Transcript for "NadineMerabiWebinar":
Hey, everyone. I'm here today with Sam from Nadine Moravi that will be sharing a little bit more about their SMS journey and their collaboration with Attentive. Sam, thank you so much for joining us today. Would you mind telling us a little bit more about yourself, where you've been, and your journey up to now leading the CRM site at Nadine Morabi? Yeah. So I'm senior acquisition manager at Nadine Morabi. I look over all the email, including SMS with, Tintip, as well with, paid media in terms of paid social, paid search, affiliate marketing as well. So previously, I've have a history of working on, fashion high street brands. So I worked in, footwear, to start with in my career for performance marketing and then also into streetwear as well. And then recently in the last sort of eighteen months, two years, found myself back into more women's fashion, more occasion wear led as if anyone knows Mirabe, you do yourself. A lot of sequins, a lot of glam, very heavy occasion wear pieces. But, yes, really, really exciting brand as well. Amazing. And, yes, I was thinking, do we wear sequins today? And I thought never used that. We leave that for our Christmas one. Yeah. Full sequin gals. So, Sam, as we start to think of the world of SMS, what was this key issues that you wanted to solve by starting that SMS journey with Ina Deenmorabi? Yeah. So we were looking at SMS as a kinda an extra channel for us just to sort of try and test out and see if that's sort of where our customer would be, and are they interested in in hearing from, Muravi within SMS as well. We also have our core markets in The UK and The US. And also with kind of the challenge as well that we're we're very aware of in The US, the sort of legalities around SMS is quite high. There's a lot of you you can't get it wrong. GDPR wise, it's an absolute nightmare. So that was kind of one of the challenges that we did face, was getting that right partner for us to make sure that we were, you know, GDPR right, all legalities are correct, so we could start launching there. We know SMS in The US was a channel that is used and quite a cheaper option as well. So it just seemed like a natural fit to do that and find that, but we wanted to make sure that we were doing this to the legal requirements. I think another challenge that we also had was that we wanted to boost conversion within that market. It was still new, a very growing one for us, and I think that was something else we thought SMS could be able to help us achieve, especially being more of that bottom of funnel piece. And really, we were starting from scratch. So we've never done SMS in The US. So there was the challenge of how do we build the database up? How do we get it quick enough to be able to see the results, gather the data, and actually understand whether this channel was something that was right for Mirabi on on our customers and market? Amazing. And if we look back, like, we're almost a year in to this, already, and with that came a lot of learnings. How do you feel like attentive SMS has helped you overcome some of those challenges you faced early on and some of those real issues you wanted to solve when when you started to look at adopting this new channel for your customer? So the two top sign up units have been fantastic as well for us just to be able to, you know, boost sign ups, but also, you know, help us get on the line and just really engage with the audience as well. Our customers coming on-site, which you normally wouldn't see from something where, you know, an extra step in a journey, but we found those to be really engaging, and I just think that's really elevated our strategy as well. We did a lot of AB testing with that and gathering different kind of results and things just to see how quickly can we get this database up. I mean, it was fantastic. I challenged, Attentive with I wanted 25 k, worth of subscribers by, basically, peak. I think that was over a five, six month period. I still remember I didn't go, Sarah. I remember. But, yeah, the the look on her face was okay. And we actually well overachieved that before peak, which was a fantastic position to be in. So I think that sort of growth there was insane and to be able to do that. I mean, we also were trying to get more, people to click through because it's quite harder to get that kind of sort of unit. It's quite you do find when you're going online, you shop, it's in your face. So I think, you you know, we wanted to make sure that it was it flowed naturally with the brand, it flowed naturally with the site, and I think the ability the units have that we can make those kind of creative decisions and brand decisions to make it just feel natural, but we did find, like, it wasn't intrusive on the journey. And, actually, customers are really highly engaged with it. I think it was an optimizer of went from 0.6% to 1.7%. So it was really high turn, kind of subscriber rates and everything, which was great to have as well. And, yeah, I think the two way, welcome journey as well that we were able to do where we could collect our customers' interests. So the whole, hi. Welcome to Mirabi, but just let us know what you're into. We have bridal wear, occasion wear. Is it dresses? Is it jumpsuits? So to get that initial data back, just to understand why our customers have come to us, what was the reason that drove you to Mirabe, what is it that you want to see and you want to hear. And it was great for us to be able to start, like, kind of understanding that market, especially at The US and UK as well to grow there, but also to really still be able to tailor in a bit more as top level personalization as well, into that piece. So with, like, our solutions and our integrations, that's been really key for us as well that that was quite smooth, and we were able to use, like, like, the different data that we're collecting across platforms. So the Shopify, plus integration that we have has just been super easy and fantastic. So