Plazacorp Triple Play Contest Hits Home With 20% Response Rate!
Featured in Strategy Magazine 01/02/03 In late November 2002, N5R launched the "Triple Play Contest" for its client Plazacorp Real Estate Advisers, a Toronto based developer of residential real estate. The Triple Play contest was a combination of both traditional and digital direct mail. The client provided an in-house database of 10,000 people that had visited its Sales Offices over the last four years and completed a Guest Registration Card. These names would be used for the physical direct mail component while an additional 25,000 names of people living in the GTA who met certain minimum age and income criteria came from the extensive N5R in-house database and would be used for the email deployment. Starting on November 20, 2002 the email and direct mail (aka "post cards") were sent out. Both the post card and the email encouraged people to sign up for the contest by logging onto a personalized web site address. There were three properties that Plazacorp was launching, and three prizes being offered (hence the contest name, Triple Play). The prizes were: $1,000 cash, a Trip for Two to Mexico, and - last fall's hottest consumer item - a Plasma Screen TV. For added impact, N5R used "oversize" cards that are larger than traditional post card sizes, but do not incur additional postage costs. The post cards included a personalization element that greeted the recipient by name, introduced them to the contest, and encouraged them to log onto the web site that was personalized for them. Once at the web site (www.contest.plazacorp.com), each user was greeted by name and all their address information was already be filled in on the contest registration form. All the user would needed to do was edit incorrect or missing information and click Submit. The user experience is best described as "engaging and efficient". Along with images of the prizes would be images of the three Plazacorp properties and various calls to action to visit the Sales Office or the client's corporate web site. A strong "refer a friend" component was included. For each friend that signed up, the sender would receive an additional ballot for the draw. Traditional online referral forms force users to write each email addresses separately and often requires them to look up contact details for each name. N5R created a new referral tool that opens up the user's email client (ie. Outlook) and populates the email with a default message and a link to the contest web site. The user can then send the email to as many people as they want using their own email program. The link in the email is used to credit senders when their friends sign up. As a final incentive, an optional questionnaire would collect market research information in exchange for an additional ballot. Instead of limiting the lifespan of the Triple Play Contest to a single drawing 30-45 days after contest launch, N5R decided to extend the traditional timeline by having three separate draws, thereby allowing for multiple touch-points with the database. All aspects of the campaign are tracked in real time and accessible via a secure web page. The detailed information collected provides valuable feedback for both the client and the , and can act as an effective Lead Generation Tool. The Results
The Client Plazacorp Real Estate Advisors is a Toronto based developer of residential real estate throughout the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). Traditional marketing emphasis has been on newspaper ads, which direct prospective buyers to sales offices that are set up on the development property prior to construction commencing. In August 2002 the company decided to look at alternative forms of marketing for its newest projects; The Chocolate Lofts, The Bloorline, and The Wellington Phase II.
The Agency
|