OgilvyOne Worldwide hits the bulls-eye by surrounding consumers with the right message

OgilvyOne Worldwide uses its proprietary 360 Degree Brand Stewardship™ process to build the brand at every point of contact with a customer. From a CRM standpoint, it creates connectivity any way a customer turns.

Ogilvy has brought this all-the-angles approach to some of the most respected names in business: Jaguar, American Express and Unilever, to name a few.

This method of managing a customer’s experience with a brand starts with a customer research and segmentation process that tells exactly who the best customer is, where they are in the purchase process and what barriers exist.

“We really get into the client’s customer data,” explains Michelle Bottomley, OgilvyOne Worldwide general manager of consulting services. “We identify a company’s best prospects and define their experience with the brand. We analyze the purchase process at every stage and create a message relevant to them at each point.”

One of Ogilvy’s clients, a Fortune 100 technology company, provides a good example of 360-degree success. The company launched a recent campaign for its corporate customers – a segment that makes expensive, multiphase purchase decisions and requires vendors who understand their business.

“We looked at best prospects and created a direct mail piece to drive those consumers to the Web site,” Bottomley says. “We put buttons on the site that said ‘click to chat’ and ‘click to agent.’ Those hits go to a call center and suddenly you’re talking or e-chatting back and forth with your potential buyer. It really makes prospects and customers feel like they’re being taken care of – which is key to this particular company’s branding strategy.”

Although the execution for this company was multifaceted, the hub of its media delivery was direct mail, sent to prospects by experts who understood the customer and the product. In fact, Ogilvy employs direct mail as a key tool in developing communications strategies because it effectively gets consumers to make contact and reinforces the brand process after the sale.

Ogilvy recommends follow-up through call centers, Web site interaction, direct mail or a combination. When direct mail is the follow-up, it’s geared to the brand and objective – such as an invitation to a specific sales pitch. “It’s direct mail that really does the heavy lifting, driving customers to the Web or a call center,” Bottomley explains. “From there, we create relevant fulfillment to close the sale.”

When consumer goods giant Unilever wanted to zero in on their best target, busy moms, Bottomley’s group created a glossy custom magazine called Home Basics to sell the company’s 17 brands (which include Lipton, Dove, and Slim-Fast).

“We realized the best way to connect with Unilever’s best prospects was with a magazine that offers practical tips for the busy mom,” she says. “It gave us the perfect platform to promote all the brands. Instead of direct selling Lipton’s mint tea, we do a story on relaxing and the tea is part of the solution. It’s been very successful.”

Ogilvy’s approach to matching consumers and their everyday needs with brands that can fulfill them is a product of careful stewardship, as the name, 360 Degree Brand Stewardship, suggests. Their 360-degree take on that has helped grow their circle of corporate relationships.

“We put as much focus on that initial response to a promotion – someone raising their hand and saying they’re interested in Unilever, a new Jag or whatever – as we do in how we respond to that interest,” adds Bottomley. “What we do from there is build a relationship between them and the brand so we can bring them through the marketing funnel, turn them into a customer and build lifetime loyalty.”