Here are three close-ups on newspapers that used premium items to boost retention by increasing the ratio of EZ Pay customers.
Coffee mugs boost EZ Pay conversions
The Goal
The objective of the Times, located in Shreveport, La. (65,000; 80,000) was to convert subscribers to EZ Pay using stainless steel coffee mugs as a promotional premium. The Times has been a leader in EZ Pay conversions, and has long behaved as if a conversion to EZ Pay is like money in the bank.
The Story
The Times promoted the stainless steel coffee mugs in bill stuffers, online buttons and in-paper promotion ads to try to convert subscribers to EZ Pay.
One obstacle that The Times ran into was a shortage of coffee mugs. The promotion was started with 500 mugs, but that proved to be not enough, so 500 additional mugs had to be ordered.
The success of the promotion was measured by the cost of converting current subscribers to EZ Pay compared to keeping their current method of payment. The goal was to keep the cost around $5.
The result: EZ Pay moved up 1.2 percent, which is 545 subscriptions. This has resulted in fewer non-payment stops, lower churn and higher retention.
The Moral of the Story
Actively sell the EZ Pay concept just as you would sell a new order, because EZ Pay conversions are nearly as valuable!
Lowe's gift card lures EZ Pay conversions
The Goal
The objective of the Montgomery (Ala.) Advertiser (50,000; 60,000), was to increase the current EZ Pay subscriber base.
The Story
The Montgomery Advertiser targeted credit/debit card customers and sent a direct-mail piece offering at $10 Lowe’s gift card for the switch.
One challenge encountered by the paper was the time consuming task of labeling 500 postcards.
The promotion resulted in a total of 36 customers switching to EZ Pay.
The Moral of the Story
Using gift cards can be an effective premium for EZ Pay conversions.
Try offering many choices of EZ Pay premiums
The Goal
The objective of the Amarillo Globe-News, located in Amarillo, Texas (51,010; 65,723) was to increase the number of subscribers that paid for their subscription through the options of paying via EZ Pay.
The Story
“First, the importance of the program must be understood by every person within the department. Meetings were scheduled to answer every possible question. Contests and promotions were held for all staff and independent carriers. Paper ads, bill stuffers and notes from carriers were used to promote the benefits to the subscriber by converting to EZ Pay. We constantly changed the premiums used to encourage sign-ups. Among the items used were gift certificates to grocery stores, Pizza Hut, Sonic, video rentals, gas, umbrellas, hotel nights, digital cameras and much more,” said Circulation Sales Manager Jack Light.
The primary challenge was to try and determine which premium would be enough of a benefit to the subscriber to convert. Subscribers liked the choices available to them.
The success of the promotion was measured by monthly sales reports.
As a result of this promotion, the number of EZ Pay subscribers has increased from less than 3 percent to almost 16 percent in the past two years. Also, retention on EZ Pay subscribers is more than 60 percent greater than other subscribers.
The Moral of the Story
When using premiums to entice subscribers to use EZ Pay, offer them a variety of premiums to choose from. Ask what they want and give it to them.