Key findings include:
- The affluent purchase path is showing definitive signs of shortening, with 88 percent of total purchases occurring within three clicks in 2010. This reflects a 17 percent increase in “short-term” conversions versus 2009.

- Affluent shoppers continued searching online for luxury products throughout the economic downturn, but are displaying significantly increased interest in luxury brands versus a year ago. Customers seeking luxury products more fervently was evidenced with an increase of 20 million search impressions for the brands studied. (Nov. 2009-April 2010 versus Nov. 2008-April 2009)

- Customers are spending more per transaction on luxury goods than a year ago. The most recent holiday season showed average order values growing about $20 per order, or six percent. (Nov.-Dec. 2008 over Nov.-Dec. 2009) And the total number of orders for the 2009 holiday season increased almost 25 percent, with revenue for luxury retailers’ sites increasing 32 percent during this timeframe.

The whitepaper also detailed key findings for specific luxury verticals, including fashion, multi-category and beauty, as well as providing luxury retailers with the “New Rules for Luxury Retailers” in the form of key strategies to employ in 2011 and 2012.

“During the economic downturn, many industry ‘experts’ declared that luxury shoppers would never again be willing to by fully priced luxury goods or that ‘luxury was dead.’ Well, we are happy to report that neither of those predictions proved accurate,” said Vic Drabicky, Director of International and Vertical Market Development for Range Online Media. “While the economic recovery is not even close to complete, this research signals that affluent and aspirational consumers are already shifting their behavior in favor of the luxury brands they’ve coveted during the downturn. They are seeking and purchasing more luxury goods, and in a shorter timeframe from first click to purchase than they were during the height of the economic downturn.”

The study analyzed data from 424 luxury retail brands marketed within the company’s client base. Included in the analysis were the metrics of impressions, clicks, click through rate, CPC, cost, revenue, orders, conversion rates and average order value for November 2008 through April 2010. The Luxe Groupe also examined key economic indicators, such as the Dow Jones Industrial Average, in conjunction with this luxury client data. The client names and data specific to individual brands were not released due to proprietary and contractual limitations.

Please download the entire whitepaper, and read our findings about economic indicators for the luxury retail marketplace.

So, it was with interest that I read this article by AP writer Martha Irvine about the youngest up-and-coming generation. Referred to as Generation Z or the “Homelanders” by various researchers, this is a group of kids who fully understand the technology we are only beginning to embrace, are free thinking by nature, and are taking Gen Y’s traits to a whole new level of multi-tasking and acceptance. These kids were raised with an African American president in office, are hearing their parents discuss environmental issues and watching them recycle (at least at our house) and would never… Not ever… Watch a commercial during Dora. (That’s what DVRs are for, and they know no different.)

Now, I’ll need to update this post at some point, because, I’m sorry but “Generation Z” or “The Homelanders” just do not do it for me. We are talking about the most highly technology-evolved generation in history and a group that has full expectations of having their “15 minutes of fame.” There has to be a more compelling moniker, and I’m on a mission to find it.

This is cause for concern. As the nation’s needs soar and charitable donations plunge, how do nonprofits draw more attention to their needs during this “quiet crisis?” I know that nonprofits’ organizational health is directly correlated to the health of the economy and decreased unemployment, and I also know that what I’m about to propose will likely be a drop in the empty pool of aid these organizations desperately need. Nevertheless, I see some unique opportunities with social marketing for nonprofits to capitalize on. If the nonprofits can appeal to users’ desire for personal uniqueness online and learn from retailers, they can find new ways to reach volunteers and contributors through sources like Facebook, Myspace and Twitter.

