Chapter 10.3 Creativity in practice - the IDM · PDF fileLook beyond the brief Make me smile...

Chapter 10.3 : Creativity in practice

10.3 – 1Author/Consultant: Steve Stretton

Chapter 10.3

Creativity in practice

This chapter includes:

�� An old (and boring) debate

�� It takes two…

�� That joke isn’t funny any more

�� Time for a brand

�� Honey, there’s a drunk at the door

�� You’re always nicer to someone you like

�� Look beyond the brief

�� Make me smile or make me think

�� Make it feel nice

�� The big pile on my table

�� The greased chute

�� Meanwhile, back at Skoda

�� A direct job

�� Out with the old, except the good bits

�� Integration, integration, integration

�� Stretching the brand – the BMW 1 Series

�� A new brand for a new car

�� Brands change too

�� A new problem, a new approach

�� The advantage of time

�� Getting deeper

�� Heads held high

�� Be nice to your friends

�� Don’t forget you’re a person too

10.3 – 2


About this chapter

This chapter uses two real-life case studies to illustrate how creative

agencies, working in different media, can co-operate to create an integrated

campaign which draws on the traditional strengths of direct marketing

while respecting, building on, reinforcing or even recreating brand values.

Steve Stretton

Creative partner at archibald ingall stretton…,

Steve Stretton’s career

spans almost two decades

across the direct

marketing, advertising and sales promotion

industries. Steve was creative director of BBH

Limbo, a subsidiary of Bartle Bogle Hegarty, prior

to establishing archibald ingall stretton…, with

Stuart Archibald and Jon Ingall. He has won

awards across every marketing discipline, in

sectors from automotive to telecommunications

and financial. As well as working at some of

Britain’s most respected agencies, including Cato

Johnson, Evans Hunt Scott and Chiat Day, Steve

has worked extensively overseas in America and

New Zealand for clients including Phillips and

Subaru. As well as his role at archibald ingall

stretton…, Steve is actively involved in creating

workshops and delivering lectures for the D&AD.

Chapter 10.3

Creativity in practice

An old (and boring) debate

For some reason, direct marketing has always attracted a degree of

suspicion, and even mild scorn, from certain other disciplines. To an

extent, the industry can pin some of the blame for this on its own tweed

lapels – or at least, a section of it can. This is because there’s a school of thought

within DM that has maintained an almost slavish devotion to just one aspect of

what the medium is capable of delivering, largely to the detriment of any of the

other bits. It’s an old chestnut, but if you’ve spent more than a couple of weeks in

the industry you’ll know that this is all about the question of response and

brands. DM, the daft old story went, could only do response. Tricky stuff like

brands had to be left to the people who understood them, which meant the

advertising agencies.

It’s a debate that has rumbled on for a long, long time, sending more progressive

practitioners into a coma with its myopic view of the way we work, or at least

should work. It’s all about the size of your phone number, the urgency of the call

to action or the clarity of the reply card, says the old school; while the upstarts

reckon DM is perfectly capable of delivering and building a strong brand. To an

extent the latter has already won the battle, but in the minds of many marketers

there remains a residual trace of doubt that DM can ‘do brands’.


10.3 – 3

It takes two…

Of course, the irony of all this is that, without a firm eye on response, even the

loveliest brand-building DM will be going off a bit half-cocked; but more

pertinently, without an eye on the brand, all your carefully laid out forms,

prominent phone numbers and firm calls to action won’t get you a second date

with your target audience. You see the reality is that brand and response are two

wings on the same bird. You might be able to fly for a bit with just the one, but it

will be a short and unsatisfactory trip, culminating in an undignified plummet

earthwards. You’ll also need to expend an awful lot of energy just to travel that

short distance, and even if you always stand with your good wing facing the world,

most people will still notice your lack of useful feathers, as it were.

To illustrate the point, I’d like to tell you a story. It’s a story that encapsulates the

brand versus response equation and illustrates how, working together, the two

halves are actually mutually beneficial, rather than exclusive.

That joke isn’t funny anymore

Everyone has heard a Škoda joke. For old times’ sake, here are a couple: “what do

you call a Škoda with twin exhausts? A wheelbarrow.” Or, “why do Škodas have

heated rear windscreens? To keep your hands warm when you’re pushing them.”

You see, Škoda, in case you missed this period in its life, used to be a bit of a

laughing stock. But by 1991 the infinitely more respectable Volkswagen had

picked up a share of the company, eventually becoming sole owners (in 1999).

The upshot of this was that its products improved beyond all recognition. Its

budget model, the Felicia, won six consecutive ‘budget car of the year’ awards

from Auto Express in the nineties, and its Octavia saloon was released to almost

universal acclaim in 1998. Buoyed by this critical approval, Škoda launched the

Octavia in the UK with a marketing spend of £10 million, but the campaign fell on

deaf ears. Quite simply, owning a Škoda was still seen as an embarrassment: in

fact, in February 2000, 60 per cent of people questioned said that they would

never buy a Škoda.

My own involvement in this story begins in 1999. Škoda’s positioning back then

came straight from its Czech home, and was roughly defined as ‘real cars for real

people’. In a way it made sense; the cars were honest, capable things, and the

people who drove Škodas were more interested in practical virtues than image.

