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Church Marketing FAQ: Do I Really Need To Advertise My Congregation?

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The word “advertising” has a negative connotation among some people, who think of it as negative, misleading or simply a means of promoting overindulgence. Your church isn’t a bag of chips or a new lawnmower. But you do need people in order to survive as a ministry and grow as a congregation. That’s where church marketing comes in.

You’re already engaged in church marketing, even if you haven’t thought about it in that way. You have a sign out front, you send out a print or email newsletter, you offer a special welcome packet to visitors, you participate in socially beneficial community projects. Your members talk to their neighbors and colleagues about your church, and invite them to visit.

Why should you engage in more deliberate church marketing?

In most religions, it is the church’s responsibility to spread the word – not only among the already-faithful but to those who are searching. Searchers may be looking for a new spiritual connection in their life, or perhaps they simply want to change churches or find one because they’re new in town.

Reaching out with church postcards enables you to:

  • Bring new members into your fold.
  • Strengthen your connection with the community and be a good neighbor, through greater understanding of local problems, issues and opportunities your church can help address. You gain respect and admiration – becoming (and being seen) as a “force” in the community.
  • Energize existing congregation members to renew their faith or become more involved in church programs and activities.

Church postcards enable you to tell your story to a broad, diverse audience. You can mail them to every household in your service area, if you choose. By repeating your mailings monthly, you build familiarity and trust. Over time, your authentic, heartfelt messaging and welcoming tone break down barriers that may make people hesitant, instilling confidence to take the next step and join you for worship or a special event. You’ve connected with a potential new member, and now you can follow up personally.

You have to know yourself well before you can tell others who you are. Developing a marketing strategy sharpens your insight about your own congregation’s spiritual needs, helping identify relevant programs and services. And planning assures you’ll make the most efficient use of resources, by identifying who you want to attract to refine your targeting.

Religious leaders are not marketing experts.

Your pastor has to be a savvy business manager, even though that wasn’t the focus of their training. The financial condition of your church is of paramount importance in order to grow and thrive. Solvency enables you to keep up your physical facilities to maintain an appealing presence, and it supports your outreach efforts.

Thankfully, church marketing doesn’t have to be expensive. That’s why postcards are so popular – they’re very affordable and highly effective. Church postcards enable you to communicate directly with people you don’t know and extend an invitation to join you.

Professionalism makes church marketing more successful.

Authentic, heartfelt messages won’t resonate with prospective members if they’re delivered in a poor quality package. Mistakes, a cluttered look or a bad print job put people off, wasting your efforts and your budget. You need professional assistance from a full-service direct mail company, to ensure your church postcards are beautifully designed, perfectly produced and delivered to the right list of recipients at the most affordable postage rates available.

Most importantly, custom design means your postcards will accurately reflect the personality of your church and the tone of your specific marketing message. Well-done church marketing demonstrates integrity and caring – traits prospective members will expect in their new church.

If the thought of “advertising” your church seems wrong, think instead about how you can expand upon the church marketing you’re already engaged in, to spread the word, make new friends and grow your congregation.

photo credit: kthread via photopin cc

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Dentist

Branford Dental

Direct Mail Solution Provided by Cactus Mailing:
Print 90,000 postcards and mail 7,500 postcards every other week. We have a 30,000 address mailing list of households around practice which is rotated through so everyone gets a postcard every 2 months. They also utilized a call tracking number provided by Cactus Mailing so they could track every response that the postcards produce.

Results

$49.6K

Cost

200+

New Patients

$280K

Revenue
Client Testimonial
“Cactus Mailing has provided us with a constant flow of new patients. The development process is quick and easy, and the postcards are a great quality. With the help of the employees at Cactus, we have been able to develop the exact marketing area that we want to target and how often we want each household to receive our mailer. We have also been able to make changes to our postcard every 6 months, which has helped us try out new promotions for the office. Cactus Mailing is great!” -Angela White, Business Manager
Dentist

Mountain Ranch Family & Cosmetic Dentistry

Direct Mail Solution Provided by Cactus Mailing:
Cactus Mailing sends out a 6×11 postcard to stand out amongst all the noise. Mailing to the same local neighborhood area of 5910 households four times to maximize practice visibility and stay top of mind in the neighborhood. Consistent marketing is the key to building new patient numbers. PLUS to increase visibility and drive web traffic to their website, online marketing was added to their marketing strategy – showing over 625,000 online ads a month.

