Cushman & Wakefield is the world’s largest privately-held commercial real estate service firm. It has more than 15,000 employees and represents a diverse customer base ranging from small businesses to Fortune 500 companies.
The company wanted to reposition itself as a global thought leader and build stronger online relationships. It was hoped that a ‘Knowledge Center’ would be developed where that which was previously available, would now be restricted to registered users only. One of the key challenges of launching this was to get customers to understand the inherent value of the ‘Center’s’ information and be willing to register to read this.
Cushman & Wakefield had identified two key audiences: journalists and existing customers. Concep helped identify three core target audiences and used its existing database to divide current and potential clients into distinct categories: investors, owners and occupiers. Cushman & Wakefield decided not to offer incentives to customers so specific teaser campaigns were created for each group, featuring tailored banner subject lines to persuade them to register.
Global reach
Nine campaigns ran across the Americas, six in EMEA and one in Asia. Although the information in the ‘Knowledge Center’ and on the campaign microsite is in English, Cushman & Wakefield has 221 offices in 58 countries so emails were translated into the local language.
The microsite was developed featuring examples of information which mirrored the contents with the ‘Knowledge Center’. The site was built to be as search-friendly as possible, including linking, meta-tagging and keyword density. The email and microsite were designed to create a seamless brand journey from initial click-through to final registration and subsequent entry into the ‘Knowledge Center’.
Results
A total of 44,016 emails were sent globally. The campaign’s first month saw 6701 visitors register – an average of 119 new registrations each day – of which 75 per cent have opted-in to receive email communication. In the two months following the launch of the ‘Knowledge Center’, there was a 86 per cent increase in documents downloaded. The number of current registered users stands at 28,000. Effective measurement and conversion tracking will enable Cushman & Wakefield to further its reach to segment the audience for future targeted campaigns.
Celine T. Clarke, executive managing director and global head of corporate communications at Cushman & Wakefield, says, “Concep achieved a truly global launch that included various regional components tailored specifically to our key clients and market. We effectively leveraged our thought leadership position, targeted content more accurately, and are allowing our clients better access to our extensive research and resources.”
