I am depressed. After seeing “Door Buster” ads 1,327 times in the past week, I got up in the wee-hours of Black Friday and before I had finished my Special leadsfirst cup of coffee, I was waiting in line at the local big box retailer waiting for the doors to open. Yes, I am one of those shoppers convinced to brave the dark, and the hordes of other people, to buy a new TV Special leads. It is beautiful. It is huge. I love it. But if that is the case – then why do I feel used and taken advantage of?
I opened up my wallet and shelled out a few hundred buck Special leads for a shiny new toy. I should feel happy and proud, but instead I feel used. Why, you might ask? It is simple: I know that I am nothing more than an invoice number, a SKU and a speck of the daily sales goal to the TV maker and the retailer. They don’t know me, and they don’t care to. I’ll never hear from them Special leads again. And that is a shame. You see – this past week, retailers will have spent nearly $800 million in advertising to lure me into their store, according to Kantar Media an Special leads ad tracking division of WPP.
Yet, few are thinking about how to engage me afterwards. A simple Special leads follow-up, a note to check in on me, would go miles — it isn’t rocket science, really. Make me feel like you are thankful for my money and when I come back to your store – remember me. Instead, the next time I go into the same store – it will feel like I’m in the movie Groundhog Day. They will pretend as Special leads if it is the first time I have ever been in the store. The TV maker won’t know I bought a 50-inch model two weeks ago, and the whole process will feel surreal. And I have to ask the question why? Retailers and brands spen