Results

350+

New Patients
Client Testimonial
“Cactus Mailing has become an extension of my business when it comes to marketing. They are professional, easy to work with, communicate well, and ensure that you are getting the results that you expect!” -Joel Rolfe
Dentist

All Kids Dental

Direct Mail Solution Provided by Cactus Mailing:
Mails to about 350 New Homeowners with children moving into the direct area around the pediatric dental practice. A 6×9 postcard is the perfect size to showcase pictures of their jungle themed office. The postcard also includes a New Patient special and a FREE Sonic toothbrush offer.

Results

$2.7k

Cost

1,630 %

ROI

$44K+

Sales
Client Testimonial
“As a new business, we tried every possible marketing avenue out there. This is the ONLY marketing campaign we have continued without stop for 8 years! The sustained new growth our direct mail campaigns produce has helped us grow from a new business to the premier office in town. Thank you, Cactus Mailing!” -Dr. Brie Hills
Remodeling

Turners Home Improvements

Direct Mail Solution Provided by Cactus Mailing:

Cactus Mailing provides a list of mobile home parks within Southern California and Arizona – approx. 10,000 per mailing. Each resident is sent a 6×11 full color postcard. The card highlights their services and offers discounts to veterans and military.

 

Results

300

New Customers

$600K

In New Sales
Client Testimonial

“Cactus Mailing has been perfect. I will always use Cactus Mailing. My postcards are beautiful – my customers say they won’t throw them away. We started with 3 people a few months ago and knew we needed advertising. Cactus Mailing will have us over $1,000,000 in sales our first year!” -Amy Turner

Pet Store

Theresa’s Country
Feed & Pet Store

Direct Mail Solution Provided by Cactus Mailing:

Theresa’s Country Feed & Pet wanted to get the word out about their Moorpark and Simi Valley, CA locations. So, Cactus Mailing targeted approx. 14,000 households around each location – mailing to each household twice. To increase responses, the 5.5″ x 8.5″ postcard contained 10 coupon offers on different brands of dog and cat foods. Tracking responses was easy since customers needed to present the coupon.

 

Results

998

Coupons Redeemed

$50K

In Sales
Client Testimonial

“When it comes to directly targeting new/potential customers, there’s nothing better than direct mail. It puts your name right in the person’s hands. Plus, if you offer an incentive, your redemption rate goes through the roof! We have raised our average customer count at the targeted locations by almost 100%. No joke. We have other locations in different states that will soon be using Cactus Mailing. We have every bit of confidence that we’ll achieve the same results, if not more by using their great service.”  -Tommy Gruber

Restaurant

Mama Pita

Direct Mail Solution Provided by Cactus Mailing:

Initial mailing of 17,500 5.5″ × 8.5″ postcards sent to a targeted mailing list of residents closest to the restaurant.

Results

$5.7K

Cost

1000

New Customers

$60K

Revenue
Client Testimonial

“I had never conducted a direct mail marketing campaign before, so I really wasn’t sure how to go about getting things started. When I contacted Jill at Cactus Mailing Company, I only had a basic idea of what I wanted to do. With her help, the whole process was a lot easier than I thought it would be and my marketing campaign was a success. Cactus Mailing Company saved me about 1,000 dollars per mailing and helped successfully target drops that yielded more than 10% return each.”
-Bechara Harfouche, Mama Pita Mediterranean Grill

  • 1. Postal Delivery and Handling:

    Cactus Mailing has no control over the U.S. Postal Service. When we deliver a client’s mailing to the post office it is inspected for proper preparation and if approved is accepted into the mail delivery stream. Cactus Mailing will upon request provide the client a copy (in pdf format) of the 3600-R for First Class Mail or 3602-R for Standard Mail. This document originates from the US Postal Service’s Postal One website and is often referred to as a “postage receipt” or “receipt of mailing”. Client agrees that this document shall constitute proof of delivery and that Cactus Mailing has completed its obligation and has no further obligation or liability for the mailing. Client understands that there is always a possibility that the U.S. Postal Service will delay, damage, or lose mail. Under no circumstance will Cactus Mailing be held responsible for delays in delivery, damage to the mail pieces, or loss of mail after it has been accepted by the Post Office.