Take, for example, Facebook’s Causes and Fan pages as a way to get started:

1. Clarify your voice and your positions: The way you present your organization in social media needs to reflect your brand identity, but also the contributors and volunteers you are trying to attract. You have a brief opportunity at the top of your page to clearly (and stridently) proclaim your positions. Don’t muddy the waters with too much information. Narrow down your major position to 3-4 points, and then use the “description” field to elaborate more. Here is an example from the Stop Human Trafficking organization.
2. Utilize Facebook’s Causes page to the fullest extent: In the Causes template, you can customize your look and feel, share announcements with your members and enable a donations feature on the site. Many nonprofits also set up a fan page to make it easy for members to “become fans” and share this information with friends. Keep in mind, however, thta users can’t make donations from a fan page.
3. Create customization and friendly competition: Social media users typically like to share their causes and concerns with their group of online friends. Make that as simple as possible by using the welcome message when a new member joins to ask them to invite friends to join, share with them dollar-matching programs you have set up or even offer “flair” buttons for your members to place on their personal page. Also, utilize the Hall of Fame function to highlight your top recruiters, donors and fundraisers in the Facebook sphere. This recognition in a social forum goes a long way.
4. Encourage users to download the Causes Bar: By installing the Causes bar, every search a user makes donates a penny to the cause of their choice – including yours. This is currently available for the Internet Explorer and Firefox browsers.
5. Update often: Utilize the media board and announcement board functions to post not just your own organization’s news but also news that your members may be interested in. Each of these updates displays to your members and the “share” button allows your members to exponentially increase the visibility of your posts – viral marketing at its best. You can also upload petitions and pledge drive information to keep your page fresh.
6. Most importantly, continually integrate your channels: At the simplest level, this means placing the Facebook “Join” button on your website. You can also do more:

• Tag your PSA spots with a mention to join your cause online at Facebook/Twitter/etc.
• As long as you are taking donations in both places, update your search copy to mention your Facebook page.
• The UN Refugee Agency is using display ads on Facebook to drive people to join their cause and then utilizing their cause page to encourage cell phone text-to-donate.
• The Nature Conservancy and their sponsor Audi have found multiple ways to continually integrate, including an Audi program that matched dollar-for-member the first 25,000 members of the Facebook cause.

Will Facebook, Twitter or YouTube be the change the nonprofits wish to see in the world? Probably not on their own, but if for-profit marketers are learning during lean times, so can their non-profit counterparts. Now is the time to put the fear of change and the comfort of the old ways aside and test new media methods. For non-profit organizations, now is also the time to let your passionate volunteers, contributors and fans spread the word, attach your cause to their online identity and, most importantly, raise awareness and even funds on your behalf.

Fifty years ago, Senator Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin created the observance of Earth Day as an environmental protest. In the last decade, the day has become synonymous with one-off press stunts by companies who have a complete disregard for the planet they are inhabiting the rest of the year.

Now, mind you, I recycle religiously, buy organic and even make my son’s baby food to avoid the pesticides contained in the commercial brands and to reduce our reliance on one-use containers. I buy locally, I have not let the water run as I brushed my teeth for years, and I even cut back on meat on my own table, as it is the least fuel-efficient food we consume. I am by no means perfect or even carbon neutral, but I make a real effort to preserve the earth for my son’s generation even when it is not handy to carry a re-usable water bottle with me or to make cleaning supplies from eco- and child-friendly ingredients.

That is to also say that I am probably more cynical than most about companies who jump on the Earth Day bandwagon, without a transparent and genuine desire to positively affect the world we live in. So, when I took a look recently at the efforts of our own clients surrounding Earth Day, I honestly expected to find a mirror image of the inauthentic efforts of the retail and travel industries at large. What I found instead gave me a great sense of pride for the marketers we work with and the eco-conscious brands they represent.

