Visionary Marketing Solutions From Around the World

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Why do we strive to create award-winning work? Industry recognition? A better portfolio? Or simply the desire to win?

Award shows are so ingrained in the marketing industry that it’s easy to forget why we created them in the first place: to challenge ourselves to do more. To inspire us. To show us that just on the outskirts of the everyday is the extraordinary.

In this issue of INCITE, Patrick Collister* shares seven ways that direct mail can win you awards. What do these campaigns have in common? Measurable results, emotional impact and the drive to elevate brands. As you read on, you’ll discover more inspiring campaigns that challenged the everyday – while delivering the unique experience that only direct mail can.

One supermarket chain mailed customers a recipe for rhubarb and ginger brûlée... then topped it off with a basket of the ingredients. Beyond innovative and delicious, this campaign sold 14 weeks’ worth of rhubarb in four days! Another example comes from a cat litter company that knew how to speak to their true audience – cats. To prove it, they sent out a mailer that had been sprayed with catnip. The result was a piece cats couldn’t resist, and a deal their owners couldn’t help but notice.

As you browse through the campaigns in this issue, remember that award-winning work isn’t about getting Gold. It’s about creating it.

The Gold Rush

*Views expressed by Patrick Collister are his own and do not reflect those of Canada Post and of Canada Post employees.

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Awards juries are constantly on the lookout for campaigns that are different, ideas that bend or even break the rules.

Now, while it is true to say that Cannes juries have not favoured direct mail recently, they will give Gold to anything which is genuinely innovative. So Grey Vancouver picked up a Gold Lion in 2010 with a brilliantly inventive mailing for sound design shop GGRP.

And that provides us with the first way to win an award.

1. Mailings that turn into something elseThe cardboard pack GGRP posted to agency creatives to promote their sound studio turned into a record player. You used a pencil to spin the disc, an embedded needle played the record and the cardboard packaging created a sound box to amplify it.

In 2012, Hakuhodo won Silver with “Animal Relief Pet House.” The boxes of relief supplies sent to the parts of Japan that had been devastated by earthquake doubled up as kennels and shelters for pets that had lost their owners and their homes.

Y&R Dubai also won Silver for Land Rover with an “Edible Survival Guide.” Because Land Rovers are cars for adventurers, in an emergency the guide transformed into food. The pages and the inks were edible and it had the same nutritional value as a cheeseburger. See the presentation on page 31.

2. Mailings that create an experienceThis also is transformation of a kind. For instance, serviceplan Munich won Silver with their “Austria Solar Annual Report.” Since Austria Solar represented all the solar energy suppliers in the country, to demonstrate the power of the sun, the annual report was blank unless read in direct sunlight when the UV rays made the ink visible.

Healthy City gym in Antwerp mailed people incorrectly addressed letters. They got a mailing addressed to their neighbours so they had to walk down the street to deliver it. Meanwhile, their neighbours were delivering them the same letter in return. What it said was: “We thought you needed some exercise. To get really fit, come to Health City for a free session.”

Sydney Cats and Dogs Home mailed potential cat owners a postcard covered in soft nylon fur you couldn’t help but stroke. The message read "It feels even better when it's a real cat."

3. Mailings you can watchAustralia Post now has QR stamps so you can make a short video, which the recipient of your letter or package can watch.

Of course, QR codes and other apps can turn any letter or leaflet into video. When Rapp L.A. helped launch the Toyota Camry in the USA, they estimated the mailing sold an additional 10,195 cars.

However, in asking themselves the question “How can we create a mailing people will watch?” DraftFCB Zürich came up with “The Fastest Christmas Card In The World” and won a Bronze Lion. This was a very badly drawn Christmas card. Inside there was a link to YouTube, where recipients could watch illustrator Gavin Patterson drawing the card as he was driven round a race track at 250 km/h alongside test driver Urs Inauen in a BMW M5. The card went to 5,000 BMW owners and the video has had nearly 600,000 views.

4. Rethink the envelopeDraftFCB Kobza, Vienna, had the clever idea of printing bars on the cellophane window of the envelope so when you pulled the letter out, you were helping Amnesty release a prisoner.

Elvis put two windows in the envelope for its client Eye-Level (see the presentation on page 37). And Ingo Woehlke Blinds illustrated their message on the back interior of the envelope so when you pulled out the letter, there it was understood, legible through the cellophane window.

Microsoft New Zealand wanted to show software sales staff that Windows breaks down the walls in customers’ lives. So they sent them a letter inside a concrete envelope.

Seven ways mail can win you awards

Patrick Collister,Editor of Directory

5. Can you use the stamp?In Germany, the stamps depicted famous politicians. Jung von Matt saw an opportunity for client lingerie manufacturer Gebrüder Mey and placed the stamps on top of the bodies of underwear models.

DraftFCB Vienna had the wonderful idea of making stamps that tasted of the Häagen-Dazs ice creams they depicted.

Lowe Roche invited supporters to use Canada Post’s Picture Postagetm to raise awareness of missing kids for Missing Children’s Network, and won Gold at the ADCC Awards. (See INCITE vol. 1.01.) Meanwhile, TBWA Johannesburg used stamps to raise awareness in China and Japan of the decimation of the rhino population as a result of poaching. And won a Silver at Cannes.

6. Your letter doesn’t have to be written on paperRoyal Mail sent a letter to 6,000 marketers written on chocolate; 13,000 claimed to have received it. It won Gold at The ECHO Awards.

Land Rover mailed journalists an invitation to see the new Land Rover 4 being unveiled. Since the car is made from aluminium, the mailing was printed on aluminium foil. The Deutscher Dialogmarketing Preis (DDP) award it won was Gold, though.

Volkswagen wanted to talk about the luxury interior of the Eos so they mailed prospects a letter written on the leather they use for the seats.