    Mail Tracking is accomplished by embedding a code in the barcode of each mail piece which is then scanned at various stages throughout the mail delivery process. As the Postal Service does not always scan every piece at every location - The client acknowledges that Cactus Mailing is not responsible for missed scans, incomplete data, inaccurate reports, late deliveries or lost mail and that all contact with the Post Office regarding delivery issues is the responsibility of the client.

    Cactus Mailing at its sole discretion may opt to use shipping, transportation, and or delivery methods other than the Postal Service. This is typically referred to as "drop shipping" and any postage savings resulting from drop shipping will be retained by Cactus Mailing as these savings are taken into account when providing prices and quotes for our products and services.

  • 2. EDDM Mailings:

    For EDDM mailings the Postal Service does not issue a postage receipt (3600-R or 3602-R) as the mail pieces are shipped directly to the destination post office(s) for delivery. For EDDM projects Cactus Mailing will upon request provide the delivery confirmation for the shipment of the mail pieces to the post office(s) and client agrees that these delivery confirmations will constitute proof of delivery and that Cactus Mailing has completed its obligation and has no further obligation or liability for the mailing.

  • 3. Response to Mailings:

    Cactus Mailing does not guarantee response rates to mailings. Any response rates discussed by Cactus Mailing, its Employees, contained in its marketing material, or on its website, are only projections of potential response rates. Absolutely no refunds will be given based on low or no response rates.

  • 4. Digital Marketing - Impressions:

    Digital display advertising impressions are obtained/purchased through an auction process - Cactus Mailing has no control over the auction process and the resulting cost of ad impressions. If Cactus Mailing at its sole discretion determines that the cost of ad impressions is higher than anticipated, then Cactus Mailing may opt to reduce the number of impressions and issue a prorated refund to the client or extend the end date of the campaign until ordered number of impressions are fulfilled.

  • 5. Quotations:

    Prices obtained from Cactus Mailing are subject to change without notice. Cactus Mailing reserves the right to end any special offers, incentives, or pricing at any time. In the event a product is listed or quoted at an incorrect price for any reason- Cactus Mailing shall have the right to refuse or cancel the order.

  • 6. Postage Increases:

    Any postage rate increase(s) that becomes effective before or during the execution of a project will, at Cactus Mailing's sole discretion, be passed on to the client. This includes orders that were placed with both estimated and flat rate postage.

  • 7. Payment Terms:

    Cactus Mailing typically requires payment in full via credit card or wire transfer at the time the order is placed. Cactus Mailing at its sole discretion may offer terms in which a down payment is accepted with the remainder of the project to be paid on a “pay-as-you-go” basis in which the remaining amounts owed are divided by the number of mail-outs the campaign/order is for. Client agrees that the portion due for the next mail-out will be charged to the credit card on file 7 to 10 days before the mail-out is scheduled to be delivered to the post office. Client also authorizes that if the client cancels the project prior to completion, that all remaining amounts due for the project (excluding postage) are due immediately and will be charged to the credit card on file.

  • 8. Order Cancellation:

    Orders may be canceled by notice in writing or via e-mail. It is the client’s responsibility to confirm Cactus Mailing has received the order cancellation notification. For orders cancelled within 15 days of the date the order was placed, but before the client approves their design proof, the client will receive a refund or credit based on the order amount minus the cost for any work already performed plus an order cancellation fee of $150 or 15% of the project total whichever is greater. For orders cancelled greater than 15 days after the date the order was placed, but before the client approves their design proof, the client will receive a credit on account based on the order amount minus the cost for any work already performed plus an order cancellation fee of $150 or 15% of the project total whichever is greater. Credits on account may be used within 180 days from the date of issue. For projects cancelled after the client approves their proof the balances of the project (excluding postage) shall be due immediately and charged to the client’s credit card on file.

  • 9. Inactive Projects:

    Projects in which the client fails to respond to information requests and/or payment requests in a timely manner (14 days) shall be deemed as inactive. When the requested information or payment is received the project will be returned to active status. If a project remains inactive for more than 45 days it shall be deemed cancelled and subject to the order cancellation terms of Section 8. Any projects deemed inactive a second time will be immediately deemed cancelled and subject to the order cancellation terms of Section 8.

  • 10. Projects on Hold:

    Up to the point of when the client approves their design proof, they may place a project on hold. After proof approval a project cannot be placed on hold and will be mailed as previously scheduled. If a client needs to place their project on hold, they may put the project on hold for a maximum of 90 days by submitting an e-mail requesting the project be put on hold and the date that they intend to proceed with the project. If the client does not mail within 90 days the project is deemed cancelled and subject to the order cancellation terms of Section 8.

