Sky Candle Co. Illuminates their Path to Success with Constant Contact

Sky Candle Co. owners Albert Feldman and Greg Dekermenjian, have a presence that radiates as much warmth and light as the candles they craft. They have truly found their calling in the candle business—a perfect extension of their sunny disposition. “We’ve always been obsessed with scents and scent creation,” said Albert.  

Sky Candle Co. is a clean, vegan, non-toxic fragrance company that focuses on candles, diffusers, and room sprays. Named affectionately after the owners’ beloved dog, Sky, Sky Candle Co. began as a side hustle that defied the odds by starting (and flourishing) during the COVID-19 pandemic.  

“The world shut down relatively quickly after our launch and we had to pivot. Our goal was to always have retail space and start our custom candle bar, but we pivoted to online and pop-up markets,” explained Albert. 

As their business began to flicker to life, Albert and Greg turned to Constant Contact to amplify their reach and share their business with the world. Since then, Sky Candle Co. has successfully built an engaged email list, created lasting connections with their customer base, and achieved their dream of opening a brick-and-mortar store. 

 “It was instrumental for us to have Constant Contact and to be able to connect with consumers.”

Building their network

Albert and Greg quickly realized email was key to maintaining the customer relationships they started at in-person markets and online. “Capturing leads and building our email list for our Constant Contact outreach is extremely important,” explained Albert.

As they built out their email list, they were able to connect with their customers between events by sending emails that highlighted new scents, offered exclusive promotions, and shared other important announcements. 

When Sky Candle Co. opened its first brick-and-mortar store on Labor Day in 2023, their email list became an even greater asset. Their email list allowed them to announce the store opening and helped them to drive foot traffic from day one.  Now, at checkout, they encourage in-store customers to sign up, effectively bridging the gap between their online presence and physical location. Shoppers remain engaged and connected to their brand, and their efforts have fostered a sense of belonging and loyalty in their customers, which has been crucial to their success and growth.  

“Without Constant Contact, we really wouldn’t have a means for reaching out to people. We could leverage Instagram, but in my opinion, it is really great for only conveying visuals. Without Constant Contact, I don’t think we’d be able to get our verbal message out there.”

To measure the success of their email campaigns, Sky Candle Co. analyzes the data provided by Constant Contact reporting tools. Greg monitors click-through rates and conversions, while Albert focuses on unsubscribe rates. This gives them insight into the type of information customers want to hear about and what the frequency and timing should be so they don’t overwhelm their audience.

Finding the words that resonate

Sky Candle Co. is constantly creating various types of email content, from new scent announcements and special offers to upcoming market popups and in-store events so their audience remains informed about their business.

As their audience grows, so does their need for creating content that captures attention. However, finding the right words to express what they are trying to say can be challenging and time-consuming. To help them create impactful content quickly, they use the AI content and subject line generator.

“We use the AI features to make sure what we’re saying is succinct and something that consumers respond well to. If our email subject line is too long, it will let us know and draft some suggestions.”

Using AI has given Greg and Albert the gift of time by streamlining their content creation process. This enables them to reach their audience with minimal time investment so they can get back to managing the multitude of other responsibilities they have.

“Finding the time to even sit down and send an email, make an Instagram reel, or post a TikTok is really difficult to come by. One of the things we have loved about Constant Contact is how easy the platform is and how intuitive it is to use. Literally within 30 seconds, I could send an email,” said Albert. “The last time we were doing a big sale on puzzles, I just logged on, used the AI feature, said ‘write email sale puzzle’ and generated something. Then I changed a few images and a few lines and sent it out to our customer base.”

Marketing worlds colliding

In addition to the AI tools, Greg and Albert rely on the Shopify and Canva integrations within Constant Contact to maximize efficiency in their workflows. “Constant Contact is our primary platform for outreach, and integrations just make everything really simple for businesses like us.”

To bolster digital sales, Sky Candle Co. uses the Shopify integration. This integration automatically grows their email list, creates customer segments, and provides insight into customer behavior patterns. It also allows them to create sales-ready emails by having their product listings available to easily place directly into their emails. 

“We use Shopify and it’s connected to our Constant Contact account, which is amazing. It’s saved us so much time,” said Albert.  “We also track the sales coming from marketing, from emails and social media, and I would say 22% of our sales over the last 30 days were attributed to marketing and that’s direct from our Shopify connection.”

Albert and Greg use Canva to design flyers, social media posts, and other digital collateral and use the Canva integration to easily access these assets within Constant Contact. With the Canva integration, they can quickly pull from a centralized library of on-brand media to ensure all their emails are aligned with their aesthetic and messaging. 

“Constant Contact just connects all our worlds into one platform. It makes it super easy on us.”

Showing Pride every day

As a proud LGBTQIA+ run business, the importance of community is woven into the very fabric of Sky Candle Co. Their identity is not just a facet of who they are but a core aspect of their values and operations. They are deeply committed to supporting the community that has been instrumental to their success. While their number one priority is their support of animal rescues, Sky Candle Co. actively donates private candle bar experiences to LGBTQIA+ causes and events. 

“Being part of the LGBTQIA+ community is what we’re proud of most. The LGBTQIA+ community was one of our first supporters — our first pop-up market was a gay bar with drag queens and to this day it is one of my most favorite events we’ve ever done,” said Albert. “We met so many incredible people and they still support our business. Feeling the support of the community has just been tremendous.”

Each year during Pride month, Sky Candle Co. launches a special Pride candle line, featuring Pride-themed packaging and exclusive scents. Additionally, they decorate their store with rainbow colors, transforming the space into a vivid celebration of Pride. 

Making dreams come true

The ability of Sky Candle Co. to not only open, but also thrive during a pandemic is a testament to the effectiveness of their marketing. With Constant Contact, they were able to foster deep relationships through consistent, meaningful outreach and audience engagement. This has been critical in developing the loyal customer base that has supported (and continues to support) them throughout their journey, including their dream of opening their first brick-and-mortar store.

“Our marketing has absolutely improved. Constant Contact has helped us really reach our consumers in a very smart and thoughtful way.”