The Brief

Microsoft products and services are sold through authorized resellers. Those who sell the most are called Top VARs (Value-Added Resellers) and are provided extra support. In particular, each Reseller has free access to an online ‘Customer Insights Tool’ (CIT) that helps them identify lucrative sales opportunities. However, only 1.8% of Resellers downloaded the tool in early 2010 and therefore the vast majority were missing out on many potential lucrative sales. We had to convince them to download and use the tool. With 1,000 Resellers spread across Australia, we had to use direct mail to reach each one personally.

Creative Execution

Resellers are sales-based businesses, and therefore they speak one common language – money. Moola, cashola, bucks, loot – it's all money to them. To get their attention and encourage them to start using the CIT, we showed them they were missing out on a chance to make even more money.

Describe the creative solution to the brief/objective.

Our idea was simple. One-thousand $5 notes. Despite Australia Post’s recommendations against sending currency in the mail, we did it anyway and created an Australian Direct Mail first. We posted real Australian money to the Resellers and dared them to throw it away – because that’s what they’re doing unless they start using their Customer Insights Tool. The letters were personalized for each recipient using data from their sales history to highlight exactly how much money they were missing out on. We used unbranded envelopes to stop potential mail thieves looking for the cash. The projected response rate was 25%.

Results

In the month this mail pack was sent, the number of Resellers downloading and using their Customer Insights Tool increased 723%. And the month following this pack still saw an increase of 515%.