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Email Marketing Award Winners 2007

Email Marketing Award Winner
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Email Marketing Award Winner
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Best Postcard-Style Campaign:
Honorable Mention
Basement Systems Online Info Pack


Brand/Client Side Team:
Richard Fencil, Evan Islam, Lauren Crowley, Sherri Masek, Lisa Pantaleo, Denise Coogan, Holly Wengler

MarketingSherpa Summary - Why They Won:
One of the reasons we like this campaign is because it proves neither email nor direct postal mail should stand alone. By sending the same prospect different pieces of useful information via email and mail, this local home improvement company scored many more meetings with sales reps. This is an idea that any company with a complex sale (automotive, high-end beds, financial services, business products and services) should consider copying.

From Their Nomination Form:
Basement Systems is an international network of 300 basement waterproofing and crawl space repair contractors, selling and installing waterproofing systems to homeowners in five countries. As part of our sales process, as soon as an appointment with a customer is scheduled, we send an information packet by postal mail that costs $11.20 (including materials and postage) per customer. We were determined to find a way to improve this process, helping to further differentiate ourselves from our competitors and increase our professional appearance. So in March 2006, we began to ask each customer if they would like to receive our information packet in their email. The online packet contains all the same material, plus additional videos, but less a book that we still send parcel post. The trigger to send an email is when we receive a customer's email address at the point of scheduling a sales appointment. Then a personalized email is sent on behalf of the company representative who will be visiting the customer.

This has saved the Connecticut dealership (sample dealership) $4.80 per customer, but more importantly has increased the appearance of being the more savvy and sophisticated company. The data from this Connecticut dealership shows that we have sent 41% of all information packets electronically since beginning in March 2006. This has saved the company $9,184, or 17% of this cost -- plus the customer a more savvy, robust product. We've also gathered 1,913 email addresses that the sales representatives use to stay in direct contact with their customers. The data shows that 41% of our customers across the first year, and 68% more recently, have requested to receive this information via email, which nets us a savings of $4.80 per customer. This has saved $9,184, or 17% of the total cost in 11 months for this information packet. Although we haven't yet tracked this for open rates, as to do so would add additional steps to the appointment takers process, we have tracked it against all other appointments where the Information Packet was sent parcel post, and closing ratios remain consistent.