What struck me was that so many of our clients came up with creative ideas for Earth Day specifically, while also committing to larger, ongoing projects and corporate changes that will make a real difference to planet earth. For example:

• I will start with Origins, not just because of their core value of eco-friendliness, but because I have a recent obsession with their Ginger Body Scrub. This year, to celebrate Earth Day, they have done something I think is such a simple, yet great idea. They allow you to bring in empty cosmetic jars, bottles or tubes into any Origins store in order to recycle them. They also give the recycling consumer free samples to encourage this behavior. Additionally, they are planting a tree for every purchase of A Perfect World™ Antioxidant moisturizer. And for a child who grew up hearing John Denver sing, “Plant a tree for your tomorrow,” I will never question the authenticity of this action.
• Then there is Aveda, a company that has been making products with certified organic ingredients since 1994. They are celebrating Earth Month with a goal of donating $3 million to global and local clean water projects. This month, when a customer buys the Light the Way™ Candle, 100% of the proceeds go to support Global Greengrants Fund’s water-related projects. Furthermore, they are using their website to teach consumers about water conservation and have begun the Aveda Walk For Water, a 6k walk to raise awareness and funds for local clean water organizations.

And it is not just our beauty and cosmetic clients who are finding creative and honest ways to create environmental change.

• Motel 6 broke ground late last year on their “Phoenix” prototype property in Texas, their “greenest motel ever.” The property is scheduled to open during the second half of 2009 and features flooring made of 80% pre-consumer recycled material as well as solar panels for water heating. The national chain also recently became designated as a member of Florida’s Green Lodging Program, due to their leadership with water conservation measures, linen reuse programs and energy efficiency.
• Novotel now has 30 Green Globe certified hotels on 5 continents that guarantee to reduce pollutants, and control water and energy consumption. The hotels are audited every 6 to 12 months to ensure eco-friendly performance is maintained.

What struck me about each of these clients’ environmentally-friendly efforts is that they are not just arbitrary or solely manufactured around the Earth Day celebration. They have found ongoing and authentic ways to connect with the millions of consumers who no longer consider living green as a “fringe” behavior, but a part of their daily, healthy lifestyle.

Are they selling more products as a result of their efforts? Without a doubt. Does that make the change they are creating… the water they are conserving… the waste they are reducing any less admirable? Not in the mind of this quirky tree-hugger.

P.S. If you are interested in finding out how to make small changes in your own life that do the planet right… check out www.idealbite.com. I get bite-sized, daily doses of eco-friendly ideas for both the “general consumer” and for parents specifically delivered in my inbox each day. Think Daily Candy for the environmentally friendly.

I had to sit back and laugh as I watched the momentum of her “marketing plan.” Working in this industry, you assume that you and your peers are the innovators of marketing efforts… that you are uniquely qualified to create new ways to connect and new ways to shamelessly promote. Social networking has turned that assumption on its head. This marketing revolution is not just being led by teenagers and early adopters, it is being led by fathers, business women and… believe it or not… your Mom.

According to ComScore Media Metrix, more than 65% of unique Facebook visitors in February of this year have children and more than 71% of users are over the age of 25. The Chief Household Officer (a.k.a. stay-at-home mom) down the street is using Facebook, Twitter and MySpace, as well as her own blog and friends’ blogs, to keep in touch with the world outside of diapers and playdates. More so, she is promoting her own passions and building her personal identity online.

Anecdotally, in my own Facebook “friend group,” it is not my industry peers driving the conversation. The most updates, innovations and comments are coming from a handful of women – stay-at-home and working mothers. In fact, when I called a friend recently (gasp!) on the telephone, she seemed downright irritated that I was unaware that her child was sick – based on her Facebook status updates.

A year ago, I remember telling friends that I would stay on MySpace because I was “too old for Facebook.” Well, I have had a baby since that declaration, and I have to tell you… I haven’t logged into my MySpace account in months. And I rarely sit at a computer and log in to my Facebook account. In fact, if not for Facebook’s iPhone app, which allows me to check my friends’ updates in mere seconds, all of my friends would think I had fallen off the face of the planet.

So my point is two-fold:

1. The Mom Brigade is driving the evolution of social networks. They are innovative, they are active, they are vocal, and they trust their peers.
2. Please, folks… be careful with what you post in your status updates. Your friends might think what color underwear you have on or the newest addition to your tattoo collection is quite fascinating, but your Mom is… quite literally… watching!