HobbyTech Toys, a mass-market hobby store in Western Australia, has distinguished itself through an extensive product range and a data-driven approach to marketing and operations.

HobbyTech Toys has a tight omnichannel strategy and an astute focus on understanding customer purchase behavior—both of which have helped them become leaders in their market.

We chatted to owner Jordan Hepburn about his Marsello data, and how he found golden insights that ultimately changed his marketing strategy.

Jordan found Marsello when he was looking for a loyalty program that integrated with Shopify and Lightspeed. The online business was growing, and he needed a way to provide a seamless experience for customers, however they were shopping.

With Marsello, he can offer that. And by connecting all his sales channels, he has access to all his in-store and online sales data in one place. Jordan can also sync all his in-store transaction data into Klaviyo, where he runs email campaigns.

HobbyTech Toys uses Marsello for integrated loyalty, automations, and omnichannel data. Jordan can also sync all his in-store transaction data into Klaviyo, where he runs email campaigns.

Before Marsello, it looked as though the majority of marketing-attributed revenue was coming from online purchases on the east coast. As the online presence was growing, Jordan and the team were subsidizing shipping more and more frequently, which was eating into margins—Australia is a big country, and freight from one side to the other is expensive.

What Jordan learned from his Marsello in-store data flipped that on its head. “Before I looked at that data with Marsello, I thought, most of our sales are going over to eastern states online from our marketing,” says Jordan, “and we were 100% wrong. Now I can see that most of the marketing revenue comes from in-store a couple of days after the marketing goes out which is very interesting—I never predicted that.”

One of the biggest marketing challenges omnichannel retailers have is attributing in-store sales to promotional channels. It’s hard to know if a sale came from a referral, a billboard, or an email campaign.

“Whereas now we do because we've got the tool that can do it,” says Jordan. “The data was a bit of an eye-opener for us and it also made us realize the importance of our marketing.”

Now that he knows just how well their locals respond to marketing, he can adjust his strategy to match. This includes: promoting their click and collect option; sending different marketing campaigns to local audiences; offering lower shipping within HobbyTech Toys’ metro area; and more.

HobbyTech Toys have engineered their loyalty program to reward frequency over big one-off spends.

“If you offer too much incentive at the start, the customers expect that every time. It also means you're attracting a lower level of customer—you’re almost showing desperation too quickly.” Instead, Jordan would rather offer regular visitors frequent but small gifts, like a $5 voucher. These customers are worth more to him than bargain hunters, and they are always very appreciative of the gesture. This goodwill feeds back into more sales and more referrals.

“This year we're probably not even going to run a Black Friday sale if I'm honest because we find those customers that buy within that sale period or the ones that you know they're the most problematic with returns and exchanges—it’s just a nightmare.”

Being a data-driven business, the value in Marsello was clear. Now Jordan can see what locations purchases are coming from, what marketing those customers received, how big their average transaction is in-store vs online, and so much more.

“I think the data was the most exciting part for me. It’s a case of—the more that's available the more you'll find that you can use,” says Jordan. “With the world going online the way it has, the price is more sensitive than ever. The customer expects this much, they want to pay this much, and your margin goes from up there down to there, so it's always that juggling act.”

“That's where the basket size and that data comes in—knowing how to convert them quicker or at a higher purchase price, is everything.”