Arroweye Solutions Introduces Innovative Consumer Personalization Technologies for Retailers

Business Wire, Nov 30, 2004

CHICAGO -- Personal Creations, Mrs. Fields and Omaha Steaks Among Customers Supporting Arroweye Personalized Products

Arroweye Solutions, a leader in innovative gifting strategies and customized communications for multi-channel retailers, today announces the newest advances made in personalization technologies for its suite of greeting and gift card products.

"Since its inception in 1998, Arroweye has been dedicated to individualizing the consumer experience through our patent pending greeting card personalization technology. The growing trend in customization of consumer products has created a unique opportunity for Arroweye's solutions to have a pervasive presence within multiple vertical retail markets," claims Jeffrey Keller, Arroweye's Chief Customer Officer.

Arroweye's business has expanded to include three product lines that allow the utmost in gift personalization: Greeting Card with a Gift(TM), fully hosted and Co-branded Online Greeting Card Shops, and its newest product -- Greeting-Gift Card(TM). Greeting-Gift Card is offered from Arroweye's consumer division, 4YourSoul.com and is ready just in time to make a big splash during the holiday retail season.

Greeting Card with a Gift

Greeting Card with a Gift is Arroweye's flagship product and is currently offered by popular consumer catalog and web retailers including Harry & David, Mrs. Fields, Omaha Steaks, Jackson & Perkins, Sundance Catalog, Wolferman's, The Popcorn Factory, Palm Beach Jewelry, and Personal Creations. Consumers shop the retailers' web site for gifts and place items in a shopping cart as they go. At checkout, consumers are offered the option to purchase a personalized greeting card with their gift purchases for an additional small fee of about $4.00. Consumers choosing this option click on a link, giving them access to a wide selection of greeting card designs, fonts and writing formats to help personalize their cards. Shoppers at full-service sites can maximize space by personalizing all four sides of the greeting card with uploaded digital photos and messages that can be short congratulatory notes or lengthy heartfelt letters.

According to Jim Paschal, Director of Online Marketing, Omaha Steaks, "Since partnering with Arroweye, 20% of our gift sales now include a personalized greeting card to accompany the items purchased. The Greeting Card with a Gift offering allows us to create additional value within our customers' gifting experiences, and build stronger, more personal customer relationships."

The personalized greeting cards are included in the total order, printed at the retailers' warehouses and enclosed in a single package with the other gift items ordered. The same process applies when ordering from a catalog via phone; the operators are trained to create the personalized greeting card as the customer dictates their message and greeting card choices.

Arroweye's advanced personalization technologies, on-demand printing and sophisticated greeting card matching techniques effortlessly meld with retailers' catalogs, websites and call center operations. The implementation and integration with existing processes and technologies is flexible, seamless and device and network independent. Arroweye provides the equipment, maintains the system and fully hosts the website interface.

"The greeting card and the gift are joined together in retailers' warehouses with ease, creating the perfect gifting experience" adds Jeffrey Keller.

Co-Branded Greeting Card Shop

Arroweye's fully hosted Co-Branded Greeting Card Shop is immediately available to open on a retailer's website to offer the same advanced personalization technology and on-demand printing delivered in Greeting Card with a Gift and Greeting-Gift Card. Shoppers can select from an assortment of designs and their customized greeting card goes straight to Arroweye's in-house, state-of-the-art digital production facility where it is developed and mailed.

Greeting-Gift Cards

The advent of the gift card has notoriously de-personalized gift-giving and has often been associated with less thoughtful, last-minute purchases. Arroweye, through its online greeting card shop 4YourSoul.com, has leveraged its greeting card customization technologies and applied them to plastic gift cards in time for the 2004 holiday season.

Consumers shopping online at Arroweye's gift card partner retailers, like Overstock.com, or in the ever-expanding gift card mall at 4YourSoul.com can purchase gift cards in the denominations of their choice and add them to their shopping cart with any other items. At checkout, customers then personalize not only the accompanying greeting card, but the actual gift card itself. Designs, fonts, personal photos and messages are completely customizable for both the greeting card and the gift card.

The Greeting-Gift Card solution easily integrates with existing partner websites and processes - all driven from Arroweye's market-tested consumer interface and fully hosted greeting card technology. Each greeting card and gift card is produced in one of Arroweye's secure, state-of-the-art digital production and fulfillment centers.