
Yum, yum.
Quite Frankly, the Con Job in the Survey Is Some of the Most Brilliant Direct Marketing Copy I have Ever Read!
This is the epoch of the Internet, the "cloud" and vast electronic dossiers amassed by corporate America on all of us. By reading our emails and recording our shopping habits, wealth, legal and financial problems the results are mixed. The upside: terrific offers by savvy direct marketers. The downside: ruinous scams out of China, Russia, Nigeria and computer geeks all over the world.
The Shopper's Voice pitch to consumers is fascinating. The entire business model is premised on the fact that most people love to talk about themselves. I remember an old aunt many years ago who—if you asked "how are you?"—would relish telling you for the next half hour.
As a result, the Shopper's Voice Survey is amazing—involving, persuasive, reassuring, flattering and irresistible. I took the Survey and was hooked. I was particularly interested in the health questions. Mercifully, I've had good health all my life. I hate health stuff. Plowing through this litany of diseases and disorders in the lives of others made me feel blessed and grateful. It was a positive experience—especially in these depression-causing years of COVID.
The
messaging is brilliant! Shopper's Voice uses four proven Key Copy Drivers (Emotional Hot Buttons) that
persuade prospects to act:
Flattery - Greed -
Exclusivity - Salvation
Below Is Some Actual Verbiage Used on the Shopper's Voice Website
("Imagined emotional responses by the consumer are in red.")
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
Flattery:
"... By sharing your thoughts once a year in
our Consumer Product Survey, you play a key role in shaping how your
favorite brands, products, and services are developed and improved. By
connecting with these companies..." ("I play a key role! I can make a
difference!")
Greed:
"At Shopper’s Voice, we’re about helping you make
the most of your shopping. That’s why we make it so rewarding for you to tell
us about the brands, products and services you love most. Complete our survey and you’ll have the opportunity for instant flash savings
from your favorite brands – plus coupons, samples and free stuff all year long!
Plus, as a Shopper’s Voice member, you’ll get Rewards points simply for opening
and clicking on our emails – points that you can convert into gift cards...
"By connecting with these companies, they reward you with free samples, coupons and special offers tailored to you – and Shopper's Voice rewards you with instant flash savings plus a chance to win in our free survey sweepstakes." ("Free goodies! Wheee!")
Exclusivity:
"Shopper's Voice
carefully gathers opinions, preferences and insights from shoppers like you
around the country through our online consumer opinion survey." ("I stand out from the crowd! My opinions are worth
something!")
Salvation:
At Shopper’s Voice, we’re about helping you make the most of your shopping. That’s why we make it so rewarding for you to tell us about the brands, products and services you love most. Complete our survey and you’ll have the opportunity for instant flash savings from your favorite brands – plus coupons, samples and free stuff all year long! Plus, as a Shopper’s Voice member, you’ll get Rewards points simply for opening and clicking on our emails – points that you can convert into gift cards. ("This is a grand invitation to add meaning to my life, to learn about the world, and receive payments—if not in cash, at least in kind!")
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
I Really Liked the Honesty Throughout.
In addition, Shopper's Voice is dead honest and levels with you. For example, in the health-fitness-illnesses section is the oft-repeated caveat:
As a reminder, responses may be used to provide you with
information regarding heath conditions and products that
might be of interest.
"If you want to be successful in Direct Marketing, STEAL SMART.
—Dorothy Kerr, Circ Director, U.S. News & World Report
As I was taking the Survey—answering seemingly hundreds of questions—it quickly became obvious that I was deep into the mother lode of how to persuade and inspire normally wary customers and prospects to give you a ton of information about themselves and their lives.
Suffice it to say Shopper's Voice makes it very difficult to capture the Survey. For example, you must fill out a page, and only then are you allowed to proceed to the next page/section. And it's impossible to download the pages in Word. Remember, this Survey—honed to perfection over 30 years—was (and is) responsible for the creation of a giant list of 20 million names and a cash cow.
Takeaways to Consider
• Create a Swipe File like I did at WHO'S MAILING WHAT! which—over 30 years—made me the king of junk mail. (Over the years we isolated 1661 direct mail Grand Controls in 200 categories. These were mailed over at least three consecutive years. The Ultimate example: "The most Successful Advertisement in the History of the World." brought in $2 billion during its 27-year lifespan.")
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Ww8a-8hyio&t=645s
• When you get to a new page in the Shopper's Voice Survey, immediately take a picture of it, turning it into a PNG, jpg or whatever.
• When you have a complete file of PNGs, manually retype the questions.
• Download and save all Shopper's Voice promotions, offers, goodies, artwork and emails.
• You will have at your fingertips the Shopper's Voice entire business model.
• Here's the link to the Shopper's Voice List:
https://lists.nextmark.com/market?page=order/online/datacard&id=230519
• Here's the link to the Shopper's Voice Survey:
https://www.shoppersvoice.com/sv/v/usa
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