we're able to collect all the data and allows us to do our price drops as well as back in stock moments and things like that. And those low price drops have been a fantastic campaign for us. We were able to create that sort of sense of urgency as well. So if customers have had it in their basket and it's just waiting around, and all of a sudden, you know, we've got a promo on or we've launched by Friday or or anything, they're able to be like, ah, okay. Price drop less is it. Let's go for it. So they've been fantastic to see as well. As well as actually integrating with a lot of our other multichannel platforms, we've recently, put into loyalty into our store, and we really want to start collecting, like, the SMS data as well. We feel like that's really gonna be crucial for our store customers. We have our store in, London in South Molton Street if you ever want to visit, And but we get a lot of, international customers that come through. So these are customers that are actually just being introduced to Mulally by just walking into the store. So, obviously, they've never sent to our email or SMS or anything. So been able to create basically a journey from the store afterwards and that post purchase even if they've not necessarily purchased with us, but they have gone away. We've collected their data. So at least we can speak to them and continue that relationship as well. So, yeah, I think that integration piece has been really crucial for us. Diving into the numbers. Yeah. What was some of the impact you did see launching SMS? Yeah. So, overall, our our SMS channel was, producing ROI of of seven to seven times. So it was an incredible result. I I will say, and I I will be totally honest, I first talking to ourselves attentive, I was like, no. We're not gonna see these level of results. We're really not. And I, yeah, I ate my own words. We really did. It's been a very successful successful result for us. It's just almost like our journey performances as well. They've been, like, a 127 times ROI, which is just incredible. Like, I was not expecting to see these level of results, and it just shows even, you know, building it from a small database as well that we were seeing is still high, and it's it's be predominantly becoming a a lost channel for us as well just to be able to grow that across markets. Our campaigns, a 30% increase in click through rates. I mean, incredible as well. Our conversion rates are hitting double digits. It's, yeah, a really high converting channel for us. So it's just it just shows the impact that it really has and our customers very much responded to it. They do it like like that. I think that's that instant messaging that you can get. I think that really, really has helped drive those, like, click through messages as well. Just just getting that click through and and getting the conversion, it's been really great. And I know something we talked about before, Sam, was also that returning customer. Because there's one side, of course, getting the customer through the door, getting that first purchase in. Mhmm. But there's also that returning customer that I know it's so key. Yes. For the Nadine Murabane. I know we will dive into loyalty in a second. But how what's the impact you guys have seen with the increase? Or have you seen an increase with returning customers, since we've enabled the SMS channel? Yeah. Yeah. I think it has helped us a lot. I mean, as you mentioned, we are an occasion wire band. So for us, it's a very special piece that customers are coming to buy for. It could be for a one off moment, a birthday, a wedding, a really key celebration. But we also wanna make every kind of moment a celebration. It doesn't have to be a specific occasion that's so big. You you know, just going for lunch with your friends. That's an occasion that's really nice to do, lunch with your mom or a family event, to keep customers coming back and not just thinking of as a one off timepiece. So it's kind of, yeah, bringing that in. And I think with SMS, we've been able to reach out to our customers a little bit more, have a little more conversational pieces with them where these SMSes can help with, like, that brand relationship building. I think that's really helped us to keep customers coming back as well, and just buying more more iconic and lovely pieces to have. And those those kind of memories and those pieces for us. That's that's the thing with Nadine. Every piece is a memory piece. Yeah. You remember when you had that perfect jumpsuit on or that perfect dress? I mean, it really, again, drives the brand home on the quality and that that personalized experience. One of the key parts, of course, was to continue to drive impact. We have amazing initial results. And I know one of the challenges you set to the team was like, hey. How do we continue to drive this impact? How do we continue to grow our list across those core markets and really showcase impact for our consumers. And with that, of course, can be adoption of AI Pro. And with AI Pro, audience, send time, it allows us to really plug that personalized experience knowing when to send, what to send to the right customers at the right time. Can you share a bit more about how your teams adopted AI Pro and the impact you've seen with it as well? Yeah. So AI for us has been great. We we saw some really positive, results. We did launch our AI pros of trial during, Black Friday, so it's at a peak period. So, potentially, you know, you could say there was a potential of, like, actually skewed at your peak period or a party where it runs as well as as Key Area. I think, what we did was that them versus a non peak period. And to see the results just continue to grow is incredible. I think we really benefited from having a massive data collected over Black Friday kind of period. But to be able to utilize that across the next month, it was really great to see. So we were able to really make some key impacts. I mean, it was a I think the AI identity did a 13% revenue lift, which