Webstakes, a prize
and savings club, recently launched iDialog, an e-commerce promotions
service designed to help companies build long-term relationships with
consumers and enable buyers and sellers “to dialog” over time.
Twenty companies signed long-term deals in the past few weeks to use the
company’s iDialog promotions during the holiday shopping season and beyond.,
including CDW, Citibank, Hallmark, Hyundai, iMall, Intellihealth,
Intercasino, Juno, MainXchange, Net@dress, Netscape, The Princeton
Review, Scottrade, ShopNow Market, Spree.com, Spinner.com, Ubid,
Universal Studios Online, Virtual Vegas and Ynot.
Steven H. Krein, president and co-founder of Webstakes, said: “iDialog is
designed not just to help a company’s marketing and sales efforts, but to
provide a digital channel for our partners to dialog over time and build
ongoing commerce relationships with our members.”
Using dialog marketing and Webstakes’ proprietary database engine, iDialog
delivers targeted promotions and special offers to members likely to be
interested in the information. As users interact with the Webstakes Prize and
Savings Club, iDialog builds individual relationships with members to make
each interaction more intelligent and relevant than the previous one. Each
time a member comes to Webstakes, the dialog continues and consumers are able
to opt-in to receive only the types of information and individual offers that
they want to receive, the company said.
Measurement and results generated by Webstakes iDialog promotions are based
on a sponsorship model rather than click-throughs or traditional CPM.
Webstakes
integrates ongoing promotions for client partners on targeted prize and
savings club channels, via the Webstakes update e-mailed to more than half a
million members, and through product and brand placements in the Webstakes
Affiliate program, Tell-A-Friend program, on banners, buttons and exclusive
content positions throughout the Webstakes site.
Webstakes said several companies already using iDialog promotions have
increased conversion rates to more than 50 percent compared to 1-2 percent
they are generating from traditional forms of online advertising.
Founded in 1996 in New York, Webstakes, a TRUSTe member, has 1.2 million
members who come to win prizes and get exclusive savings. Partners include
Netscape, Universal Studios, CBS Sportsline, PCFlowers, CDW, HomeArts,
Spree.com and Sonicnet.
