2023 Gold Mail

Agency: PSE

Client: Mr & Mrs Smith

Entry Name: A Smith Award Entry?

Executive Summary

Entering its 20th year of trading, Mr & Mrs Smith had become an aspirational household name in luxury travel, yet it had seen previous direct mail campaigns fail to live up to expectations. The brief was to prove the channel could still deliver a profitable ROI.

Strategy

The luxury end of the travel industry is awash with aspirational imagery but little that creates an emotional connection to the brand. Mr & Mrs Smith carved a niche against the Goliath industry players, so the team needed to create a mailing that appealed to active and lapsed customers alike.

Working in true collaboration, the team devised a clear strategy including extensive customer analytics to identify the audience and content required to deliver success.

The campaign started with existing customer insights. First, the agency identified the behavioural segments of the database, separating the active membership base from those who had previously booked once or multiple times, to create a win-back programme.

Creativity

The creative brief asked for an aspirational piece that fed the emotional travel feelings without being a traditional January peak “sale and hard sell”. Using the JICMAIL insight that a travel mailing will be interacted with 4.6 times, the goal was to create something that built on that and “lived” on the coffee table for a longer time period. With Client and Agency collaborating at every stage and using the client’s in-house studio, they developed a content plan based on insights. The content included a mix of shorter breaks and longer stays, a blend of UK and overseas, all with an immersive approach so that the customer could see themselves in that place. To create an immediate differentiation from other luxury operators, the outer envelope used the line “HOTEL LOVERS ONLY ASK ONE QUESTION… ... BUT IS IT A SMITH HOTEL?” Inside was an 8pp newspaper called “Room Service” that stood out from all the brochures being sent by competitors. Aspirational content showcased the Top 9 places to visit in 2023, based on the destinations and product types usually booked in January but written in a Sunday Supplement way, teasing the reader on to the website and phone.

Results

For Judges eyes only

The Team

PSE - Beth Marston, Growth Consultant - Chris Holton, Head of Data and Analytics

Mr & Mrs Smith - Mary Pottinger, Senior Loyalty & CRM Manager - Holly Devine, CRM and Loyalty Executive - Louisa Morris, Head of Marketing Campaigns & Partnerships - Richard MacKichan, Editor In Chief - Hannah Dace, Contributing Editor - Martin Dickie, Contributing Editor - Stephanie Gavan, Contributing Editor - Emilie Hall, Contributing Editor - Caroline Lewis, Contributing Editor - Ellie Nelson, Contributing Editor - Hamish Roy, Contributing Editor - Kate Weir, Contributing Editor - Michaela Watkinson, Picture Editor

Contributors