How we Helped a Furniture Retailer Create a Campaign with Legs

Founded in 2001, EQ3 is a high-value manufacturer and retailer of contemporary furniture, with more than a dozen locations across Canada and the United States. In 2017, the company engaged Metric Marketing to develop a digital marketing strategy that would help them raise awareness about their business and brand.

EQ3 came to us for our expertise in digital marketing, so our role was to help them discover and market to their target audience. First, we developed a measurement plan that would access more accurate and trustworthy data about who their customers were. Then we set out to determine how to reach their target audiences. Their overall goal was to increase awareness about EQ3, so we developed a digital approach that would let us monitor and optimize the success of their marketing campaigns.

We began by researching consumer behaviours and creating foundational tools to set a benchmark for success that could be monitored, measured and optimized over time. We analyzed data and studied the buying experience of EQ3’s target customers. We then applied these insights and metrics to digital campaign ads that were launched to coincide with key retail periods such as Black Friday, Cyber Monday and holiday season sales events. 

The campaign served digital ads to in-market, modern furniture shoppers online, building both brand awareness and interest in featured products. These ads resulted in a 512 percent increase in revenue and a 314 percent conversion rate increase, year over year, generating the most lucrative shopping period in the company’s history.

Over the course of 12 months, we implemented a variety of online campaigns designed to engage audiences across Canada and the United States. The EQ3 team developed most of the creative, guided by our recommendations, while our digital team built, executed, managed, measured and continuously optimized all search and display activities online.

Our team also played an increasing role in handling EQ3’s paid digital advertising—including search, display, retargeting, social media and Google Shopping ads—which allowed EQ3's in-house team to focus their efforts on optimizing organic activity and engagement. The paid campaigns performed significantly above industry standards, exceeding benchmarks for click-through rates and costs per click.

Our research insights and recommendations helped EQ3 enhance their existing marketing assets so they would perform better. For example, research showed us that animating digital elements and using lifestyle photography encouraged shoppers to explore more product features and relate more to what they were viewing online. When EQ3 incorporated animation and lifestyle imagery into a featured bed product, clickthrough rates—and sales—increased dramatically.

Our foundational and digital support helped EQ3 operate more competitively and profitably in an increasingly crowded and competitive online furniture retail market. In terms of the value they received, EQ3’s e-commerce revenues in Canada nearly doubled, with a 94 percent increase during the first year. They saw a 47 percent increase in site conversions and a 70 percent increase in total transactions. EQ3 also consistently appeared first in online searches. Strategic bidding produced a cost-per-click rate that was significantly below industry benchmarks, giving them a higher return on their ad spend. 

By fostering a positive and collaborative relationship with the EQ3 internal marketing team, we were able to build trust, optimize and augment their work, and provide the best kinds of support at the right times. As is our mandate at Metric, we continually returned to the data to look for opportunities to further enhance EQ3’s marketing efforts and provide them with the best possible return on their investment.