Email Subscriber Analysis

vs.

RETAIL INDUSTRY USE CASE

onnection Engine, in partnership with eDataSource, compared attributes of consumers who receive email communications from Amazon and Walmart. This brief examines the demographics, interests and purchasing habits of Amazon and Walmart email subscribers. eDataSource’s panel of 800,000 email users was profiled using Connection Engine’s InsightConnect customer intelligence platform to measure key similarities and differences between Amazon and Walmart email subscribers. Panel members were segmented based on their subscription status: those who receive email from Walmart but not Amazon, and those who receive emails from Amazon but not Walmart. n The analysis also includes eDataSource’s ecommerce tracking capabilities to analyze the online purchases of Amazon and Walmart and compare how these purchases relate to the demographics of their subscriber base. n Comparisons are presented as relative index values. An index is a way to examine the relative relationship between two values, for example an index value of 150 for Amazon indicates that Amazon has a value 1.5 times more or 50% higher than Walmart on that particular measure. A similar index value for Walmart indicates that Walmart has a higher value compared to Amazon on this measure.

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Demographics: Who are they?

Amazon subscribers look similar to Walmart subscribers in

terms of age and household composition, though they are

slightly older and less likely to have children. The major

difference is income, with Amazon subscribers tending to

have higher household incomes demonstrated by their

dominance in the “greater than $100k” category. In contrast,

Walmart’s email promotions often include in-store pick-up with

the option for cash purchases, presumably for lower-income

subscribers who are more likely to lack access to credit.

Geography: Where do they live?

Amazon subscribers are over 60% more likely than Walmart subscribers to be from

New York and California. Compared to Walmart, a higher percentage of Amazon

subscribers reside in urban areas, while Walmart subscribers are more likely to reside

in rural areas. This finding supports common perceptions about the type of shopper

who frequents

Walmart versus

those who seek

the convenience of

an online shopping

experience.

The geographic

split along with brick and mortar presence affirms a

notable difference in the mix of products each company

sells and promotes online. Walmart.com emphasizes larger ticket items that support an in-store pick up option. A recent

non-logged in visit to walmart.com features grills, outdoor furniture, and HDTVs prominently – all items where in-store pick-up

and free ship-to-store options are a key competitive advantage. This results in a higher average order value and higher

average unit retail value at walmart.com.

An Amazon email promoting their high-end apparel category.

Walmart email promotions include incentives for in-store pick-up along with cash payments.

Income Over $100k

Married

Children Under 18

Age 18-40

DEMOGRAPHICS

108

103

108

163

Highly Urban

Highly Rural

GEOGRAPHIC

194

123

Average # of Orders Per Person

Average Order Value

COMPETITIVE SPEND

241

198

Interests and Lifestyle: What do they like?

Examining interests in the area of reading topics, Amazon

subscribers are more likely than Walmart subscribers to

enjoy reading about science and technology. Looking at

sports, Amazon subscribers are more likely than Walmart

subscribers to enjoy skiing and less likely to be hunters

or fishermen.

Important differences between Amazon and

Walmart subscribers are also apparent upon examination

of Lifestyle Segments, where buyers are grouped based on

exhibited lifestyle behaviors. Amazon subscribers are nearly twice as likely as Walmart subscribers to be Trendy Homemakers,

who devote time and effort to decorating their home, and Green Consumers, who make the effort to shop for products that

reflect their beliefs in sustainability. Walmart subscribers are more likely than Amazon subscribers to be New Parents, who

tend to purchase baby gear and accessories, and Sportsmen, who enjoy the outdoors while hunting and fishing.

Purchasing Behavior: How do they shop and spend?

Amazon subscribers have an average household spend

that is 1.6 times that of Walmart subscribers, with a web

spend index nearly as high. This variation in average

spend can be examined using Connection Engine’s Buyer

Score which measures the level of purchasing activity and

capacity as compared to the U.S. population. Amazon

subscribers are over three times as likely as Walmart

subscribers to be Super Buyers, defined as buyers in the

top 5% of spend behavior.

Measures of buying behaviors show that the interests of Amazon and Walmart subscribers are supported by their

purchase activities. Amazon.com subscribers are more than three times as likely as Walmart subscribers to be frequent

buyers of running, cycling, hiking, camping and winter sports products while Walmart subscribers tend to be more frequent

purchasers of hunting and fishing equipment.

Romance Reading

Snow Skiing

Hunting

Science/Technology Reading

INTERESTS

146

121

117

121

Sportsmen

Trendy Homemakers

Green Consumers

New Parents

LIFESTYLE SEGMENTS

261

229

129

116

161

Super Buyer

Low Buyer

BUYER SCORE

328

Connection Engine MethodologyUsing Connection Engine’s InsightConnect product, subscribers to Amazon.com and Walmart.com were compared within

the eDataSource panel. The encrypted email keys of panel members were matched to over 50 billion real-world data points

to generate a detailed profile of each subscriber base.

eDataSource MethodologyeDataSource has utilized its proprietary email analytics capability and a panel of 800,000 consumers to provide these unique

insights into consumer purchasing trends. eDataSource has conducted detailed analyses of the sales and subscription rates

at Amazon.com, Walmart.com, iTunes, Barnes & Noble, Netflix, Staples, Office Depot, Gilt, Ideeli and others using

anonymized data from more than 580,000 online purchase and subscription confirmations over the last six months.

Furthermore, we see Amazon subscribers purchase

more corporate attire, designer fashion and fine jewelry

which aligns with the company’s acquisition of Zappos

along with it’s MyHabit flash sale property.

Summary Observations

Amazon and Walmart both have a robust base of email

subscribers – and both businesses do a good job of

delivering products and services to meet the expectations

of their target consumers.

•High Income Households. Amazon dominates here with their focus on many small purchases via programs like

Amazon Prime along with their expansion into luxury merchandise.

•The Big Spenders. Amazon subscribers rank higher on the Connection Engine Buyer Score with a much higher

concentration of Super Buyers.

•Highly Urban vs. Highly Rural. Walmart’s subscribers are more prevalent in rural areas so the company drives

multi-channel shopping by offering in-store pick-up for online purchases along with the ability to pay in cash.

•The Great Outdoors. Reflecting the income distribution and urban-rural split, Walmart subscribers tend to be

fishermen and hunters while Amazon shoppers are more likely to golf or ski.

©2012 Connection Engine Inc. and eDataSource, Inc. connectionengine.com•edatasource.com

Hiking/Camping Gear

Pet Supplies

Hunting/Fishing Gear

Running/Cycling/Winter Sports Gear

FREQUENT BUYER SEGMENTS

331

317

137

117