Get a Little Bounce From Bouncebacks

Bounceback programs are often limited to inserting a copy of your most recent catalog — preferably with a different cover — into the fulfillment box. But as shipping rates, fuel surcharges and paper costs all increase, more catalogers are opting against this approach. They’ve run the numbers, and their incremental sales from those catalogs no longer justify the expense.

If you’re in this position, or are wondering how to leverage shipping expenses, try a strategically planned and formally managed bounceback program. A bounceback program can help build your brand, improve customer retention and develop a new revenue stream, regardless of whether you’re in B-to-C or B-to-B.

The key to a successful bounceback program is to target a specific goal. Rather than an afterthought, your bounceback program should be a managed and monitored element of your total marketing efforts. Here are four ways bouncebacks can be effectively used today:

1. Enhancing the customer experience. When marketing a high-quality product, especially as a gift, incorporate a bounceback strategy to promote the quality of your brand, your product and, if needed, to explain the product’s correct usage.

For gift recipients who may not be familiar with your company and products, a bounceback can explain the quality of the gift. It enables you to enhance the recipient’s experience and ultimately that of the gift-giver, who now receives more gushing thanks for giving such a high-quality product.

Take High Plains Bison, a cataloger of portion-cut bison steaks, which includes a bounceback insert in every package it fulfills. The four-color, trifold piece promotes the premium quality of High Plains’ range-raised, grass-fed bison. When customers receive these bison steaks as gifts, they get a clear message: The gift-giver chose and paid for a premium product.

But there’s more. Though bison looks like beef, it’s significantly leaner. When cooked for the same length of time as beef, bison loses flavor and becomes tough, reducing the enjoyment of the gift. With this concern in mind, the High Plains Bison insert features an easy-to-follow chart of recommended cooking times.