But as a credible brand proposition, it shied away from addressing the key issue,

namely that Škoda had an acute image problem among the vast majority of the

UK’s car-buying public.

But, a brief is a brief and a positioning is a positioning, and we set to work on a

campaign based on the ‘real cars for real people’ idea. This actually began with an

ad, which basically asked if anyone out there fancied the use of a Škoda for a

week, free of charge, to do with as they wished. The response was less than

overwhelming, but we had several winners, around whom we based the ensuing

DM activity. Each person was asked to keep a diary of their week with their

Škoda, and these diaries were drawn together in a DM pack, underlining the ‘real

cars for real people’ idea in a nice simple way. It was nice work in the end, and we

had fulfilled the brief to everyone’s satisfaction. But the response was merely

average. The problem was that the campaign, while carefully thought out and, in

my opinion, nicely executed, was being asked to work in isolation. Without a

strong brand behind it, it was trying to do an impossible job – and the results

reflected this.

10.3 – 4


Time for a brand

Towards the end of 1999 Škoda hired the ad agency Fallon, and finally

decided to confront its image problem head-on. The timing coincided with

the launch of another acclaimed new car, the Fabia, but the company

reserved a cautious £4.5 million for the launch (around half that of the

Toyota Yaris and barely a quarter of Renault’s budget for its revised Clio

model), which meant the solution had to be a brave one.

Credit where it’s due, Fallon came up with the goods. A brand essence

was defined as ‘Škoda: cars that defy expectations (from a brand that

knows where it stands).’ The proposition combined the brand’s emotional

values – which, rather than being typical car values, were more about

people (people who have life in perspective, value community and friends,

and maintain a ‘what you see is what you get’ philosophy); and the

functional values of the cars (their reliability, durability and quality). It set

the foundations for one of the genuinely great campaigns of the past five

years.

Fallon’s ‘It’s a Škoda. Honest’ campaign was self-effacing, but strangely

confident and almost assertive at the same time. It spoke volumes for the

brand, giving it a depth and complexity of character that had been

altogether absent from previous work. Most importantly for us, as Škoda’s

direct agency, it gave us a rich palette from which to draw our own work.

The result was a fully integrated brand and DM campaign (the first of its

kind for Škoda), using TV, press, posters, inserts and direct mail.

Figure 10.3.1

The first direct element of the campaign was a mailing to existing

customers, who would be expected to represent a significant proportion of

the new sales (Škoda’s customer loyalty has always been a major asset to

the brand).

A piece was created to appear as if it were a letter from a fellow Škoda

enthusiast, the fictional Mr Martin Lythgoe. Using clippings from press

articles stapled to a letter (all in a plain envelope), the writer bemoaned

the fact that Škoda drivers would no longer be able to quietly drive around

unnoticed. It went on to complain that, due to this new model, Škoda

drivers would soon be joined by a group of new, younger drivers and that

driving a Škoda could even become fashionable.


10.3 – 5

Figure 10.3.2

We also took the opportunity to evaluate all existing customer touchpoints

with the brand, including retailer merchandise, service letters, POS and

the website, to ensure each of these elements adhered closely to the ‘It’s a

Škoda. Honest’ style and tone:

This creative work played a key role in the hugely successful campaign

and helped to make the Fabia launch the most successful in Škoda’s

history.

Comparing and contrasting the response data is revealing. The work

followed all of the same basic principles as the campaign detailed above,

but backed by the strength of integrated brand activity, the response was

markedly superior: the Martin Lythgoe mailing achieved a 6 per cent

response rate, with a cost per sale of just £200 – a clear contrast and a

vindication of the combined brand and response approach. We even

received 400 letters from customers congratulating Škoda, one of whom

even asked to go for a drink with the fictional Martin.

The success was felt on a broader level by the brand, which was now

becoming rejuvenated. By December 2000, the numbers claiming they

would reject the Škoda brand out of hand had dropped from 64 per cent to

42 per cent.

Škoda Felicia DM Škoda Fabia

Response: 0.05% Response: 6%

�

10.3 – 6


Honey, there’s a drunk bloke at the door

From a direct perspective, the key here lies in the careful integration of

touchpoints, each with the same consistent brand messages contained within. A

wise person I once worked with at BBH once described DM as a little like a

drunken stranger. There’s a lot of truth in this, and plenty of relevance to the

debate here. If a drunken stranger arrives in your house, he (or she, I suppose,

but let’s face it, it’s more likely to be a ‘he’) is likely to alarm you. He’ll be

unpredictable, he’ll say stupid and crass things and the conversation is likely to

be a bit stilted at best. Of course, if you know the person, it’s a different kind of

gatecrasher altogether. You’ll forgive the occasional lapse of judgement; you’re

more likely to laugh at his jokes, and you may even let him hang out for a while

and share a tube of Pringles; or maybe some pistachios, as long as he promises to

put the shells in the bin. Direct marketing can be like these two house guests. On

the one hand you have an unwelcome and annoying intruder to your home; but

with the backing of a good brand, and an integrated campaign, the other kind of

visitor is, if not a friend, at least an acquaintance. The reception you give to each

would be markedly different.

If you compare our two different pieces of work for Škoda (and I hesitate to

describe my own agency’s work as a drunken stranger, but in this case it was at

least mildly inebriated), you can see how closely the analogy fits. The results

speak for themselves, in fact. The first piece received a decidedly lukewarm

reception; but the second, in DM terms at least, was definitely offered a seat at the

kitchen table and some tea and biscuits.