Renault wrote a letter on a car cloth to encourage you to apply online for a free car wash. If you didn’t take up the offer, you still got a free cloth.

Letters written on fine sandpaper showed the lengths Rolls-Royce go to in building a car, and letters written on Scottex kitchen towel demonstrated the strength of the absorbing paper. (See INCITE vol. 1.01 and 1.02.) Most brilliant of all, and deserving more than the Bronze it got at Cannes, Mudra Mumbai set out to demonstrate how natural Lass cosmetics are. They created a door-drop coupon which was die-cut from leaves. After 48 hours, the leaf shrivelled and became unusable.

7. What can you do that’s shareable?In some ways, mail is the original social medium. People do often keep a mailing for months or even years. The question is, how can you get them to talk about what you’ve sent them? How can you get them using social media to amplify the message?

Well, you have to be creative.

When UNICEF wanted to raise funds to rehabilitate child soldiers in southern Africa, their mailing of a bag of plastic figures (like toy soldiers but actually just kids playing) reached a million people when images of it were posted on some 15,000 sites and blogs. (See INCITE vol. 1.02.)

Belgian Colon Cancer charity Stop Darmkanker wrote to Brad Pitt, sending him a cancer detection kit, and used social media to get him to respond. More than five million people got to learn about the idea and check themselves for colon cancer.

In conclusionNow, if you are one of those who believe that the advertising industry’s obsession with creative awards is unhealthy, I would agree.

However, I would argue that, on the whole, work that wins awards also wins customers and drives sales. While there is no easy correlation between commercial success and industry recognition, James Hurman made a good case for it in his book The Case for Creativity.

What most people want from a direct mailing is to discover from it something new, interesting and relevant to them. To use the buzzword of the moment, they want to be engaged.

As indeed do awards jurors.

So, please, don’t think of these as seven tips to help you acquire new and interesting doorstops or bookends but as seven tips to help you double, triple or even quadruple the response rates you might ordinarily get from a mailshot.

Picture PostageTM is a trademark of Canada Post Corporation.

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Australia AMP 1

Belgium Belgacom 3

CanadaRogers Rocket Hub 5Canadian Tourism Commission 7Bulk Cat Litter Warehouse 9

Czech Republic HEEX 11

FranceMaeva 13

GermanyFiskars 15Galeria Kaufhof 17

New ZealandBond + Bond 19New Zealand Post 21

Saudi ArabiaMasa Pest Control 23

South AfricaSC Johnson Raid 25Spier Wine Farm 27

SwedenLangley Travel 29

United Arab EmiratesLand Rover 31

United KingdomVolvo 33Tesco 35Eye-Level Opticians 37Waitrose 39

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AgencyCUBED Communications

ClientAMP

ProductFinancial Planning Services

TitleHelping Hand

CountryAustralia

BackgroundAMP was having difficulty getting tradespeople to think about their pensions. Most of them were preoccupied with the day-to-day running of their businesses and didn’t have the time to worry about something as far off as retirement.

The bank wanted to overcome the apathy and give recipients a real reason to get in touch with a financial advisor.

IdeaTradespeople and financial advisors have something in common: they both offer professional advice. Constructing your own retirement plan is like undertaking a DIY job: you’ll never do it as well as a professional, and there is a good chance you could mess it up.

Sending a traditional letter in an envelope seemed rather delicate and conventional for the target audience. So, tradespeople were mailed the left hand of a pair of work gloves.

If the recipient did drop in to see their AMP financial planner, not only did they receive good advice – they also got the matching right-hand glove.

ResultsAMP wanted 5% of the recipients to respond to the piece and set up an appointment with their financial advisor. With only 600 mailers being sent, this would generate 30 appointments and 30 opportunities for the bank to sell the Flexible Lifetime Super Easy fund.

The Helping Hand campaign generated a 7.16% response rate, delivering 43 new prospects to AMP financial planners.

InsightsWho says an envelope has to be white and oblong? The great thing about mail is it has so many so-called rules, all of which can be broken.

In a side-by-side comparison between a white standard envelope and a single glove, which do you think looks more interesting? Which would make the recipient feel more valued?

Mail can be any shape and size you want it to be. People have stuck stamps on pumpkins, coconuts and all sorts of objects, and the letter carrier has delivered them all.

CREATIvE TEAMCreative DirectorDave Scott

Associate Creative DirectorKate Lightfoot

Art DirectorDave Scott

CopywriterKate Lightfoot

PRoDUCTIoN Production ManagerBrendan Hanrahan

AgencyFamous

ClientBelgacom

ProductPay-Per-View Digital TV Soccer Channel

TitleCoaches vs. Boring Soccer, 1-0

CountryBelgium

BackgroundBelgacom, Belgium’s number one telecom provider, had just bought the broadcasting rights to the Belgian First Division soccer league for €132 million (CAN$200 million) over three years. It wanted to sell subscriptions to its soccer channel to fans.

However, there was a problem. Belgian soccer had become defensive and boring, so why would anyone spend money watching it?

IdeaThe coaches of all 18 First Division clubs were invited to come together at an event to sign a charter promising the fans their teams would start to play attractive, spectacular and attacking soccer.

When all 18 came to the event, the Belgian press was there to cover the story, starting a discussion about the future of Belgian soccer. Fans picked up the message online. Then, a few days later, 100,000 of them received their personal copy of the charter with a brochure, which explained that they should now subscribe “because the coaches have promised attacking football.”

ResultsSubscriptions to Belgacom’s soccer channel increased by 17%. The coaches also kept their promise: 102 goals were scored in the first 34 games, an average of three goals per game. Discussion among football fans still continues (“Your team doesn’t play according to the charter”), showing that the campaign not only boosted Belgacom sales, but also Belgian soccer.

