Why CDNow believes wish lists are important for online retail survival

CDNow, which developed its own wish list program in September 1998, says wish lists are a valuable asset that it will continue to invest in. “Anyone who manages revenue cannot abandon that strategy,” says Dana Lasher, vice president of sales and retail marketing. “The wish list is the most valuable feature because it points toward revenue.” Lasher says CDNow’s wish list promotions result in a 20-25% lift in incremental sales. Convenience is the biggest benefit of wish lists, Lasher says, but she also stresses that allowing consumers to save items they want for purchase later is a definite revenue generator because CDnow runs sales on wish list items.

CDNow has different promotions for different types of music which are developed to build traffic, get rid of inventory or improve transaction size with a “buy more save more” theme. CDNow plans to do more advanced customer management tactics, such as more personalized discounts on wish list items, beginning in the third quarter.