You’re always nicer to someone you like

But while it’s vital to remember the role of DM within the context of a campaign,

it’s also worth paying close attention to your work as an end in itself. Returning to

the house guest analogy, you can also divide the second, more favourable type of

guest into separate categories too: we all have our favourite friends and

acquaintances, and more often than not, these favoured friends will be those who

entertain us in some way. They’re more interesting, funnier, better read or maybe

even just better looking. Whatever it is, they’ve got more of it. And we’re more

likely to talk to someone we like. DM is like this too. There has long been an

approach to DM that seems to abandon all of the principles that dominate above

the line, particularly on TV, the most important of which is to entertain.

Consumers appreciate an entertaining ad, and the best of these will bring the

brand’s values to life in an interesting, exciting or amusing way. Why so many DM

practitioners believe they can get away without doing this is mysterious.

Look beyond the brief

TV has a licence to entertain, and creatives rarely pass up an opportunity to give

it a go. DM, in spite of being a more intrusive medium than TV, is less eager to

take up the challenge. Why? One reason that some DM creatives will offer you is

likely to be the brief. By its nature, the work DM is asked to do tends to be more

complex than that of a TV ad. Financial services, so often the graveyard of DM

creativity, is a case in point. How, some creatives will argue, are you meant to

make stakeholder pensions interesting? Again, the brand can play a pivotal role

here. We were lucky enough to work with Virgin Direct at a fairly early stage in the


10.3 – 7

life of our agency, and the backing the brand gave us allowed us to take creative

leaps that relatively few other financial services brands would appear ready to

allow (although, even there, the landscape is changing somewhat). As an

adventurous and relatively free spirit in a world of grey and rather faceless

institutions, Virgin demanded entertaining work – it is utterly intrinsic to its

brand values, and the boost that the rest of the brand activity gave the DM work

was hugely advantageous. A pack we produced for, funnily enough stakeholder

pensions, exemplified this. A yellow box, with the words ‘nudity’, ‘an itch’,

‘exceptional beauty’, ‘pain’, ‘a £20 note lying on the pavement’, and ‘a box with

something rattling about inside’, contained a small booklet with the words ‘there

are some things in life you can’t ignore’, and on the first reveal, ‘stakeholder

pensions are one of them’. Okay, it wasn’t ‘corset-bustingly’ funny, but it was, at

the very least, intriguing. It demanded attention, and it was most certainly on-

brand. Again, the results indicate that the combination of a compelling,

responsive message and more adventurous, brand-building creative was worth

pursuing.

Response rate 1.5%

CPR 34

Figure 10.3.3

Make me smile or make me think

This is an example of some of the combination of factors that make good DM

creative. My own personal rule is that work should either make me smile or make

me think, or there is little point in doing it – apply this to your own work and

you’ll be surprised how much of it you end up rejecting.

10.3 – 8


Make it feel nice

We also have certain advantages inherent to our medium, and it makes absolute

sense to use them. Focusing on direct mail for a moment, what we have in our

possession is a tactile medium, with far wider possibilities than TV or press or

posters. There are certain areas of DM to which it makes absolute sense to apply

as much energy as possible, and production is one of them – if you can make your

thing look and feel better than someone else’s, it will be absolutely worthwhile. Yet

so many examples of direct marketing ignore this or fail to exploit it. A common

topic of conversation and debate in our industry concerns volume. We all know

who the main culprits are here – once again, it’s the financial services companies

– but the approach these high- volume, high-frequency mailers take confuses me.

Their argument is that the ends justify the means – no matter how badly executed,

no matter how unimaginative or prosaic, the sheer volume of these mailings

provides sufficient returns to make them worthwhile. But do they really? And

could they be better?

The answer to the first question is that, sure, the amount of money some of these

high-volume mailings generate does make them worthwhile. But, in my view, and

– thankfully – that of many others in our industry, it’s ‘short termist’ thinking. The

longer term damage these companies are doing to their brands may well outweigh

the benefits they experience from the meagre returns. Cost per response should

be measured in more than simple pounds and pence. But there is also another

factor to consider – how much more effective could this work be if it were more

carefully put together, more imaginative and used in conjunction with an

integrated brand campaign? In my view, an awful lot.

The big pile on my table

Among the reasons I would give for this is the way I consume direct mail myself

(we’re all consumers, after all – which is a point I’ll return to later). Like most

people who reach my time of life, I have a mortgage, a few credit cards, a car, and

the other typical trappings of modern life, most of which mean I get an awful lot of

direct mail. I also have quite a busy job, which means that I have very little time

to look at things like direct mail. Unlike a lot of other people, however, I have

more than a passing interest in the stuff. In fact, I feel positively guilty if I don’t at

least glance at it. But I don’t have much time for such things, which means that a

pile of direct mail forms on my kitchen table, slowly growing by the week until it

becomes so big that its sheer weight poses a danger to passing small children or

animals. At this point, I steel myself, sit down and go through it. While this

situation is slightly artificial, it does bring the contrast in today’s DM into sharp

focus. Basically, as I go through it, the flat stuff, the stuff that’s just going through

the motions of offering me a new credit card or a car loan, goes straight in the bin

– usually unopened. But the stuff that feels nice, looks nice, or (crucially) is

clearly linked to several other communication elements I might have seen,

whether TV, press, posters, online, or whatever, gets opened. It might go straight

in the bin after that, but it’s done its job, or at least part of it. It’s reached me, I’ve

read it, and it’s done its bit without annoying me.