  • 11. Warranty:

    Cactus Mailing at its sole option will repair or reprint any order that contains abnormal imperfections, or where we have failed in your written instructions. Cactus Mailing at its sole option may elect to provide a prorated credit in lieu of a reprint. Claims for defects, damage or shortages must be made in writing and must be received by Cactus Mailing within 5 days of receipt or within 15 days of the mail date whichever is sooner.

  • 12. Proofs:

    The client is 100% responsible for proofreading the design prior to approving the proof and thereby giving authorization to proceed with printing. This includes designs and/or artwork submitted by the client and designs and/or artwork created or modified by Cactus Mailing and presented to the client for review and approval.

  • 13. Production Schedule and Turnaround Time:

    Delivery schedules, turnaround times and other similar terms used by Cactus Mailing merely reflect the average completion time of similar orders and will be affected by run lengths, special customer requirements, workloads, holidays, or equipment breakdowns and are not contractual. It is the client’s responsibility to plan time sensitive mailings far enough in advance to accommodate any delays that may occur. Cactus Mailing will not give refunds and/or credit as a result of unforeseen delays that affect the project schedule. For Expedited Projects if Cactus Mailing does not print or ship the project on schedule – the client will be entitled to a refund of the expedite fee paid but the project may not be cancelled.

  • 14. Acceptance of Order:

    Cactus Mailing may refuse to mail at any time any copy, photographs or illustrations of any kind that in Cactus Mailing’s sole judgment is an invasion of privacy, is degrading, libelous, unlawful, profane, obscene, pornographic, tends to ridicule or embarrass, or is in bad taste, or which in the mailer’s sole judgment is an infringement on a trademark, or trade name, or service mark, or copyright belonging to others. The customer will defend and hold Cactus Mailing harmless in any suit or court action brought against the mailer by others for alleged damages, costs, expenses (including reasonable attorney’s fees), liabilities or losses resulting from circumstances where Cactus Mailing, acting as the customer’s agent, uses copy, photographs, or illustrations that are believed by others to be degrading, libelous or harmful to their reputations, images, or standing in the community or which in Cactus Mailing’s sole judgment is an infringement on a trademark, or trade name, or service mark, or copyright belonging to others, or in a suit or court action brought against Cactus Mailing for actions of the customer’s employees which may occur as a result of any mailing.

  • 15. Mailing Lists:

    The industry average for returns on non-deliverable mail (even after list processing (CASS, PAVE, & NCOA) is between 10% and 15%. If the list you use for your mailing was provided by Cactus Mailing, we will give a per piece credit or refund based on the per piece price the client paid for any amount returned over the 15% threshold. To obtain such credit the client must return all of the returned mail pieces to Cactus Mailing prior to the issuance of any credit. Credits must be used within 180 days of being issued.

  • 16. Call Tracking Numbers:

    Client agrees the tracking number will only be used for calls generated from marketing material and services by Cactus Mailing Company. Ninety days after your last mail date or after 12 months of free service (whichever comes first) the client will be notified of pending cancellation of the call tracking number and given the option to continue the call tracking service. If the client requests to continue the service their credit card on file will be charged a reoccurring fee of $30 per month (billed in 3 month increments) until client requests the call tracking number be cancelled. Client may cancel their service by notifying Cactus Mailing Company in writing/email. If Client chooses to record telephone calls, they expressly agree and acknowledge that they will 1) make the necessary arrangements to ensure that the caller is provided the necessary warning about the presence of any recordings made of a call in accordance with the law 2) Client must notify their employee, contractor, officer, agent, authorized representative or other third party that their telephone conservation with a caller is being recorded and 3) Cactus Mailing Company shall have no liability whatsoever in respect of any use made by you, your employee, contractor, officer, agent, authorized representative or other third party, of the recordings and its contents, and/or of any personal information.

  • 17. Color Matching:

    Because of the differences in equipment, paper, inks, and other conditions a variance between electronic proofs and the completed job is expected, unavoidable, and shall constitute acceptable delivery. Cactus Mailing will make every effort to produce a reasonable representation based on materials supplied by the client and the proof produced by Cactus Mailing, however, Cactus Mailing does not guarantee color matching.

