Working with your retail partners goes far beyond getting your products up on their websites.
The brands with the most successful ecommerce businesses are those that proactively engage with retailers to invest in growth opportunities. They understand the different levers that can be pulled to increase exposure and sales. They collaborate with buyers to try new things in pursuit of finding strategies that work and enable them to gain market share.
Depending on your brand’s goals and its level of investment, there are many things to try to boost marketing with partners. Here, we’ll walk through the different types of retailer marketing programs manufacturers can participate in.
Promotional Programs
At the risk of stating the obvious, promotions are a crucial factor in gaining exposure on retailer’s websites, so brands must think strategically when deciding how and when to offer or participate in them. Typically, there are three types of promotions to consider:
Brand promotions
The timing and terms are led by the brand, who typically opens the promotion to all of their retail partners. Brands may choose to align these with any seasonality of their product or put them at a certain cadence throughout the year.
Retailer-specific promotions
The timing and some terms are led by the retailer, typically for a flagship event like WayDay, Prime Day or a major shopping holiday like Labor Day or Black Friday. Brands are recruited by the retailer to participate and gain the exposure opportunity from riding the marketing that the retailer is doing for the sale.
Private sales
The timing and terms of private sales are led by the retailer and are typically executed through an email or SMS campaign so the sale is only marketed to certain customers. These can be a strategic way for brands to partner more closely with their retailers because the private nature of the event helps minimize conflict with other channel partners.
Advertising Programs
Most retailers offer some sort of pay-to-play model that can help bolster bestsellers, drive visibility to new products or expose your brand to new, relevant customers. Retailer advertising programs might include:
Sponsored products
These are cost-per-click (CPC) ads that promote the placement of individual products or collections on retailer websites to increase exposure to the end customer in a category or style they might be shopping.
Retail media
Much like other paid media, retailers may have opportunities for brands to invest in targeted ad placements the same way they might with a traditional media outlet. These placements could promote the brand itself, a new collection or a category or trend that the brand has strength in. For brands, these placements can help them reach the end customer more directly, but they’re also a way to bolster relationships with retailers.
Review programs
Wayfair can work with brands to establish a program that builds authentic reviews from customers about a brand’s products. The cost falls on the brand through either a rebate or a free sample, but working with a retailer in this way can up the review count on best-selling products more quickly and have a major influence on future sales. Abundant, positive reviews can also help move your products up in a retailer’s algorithm on product result pages.
Feature Opportunities
Getting a retailer to feature your brand “just because” isn’t very likely, but some do have programs that focus on driving awareness more organically. Here are some examples:
Catalog programs
Some retailers have print or digital catalogs that offer co-op opportunities for brands, or even “earned” placements for products that are a good fit for the creative. It’s important for manufacturers to understand if catalog plays a role in the retailer’s marketing mix and if so, the different ways they could be a part of it.
Content pieces
All retailers have some sort of content strategy, whether that is through email, social media, a blog or all of the above. Some may invite brands to contribute to that content by sharing upcoming content themes or topics that are a good fit—for example, if a retailer is doing a feature on eco-friendly design, they might tap brands who have a focus on sustainability to be featured. The key is to be interested in understanding the goals of your retailer’s content program first. Then, determine if your brand can contribute in a way that helps them reach those goals, rather than simply expecting free exposure for your brand.
Marketing donations
For retailers who do their own lifestyle imagery, there may be opportunities to send product samples for consideration in those marketing placements. It’s worth asking the buyers you work with if they produce any of their own creative and if there are ways for your brand to take part.
Logistical Optimizations
While it might not sound as sexy as other marketing programs, taking advantage of a retailer’s 3PL opportunities can give brands a major competitive edge. Programs like Wayfair’s CastleGate and Amazon’s FBA (Fulfilled by Amazon) allow brands to use the retailer’s logistics network to optimize location and delivery speed and shorten lead times. Participating in these is an investment from the brand, with costs like storage and transport. But guaranteeing a short lead time through the retailer can reap big benefits like improved ranking, promotional exposure and reaching those customers that have a high expectation for delivery times.
Being engaged with your retailer goes beyond product listings. By investing in your success with them as a partner, you not only drive sales for your brand but show your commitment to building a true collaboration where both manufacturer and retailer succeed.
By leveraging promotions, advertising, feature opportunities and logistical optimizations, manufacturers can reach a broader customer base, drive sales and become a competitive player in the home furnishings marketing. Embracing these strategies and fostering strong retailer relationships will position brands for long-term growth and market leadership.
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