10.3 – 9

The greased chute

It’s a fairly simple principle, and harks back to a basic pillar of good DM. Terry

Hunt, a former creative director of mine, and a man who knows about these

things, described the DM process as ‘a greased chute’. In a way it’s common sense

– communication follows a logical path, beginning with a simple message or offer

to grab the attention of the consumer, then following through the piece, explaining

the offer and carrying on through to the call to action and response. Again, the

role of the brand here is clear – without its reassuring and helpful presence at the

front end, you’re sitting at the top of the chute without any grease. You might still

make it down, but it won’t be as easy or as swift.

The greased chute:

Grab their attention – make them an offer – give information – call to action –

response

There’s also another factor at play here – in which DM has, to a greater extent

than simple acquisition, a life of its own. It’s about developing a relationship.

Perhaps we can return to Škoda for a moment:

Meanwhile, back at Škoda

Following the initial success of the ‘it’s a Škoda. Honest’ campaign, we

were asked to continue building on the momentum that had begun to

gather. In January 2001 we conducted some research, which

demonstrated that while cynicism towards the product was reducing,

many customers still felt uneasy with the brand. Sales targets continued

to increase, and the challenge was set to ensure they could be met.

Our first step was to try and understand our audience further. To do this,

we built a predictive response model, in an attempt to understand the

profile of previous responders from the 2000 campaign. We needed to

understand buyer behaviour, media usage and their demographics, all of

which would be instrumental in selecting both the media and lists to

utilise when going forward.

With sales targets for both the Fabia and Octavia models now rising, we

decided to plan a larger scale multi-media campaign, designed to

continue to confront the misconceptions about the brand and then elicit a

response.

Our eventual media plan comprised inserts in national and motoring

press, with promotional direct response press in Auto Express, and door

drops across carefully selected retailer catchment areas.

10.3 – 10


Figure 10.3.4

From our perspective, the creative task of the direct mail and media was twofold:

the initial challenge was to overcome prejudices to the brand and deliver on the

brand proposition of ‘defying expectations’. We felt that the best way to achieve

this would be to continue tackling prejudices head on. We devised a pack that

was, in essence, extremely simple, but highly tactile. It basically consisted of a

Škoda badge, with a small booklet that encouraged consumers to ‘live with it for a

while’. The booklet showed people sleeping with the badge on their pillow, sitting

on a park bench with the badge by their side and showing it off to their friends. I

have no doubt that it would have passed my kitchen table test, and it dovetailed

perfectly with the other elements of the campaign, and Škoda’s newly developed

tone of voice, without simply rehashing the above- the-line. The basic message to

recipients was that, once they had got used to the badge, perhaps they would like

to take the rest of the car for a test-drive.

A nice warm brand feeling

We had instigated a dialogue, or at least a step towards it, using the rest of the

brand work as leverage to generate response. Follow-up direct mail was used for

all leads to convert to sales. Where direct response press was used, we offered the

chance to win ‘The Car of the Year’ to uplift response. To all 27,000 people who

did not win the car, we sent the next best thing – a replica to put on the

mantelpiece. Their interest was therefore rewarded, and Škoda became a brand

closer to their hearts – effectively warming them to further communication – an

absolutely essential part of our role as the company’s direct agency.

�


10.3 – 11

Figure 10.3.5

And a continuing change of heart

The campaign continued to have a major impact on brand perceptions. According

to Millward Brown, by the end of 2001, the amount of rejectors to the brand had

dropped to 36 per cent. The response rates were equally astonishing – the press

work achieved an extraordinary 12 per cent response, direct mail saw an increase

of 50 per cent to 100 per cent and inserts 1.2 per cent. From Škoda’s point of

view, the return on their investment was looking very healthy indeed. In 2001, for

every £20 Škoda invested they received a quality lead, for every £30, they

acquired a test-drive, and for every £280 another Škoda rolled out of the

showroom and onto the drive of a new customer. In that year, Škoda became the

fastest growing car manufacturer in the UK.

Again, the role of the brand in generating this level of response was clear. By

providing a strong central brand around which to base all of our communication,

the uplift in response, as well as the support and creative clarity that the brand’s

growing power and depth afforded each element, strengthened the entire

campaign and allowed us to create work that could disrupt the principles of the

old-school direct marketer, but without breaking them. The end result was direct

communication that had a genuine impact on brand perception, working as an

integral part of a properly integrated, branded, responsive campaign.

Awards a go-go

It was a campaign that also won us (and Škoda) quite a few awards, which is an

interesting side issue. As a creative director you can generally tell from the

earliest scamp if a piece is likely to win an award. If you think a piece looks like

an award winner, it will motivate you more, not just because it might win an

award, but simply because it looks like great work – and everyone likes to

produce great work. Of course awards are not important per se (they won’t pay

the bills, after all), but anyone (including clients) who tells you they don’t like

receiving them is a liar. It’s also interesting to see how many great brand-led

campaigns end up winning awards for response. Believe me, it’s no coincidence.