  • 18. Shipping:

    Cactus Mailing has no control over the U.S. Postal Service, United Parcel Service or any other common carrier’s delivery schedule and cannot guarantee when mail or shipments deposited with or released to these carriers will be delivered.

  • 19. Ownership of Materials / Designs:

    All materials and electronic files that Cactus Mailing creates are the property of Cactus Mailing and can only be used for printing, mailing and digital projects produced and managed by Cactus Mailing. Client agrees not to redistribute or recreate the design or any portion of the design. Unless prior agreement in writing, Cactus Mailing reserves the right to distribute samples of the client’s mail piece and include the client’s mail piece and or images of the mail piece in portion or its entirety in Cactus Mailing’s marketing efforts including on any website owned by Cactus Mailing. Additionally, Cactus Mailing reserves the right to reuse concepts and artwork created by Cactus Mailing in designs for other clients.

  • 20. Errors in Mailing:

    Damages shall be limited to the value of the work performed excluding the cost of postage. At the sole discretion of Cactus Mailing, we will either refund the services cost of the project (excluding postage) or prepare a corrected mailing. For corrected mailings the client is responsible for the postage due to mail the corrected mailing. In no case is Cactus Mailing liable for loss of business; incidental or consequential damages; or costs in excess of billing for services related to the specific job.

  • 21. Storage of Materials:

    Cactus Mailing will store materials that we print at no charge as long as the client sends out a mailing at least every 60 days. If 60 days pass and the client has not sent out a mailing, paid to have the material shipped to them, or authorized Cactus Mailing to dispose of the material- they will be sent a storage invoice in the amount of $15/1000 pieces stored ($75 minimum) per month. If the client fails to pay the invoice within 15 days of receipt, Cactus Mailing will dispose of the materials in storage and deem the project as cancelled and subject to the order cancellation terms of Section 8.

  • 22. Severability of Provisions:

    In a court of law if any of the provisions of this document are found unenforceable the remainder of the provisions shall remain in full force and effect.

Our Commitment to Privacy

We value our customers and respect their privacy. We collect customer information in an effort to improve your shopping experience and communicate with you about our products, services and promotions. We do not sell or rent your personal information to third parties. As described in this policy, we do, however, share your information, under certain circumstances, with third parties that provide services on our behalf, or with whom we have partnered to offer a particular product or service. This policy describes the personal information we collect about you, why we collect it, how we use it and when we share it with third parties. Our policy also describes the choices you can make about how we collect and use your information. If you have any questions about our privacy policy, you can always contact us in any of three ways (or as discussed in the Contact Us portion of this policy).

 

Information We Collect

We collect information, such as name, e-mail and postal addresses, phone and credit card numbers from you when you visit our Website, place an order online or by phone, make an in- store purchase, save your info with us online, or participate in a promotion or survey. We may maintain a record of your product interests and the purchases you make online or by phone, and we may also acquire information about you from marketing partners, unrelated third parties, or our affiliates.

 

How We Use Information

When you place an order or make a purchase from us, we use your personal information to process your order, send you e-mails to confirm your order or to contact you via phone, mail or e-mail (if we have questions regarding your order or purchase). We may use an outside credit card processing company to bill users for goods and services. These companies do not retain, share, store or use personally identifiable information for any secondary purposes, and they are not allowed to use personally identifiable information except to provide the services. When you place an order, make a purchase, or save your information online, we may use your e-mail and postal address to send you information about our products, services, and promotions and to help us learn more about your shopping preferences. If you participate in a promotion, we may use your personal information to send you e-mails, postal mail, or telephone (including text messages) regarding our products, services and promotions. From time to time, we may use this information to contact you via e-mail, postal mail, or telephone to learn more about your shopping preferences. You always have the choice not to receive marketing information or calls. In addition, we may use information about you and your product interests and purchases from us and our affiliates to help us improve our Website design and your online shopping experiences. We may contact you, subject to the choices you have made, via e-mail, mail, or telephone, to conduct market research and learn more about how we can improve our product offerings. To serve you better, we may combine information you give us and information about your product interest and purchases with information from third parties, including demographic information and information that is publicly available. We may also combine this information with information from our affiliates. We may use that combined information to enhance and personalize your shopping experience with us, and to communicate with you in accordance with this policy.

Security

Protecting your privacy and your information is important to us. We have taken appropriate measures to prevent the loss, misuse, or alteration of your information. Our employees who have access to information collected on our Website are aware of our privacy policy. Your information is only accessible to those employees who need it in order to perform their job.

