Macy’s mobilized print ad lets consumers tap-to-buy merchandise

By Giselle Tsirulnik

May 27, 2010

A new Macy’s advertising campaign is further confirmation of the fact that mobile and print form a symbiotic relationship in the marketing world.

The Macy’s ad in 20 magazine titles offered within the Zinio iPad application has an interactive mobile element that is meant to give consumers the kind of engagement that is simply impossible with a static print ad. The advertisement marries the print and mobile world, bringing Macy’s merchandise into the hands of interested consumers and giving them the option to buy.

“We have been working with Zinio for a year and tested taking a catalog and digitizing it to see where the consumer wants to go,” said Martine Reardon, executive vice president of marketing and advertising at Macy’s, New York.

“We know different customers want content in different ways,” she said. “One type of die-hard customer wants the catalog via direct mail and some want it digitally.

“We love what we have seen with this iPad ad. Zinio is so innovative and we saw the beginning of what we think is going to be a big craze - the iPad.”

Two-page journey
The Macy’s two-page spread can be found in the following 20 titles:
1. Atlanta Magazine  
2. Chicago
3. Cincinnati Magazine
4. Country Living
5. Elle Decor
6. Harper’s Bazaar
7. Indianapolis Monthly
8. Los Angeles Magazine
9. Marie Claire
10. Nylon
11. O, the Oprah Magazine
12. Orange Coast Magazine
13. Redbook
14. Seventeen
15. Texas Monthly
16. Tokion
17. Town and Country
18. VIVmag
19. What’s On
20. Yoga Journal

Here is a screen grab of the two-page spread:

The two-page print advertisement asks consumers to leave the cold winter months behind and take a journey into the colorful world of spring and summer, through vibrant colors and designs.

Consumers are asked to tap to see more. Those who opt to do so are taken to the Macy’s Spring/Summer Journey catalog, within the Zinio application.

The catalog lets readers browse Macy’s Spring/Summer catalog of apparel and accessories, providing a whole new level of interaction.

Think about it. A print ad in a magazine could mention a catalogue or a URL. But consumers cannot be driven to look at it right there and then. And, there is no way of tracking which reader actually goes on to view a catalog.

With the iPad advertisement, Macy’s is able to push consumers to its catalog and track engagement.

Additionally, consumers get to see what Macy’s has inside its showcase. When they want to buy an item in the digitalized catalog, they just click on it. The item is automatically added to their shopping cart on Macy’s.com.

Who’s the target?
The iPad’s audience matches Macy’s target demographic in that a lot of iPad users are iPhone users.
However, Ms. Reardon said that this could be a new demographic for Macy’s.

“This could be a new demo or maybe not, I’m not sure because the iPad is still so new,” Ms. Reardon said. “It is some of those iPhone users that are now iPad users that we have been targeting and it could be could be a new customer we are reaching.

“It could be someone who was shopping with us a little bit and now sees this ad unit and realizes it is an amazing way to engage with us,” she said. 

Macy’s will be starting a pilot mobile rewards program this summer in New York, Miami, San Francisco and Los Angeles, per Ms. Reardon.

The retailer is working with ShopKick to put together a loyalty program that gives consumers rewards points just for walking into a Macy’s.

The GPS-enabled application watches what consumers buy and then pushes items it assumes its loyal customers would like.

“Everything we do is driven by our focus on what the customer wants,” Ms. Reardon said.

iPad changing media
Mobile and the iPad specifically, is changing the print advertising landscape. It removes constraints from a pricing standpoint, said Jeanniey Mullen, global executive vice president and chief marketing officer of Zinio, New York.

“We think mobile is turning print inside out and upside down,” Ms. Mullen said. “We see mobile and the iPad creating opportunities for print publishers and advertisers.

“It removes the constraints from a pricing standpoint,” she said.

In Zinio’s early conversations with Macy’s, one of the elements that helped convince the retailer to digitize its catalog was the reach standpoint.

Macy’s, like other retailers, could only print a certain amount of catalogs, so it has worked for years to target its very best customers. Otherwise the printing cost is just too high.

Digital frees Macy’s.

“Mobile devices have created an intersection between customer demand for convenience and technology innovation,” Ms. Mullen said. “The Macy’s ad is an example of the way in which mobile can link the print world to the digital world.”

Here are some screen grabs of the Macy's catalog on the iPad, through which consumers can tap-to-buy:

Comments on "Macy’s mobilized print ad lets consumers tap-to-buy merchandise "

1. C H says:

   June 1, 2010 at 11:06am

   Agree with Christopher - poor UX.
   
   The experience is lacking some fundamentals that are essential to driving & completing the purchase cycle and clearly does not utilize any of the great features & functionality that 'make' this device.
   
   Just another get on the bus approach - disappointing iPad venture.
   
   CH

2. Christopher Barcelona says:

   May 27, 2010 at 2:41pm

   I was excited by the vision when I read the article as this is what the true power of the Tablet revolution brings to not only advertising but any brand/retailer that has a catalogue. However, upon spending $4.50 on a Zinio powered issues of Town & Country and clicking through to the Macy's ad I was highly disappointed.
   
   This is simply an image gallery of poor quality scans of their catalogue and as a viewer you can not in fact click any of the product and add it right to your cart. There is a link at the bottom of the experience to visit Macys.com but that just links you out to the homepage of Macys.com. I'm not deep linked to the product that I was interested in nor does this type of disjointed experience make me more inclined to purchase. In fact, quite the opposite. The lack of a seamless shopping experience actually left me less likely to buy and wishing I had my $4.50 back.
   
   The promise of bringing catalogues, circulars and advertisements to life is endless w/ the iPad and coming Android powered tablets and the ability to leverage geo-location aware functionality as well as my social graph to customize the catalogue is truly the power of these devices and this approach but this particular attempt from Macy's and Zinio was far from what was described in the article and far from what could have been a fantastic execution.