10.3 – 12


A direct job

Škoda had by this point gained an enormous amount of faith in direct

marketing as a brand-building medium. So much so, in fact, that when

Škoda took the decision to enter a new market sector, and with it a new

audience, it turned to direct as the launch medium. The new Škoda

Superb was the brand’s first entry into the upper-medium sector (far

removed from the brand’s traditional territory). Research had identified

the fleet market as the best direction to take the launch, so we directed

our efforts there. A launch campaign was initiated, with the dual purpose

of announcing the car and generating enquiries. As we were dealing with

a niche audience, direct marketing was seen to be the best way to get our

point across. As we had already been successful in using direct media to

both challenge misconceptions and generate response, we were confident

we could repeat the trick with the Superb.

Figure 10.3.6

We selected media based on a predictive model, specifically tailored to the

fleet audience. The plan consisted of responsive press executions in Fleet

News, as well as inserts, direct mail and a promotional email campaign.

We focused the creative work on the car’s outstanding specifications (its

list of extras included the likes of a built-in chilled travel box), while

maintaining the wry, slightly self-deprecating tone that had been built so

effectively in the preceding campaigns. Each component of the media mix

demonstrated that it really was very hard to turn down the car, giving

reason after reason for the audience to place their preconceptions and

prejudices to one side.

Once again, the Superb launch exceeded our response targets, and

outperformed industry standards. The inserts achieved an outstanding 1

per cent response rate, email hit 3 per cent, and press an equally strong

0.9%. Our required target of 5000 leads was exceeded and the cost per

sale was just £250. Not bad for ‘just’ a direct campaign, and yet another

illustration of the fact that, backed by a brand, direct is perfectly capable

of doing a potentially tough job on its own.


10.3 – 13

Out with the old, except the good bits

I’ve talked a lot so far about breaking away from the traditional techniques of

direct marketing, but it’s worth remembering that those techniques are celebrated

with good reason. It’s an old adage, but you have to know the rules before you can

break them – and brand-oriented DM, as I mentioned at the top of this chapter, is

still DM, and still designed to elicit some kind of response. For art directors in

particular, this is a key area. Knowing the technical details that have been proven

to aid your campaign shouldn’t be seen as a straitjacket to creativity. Fonts,

layouts and the size of the phone number are all worth careful consideration.

That said, one of the best parts of being a creative director is watching a junior

team at work. Because they are less aware of the rules, they simply do what looks

and feels right – and often that is sufficient – their instincts, more often than not,

will be correct. This is equally true online, where teams schooled in direct can be

particularly adept at getting to the heart of the brief and delivering effective,

creative work. Likewise, it’s no coincidence that when above-the-line agencies

tackle DM, their different angle of approach will often throw up unusual and

ingenious communication.

But be wary of over-confidence. Nobody knows everything, and ignoring the

advice of those with years of experience isn’t usually a good idea. Equally, it’s

not what brand-building DM is about either.

Integration, integration, integration

One thing that has come up a lot so far in this chapter is the issue of integration.

This is a key area in brand-building DM, perhaps more than any other medium,

because it is so often asked to integrate with other elements that ‘lead’ the

campaign. Traditionally, the TV advertising will set the tone for every other

element, which can present issues for direct in particular. Historically, direct

elements have been expected to basically reproduce the TV ad in direct form,

which really isn’t the point at all. Equally, there are people out there who equate

integration with simply making everything look the same. That’s not really the

point either. It’s not about simply having matching luggage, as it were; and nor is

it about shoehorning an unrelated concept into an inappropriate execution, just

because that’s the way TV took the brief.

The fact is that integration can be led by anyone – it really doesn’t matter if it’s the

client, the DM agency, the ad agency or the sales promotion people – really, any of

them can perform the role. The only really important factor is that someone has

to take control of it. As an integrated agency, we get to perform this role fairly

regularly, as we are often in charge of delivering all of, or at least most of, the

elements. This gives you absolute control and a greater chance of delivering as

closely integrated a strategy as possible, but it is perfectly possible to do this just

as well in the context of an integrated campaign carried out by multiple agencies.

Once again, the over-arching brand makes this all the more achievable – if you

have a central positioning, it should give you a set of boundaries to work within,

freeing you from the shackles of the ‘lead execution’ and allowing you greater

opportunity to explore other creative ground.

10.3 – 14


Stretching the brand – the BMW 1 Series

An example of how far different executions can stretch within the

elasticity of a brand is the launch of BMW’s 1 Series in 2004 (sorry, cars

again, I’m afraid). As a product, the 1 Series was a fairly major step from

BMW’s traditional territory in the luxury and performance sector. It was an

extremely important car, entering one of the most fiercely competitive

sectors in the industry – BMW’s first foray into the mass-market, medium-

sized hatchback sector, and a marketplace overflowing with relatively

similar products, none of which were particularly well differentiated.

The challenge for BMW and its agencies was to broaden the base of

ownership outside of the traditional BMW customer base, while at the

same retaining the exclusivity of the brand and ownership experience. Not

necessarily an easy one. From the agency’s point of view, one inherent

advantage we had on our side was the quality of the product. This was a

different challenge to the one we faced with Škoda, but there were

parallels – the most significant of which was the fact that BMW had

created an exceptional product, much as Škoda had done with the Fabia.