was just incredible. And then it's, like, 7,000 plus incremental sends. We were able to identify and help to, yeah, increase that revenue and really help support those campaigns. The audience AI as well, high intent buyers. Like, that kind of was a really core thing for us. We want to really go in for those sort of customers that are really wanting and ready to buy, and also that, you know, kind of get rid of the lower intent where maybe they are just browsing not quite ready yet. There is different phases. It's we are a kind of a consideration piece. So when we wanna hit those customers, when they're really ready to go, and that really 32% increase in revenue, which was a fantastic a fantastic result as well. We have been looking at the SendTime AI. That's something we are still working on trialing and doing. We are a kind of brand that drops collections at certain times, so we are quite time constrained as it were within our strategy. But I think, you know, there is the whole journeys, and sort of areas where we can really tap into that send, timing and and trying and basically getting getting the send times on the customer once they're the best time for them as well. So, yeah, it's been really positive results. And that's the thing, isn't it? Sometimes customers just need that that extra nudge at the right time. We know they've been browsing. Sometimes the occasion is still months away or even years away, but sometimes it is closer. And they just need that nudge to find that perfect outfit, to find that perfect piece. Again, rendered the results, showed it by just again, rather than sending it all and just putting them in a bucket or in a segment using some of the AI capabilities, was able to cut through the noise Yeah. On our side as well. And, of course, save the time the team a lot of time as well. So And time. Yes. It's been great for that. Amazing. And with that, of course, AI has helped us activate more, be more personalized, being in front of the customers at the right time. When we looked at loyalty, it's a crucial part of the Nadine Moravi strategy, is to continue to build that loyalty brand programs and that that customers, especially today when we have to cut through the noise out there and stand out for our consumers. What is your loyalty strategy, and how does SMS fit into that loyalty strategy? Yeah. So loyalty for us is is huge part. We've we recently launched, Mirabe rewards. We are a kind of, it's a we sell, like, a basic tier system. So bronze, silver, gold, platinum, and RVPs as well. And we really want to make those that are on our within our loyalty and within the different tiers, like like exclusivity and and give them that extra kind of Moravi experience. I think as well with SMS, we've been able to really sort of talk directly to those customers and even just small things like early access and just letting them see the collection earlier than every other customer, just to convey the ability to buy the product as well even if it's half an hour early to an hour earlier. We've just seen some fantastic results in that as well. I I mean, the early artist, we did a sort of party kinda wear. It's kind of our it's called our midnight collection. Beautiful silver dresses and jumpsuits. Absolutely gorgeous. And we ended up with a 26% higher click through rate just by giving our VIPs that early access to it, and a 10% additional conversion rate, which was just incredible to see. Like, those double digit figures for a conversion rate was incredible. Do you think it just shows given that exclusivity, the customer is gonna really just invest a lot more in you. If you're investing them, they're gonna invest more in you as well. I think it was really positive results with that. I mean, for us, the Mirabe community is it's just, like, they are kind of, like, the focus for this. Nadine designs the dresses for them, and it it's just yeah. It's it's a real investment in them having herself as well so involved and really into the community and speaking with them and everything. We've we've done a community, campaign where we actually had members from the community actually in the shoot and doing that as well. So I think being able to utilize all of that and, again, it's that investment back in and getting everyone really involved in making customer feel that they are involved in really that community feel is is something we definitely need to be continuing with and always always keep forefront of mind, which we're able to do as well with our, like, different CRM strategies, which is great. And talking about community, of course, for Attentive, our customers or our community. For us, part of our mission is we value our customers and we champion our customers. So with that, and I know speaking to you from the start, it was like, we want a partnership. We want the guys that's with us in the trenches when we need to get stuck in, where we can have honest conversations and by impact. Can you share a bit more about your partnership with Attentive and how the team has found working with the Attentive teams as well? Oh, absolutely brilliant. Kyla, it's been a very high highly collaborative, very, very collaborative, partnership. It's been from the moment we sort of onboarded, the training essentially of the platform, just making sure everything is great. We understand everything. I think that was a really, really good thing, the training level. And then the collaborativeness with the so the campaigns, a lot of AB testing. So it's been it's really, really positive in regards to pushing the channel as well for us. So it's not very much a, hi. Here's the platform. Off you go. Like, buy kind of situation. It feels very much more, like, very collective and, like, that partnership piece, which is something we really wanted out of out out of an agency to work with. I find that Attentive is very, very innovative. We are constantly as well challenged to be, like, let's do this, let's do that. You want to hit this goal? Would you wanna be