Background

What began as a modest operation in Co-Founder and CEO Adam Hurst’s basement in Columbus, Ohio has transformed into a thriving outdoor gear brand over the course of a decade. Hammock Gear has experienced remarkable growth in the competitive outdoor recreation industry, expanding their product line to encompass a comprehensive range of camping equipment from traditional tree hammocks to ground camping materials and specialized insulation accessories for outdoor enthusiasts.

Challenge

As the 2018 holiday shopping season approached, Hammock Gear faced a critical challenge after launching their new website with enhanced SEO capabilities that dramatically increased their site traffic. COO Sally Brown recognized that while the company had strong brand loyalty among existing customers, they needed effective strategies to convert these numerous new site visitors into first-time buyers and ultimately develop them into lifelong customers, particularly during the crucial holiday sales period that represents a significant portion of annual revenue for many retailers.

Solution

Sally Brown collaborated closely with Hammock Gear’s dedicated Springbot customer success specialist, Kelsey Hendrix, to develop a comprehensive holiday marketing strategy tailored to their specific goals and customer demographics. After analyzing store data and identifying opportunities, they implemented several key initiatives: significantly increasing their AdRoll advertising budget to reach more potential customers, deploying Onsite Abandonment technology to capture email addresses from website visitors, and creating specialized email campaigns designed to engage these new prospects throughout the holiday shopping season.

Key Outcomes

The implementation of these strategic marketing initiatives delivered exceptional results for Hammock Gear, helping them acquire over 500 new email subscribers who could be engaged with ongoing communications beyond the holiday season. Their increased investment in AdRoll advertising proved remarkably efficient, generating a 14X return on investment that far exceeded industry benchmarks. Most impressively, the company achieved a dramatic 270% increase in Black Friday revenue compared to the previous year, demonstrating the effectiveness of their enhanced marketing approach during the most competitive shopping period of the year.

Conclusion

The partnership with Springbot has proven invaluable to Hammock Gear’s marketing capabilities and business growth, providing them with sophisticated marketing tools and expert guidance that would otherwise be inaccessible to a company of their size. COO Sally Brown describes the ability to delegate complex marketing tasks to Springbot’s team as “priceless,” noting how it allows her to focus on other critical aspects of the business while trusting that their marketing efforts are being expertly executed. This collaboration has fundamentally transformed their approach to digital marketing, enabling them to compete effectively with much larger brands during key sales periods and establish stronger customer relationships that drive sustainable business growth.