The new 1 Series had some unique features for the sector, with the kind of

characteristics and attributes customers might expect from a sports coupé.

They were certainly attributes you would expect from ‘The Ultimate

Driving Machine’, but this wasn’t necessarily an ‘ultimate driving machine’

kind of audience.

BMW had, in fact, set some extremely tough business challenges. The

sales targets for the 1 Series were ambitious, with the company expecting

to match cars long established in the sector. 70 per cent of these buyers

were expected to be completely new to the BMW brand – and BMW wanted

a full order book before the car hit the street. Most significantly for us, the

launch work would have to appeal to a younger audience than the usual

BMW campaign. Another key factor was the looming launch date of the

latest VW Golf (by far the strongest brand in the sector), which – as the car

was launching before the new 1 Series – would mean a large slice of the

BMW’s target audience could easily be tempted elsewhere.

To tackle these problems, we took a step back right at the beginning,

drawing a core strategic team from each of the key agencies involved,

both to develop the strategy and to deliver a fully integrated launch unlike

any in BMW’s history. As mentioned, securing a younger audience for the

car was paramount; but when a brand’s tone of voice is as established as

that of BMW, this was never going to be an easy task. The cross agency

team decided that a completely different approach was required.

A new brand for a new car

The upshot of this was the development of a completely new look for all 1 Series

communications – in fact, a completely new brand book was drawn up just for the

car, an extraordinary departure for a brand as established as BMW. It was an

approach that would impact far beyond the creative look and feel of

communications, and influence every single aspect of the way in which BMW

would communicate with prospects in the build-up to the launch.

Because we were dealing with a new audience and expected to deliver advance

sales, we needed to build a large prospect base and develop an ongoing dialogue

with our core audience. This meant gathering prospects’ details using a range of

different media, making this new audience feel ‘in the know’. One of the most


10.3 – 15

important features of the campaign would be managing the prospects’ journey

from the initial teaser phase in January through to the final launch in September.

The January teaser was, in part at least, to warn potential buyers of the new Golf

that the 1 Series was coming. In this case we ran small space ads on motoring

pages saying simply “Wait for the 1”.

The prospects’ hands were then held through the ‘journey to launch’ by a steady

drip feed of information across different media. The aim here was to turn this

group into brand advocates, as well as back the overall creative proposition,

which was decided as “The BMW 1 Series – The Only 1”.

Loosely defined boundaries

So, we had a new brand palette to work from, and certain loosely defined

boundaries, but plenty of creative freedom within them. As mentioned, activity

began in January, with the initial round working through to the press release of

information in March. This period was all about generating prospects and

building anticipation, but we had to do this without being able to show the car.

Again, the job was done using a mix of media. The small space advertising

mentioned above was placed around all key competitors’ information in the back

of automotive press, and directed responders to a new microsite, where they

could leave their details. In return for this information, BMW promised to keep

them on the inside track – making sure they were the first to see the latest

pictures, receive the most detailed information and be given the opportunity to

test-drive the car as early as possible. All the time here, we were using brand

messages to engender a responsive environment.

The campaign became, in the best traditions of DM, like a conversation. A week

prior to the release of the first photos of the car, responders to the microsite were

emailed to announce the launch of the full website. A mixture of responders,

people on cold lists and from BMW customer data received an email to announce

the launch of the full site. On that same day they also received the first shot of the

car in the post.

Figure 10.3.7

10.3 – 16


Meanwhile, after full details of the car were released, a new and detailed website

was launched. This ran alongside a large-scale press insert campaign, the first in

BMW’s history, in the automotive and lifestyle press. The executions were a long

way from the style previously associated with BMW, but were firmly within the

unique style of the 1 Series campaign – tailored to that very specific target

audience. The insert executions were adapted to suit the different media they

would appear in – with specific executions for women’s lifestyle titles, for

example.

Totally tailored launch

Once full information was available, a launch mailing was sent to the full prospect

audience. Here we were able to use the very latest direct technology to use the

medium to its best effect. In this case, the outer envelope was unique to each

recipient, tying back, once again to the ‘only 1’ theme. Other emails were sent

between direct mail communications to continue the information drip feed.

Then, when the press advertising and TV broke, the prospect pool was contacted

with messages and offers to keep them on the ‘inside track’ about the launch

before the general public. The hottest prospects were invited to an exclusive test-

drive event at the BMW Performance centre, and a national tour of the car was

organised around six major cities – with key prospects invited to attend, allowing

us to convert them into test drivers.

Figure 10.3.8

The launch achieved all key business objectives, but probably the most interesting

factor around it was the way in which all key agencies came together to deliver a

fully integrated approach – the first time BMW had taken this route. It was an

illustration of how it pays to co-operate and actually try to enjoy working with

other agencies, rather than seeing it as some kind of obstacle or irritation. Driving

an integrated campaign in an environment of mutual respect and openness really

is the only way to work – and that means getting literally everyone involved as

closely and as early as possible.