 

Email Communications

You may elect not to receive emails from us. If you did not opt out of our email program, we will use your email address to send you emails which may interest you. Emails will likely contain information regarding our products or offerings. To unsubscribe from these emails, click on the Contact Us link and send us an email letting us know who you are, and that you wish to “unsubscribe” from our mailing lists. Also, an unsubscribe link will appear at the end of each email we send you, and when you click on it you will be automatically unsubscribed from computer mailings.

Information Sharing

Your personal information will only be shared with third parties as permitted by our privacy policy. We do not rent, sell, or share your personal information with other people or nonaffiliated companies except to provide products or services you’ve requested, when we have your permission, or under the following circumstances: we provide the information to partners who work on our behalf or under confidentiality agreements (these companies may use your personal information to help us communicate with you about products and offers); we respond to subpoenas, court orders, or legal process, or to establish or exercise our legal rights or defend against legal claims; we may share information in order to investigate, prevent, or take action regarding illegal activities, suspected fraud, situations involving potential threats to the physical safety of any person, violations of our terms of use, or as otherwise required by law; we will transfer information about you if we are acquired by or if we merge with another company.

 

How to Access and Update User Information.

You may request to access and update your personally identifiable information by using the link located on navigation bar of our Website, which will take you to the “contact us” page and other areas of our Website where you may contact us directly with your request. We will attempt to provide you with reasonable access to any personally identifiable information you have provided to us within 30 days at no cost. If access cannot be provided within that timeframe, we will provide you with a date by which the information will be provided. If for some reason access is denied, we will provide an explanation as to why access has been denied. Changes To Our Privacy Policy If we make any material changes in our privacy practices, we will use reasonable efforts to post a notice on our Website notifying users that there has been a change, and we will use reasonable efforts to detail changes in the privacy policy area of our Website. We recommend you check our Website periodically for modifications to this policy. If we are going to use your personally identifiable information in a manner different from that stated at the time of collection through our Website, we will notify you via email.

Cookies

We may set and access cookies on your computer. We may also allow other companies that show advertisements on some of our Website pages to set and access their cookies on your computer. Other companies’ use of their cookies is subject to their own privacy policies, not this one. Advertisers or other companies do not have access to our cookies. We may use web beacons to access our cookies inside and outside our Website and in connection with our products and services.

 

Contact Us

We use email links located on the “contact us” page and other areas of our Website to allow you to contact us directly with any questions or comments you may have. We read every message sent in and will try to reply promptly if you request information or otherwise require a response. We may file your comments to improve our Website or our products, or we may review and discard the information.

Dentist

Dallin Jay Williams DDS

Direct Mail Solution Provided by Cactus Mailing:

With our client we select a mailing area of 40k addresses around the practice and divide it into 4 groups of 10k. Each quarter we select one of these groups and send one postcard a month for three consecutive months. The 5.5″ × 8.5″ postcard is designed by Cactus Mailing’s design department. The postcard design includes all elements needed for a successful direct mail campaign – 2 strong offers, expiration date, bullet point of services offered, multiple ways to contact the office, website, map of the office and a picture of doctor.

Results

$8.4k

Cost

54

New PatientS

$42K

Revenue
Client Testimonial

“Cactus Mailing Company has been nothing but great for our practice. We have had a huge increase in new patients due to their professional looking direct mailers. Our practice, as well as our patients, love the look of them. Not only does Cactus Mailing Company get new patients in the door, but they help us keep them coming back. We are very happy with all of their work” -Dallin Jay Williams, DDS

Our Commitment to Privacy

 

We value our customers and respect their privacy. We collect customer information in an effort to improve your shopping experience and communicate with you about our products, services and promotions. We do not sell or rent your personal information to third parties. As described in this policy, we do, however, share your information, under certain circumstances, with third parties that provide services on our behalf, or with whom we have partnered to offer a particular product or service. This policy describes the personal information we collect about you, why we collect it, how we use it and when we share it with third parties. Our policy also describes the choices you can make about how we collect and use your information. If you have any questions about our privacy policy, you can always contact us in any of three ways (or as discussed in the Contact Us portion of this policy).