InsightsVery often, an idea like this would die at the first presentation. But, having spent CAN$200 million on the broadcasting rights, Belgacom was in a position of power. Many fans would have been skeptical of the pledge until the mailing landed in their mailboxes. That’s the part of the campaign that would have made the coaches’ commitment become believable. It was also the bit which drove conversion.

If you want proof that mail can lead to really serious increases to bottom-line profits, an increase in subscriptions of 17% provides it. And if you want proof that creativity directly leads to exceptional results, then this agency has provided it.

CREATIvE TEAMCreative DirectorsJohan VerestLaurent Van Loon

Art DirectorJohan Smeyers

CopywriterFrederik Clarysse

PRoDUCTIoNProduction ManagerMarja Donkers

oThERAccount ManagerAnneke Verbelen

PR officersInge Van Der HaegenGoedele Soetemans

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The 18 coaches of all of Belgium’s First Division football clubs were called to a press conference.

In front of the press, they signed a pledge to get their teams to play more attractive soccer in the new season.

A few days later, the subject was still very much a hot topic in social media and in the news, so fans were sent a copy of the charter and were invited to subscribe to Belgacom’s soccer channel.

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AgencyProximity Canada

ClientRogers Rocket Hub

ProductWireless Hi-Speed Internet

TitleMosquito Netting

CountryCanada

BackgroundWinnipeg has the largest population of cottage owners in Canada per capita. And Winnipeggers love their internet as much as they love their cottages. But, they’ve never been able to enjoy both at the same time, since cottage country is too remote to offer traditional internet. The Rogers Rocket Hub offered a great solution for wireless hi-speed internet, but there was very little awareness of either the brand or the product among cottagers.

To tackle both problems, Winnipeggers were targeted with direct mail just before the first long weekend of cottage season.

IdeaManitoba is known as the “mosquito capital of Canada.” Winnipeggers even jokingly refer to the mosquito as their provincial bird. So, when Winnipeggers received a self-mailer wrapped in real mosquito netting, it immediately piqued their curiosity. The message, “Going to the cottage? Don’t forget to pack the net.” was a bit of wordplay they understood immediately.

It helped that on the very day of the mail drop, local media reported a record explosion of mosquitoes in the province. In this case, adding serendipity to a brilliant idea helped results exceed all expectations.

ResultsCompared to the previous communication, this campaign’s call volume shot up by 200%, and the netting piece surpassed the control piece in market at exactly the same time by 50%. Impressive!

InsightsPersonalization is more than being able to laser people’s names onto a brochure, an envelope or a leaflet. It’s about understanding what people’s personal motivations are all about. And if a mailing can talk directly to Winnipeggers about something they believe describes their unique situation, you can be sure it’ll get their undivided attention.

This could so easily have been just another ordinary mailing that talked about technology or about Rogers, but obviously it wouldn’t have been so successful. Because it talked about a local problem – in a local dialect if you like – it was relevant, memorable and netted a lot of new customers.

CREATIvE TEAMSvP, Creative DirectorScott Pinkney

Creative DirectorTrent Thompson

Associate Creative DirectorDan Gaede

Art DirectorJamie Lirette

CopywriterGraham Mutch

PRoDUCTIoN

Senior Print Production ManagerEllie Lee

oThER

vP, Group Account DirectorDiana Brink-Gourlay

Account SupervisorMegan Epstein

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AgencyRapp Toronto

ClientCanadian Tourism Commission

ProductBusiness Tourism

TitleCome to Canada. Ask for Steve.

CountryCanada

BackgroundConference and meeting organizers in the U.S. needed to know there was more to Canada than moose and Mounties and that it was a destination where their events would go off flawlessly.

Because organizers have to be able to plan events down to the last detail, they like to feel they are in the know.

IdeaInsider information can come only from an insider. Steve was positioned as a nice guy who could give the target audience the answers to anything and everything they wanted to know about Canada.

The integrated campaign was launched with a teaser mailing designed to stand out from the usual direct mail pieces. It was a three-dimensional crate containing “Steve” himself, along with “The Book of Steve,” a Bible on all things Canadian. The book was full of interesting information about Canada to give event planners a different perspective on their neighbouring country.

ResultsWithin a month of the mailing, website hits had increased by 35%, and overall traffic held at levels above those seen before the campaign launch.

The campaign received many comments, including this from one American planner: “As a marketing professional, this promotion is outstanding! Steve really grabbed my attention and ‘The Book of Steve’ is graphically well done and presents the information about your various Canadian locations in an excellent format.”

InsightsIt doesn’t take a lot to get real results. An overall increase of traffic to the website would undoubtedly have led to an overall increase in trips to Canada booked. Real money attaches itself to interesting ideas. All you have to do is set out to be a little bit different from everyone else in your market. Add a little bit of self-deprecating wit (Steve is almost ridiculously nice!), throw in some attention to detail and you have success on your hands. Why don’t more advertisers try it?

CREATIvE TEAMvP, Creative DirectorShelley Sutherland

Associate Creative DirectorMary Lynn Lalonde

Senior Art DirectorItalo Siciliano

PRoDUCTIoN Director of Print & Graphics ServicesRose-Ella Morrisson

oThERGroup Account DirectorElizabeth Marshall

Account ExecutiveLeslie Smith

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AgencyRethink

ClientBulk Cat Litter Warehouse

ProductCat Litter

TitleCatnip

CountryCanada

BackgroundBulk Cat Litter Warehouse needed an innovative direct mail flyer that would be noticed. To increase the odds for the mailer, Rethink decided to reach the true target audience: cats.

Idea Owners were targeted through their cats, by receiving a mailing on paper that had been prepared with catnip, a natural feline attractant. When the cats smelled a good deal, so did their owners.

ResultsNot known yet.