10.3 – 17

DM 7135 leads

Inserts 4247 leads

The combination of carefully integrated elements left us with a highly responsive

brand campaign. Some key elements garnered response rates as high as 12 per

cent, with consumers from the prospect pool representing the majority of initial

sales. What the central campaign proposition gave us was the opportunity to

branch out, and this was absolutely critical to its success. Imagine you are

spreading each of the elements out on a table. They don’t have to match exactly,

but they have to be from the same ‘family’. With the 1 Series launch, this meant

the proposition being carefully extended into each route, but often in quite

different ways. Because the TV work wouldn’t be seeing the light of day until quite

a long way into the campaign, the earlier elements had to strike out on their own,

without the benefit of the TV campaign for support. It meant the work had to be

brave, but also more ingenious in its use of the media at its disposal. The

proposition was also very true to the product – which really was unique, and

really did represent a departure from the norm – which made our job so much

easier.

Simple truths:

This is an absolutely pivotal issue: almost nothing is more important than

being true to your product, and often the truth is your biggest advantage.

Discovering simple truths about your product or your audience (or both) and

then dramatising them almost invariably produces effective and honest

work. Don’t shy away from home truths about product truths, as these really

are your friends.

Brands change too

What the BMW 1 Series launch also illustrated was the fact that brands can

change, and that communication has to change with it. It’s always a risk to rip up

a previous brand strategy, but sometimes it’s a necessity. This was particularly

pertinent in the case of Škoda, which had effectively rebuilt and repositioned its

brand over a period of some five years, but based this rebuilding largely on an

acknowledgement of its past failings. Clearly, this was something that it would

need to change. By 2005 the hugely successful campaign to confront people’s

perceptions of Škoda had largely succeeded. Fallon’s original proposition had

turned the entrenched prejudice against the brand on its head, and the self-

deprecating humour of the campaign had prompted independent-minded people

to reassess the Škoda brand and to make Škoda ownership perfectly acceptable.

The strategy had proven so effective that the original joke and logic behind the

campaign was made redundant, and a more confident approach was needed.

A new problem, a new approach

2005 saw a new over-arching proposition, juxtaposing what people expect from

Škoda with latest executions. It’s no longer a matter of a positive cancelling out a

negative; instead the brand is starting from a neutral point, and choosing instead

10.3 – 18


to communicate two positives that are rarely seen together. Based on this

approach, brand platforms have been produced for each of the models in the

Škoda range, each of which highlights the ‘expected’ and ‘unexpected’ attributes of

that particular car.

Our first foray into this brave new world was a new website for the Fabia vRS – a

high- performance hatchback with outstanding fuel economy – which plays on the

‘practical and exciting’ aspects of the car. This is dramatised online by the fact

that, depending on how the prospect enters, the website determines their

experience focusing on either the ‘practical’ or ‘exciting’ aspects of the car.

To support this we produced two direct response press ads with tip-ons. One, in

Auto Express, reflects the new brand strategy further by offering ‘2 for 1 on all

Škodas’.

Figure 10.3.9

The execution worked by stating that “when you buy this practical, economical,

reliable Fabia vRS, we’ll also throw in this sporty turbocharged 1.9 litre diesel”.

The tip-on then went on to describe the dual aspects of the car. A second press

execution was also developed for the Independent Magazine, centred on a ‘self-

analysis’ flow chart. The reader could use this to determine whether he or she

was ‘practical’ or ‘exciting’, but whichever they were, their journey across the flow

chart ended at the Fabia vRS.

The same creative route of the ‘expected and unexpected’ was developed for the

new Octavia 4x4 Estate. The 4x4’s massive space and agile handling form the

basis of all communications, using the line ‘big and agile’. A double personalised

pack was produced, with two letters, each of which focused on one side of the

car’s dual appeal, either its size or agility, using Škoda’s familiar sense of humour

and tone of voice (one of the brand attributes that could be retained from the

previous campaign).

A microsite was also developed to provide recipients with a wealth of knowledge

surrounding the car. Again, this played on the two positives and was presented in

a unique split-screen format with two cursors, which moved simultaneously

across both sides of the screen so that, wherever you moved your mouse on the

left of the screen, the movement would be mimicked on the right and vice versa.


10.3 – 19

This microsite was given further support with online advertising, which, once

again, played on these dual aspects.

Figure 10.3.10

What this campaign illustrated was the need to be flexible, as well as the

importance of speed of thought when working with a brand. Strategies change,

and keeping pace with them can be a tricky task. From the point of view of direct

communications, this isn’t always the easiest thing to predict either, as DM

agencies often remain slightly removed from the decision process, unless the

client is a more progressive sort.

The advantage of time

What the recent campaigns also illustrated was that, as a brand tool, direct can be

fantastically adroit when it comes to adding depth to a brand proposition. Timing

is something of a double-edged sword when it comes to most direct activity. On

the one hand, you must be acutely aware that your chance to grab someone’s

attention is brief, and that your work must seize the moment in an environment

in which, these days, is often quite hostile to its presence. But on the other, if you

can get your recipient to fully interact with your piece, you have effectively gained

far more ‘quality time’ with your audience than a TV ad or a poster could hope to

achieve. It’s that interactivity that DM is prized for.

Getting deeper

With DM agencies becoming more and more at home in the online world, this

interactive expertise is coming into its own in creating a responsive environment

in which the brand can be explored, indulged and deepened. The strength of the

Fabia vRS and Octavia 4x4 campaigns was the way in which they took the basic

proposition and added to it. They built on the hook of the TV ad to explain the

thinking behind it, adding colour and further layers of interest, as well as an

�

10.3 – 20


effective response mechanism. There was never a question, at any point, that the

brand should take second place to response, or vice versa. Instead, the role DM

performed was an even combination of both.