 

Information We Collect

We collect information, such as name, e-mail and postal addresses, phone and credit card numbers from you when you visit our Website, place an order online or by phone, make an in- store purchase, save your info with us online, or participate in a promotion or survey. We may maintain a record of your product interests and the purchases you make online or by phone, and we may also acquire information about you from marketing partners, unrelated third parties, or our affiliates.

 

How We Use Information

When you place an order or make a purchase from us, we use your personal information to process your order, send you e-mails to confirm your order or to contact you via phone, mail or e-mail (if we have questions regarding your order or purchase). We may use an outside credit card processing company to bill users for goods and services. These companies do not retain, share, store or use personally identifiable information for any secondary purposes, and they are not allowed to use personally identifiable information except to provide the services. When you place an order, make a purchase, or save your information online, we may use your e-mail and postal address to send you information about our products, services, and promotions and to help us learn more about your shopping preferences. If you participate in a promotion, we may use your personal information to send you e-mails, postal mail, or telephone (including text messages) regarding our products, services and promotions. From time to time, we may use this information to contact you via e-mail, postal mail, or telephone to learn more about your shopping preferences. You always have the choice not to receive marketing information or calls. In addition, we may use information about you and your product interests and purchases from us and our affiliates to help us improve our Website design and your online shopping experiences. We may contact you, subject to the choices you have made, via e-mail, mail, or telephone, to conduct market research and learn more about how we can improve our product offerings. To serve you better, we may combine information you give us and information about your product interest and purchases with information from third parties, including demographic information and information that is publicly available. We may also combine this information with information from our affiliates. We may use that combined information to enhance and personalize your shopping experience with us, and to communicate with you in accordance with this policy.

Security

Protecting your privacy and your information is important to us. We have taken appropriate measures to prevent the loss, misuse, or alteration of your information. Our employees who have access to information collected on our Website are aware of our privacy policy. Your information is only accessible to those employees who need it in order to perform their job.

 

Email Communications

You may elect not to receive emails from us. If you did not opt out of our email program, we will use your email address to send you emails which may interest you. Emails will likely contain information regarding our products or offerings. To unsubscribe from these emails, click on the Contact Us link and send us an email letting us know who you are, and that you wish to “unsubscribe” from our mailing lists. Also, an unsubscribe link will appear at the end of each email we send you, and when you click on it you will be automatically unsubscribed from computer mailings.

Information Sharing

Your personal information will only be shared with third parties as permitted by our privacy policy. We do not rent, sell, or share your personal information with other people or nonaffiliated companies except to provide products or services you’ve requested, when we have your permission, or under the following circumstances: we provide the information to partners who work on our behalf or under confidentiality agreements (these companies may use your personal information to help us communicate with you about products and offers); we respond to subpoenas, court orders, or legal process, or to establish or exercise our legal rights or defend against legal claims; we may share information in order to investigate, prevent, or take action regarding illegal activities, suspected fraud, situations involving potential threats to the physical safety of any person, violations of our terms of use, or as otherwise required by law; we will transfer information about you if we are acquired by or if we merge with another company.

 

How to Access and Update User Information.

You may request to access and update your personally identifiable information by using the link located on navigation bar of our Website, which will take you to the “contact us” page and other areas of our Website where you may contact us directly with your request. We will attempt to provide you with reasonable access to any personally identifiable information you have provided to us within 30 days at no cost. If access cannot be provided within that timeframe, we will provide you with a date by which the information will be provided. If for some reason access is denied, we will provide an explanation as to why access has been denied. Changes To Our Privacy Policy If we make any material changes in our privacy practices, we will use reasonable efforts to post a notice on our Website notifying users that there has been a change, and we will use reasonable efforts to detail changes in the privacy policy area of our Website. We recommend you check our Website periodically for modifications to this policy. If we are going to use your personally identifiable information in a manner different from that stated at the time of collection through our Website, we will notify you via email.

Cookies

We may set and access cookies on your computer. We may also allow other companies that show advertisements on some of our Website pages to set and access their cookies on your computer. Other companies’ use of their cookies is subject to their own privacy policies, not this one. Advertisers or other companies do not have access to our cookies. We may use web beacons to access our cookies inside and outside our Website and in connection with our products and services.

 

Contact Us

We use email links located on the “contact us” page and other areas of our Website to allow you to contact us directly with any questions or comments you may have. We read every message sent in and will try to reply promptly if you request information or otherwise require a response. We may file your comments to improve our Website or our products, or we may review and discard the information.