InsightsMail is the only advertising medium that appeals to all five senses – including smell. One director of Royal Mail in the U.K. made sure his business cards all smelled of strawberry so he could make the point whenever he met potential customers.

This idea, though, has an added element of genius in that human beings in every home targeted were the secondary target audience. Their cats were the primary audience.

Because it’s such a funny idea, it went viral. The original mailing went to 500 people, but the story has been taken up by many websites and the video has now reached 350,000 views. The client must be purring.

CREATIvE TEAMCreative DirectorsChris StaplesIan Grais

Art DirectorLeia Rogers

DesignerLisa Nakamura

CopywriterBob Simpson

PRoDUCTIoN Content StrategistLeah Gregg

EditorChris Neilson

oThER Account ManagerMarie Lunny

How do you get people to look at a mailer about a low-interest product like cat litter?

You print it on paper sprayed with catnip.

When your cat starts reading the mail, you want to know why.

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AgencyProximity Prague

ClientHEEX

ProductFashion Apparel

TitleHeex – Discover The Design And Quality

CountryCzech Republic

BackgroundHEEX was a new fashion brand looking to establish itself in the Czech Republic. There, as in most other countries, even the more upmarket fashion labels relied on mass production. HEEX needed to let fashion distributors and retailers know exactly how dedicated and how unique they were in order to be able to get a foot in the market.

Idea The strategy was to get in touch with HEEX’s core target audience through a mailing that would, in itself, describe and explain the brand’s unique positioning of “handmade in a mass-produced world.” Rather than just talk about HEEX, the piece had to show the brand’s obsession with design and quality.

Working with Radka Kubkova, one of HEEX’s designers, a mailing was created using high-quality fabrics. Every detail was carefully handcrafted, underlining the brand’s dedication to quality. The letter was printed on a special high-quality paper. It explained what HEEX was doing and asked for a face-to-face meeting.

Results97% of the target group recognized and remembered the mailing after it had been sent. In addition, 11.6% of the recipients contacted HEEX for a meeting within seven days of delivery. The design package proved to be a great conversation starter.

InsightsThe envelope, or the “outer,” has a big role to play in the success of any direct mail campaign. It is the window display of the idea. And as you can see from this piece, no one knows more about store fronts than the fashion business.

This isn’t so much an envelope as a package. But the attention to detail is what says more about HEEX than any amount of copy ever can. Notice the pink stitching out of black, the tiny label on the zipper... This is brand communication of a high order as well as a great personalized mailing.

CREATIvE TEAMCreative DirectorPavel Stanek

Art DirectorOndrej Vala

CopywriterKristián Hloušek

DesignerRadka Kubková

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AgencyProximity BBDO, Paris

ClientMaeva

ProductVacations

TitleGet Away From It All

CountryFrance

BackgroundThe problem with selling vacations is that every travel company is competing for attention at the exact same time – December and January, when people are making plans for the summer ahead.

Maeva wanted to generate traffic to its website and enquiries to its call centre. The company also wanted to create impact and raise the brand’s profile.

Idea The agency took the idea of “escape” and executed it almost literally.

Anyone who has ever been to the movies knows that prisoners invariably break out of jail by knotting together their sheets and making a rope they can climb down. The mailing used similarly knotted pieces of white fabric. Often, the recipients would see only the knotted cloth dangling from their mailboxes like a miniature escape rope.

ResultsThe client does not wish these to be published.

InsightsIn such a competitive market as vacation travel, it’s not what you say that differentiates you but how you say it. In Northern Europe, while every travel company talks to us in winter about escaping from the gloom, what Maeva did was to make many of its target audience laugh out loud. And what more direct response is there to a mailing than a smile or a chuckle?

The knotted rope does not just communicate escape vividly – it communicates it with warmth. And that could be a more powerful differentiator than any claim about reliability or price.

CREATIvE TEAMCreative DirectorBruno Moreira

Art DirectorStephane Sitter

CopywriterDelphine Benveniste

A mailing that attracts attention before you’ve even opened your mailbox.

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AgencyHeye & Partner GmbH

ClientFiskars

ProductSilhouette Scissors

TitleFiskars Silhouette Mailing

CountryGermany

BackgroundFiskars is a global supplier of consumer products for the home, garden and outdoors. Finland’s oldest company is best known for the high-quality orange scissors it hasbeen manufacturing since 1967.

The company wanted to remind purchasing managers and owners of hardware stores and chains that Fiskars scissors are a cut above the rest.

Idea To demonstrate that Fiskars scissors have premium-quality cutting edges and can handle even the most delicate of tasks, the letter itself was a cut-out made with the product. A cut-out coupon was included in the mailing, as well as a free pair of scissors.

The 100 traders who received the direct mail piece could see for themselves the sort of results their customers could expect from Fiskars scissors.

ResultsThe objective was for a 25% response rate. Following the mailing, 53 of the 100 recipients responded, ordering over 1,000 additional pairs of scissors. This represented a 19% increase in sales compared to the previous month.

In convincing customers of the quality of Fiskars products, the company was able to invest in expanding its range of precision scissors.

InsightsThis is a mailing with a long tail. These customers will keep buying scissors from Fiskars, so the ROI will continue to expand – perhaps for years.

Some direct marketers just want wham-bam-thank-you-ma’am projects that open and shut in a matter of weeks. However, mail pieces that are purely and simply transactional, built around some lure such as money off or an incentive, miss the mark.

Indeed, mail can deliver as much of an emotional response as a rational one – in this case, something along the lines of “wow!” This is a letter, yes; but more than that, it is a beautiful object, which many recipients would keep on their desk for months and talk about for even longer.

Any way you cut it, direct mail has a longer shelf life than pretty much any other medium. It’s worth remembering this.