Taking a proposition and sticking to it is a key aspect of using DM as a brand

tool. It shouldn’t need to be a restrictive or uncomfortable burden for the creative

team – far from it. A good brand proposition should concentrate the thoughts and

provide a focus. It goes back to the idea of a simple, truthful insight into the

product.

Heads held high

One thing that continues to frustrate me about DM people is the slight inferiority

complex that manifests itself in so many different ways. Another former colleague

of mine at BBH said he could always tell the DM people, because they ‘dress

badly’. Clearly, he’d never met Simon Kershaw, but the point he was making was

slightly broader – it’s the almost apologetic side to our industry, an

acknowledgement that it lacks the glamour of some of its counterparts and the

freedom to express its creativity. This is nonsense, and makes less and less sense

as our industry develops. We’ve reached a point now where, more than ever, there

is an acknowledgement that direct media are becoming more and more interesting

to marketers, and seem to display more and more potential as a tool not just to

elicit response, but build brands, push communication boundaries, and provide

the most effective and interesting work out there. Equally, with more and more

direct agencies seizing the online initiative, often leaving their above-the-line

counterparts kicking their heels, it is far from ridiculous to suggest that direct is

actually the more interesting place to work – offering a wider variety of ways to

achieve a communication goal.

Be nice to your friends

It’s usual here for DM people to slag off the ad agencies, but I don’t want to do

that either. The fact remains that advertising agencies employ a great many of the

most talented, interesting and intellectual people in the communication world.

But what is beginning to change is the relationship between these kinds of

agencies and their direct counterparts. In the best cases, it’s a two-way street.

From my own experience, we have always tried to work as closely as possible with

our advertising counterparts (when we’re not doing the advertising ourselves, of

course). Our relationships with the likes of Fallon, WCRS and VCCP have always

proven mutually beneficial and highly productive, and this is something I would

urge any DM agency to pursue. It makes no sense not to embrace the thinking of

your counterparts at other agencies, and the closer your relationship the better. It

can only get your agency closer to the top table if you have the ears of all those

you are working with. Bearing in mind that one of the most common complaints

among DM agencies is their lack of access to the real power in their clients’

marketing departments, it makes no sense not to take every opportunity to

change that. The same goes for your client. Try to understand where he or she is

coming from, how you can help in his or her career, or how you could work

together better. Try and like your client, even if it pains you to do so (they’re

people too, you know). It will also help improve your work.


10.3 – 21

Don’t forget you’re a person too

Success in this industry is dependent on good communication – with your clients,

your fellow agencies and ultimately your audience. We are privileged to work in an

industry where qualities of creativity, invention and curiosity are rewarded, and

the best agencies encourage these to develop to their full. We’re also fortunate in

the sense that we are allowed to have fun, and have the chance to work with some

genuinely fascinating characters. What we do enters the lives of vast numbers of

people, whether welcome or otherwise, so it pays to remember one thing: we are

consumers too. It’s difficult to retain that sense of detachment from our work;

after all, once you’ve created a DM pack, a website, a poster or a TV ad, you’ll

never look at another one in the same way. But it is vitally important to try. When

you look at the piece of work you or your creative team has created, try to take a

step back. Imagine you’ve never worked at an agency, never signed off a creative

brief, written a radio script or created a brand strategy. Imagine yourself picking

up the post from your doormat in your dressing gown, or wheeling a trolley round

the supermarket, or reading a magazine on the train. What would you really think

of that piece of work that, from inside the industry, you currently think is great?

Whether you’re launching a new car with an integrated campaign, or just

trying to sell a credit card rate via a billing stuffer, if you can imagine seeing

it through the eyes of the normal person you used to be, you’ll be doing

yourself a massive favour, and you’ll probably improve your chances of both

getting a response and building a brand too.

Summary

� Response and brand are not mutually exclusive – in fact, building a brand is

key to improving response. Škoda is living proof of the ‘before and after’

effect of brand-focused activity.

� DM can be like a drunken stranger at your door – an unpredictable and

possibly unwelcome intruder. But if you know that person already, you’ll

forgive a few lapses, and maybe even share a laugh. A good brand campaign

can lend your DM that ‘friend’ status.

� Always look beyond the brief – and use the tactile nature of direct media to

the maximum.

� Remember the big pile of direct mail consumers receive each week, and

never forget that you have to stand out from that crowd.

� Response takes a logical, linear path. Try to apply as much creative grease

to that chute as possible.

� Know the traditional DM rules; but never be afraid to bend or break them.

� Integration is not about matching luggage; so don’t let yourself be

constrained by the ‘lead execution’. Equally, embrace your fellow agencies.

The more you collaborate, the better the campaign will be.

10.3 – 22


� Brands change, so be flexible and know your boundaries, but don’t let

yourself be too constrained by the past. DM can add real depth to a brand’s

positioning, so it can be ideal to explain changes that might be confusing in

another medium.

� Focus on simple product truths and use them wisely.

� Never, ever forget that you’re a consumer too.

Chapter 10.3 Creativity in practice - the IDM · PDF fileLook beyond the brief Make me smile...

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