With 23,500 km of network assets in Europe Interoute connects 61 cities and has Metropolitan Area Networks (MAN) in 21 European business centres. All the major international incumbent operators including BT use Interoute’s network. But whilst the company has a strong share of the wholesale market, until recently it had no presence in the lucrative corporate sector.
Facing the massive challenge of tapping into a completely new market, Interoute worked with branding agency Bite. Operating on prudent marketing budget Bite initially undertook internal qualitative research to understand the business strengths and marketplace needs.
Research revealed Rottweiler PAs
Bite identified IT directors as the key targets and found that this group was the most over-mailed and cynical in the B2B market place. The first challenge would be to get past the fierce PA gatekeeper. This would require both innovation and noise.
Deciding to break into the corporate market by investing more money in approaching fewer, but highly targeted potential customers, Interoute knew those physically closest to its network would be of most value. With help from data analysis and planning specialists PH group, Bite geomapped the Interoute network to find the businesses within 30 metres of its MAN. To avoid data fallibility, students were then hired to literally walk the network to enhance the purchased data with supplementary information such as additional company addresses.
Subsequently the Follow the Fibre campaign was launched and 150 engraved garden spades were hand delivered to the IT directors of companies located within 30 metres of the network in three European city centers. The non-shreddable spades made it past the gatekeepers, to secure an average conversion rate of 17 per cent, peaking at 24 per cent in the UK.
Head down for desk research
There remained a need for a definite brand positioning. Nick McMenemy, CMO of Interoute, wanted a robust position that remained true to Interoute’s wholesale heritage, whilst also working to support the investment into the new corporate market.
McMenemy states: “Interoute is a young striver company: small but energetic and tenacious. Growing a brand in the ruthless telecoms sales arena, made more competitive by the ups and downs of the last 10 years, requires precision and innovation.
“Creating awareness is crucial, but gaining trust is the real challenge,” he adds.
Leading the brand positioning process, Bite combined extensive desk research with sector learning to generate six positioning statements that deliberately covered a range of potential positions. These were then tested internally and externally.
Using the services of customer research agency RDSi, one-to-one interviews were undertaken externally with prospect corporate clients, and a few existing clients. As with internal interviewees, their wants and needs were interrogated, and their attitudes to the differing positioning statements explored.
The research has allowed Interoute to measure perceptions and reduce the gap between customer expectations and the reality of what it offers. Findings were analysed and synthesised into a brand model that underpins all communication activity.
The model and insight gained from research now shapes everything from the architecture of the website, to the new corporate brochure, to company behaviour (eg. motivating and informing the sales team messaging).
McMenemy says, “Bite’s involvement has been over-and-above the communications challenge, helping Interoute to position new services, undertake product launches and fully integrate campaigns. Front veneer is not enough in such competitive markets, nor is pure technological ability. Research created the parameters of how creativity could operate and give Interoute stand-out.”
Spades of insight
Further, the international research has provided crucial insight into cultural nuances which drive local campaigns. For example the spade campaign was not run in Italy as research revealed the spade is associated with death!
Interoute and Bite continue to create highly targeted campaigns with engaging concepts, where insight gained by research is translated into practical creativity.