CREATIvE TEAMArt DirectorsAndy ZammerKonstanze Schoeffl

CopywritersThomas WinklbauerBenita Buchholzer

PRoDUCTIoN Alexander Birner

oThER Account ExecutiveMartin Winter

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AgencyJahns and Friends

ClientGaleria Kaufhof

ProductDepartment Store

TitleDiscover Autumn

CountryGermany

BackgroundGaleria Kaufhof is one of the leading department store chains in Germany. Its best customers spend heavily at Christmas and at Easter, but could they be persuaded to “shop ’til they drop” at another time of year? The beginning of fall, for instance?

Whatever the creative idea, a booklet of vouchers and entry into a sweepstake were considered mandatory.

Idea The 3,000 top customers of Galeria Kaufhof were invited to remember the fall seasons they had enjoyed so much when they were young. They were mailed a handicraft kit and an invitation to rediscover their childhood by taking a leisurely walk out into the woods and fields to collect some chestnuts. Then they were asked to use the kit to turn their chestnuts into little figures, just as they used to do.

Letter, voucher booklet, contest card and reply envelope completed the mailing.

ResultsThe performance of the campaign was outstanding: 96% of the target group visited Galeria Kaufhof after the mailing, their shopping generated a six-figure turnover, and 68% of the vouchers were cashed in.

The photo contest added to the success. Many letters were received not just with photos of the customers’ chestnut figures, but with emotional expressions of thanks.

InsightsIt was the poet Wordsworth who said, “The child is the father of the man” and here’s further evidence of that human truth. We are all kids at heart. And if a brand can help people reconnect with their lost youth, then they can (a) establish a powerful emotional connection, which in turn leads to (b) bottom-line success.

Mail is often used to appeal to the rational side of the recipient. There is a money-off voucher and urgent copy explaining bullet point by bullet point what the offer means in terms of savings – but often, as Galeria Kaufhof have shown, the quickest way to the wallet is through the heart, not the head.

CREATIvE TEAMArt DirectorAndreas Gappel

CopywriterSarah Bug

oThERAccount DirectorWiebke Wallerstein

AgencyDraftFCB New Zealand

ClientBond + Bond

ProductRetail Deals

TitleStocking Head

CountryNew Zealand

BackgroundJanuary is the toughest month of the year in New Zealand for an electronics and household appliance retailer like Bond + Bond. No one has any money left after Christmas, and no one is shopping for big household items.

Idea To make the offer cut through the catalogue clutter, the mailing was shoved in a nylon stocking, and customers were invited to “rob” the stores.

ResultsCompared to the control group, recipients of this direct mail piece spent 504% more in-store, with an average spend of $318 per person as opposed to $63.

InsightsIf you’re trying to grab people’s attention, this is how to do it. Of all the pieces of mail that end up in your mailbox, which one are you most likely to notice? The dull, white envelope with some coaxing on the outside or the pack wrapped in a nylon stocking?

The envelope is an advertising medium in its own right. It can do more than just stimulate interest; it can announce and deliver the message in a way that is punchy and fun. This well-thought-out mailing succeeds on every level. No wonder it worked for Bond + Bond.

CREATIvE TEAMExecutive Creative DirectorJames Mok

Creative DirectorsTony ClewettSimon Shattky

Art DirectorLeisa Wall

CopywriterJane Jamieson

PRoDUCTIoNManagerMason Clarke

oThERAccount DirectorsNatalie LoweBrodie Lawry

one-to-one StrategistMelissa Forrest

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AgencySaatchi & Saatchi DGS New Zealand

ClientNew Zealand Post

ProductTargeted Communications

TitlePersonalized Stamps

CountryNew Zealand

BackgroundNew Zealand Post wanted to maximize its sponsorship of the Advertising Effectiveness Awards (the Effies) by demonstrating the effectiveness of personalized mail. The problem is, DM is rarely the top-of-mind medium for effectiveness and, indeed, the awards themselves were dominated by the broadcast media channels. Rather than competing, the plan was to create a highly personalized follow-up to the event.

Idea It’s you – on a stamp! The awards night was an opportunity for everyone to look their best. So a top portrait photographer was hired to take photographs of all the top creative directors and marketing directors who were at the awards night. Each of those photos was then turned into a sheet of personalized stamps, which were mailed as a total surprise within days of the awards.

ResultsThe results were overwhelmingly positive. Our client was inundated with positive emails and requests for reprints of the stamps. The competition element that encouraged recipients to use one of their stamps received a 20% response rate. More than one creative director was so impressed he began tweeting about what he’d just received in the mail.

InsightsWhen you are a postal service, one of your key target audiences is also one of the toughest, most cynical target audiences of them all. You.

People in advertising. Creative directors. How do you get people who would much rather shoot a commercial to consider mail in their campaign plans? Well, here’s how. By demonstrating how powerful personalization can be. And by demonstrating that mail is as capable of creating surprise and delight as any media you can think of.

C’mon, be honest. Wouldn’t you love to see yourself on a stamp?

CREATIvE TEAMCreative DirectorMatt Shirtcliffe

Senior Art DirectorJeff Harris

Art DirectorArnya Karaitiana

CopywriterMatt Shirtcliffe

PRoDUCTIoNProduction ManagerHeath Davis

oThERSenior Account ManagerAlex Hamilton

Manager, Market Engagement & CapabilityFiona Woolley

A couple of days after you’d been to the New Zealand Effies Awards, you received a pack.

You can’t make mail more personalized than this, sending people stamps of themselves – which, incidentally, could be used to put on a letter home. "Look, Mom, I’m a stamp."

Inside was a sheet of stamps bearing the portrait of someone you recognized.

You!

