Summary
This integrated EMEA lead-generation campaign was developed by DirectionGroup and Avaya EMEA to propel Avaya’s launch of the Avaya Flare Experience across EMEA. The principle goal of the campaign was to drive the audience to sample the product experience, a unique user experience delivering the collaboration capabilities of video, voice, IM, social media and text in one application interface. Using thought leadership to establish Avaya as a key player and trendsetter, the campaign consisted of extensive direct and indirect comms as well as multi-media content to engage a notoriously difficult to reach audience, the senior IT manager. All tactics focused on the user experience and compelling business benefits. Demonstrating the benefits and business case for collaboration and the Avaya Flare Experience, the campaign assets were translated into eight languages reaching contacts in 23 countries; the widest EMEA campaign Avaya has ever orchestrated. High levels of personalisation, relevant and timely comms supported by engaging content and intelligent media choices have meant this campaign has succeeded on all counts.
The close agency-client partnership that developed to facilitate the delivery of this very ambitious campaign was critical to success. In three months it has delivered 110 per cent of its six month revenue pipeline target.
Now there’s an easier way to bring everyone together.
About the client company
Avaya is a global leader in business communications and collaboration, providing unified communications, contact centres, data solutions and related services to companies of all sizes around the world. Enterprises depend on Avaya for state-of-the-art communications that improve efficiency, collaboration, customer service and competitiveness.
Strategy – Delivering collaboration at the heart of the enterprise
The Avaya Flare Experience was launched in September 2010 and is the first telecommunications user experience that delivers the collaboration capabilities of video, voice, IM, Social Media and text in one application interface. Flare is an application giving a unique user interface, not a tablet or iPad. To fully demonstrate the Flare Experience its launch integrated a tablet like desk top video device; this allowed people to see Flare in its most complete and enticing form and is the framework for the application. This is not an iPad competitor, it is a business class device custom made for the Flare experience with a price point of c$3,000, which would be used as part of an enterprise’s communications infrastructure. Future product releases will see Flare running on iPad, smart phones and PCs… one experience, many platforms. The campaign strategy requires the audience to sample the experience; client research and feedback indicated that once people did this there was a consistent reaction, ‘I want one of those!’ Avaya needed to deliver this experience across 23 countries, in eight languages, to C-level and IT decision makers using highly localised campaign assets with video as the star of the show.
Objectives of the campaign
This campaign was to compliment global activities and to address three core objectives:
1. Position Avaya as an industry innovator and thought leader in enterprise communications and more specifically, in enterprise collaboration.
2. To allow the target audience to have as rich as possible an experience of this new user interface.
3. To build, in six months, a sales pipeline for Avaya collaboration solutions.
The target audience
The campaign had two distinct audiences within medium to large enterprises.
1. C-suite – business value and productivity gains created by collaboration.
2. IT function – technology benefits of this solution, ease of integration and cost savings.
This audience is notoriously bombarded with marketing messages and is difficult to reach – especially where a personal relationship does not exist. This campaign achieved cut-through by using high creativity, personalisation, intelligent media choices and strong database segmentation.
Media, channels or techniques used personalisation
Personalised URLs (PURLs), such as www.showmeavayaflare.com/b2b.awards were used to deliver relevant messages, allow landing page content to be matched to the piece of communication, and enable online interactions to be tracked to enhance follow-up telemarketing.
Thought leadership
In order to credibly present the case for collaboration technology in enterprise, whitepapers and third-party research from Forrester (for C-suite) and Wainhouse Research (for IT Professionals) were promoted as part of the campaign content. A series of articles on collaboration were specifically written for the C-suite audience.
Video
Video demos of the product were used due to video’s growing popularity.
Social enablement
The campaign landing pages, video content and email comms included social sharing capabilities. A social media plan was set up to continue pushing the campaign messages and assets on social sites.
Direct comms
The two audiences were contacted with different direct communications. Calls to action were consistent:
- Visit the campaign microsite for a rich experience of the solution.
- Download valuable third party content.
- Visit the Avaya customer forum or an Executive Briefing Centre.
1. Video direct mail (C-Suite prospects) a unique asset which includes a video screen and audio within a card Direct Mail piece.
2. High impact DM (C-Suite) with USB key content preloaded in nine languages, including demo video, insight articles into the business case and benefits - 2,195 sent, 12 per cent online visitors.
3. Volume DM (IT decision maker) physically represented theDesktop Video Device itself, and had a strong PURL call-to-action driving recipients online to experience a video and interactive flash video. - 6,800 sent, four per cent online visitors.
4. Email Comms for all contacts. There were four bespoke messages for each audience. The emails used different messaging to trigger a response using the PURLs. - 54,000 CXO emails sent, average open rate 17 per cent (max. 33 per cent), average click through two per cent (max. seven per cent).
- 60,000 IT emails sent, average open rate 20 per cent (max. 38 per cent), average click through three per cent (max. eight per cent).
5. Campaign landing page included interactive flash product demo, product videos and downloadable value-content. - PURLs determined content and messaging.
- 23 per cent of contacts visited at least twice – with some as many as 23 times.
6. Telemarketing was carried out in each country, after sufficient level of online engagement. Tracking from PURLs allowed prioritisation the recipients of the assets.
7. Global tactics that this campaign supported include PR, advertising online and offline.
Events
Avaya customer forums were held in many countries with an IDC analyst presenting, adding credibility to the business case for collaboration technology.
Channel campaign
All assets were available to channel partners through a selfservice partner portal as well as a full services program called Market Leaders: a unique platform where Avaya customises and deploys lead generation campaigns on partners’ behalf.
Media partnership – lead generation
To re-target our C-suite audience and maximise the media multiplier effect, thought-leadership articles were written and passed to CXO Europe for promotion in their magazine and online. Registrants could download these and analyst whitepapers (351 registrations).
Campaign timescales
- Planning/concepts: October-November 2010
- Production/build: December-January 2011
- Direct/digital comms: February 2011 (ongoing)
- Telemarketing: March 2011 (ongoing)
- Media partnership: January-March 2011
- Roadshow: February-June 2011
Client testimonial
Simon Downs, head of marketing programmes, EMEA at Avaya said, “The team have done themselves proud in being able to offer the countries such a rich campaign, and one that clearly got the messaging and targeting spot on. To have met our pipeline target after only half the campaign period really is phenomenal. And to confirm this success, other regions outside of EMEA are now deploying this campaign as well.”
