Prospecting: Godiva Sweetens its Valentine’s Day Deals With Social Media Insight

In an effort to optimize its marketing efforts for one of the busiest days of its year, Valentine's Day, Godiva went straight to the source for help: it tapped into its 600-member private online community, Godiva Chocolate Talk. The cross-channel retailer of gourmet chocolates and candies has partnered with Communispace, a provider of online consumer insights communities for market research, to host the online community.

Godiva's goal in consulting its community of fans was to gain insight into consumers' purchasing behaviors for the holiday. What it learned surprised the retailer, and provided the blueprint for its Valentine's Day product offerings. Particularly surprising to Godiva was the developing trend of "platonic gifting" 
occurring on Valentine's Day. Consumers are more frequently shopping for friends and family — in addition to their loved one — for the February holiday.

Godiva turned this insight into action. The retailer developed new platonic gifts for this year's Valentine's Day lineup, including chocolate message hearts with the words "HUG," "LOVE" or "I ♥ U," and bite-size gems sweetheart message truffles, which Godiva marketed to consumers as ideal for filling a candy dish to spread Valentine's Day cheer at work or home.

In addition to product selection, Godiva's Chocolate Talk community was helpful in providing the brand with information regarding the timing of Valentine's Day promotions. Coinciding with its current approach to Valentine's Day marketing, Godiva learned that women like to receive messaging about the holiday in late January, earlier than men, who want to be targeted in the days leading up to the Feb. 14 holiday, as they're more likely to be last-minute shoppers.

The effect that Godiva's relationship with its 
online community has had on customer acquisition and sales is still being reviewed, but what can be said definitively is that the retailer has taken the necessary steps to listen to its customers in order to better 
serve them. In this day and age, that's a sweet 
proposition.