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AgencyTBWA\RAAD Saudi Arabia

ClientMasa Pest Control

ProductPest Control Services

TitleMiniature Magazine

CountrySaudi Arabia

BackgroundMasa wished to broaden its customer base and promote its services among the expatriate population living in Saudi Arabia, educating them on the importance of maintaining a rodent-free environment in residential compounds.

Idea Sharing space with strangers is not appealing – especially when these strangers are rodents. To dramatize the fact that many recipients actually would have rats and mice living parallel lives alongside them, they were mailed Hole Décor and Rat’s Health, miniature magazines addressed to the rodents. A tiny card inside the magazine explained: “Rats can take over your house before you even know it. Call Masa pest control.”

ResultsThe idea generated a response of over 20% more calls in the first two weeks. Moreover, people were so amused by the idea that many requested additional copies of the mailer for their friends.

InsightsMiniaturizing is not new, nor is the idea of addressing a tiny mailer to someone other than the householder. In fact, on the following spread you can see DraftFCB Johannesburg’s minuscule eviction notes addressed to the mosquitoes of the house (which won Cannes Gold, by the way).

But as well as a good idea, you need great execution. It is the craft skills of this piece which make it so effective. The attention to detail in both copy and art direction makes the joke of a parallel “mouseworld” enjoyable and memorable. In a number of instances, the recipients would have kept the mailing for months, even longer perhaps. Great ideas in mail can get more than their 15 minutes of fame.

CREATIvE TEAMCreative DirectorSaadi Alkouatli

Art DirectorNamood-e-Saher

CopywriterWalid Kotb

PRoDUCTIoNProduction ManagerSeraj Babad

Senior Graphic DesignerAkram Al Amoudi

oThERAccount ExecutiveZeina Tabbara

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AgencyDraftFCB Johannesburg

ClientSC Johnson

ProductRaid Insect Killer

TitleEviction Notices

CountrySouth Africa

BackgroundRaid insecticide had been dropping in sales and top-of-mind awareness. As competitors generally advertised on television and in print media, and with budgets being limited, client and agency decided on a very different approach.

Idea SC Johnson had an existing database that made direct mail a cost-effective solution to what was essentially a brand-building problem.

Intriguing miniature envelopes were sent out addressed to the pests of the home – cockroaches, mosquitoes, spiders and ants. Designed to stand out in the mailbox, each mailing was an eviction notice to inform pests that their presence would no longer be tolerated. The Raid logo was displayed on the letter with the payoff line “Kills Bugs Dead.”

ResultsA test distribution drop to measure the effectiveness of the idea was carried out, then followed up with visits to homes that had received the mailer. The response was very positive and based on the positive tracking, the client was keen to extend the campaign.

InsightsIt is understandable when marketers like to keep the real results of a campaign to themselves. This was a test of mail versus TV and, reading between the lines, it seems that mail won.

Direct mail is often regarded as purely transactional, a hard-sell medium. But this charming (and Cannes-winning) idea shows it can be as effective in building and maintaining brand equity as any other media.

CREATIvE TEAMExecutive Creative DirectorBrett Morris

Creative DirectorCatherine Thomson

Art DirectorVidette Kay

IllustratorKarien Van Niekerk

CopywriterLauren Shewitz

PRoDUCTIoNGrant Wood

oThERClient ServicesJackie Van Zyl

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AgencyJoe Public Johannesburg

ClientSpier Wine Farm

ProductSpier Wines

TitleThe Last Telegram

CountrySouth Africa

BackgroundFor more than five years, Spier Wine Farm had positioned its products as representing the “art in wine.” As such, the brand’s advertising had been showcasing wine itself, the actual liquid, as art.

Spier is more than a vineyard; it's a cultural centre in the Cape winelands, created around the idea that art has the power to help transform South Africa. So there are artworks all over the winery and the adjoining hotel.

Idea In keeping with this positioning, Joe Public developed the Spier Liquid on Canvas Challenge, a promotional campaign to drive in-store activity. Artists were invited to create works of art, using actual Spier wines as their medium, and various in-store elements generated from this art prompted consumers to enter a competition.

This interactive mailer was sent out to the trade as well as the media to inform them of the Spier Liquid on Canvas Challenge. It took the form of a paint set complete with a blank canvas, brush and four paint tubes which were actually filled with four different varietals of Spier wines. Recipients could use their set to turn wine into art. A brochure, also printed on canvas, explained the thinking and the mechanics of the promotion and introduced the various artists to the trade.

ResultsThe Spier Liquid on Canvas Challenge enjoyed great success in terms of a significant boost to Spier in-store sales throughout the country. The campaign also won awards for creative excellence.

InsightsThe value of mail in an integrated campaign is in helping the idea reach journalists and other opinion-formers who can give it a real boost by writing about it.

But to get talked about, the idea has to be interesting. Journalists are more cynical than most, so, to really work well, the idea has to be exceptionally interesting.

The power of direct mail is in being able to overcome the barriers of indifference and resistance in a way other media simply can’t. No idea in print, TV or online could get people playing with the product as this campaign did.

CREATIvE TEAMCreative DirectorLiezl-Mari Long

Art DirectorsLiezl-Mari LongSteve Anderson

CopywritersLucas van VuurenBrendan Hoffmann

PRoDUCTIoNProduction ManagerMichelle Carr

29 30

AgencyGoss Gothenburg

ClientLangley Travel

ProductSki Trips to Japan

TitleDestination Japan

CountrySweden

BackgroundLangley Travel, a Swedish travel agency, had a widespread reputation as “the skier’s travel agency” in the Nordic countries because they specialized in trips for winter sports enthusiasts.

Every year they added new exciting destinations for skiers to gear up in places such as Siberia, Iran and Kashmir. This particular year, they were offering ski trips to Japan.

Idea The purpose of the mailing was to strengthen Langley’s position as “the skier’s travel agency” and to sell the trips to Japan.