achieving this over the next quarter? Then we think we should be trialing and testing these sorts of things. And sometimes we kinda go, oh, really? Should we be doing that? Like, that feels really wrong. I feel like the two step journey unit felt very kind of goes against everything you're told, which is to kind of not add any more steps to the customer's journey. It will actually I've I've hold my hands up wrong again, and it turned out to be a really high engage. But I think it was, you know, having the expertise from Attentive to push that kind of, actually, let's do this test. Let's do that. Try and AB test it, see what happens, and let's let's just see. And something so small supports such a significant difference for us. Yeah, it's been really, really good in that respect. A lot of of kind of an extension of our our business, which is what we really like to see. So, Sam, looking at BFCM, we know throughout the year there's crucial celebrations with the recent, wedding collection that is, of course, key coming in to your spring and summer seasons. We also have races, but we also have Christmas Yeah. And the Christmas party season. So what role does BFCM play for Nadine and your strategy and the impact you want to drive there? Oh, yeah. So it's it's huge. It's a absolute core time for us. I mean, it's it's part of where, isn't it? It's the season sequence where we should be there. We we are there. We dominate there. It is I mean, nothing feels better than wearing a Meravi to a Christmas party. It's fantastic. So, yeah, it's a really high high thing for us, and we really do focus predominantly on that. I think last year was kind of a test for us with the SMS within doing sort of, the FCM sort of, strategy. We've never done it before, so it was brand new. And we really obviously want to build that database up, so there was a lot we utilized, a lot more different marketing channels within that. So, paid social just to gather kind of sign ups and everything. And then what we did was actually give early access again to our loyalty customers, but just for that kind of accessing period of, like, the peak promotional time. And we saw some fantastic results there. I mean, it was a 33% click through rate increase. We would expect to see high results, but that was just great. I mean, it's that time of year, but it and also 24%, conversion rate. So, I mean, we were very happy with that one as well. So you can't I mean, 24%. That's not normal, really, is it? And it was our highest yet, and that was only one hour early access. So just sixty minutes before everybody else, we were able to achieve, yes, such great results. And we were able to also allow our customers to know it was coming. We weren't afraid to tell them, you know, it's on its way. We will keep you posted when it's arriving, the time and the countdown as well, which was just absolutely fantastic to be able to do. I think to drive that kind of information and that message to your customer before peak, everyone kind of knows Black Friday's coming. Everyone knows. So I think we wanted to let our customer know that it was, when it was, and when to expect it. And we were able to do that through the countdown timers and also, through, yeah, just the messaging ahead of time as well. So and and identifying our VIPs as well to let them know even more in advance a little bit more detail as to what was coming. But, yeah, it really helped, to, I feel like, push us a little bit out through the noise and just make sure that we were on the top of people's shopping list. I think most people are guilty of filling the baskets up and the wish list beforehand, just waiting and waiting. When's it gonna come? When's it gonna come? Not knowing where I think we've we're in that position where we actually let them know a little bit more beforehand. And then just to see those baskets fill up just ready, you're like, yeah. They're ready to go. Yeah. And that's what gets the the consumers again, being being personalized, being front of mind. Yeah. Especially, it comes back to how do we cut through that noise, driving that mobile first experience, and very much they're ready to go. And thinking of the FCM 2025, one of the products we talked about already very heavily is RCS. Yes. We are very excited, of course, to be seeing of how RCS can drive the Nadine Mohrabi strategy forward. Is there anything specific about RCS that stands out for you and how you want to incorporate it within the Nadine Mohrabi story? Yeah. I'm so excited for RCS. I think it's gonna be a game changer for SMS. It's gonna really shape how how it looks. It's gonna be a completely different experience for the customer. I think more being able to use on more rich media and be able to add in our kind of creative give the customer that personalization piece of carousels with the products that they're interested in seeing. Also just to show our collections when we have new drops in our campaigns, we really have fantastic, beautiful creative that really showcases the products that we really want to get out to our customers. And I think being able to do that through RCS is gonna be huge for us. I really am super excited for that one. I cannot wait for that to come. I'm constantly talking to our account managers about that and the team. They're attentive. Like, when can I get my hands on that? And I'm so excited for that to come, especially for, like, the q four period. I think it's gonna be very, very crucial for us. I'm also excited about the fact that it's gonna be able to, shop within SMS, and that's gonna be great. Like, again, that last journey where you're just in that one channel and being able to drive over that, I think it's been fantastic. Yeah. I think it just it layers on that personalization piece as well, which is just becoming more and more crucial for the customer. Like, you know, it's not a a one size fits all now. As when talking to customers, you really have to get that personalization down, be relevant for them where they want