Top 100 Internet Retailer Launches Derailed.com
CHEYENNE, Wyo., Aug. 7, 2012 – The face of Internet retailing is changing, so when Sierra Trading Post’s marketing team pushed to serve a younger demographic with a broader product mix and big savings, President Gary Imig saw an opportunity. Derailed.com launched July 23, just six months after Imig committed resources to it from the Top 100 Internet retailer’s headquarters in Cheyenne, Wyo.
“The marketing team wanted to ‘blow up full price,’ shift the product mix and use edgy language to describe that product,” Imig explains. “And why not? We’ve had great success at Sierra Trading Post selling to a different demographic, and a lot of people here are excited about the idea of Derailed.”
The product and its presentation are different, but the business model that has powered Sierra Trading Post for 26 years is also the backbone of Derailed.com: Buyers negotiate with top-name brands for overstocks and closeout product. That includes action sport, active and outdoor lifestyle, hard and soft goods. Niche product like wetsuits are in the mix with tents, camp furniture and other gear … all at the lowest price and highest savings possible from the moment the product hits www.derailed.com.
Derailed.com will differentiate itself from its parent company in three ways.
“First, we’ll have a robust social media presence, and reward customers for introducing us to their friends,” explains Sierra Trading Post Web Marketing Manager Bert Adam. “Second, we won’t be producing any catalogs. Third, the product selection is different from Sierra’s and is definitely more youthful.”
Prior to launch, Adam worked with Sierra Trading Post’s email team to segment 18-to-35-year-olds who had bought product similar to Derailed’s lineup. Those customers were recruited to share Derailed, and then rewarded with Derailed shopping credits when friends created accounts.
On Monday, the site launched and with it, programs to engage and reward. Email program Joy Bomb delivers a $10 coupon to new subscribers, special offers and shipping discounts plus first stab at giveaways. Stalk It sends an email alert as soon as a customer’s favorite product hits the site. Email referral program Give & Go rewards customers with eGift Cards when their friends shop Derailed. The newcomer also rolled out a nimble mobile site as part of its launch strategy.
Pre-launch, a social media presence was established for Derailed. Using Facebook advertising, the brand gained more than 500 fans. The brand replies to customers and shares content on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Pinterest and YouTube while using Instagram to share news of product drops, too.
Why launch a new site when the established eTailer could have just sold the new product and gear on SierraTradingPost.com?
“Closeouts are a formula that’s worked for us at Sierra Trading Post,” Imig says. “We have to – we want to – talk to the Derailed customer differently. The only way to do that is to create a new presence that appeals to that customer specifically. The Derailed and Sierra customer isn’t the same person, and we know the Derailed customer is in an underserved demographic.”
About Sierra Trading Post Headquartered in Cheyenne, Wyo., Sierra Trading Post is a Top 100 Internet retailer known across the globe for offering "Great Deals. Great Brands." Sierra Trading Post purchases overstocks, closeouts and 2nds from more than 3,000 brand names, offering customers 35-70% savings every day. Founded in 1986, the company has saved customers more than $3.5 billion off retail prices on outdoor gear, shoes, clothing, accessories and home furnishings. Sierra Trading Post operates outlet stores in Boise, Idaho; Reno, Nev.; Cheyenne and Cody, Wyo., a Technology Campus in Fort Collins, Colo., as well as a Call Center and Technology Campus in Cody.
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