Client
The client
Saturn Executive are market leaders in executive recruitment. They offer specialist expertise in succession planning and transition management services for business owners. Saturn Executive excel at finding effective business leaders through their Leadership Transition Service.
The brief
The team at The Bridge were tasked with finding and delivering prospective customers for Saturn's transition and succession planning service. Our target audience was Auckland-based business owners aged between 50 to 65 years old.
The solution
We developed a highly targeted and engaging direct marketing campaign that communicated the importance of effective succession planning and the services provided by Saturn Executive. The direct marketing campaign encompassed direct mail, email, telephone and online content.
Reaching the right customers was fundamental for the success of this campaign. Our first step was to develop an effective customer profile for our target audience so we could develop relevant messaging and find compatible targets within commercial data sets.
Our communications centred around a thought-provoking book called 20 Good Summers which encourages business owners to think about their personal and financial goals. The campaign also involved working with Hayes Knight to co-brand the communications and utilise their Succeed publication targeted at the succession market.
Proposition development:We worked closely with Saturn Executive to build a targeted proposition that would resonate with the target audience. In order to motivate business owners we had to effectively communicate the value of engaging the services of Saturn Executive. The message also had to appeal to business owners that were in varying stages of succession planning. A key part of this process was to develop a high impact message using an appropriate tone of voice for the target market. We also incorporated the key themes from 20 Good Summers in the overall communication.
Online content:We developed compelling success stories for the Saturn Executive website. This content was important for communicating how other businesses had benefited from engaging the services of Saturn Executive.
Direct mail:We developed a targeted direct mail package that included a personalised letter accompanied by 20 Good Summers and the Succeed magazine. The letter communicated the importance of succession planning and created a sense of urgency. The core message also encouraged business owners to think about their business could help them to achieve their personal goals.
We posed the question: how could this summer be different for you? The letter encouraged the receiver to take action now and make contact with Saturn Executive.
Email:A follow-up e-mail was delivered to each business owner to reinforce the core sales message and motivate them to take immediate action. The e-mail featured compelling NZ statistics regarding the aging business owner and its projected impact on future business succession rates. The e-mail also provided active links to a selection of compelling success stories featured on the Saturn Executive website.
Sales calls:Saturn Executive personnel followed-up with each of the business owners by telephone in order to continue the dialogue around succession planning.
The result
Our highly targeted campaign resulted in 18% of the prospective customers engaging in a business discussion with Saturn Executive. This interaction enabled Saturn Executive to present the unique benefits of their service offer with 61% progressing towards a commercial relationship.
Rob Young
Director
Saturn Executive