A pair of chopsticks in a miniature ski case was mailed out to dedicated skiers who had travelled with Langley before on one of their more exotic holidays. Niseko, the name of the ski resort, and a phone number to call to make a booking were engraved on the chopsticks.

Could anything else have said “skiing in Japan” so succinctly?

ResultsLangley was snowed under: virtually every one of the places on the trip was booked within two weeks. The campaign also created a tremendous buzz, greatly enhancing the perception of Langley as the skiers’ travel agency.

InsightsWit and charm are not essential ingredients to a creative idea, but they can help make an impression, which in turn helps trigger a decision.

A laugh or a smile is about the most direct response you can get from a mailing. Psychologists say that when you are provoked into laughter, it sets up a series of expectations about the brand which are all entirely favourable. Not only do you enjoy and appreciate the moment but the brain starts looking out for the brand in the hope of more pleasant experiences.

So, what makes this idea brilliant brand advertising as well as successful direct marketing? Its humour.

CREATIvE TEAMArt DirectorsMattias Frendberg,Mimmi Andersson, Emil Jonsson, Gunnar Skarland, Jan Eneroth

CopywritersMichael Schultz, Ulrika Good, Elisabeth Berlander, Jesper Mossberg

DesignersLena Björklund Henriksson,Louise Christiansson,Elin Andreasson

Web DesignerRobert German

oThERAccount SupervisorsStig Lundstedt, Johan Good, Fredrik Toreskog

Account ManagersMonica N. Persson, Lena Kling, Karolina Mindhammar

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AgencyY&R Dubai

ClientLand Rover

ProductLand Rover

TitleEdible Desert Survival Guide

CountryUnited Arab Emirates

BackgroundLand Rovers can take on any obstacles in the desert; their owners can’t.

Idea The survival guide explained the basics for staying alive in the Arabian desert. In an emergency, people could always EAT the book since it was made of edible ink and paper and had a nutritional value close to that of a cheeseburger. Also, its reflective packaging, similar to army rations, could be used to signal for help.

ResultsMailed to 5,000 existing customers, the survival guide’s initial response was so positive that Land Rover included the book as an insert in the next issue of a car magazine with a circulation of 70,000.

InsightsThere have been several instances lately of mail you can eat, not the least of which is Gerstenberg’s “book” made of pasta, which you could cook. That was more of a media stunt than a serious example of direct mail, whereas the Edible Desert Survival Guide is a genuinely clever piece of communication. For starters, it is a retention piece, helping build loyalty to the Land Rover brand. Plus, it’s a wonderful reaffirmation of what Land Rovers are (tough and rugged) and why people buy them – because they like to think they are adventurers, even if they aren’t.

Most clients spend all their money on trying to acquire new customers. How refreshing to see a company spending money on trying to keep them.

CREATIvE TEAMChief Creative officerShahir Zag

Creative Director/CopywriterShahir Zag

Creative Director/Art Director/IllustratorJoseph Bihag

CopywriterGuillaume Calmelet

PRoDUCTIoNhead of ProductionAmin Soltani

ProducerLeng Panganiban

RetoucherGitten Tom

oThERAccount SupervisorSarah Locke

Account ManagerPierre Farra

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AgencyEHS 4D Cirencester

ClientVolvo

ProductWinter Tires

TitleVolvo Winter Tire Campaign

CountryUnited Kingdom

BackgroundAs winter was approaching, Volvo wanted to sell its customers special winter tires. The problem was, while it is standard procedure in Scandinavia to switch to winter tires before the snow and ice arrive, it was not seen as essential in the U.K. Compounding the issue was that Volvo drivers had to be persuaded to switch without feeling their Volvo might be unsafe without winter treads.

Idea On a snow-covered road, winter tires can reduce braking distance by up to 11 metres at just 30 km/h. This fact led straight to the message: “When everything else slips, you won’t.”

The mailing to dealers dramatized what could happen if the letter copy slipped off the side of the paper. The piece mailed to Volvo owners dramatized the extra braking distance not having winter tires would mean with an extra long roll-fold leaflet.

Online, the email was 11 metres long, and readers were encouraged to scroll down and down and down until they arrived at the shocking figure. Press advertising took a different approach with fake ads next to the winter tire ad, into which a car without winter tires had slipped.

ResultsThe objective to sell 2,000 tires was met within a month. A further 1,000 tires were sold the second month. The campaign surpassed all its targets by almost £240,000 (CAN$445,000) and Volvo sold out of winter tires.

InsightsMail has become so unfashionable in agencies that the creative director of EHS 4D was amazed when this campaign began to win awards around the world. No Golds it’s true, but most creative people would be pretty happy with a Bronze Lion.

Fortunately, juries can still recognize a good idea when they see one, and this campaign was remarkably simple as well as remarkably persuasive. Simply sliding copy across a letter, across a poster and across a print ad turned out to be a strong visual metaphor for a car sliding in snow. Easy.

In 2013, direct mail earned one Gold, one Silver and several Bronzes at Cannes. Only a couple of years earlier, Grey Vancouver won Gold for “Cardboard Record Player” for GGRP. It’s a category ripe for the plucking. All you need is an idea.

CREATIvE TEAMExecutive Creative DirectorFrazer Howard

CreativesTim WalthoPhil MoorePhil HallDan HanksTarik Ali

oThERAccount Team Emma RogersSam Tredgett

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AgencyEHS Brann

ClientTesco

ProductTesco Clubcard Win Back Campaign

TitleTill No. 4

CountryUnited Kingdom

BackgroundThe Clubcard database had enabled Tesco to identify high-spending customers who, over a six-month period, had been gradually spending less in-store and eventually stopped shopping. The data enabled Tesco to target customers who had remained inactive for three months to encourage them back to Tesco.