it, when they want it, and it's exactly what they want to be seeing. What is the one piece of advice you will give to a new marketer that's thinking of this channel maybe for BFCM or thinking of coming the summer holidays, what they want to achieve it with? What is that piece of advice you'll give to them when it comes to introducing this new channel? I would definitely say just go for it. If you're on the fence whether it's the right thing to do, just try. I, myself, am an example of thinking this is not going to work. I was blown away within two months of the results. So I'd say definitely try it. I think build your database. I think that's one of the best things we did was to really scale as quickly as we could our database size. And that way, you can collect the data back in very fast. You can test and learn. Always AB testing. I'm very for that. The more you test, the more risks a little bit you take, the more failures you get, you are getting learnings from that, and it's absolutely fine. You'll you need to keep doing that. So just keep going for it and test and learn. And I think definitely the more data you have, the more you can then continue to shape your strategy. You can continue to, you know, grow kind of your campaigns out, understand what your customer wants, what they kind of need, and to fulfill that need as well. And I yeah. Just go for it. I think that would be my thing. Suzanne, if we think a lot of the time, SMS is seen as another transactional channel. Yeah. But I know it was key for you guys to to really take it to that next level and building that community and personalization and driving that engagement. Can you share a bit more about how you see that and even how you want to evolve that by not being just transactional, but being more of an experience for your consumer as well. Yeah. I think for for us, we and as a way we want my brand to go, it's touched on the community side of things. So we wanna see this also as a branch owner to be able to talk to our customers, not just about the collection, sale. Like, that just you know, you it has its moment, but we also need to have that kind of human touch to it as well. I see it as kind of developing, especially with the RCS community, and I think that's going to be a great way for us to display the brand, be able to give more rich content to the customer, and getting them more involved as well. So where we're currently developing, a blog, we've got a fantastic copywriter who's creating all of that kind of really rich content that really just kind of elevates that brand kind of messaging, pulls the, like, Nadine's story into things, and that's been, like, a really positive kind of response that we get from our customers. They absolutely adore Nadine. So we really wanna make sure that she's still the forefront and we can still give that sort of customer kind of the insight to Nadine still as well. And I think our CS is gonna really play a role into that later with the rich media. But we've also done previously where we've had I mean, it is touching on conversion, but we've had sort of a sellout moment where we had our B Play collection last, August. It was, like, this beautiful stunning collection, and Nadine was the face of that campaign. So that did help, that she kind of had that up, and we sold the product out really quickly. But what we were able to do when it came in a few months later was segment out those customers that really wants it. So we were looking at those that are highly engaged with the product, put it on the wish list, things like that, but also we're just shopping recently and putting it in all into their baskets and things as well. We just thought, you know, it's back in stock now. Let's just kind of find those customers with that high intent who were really engaged with that collection and those specific products and let them know first that that had come back in. So we kind of were able to again, I can give that exclusivity kind of, experience, but also just highlight to those customers that really wanted it, that that was there and it was back. And, yeah, you feel like you don't wanna just somehow someone lose out if they've been looking at the product multiple times and then someone else, I mean, does come in and get it. That that just happened. You know? But we did wanna make sure those people that were really invested and maybe missed out the first time had that chance to do so again and and purchase the dress that they really wanted. Sam, if we look at someone just starting their career in CRM, or maybe they're doing a career shift, and they're deciding to move into a career of CRM, what are some of the advice you would share with them looking at your amazing career through the branch you've worked with and many people that influenced you along the way? What are some of the advice you will share with our future marketers as well? Yeah. I think try try to get into CRM. I mean, I personally didn't start CRM. It's something I've fallen into. I originally started at June London. That was where I first started my career. I was actually on the ecom team there. So not even in marketing. So I actually worked on the, like, the ecom digital team and slowly progressed just into actually more performance led piece, and then CRM just became part of that. So it was more I was I was quite fortunate natural progression in the right place at the right time. However, it is really key to just go and show interest as well. So if you are really, like, junior level, intern, first job, just try to get your foot in the door as well. But I also think having that experience that you might be in digital, but not necessarily in CRM, but that's where your interest is going to. Just get that experience where you are because the channels all overlap. Amazing, Sam. Thank you so much for joining us today and sharing your story and also the Nadine Morabi story and the evolution of SMS and the strategy for the rest of 2025, and we're exciting to see what 2026 pans out to be.