However, the approach had to be sufficiently light touch to transform how the recipients felt about Tesco. They needed to feel they were being addressed personally and that the retailer very much wanted them to return to their stores.

Idea 9,000 customers were sent a personal message on a receipt from their local cash register, “Till No. 4.” They were told how much they were missed and would they please come back to make use of the attached discount coupon.

When they did return, the cash register recognized them and promptly issued another message on their receipt, saying: ‘‘Hurrah! You’re back! We missed you.” It also issued them with another coupon, thus ensuring a repeat visit.

ResultsThis execution was a massive departure for Tesco. Sending a cash register receipt with a personalized message enclosed within an unbranded envelope was seen as something of a gamble. But it paid off and what had started as a test was then rolled out nationally.

Overall, there was a 56% redemption rate across the two offers (£5 off and £10 off coupons), generating a £123,023 (CAN$228,000) uplift in sales in the first 12 weeks of the campaign alone.

InsightsThe story of the Tesco Clubcard is one of the great case studies of the transformative power of direct marketing. Scoring Points: How Tesco Continues to Win Customer Loyalty, written by Clive Hunby and Terry Hunt – the “H” in agency EHS – is fascinating. Terry, a spectacular award-winning writer and creative director, explains that he became a data junkie because the numbers really can provide the insights that change everything.

Just look at this simple case study. Tesco could identify by name, address and store 9,000 customers who had been in the habit of spending over $1,500 a month, but who had stopped. When you have such detail, it is almost impossible not to have a more interesting creative idea than if you are talking generalities to mass audiences. Data gave Tesco the chance to talk about specifics rather than about generalities and for creative people, that means greater creative opportunity.

CREATIvE TEAMCreative Director/Copywriter/ Art DirectorNigel Clifton

oThERAccount DirectorAnna Dobson

37 38

AgencyElvis London

ClientEye-Level Opticians

ProductEye Exam Services

TitleEyes Envelope

CountryUnited Kingdom

BackgroundMany retail opticians offer free eye exams as an incentive to buy eyewear in-store. But they are often large chains where the tests are impersonal and the staff cold.

Eye-Level saw that in getting their customers to return for a check-up, there was also an opportunity to develop a deeper relationship.

Idea With an eye on a limited budget, the agency had to work hard to make the mailing noticeable as well as to prompt recipients to drop in at Eye-Level on their next trip into town.

The envelope itself was the key visual of the campaign. Where most mailings have one window for the address, this reminder had two, mimicking a pair of glasses.

ResultsThis mailer was all about customer retention. The feedback indicated that customers thought the mailer was quirky, funny and memorable. It hit the bull’s eye in increasing foot traffic, as well as being a cross-selling tool for Eye-Level.

InsightsMost creative direct mail pieces are produced for purposes of acquisition. Time and money are not often spent on customer retention, even though it is infinitely cheaper and easier to sell to people who already know you than to those who don’t.

It’s a sight for sore eyes to see a company talking directly to its existing customers, and it is uplifting that they do so with such style. The word “brand” is just a synonym for “personality.” Eye-Level have acquired masses of the stuff (personality, that is) simply by showing they are not boring or pompous.

CREATIvE TEAMCreative DirectorJohn Treacy

Art DirectorJohn Treacy

CopywriterRick Kiesewetter

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AgencyKitcatt Nohr Alexander Shaw

ClientWaitrose

ProductmyWaitrose

TitleDelia and Heston

CountryUnited Kingdom

BackgroundWaitrose aimed to provide the convenience of a supermarket chain with the expertise and service of a specialist shop offering fresh food of exceptional quality.

The chain was about to launch a new integrated campaign, using the food writers and TV personalities Delia Smith and Heston Blumenthal, to demonstrate a “shared love of food” by presenting a different recipe each week.

Before the campaign went live on TV and in print, Waitrose wanted to test it with their online community of extremely loyal customers at myWaitrose.com. If they liked it, they would help spread the word.

Idea The approach was to tell the most vocal members of myWaitrose about the new weekly recipes and encourage them to try the first one for themselves – then share it with the rest of the online community.

Selected members were mailed a special basket explaining Waitrose’s reasons for choosing Delia and Heston. Included were all the ingredients for the first recipe (a rhubarb and ginger brûlée), the recipe itself plus a dish to make it in and an invitation to let myWaitrose.com know how it turned out. What real foodie could resist?

ResultsThe basket was warmly welcomed by all recipients. More importantly, 50% of them chose to share their experience with the myWaitrose.com community with evocative descriptions and their own tips on how to nail it.

The first week of the new campaign saw phenomenal success across the business, with Waitrose selling 14 weeks’ worth of rhubarb in four days.

InsightsNo doubt the ad agency behind the TV campaign congratulated itself on working with big names like Delia and Heston, but one of the ingredients of this recipe for success was added by the direct marketing team.

Never underestimate the power of a brand’s über-fans to reach out across social media to all their followers to turn a ripple into a wave. You talk to a hundred people and reach a million.

Time and again, mail has shown itself to be the most persuasive medium of them all in motivating opinion-formers to get behind a campaign and not only extend its reach, but also its message.

CREATIvE TEAMSimon Robinson, Jamie Tierney, Kate Flather, Guy Patrick,Phil Keevil

PRoDUCTIoNProduction DesignerOlu Falola

ProductionGary Bridge

oThERAccount TeamAnnette Blunden, Nick Burbidge, Margaux Wade, Deola Laniyan,Ross Cleal

PlannerDavid Yates

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ADD A SPLASh oF CoLoUR To YoUR oFFICE.Today’s DM is an innovative and creative way to get your brand into the hands of customers. It’s effective. It delivers results. The kind of results that impress clients and award show judges alike. Add DM to your marketing mix and see how far it’ll take your clients – and you.

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