The impact of mobile marketing can’t be overstated. According to IDC, more people in the U.S. will access the Internet through a mobile device than through their PC by 2015. In this new series, Elite Email takes a look at highly successful campaigns to uncover their mobile marketing lessons. This week’s case study: How Sara Lee’s State Fair brand helped one luck person win a dream home and build awareness for the organization’s line of corn dogs. Corn dogs may not be the epitome of fine cuisine in the dining world, but it’s hard to argue with the great taste of this enjoyable treat once you give it a chance. Even so, the team at Sara Lee knew that promoting their line of State Fair products would require something extra special. To find out how this brand broke through with consumers in grocery stores across North America, let’s take a few minutes to look the stellar SMS campaign that made this marketing dream become a reality.
A Deal Unlike Any Other
If there’s one thing you need to know about marketing corn dogs to customers on-the-go, it’s that undertaking this SMS goal requires a deal unlike any other to succeed. With this in mind, the marketers at Sara Lee decided to offer over 10,000 prizes as part of the mobile campaign. At the top of this prize list was a staggering $500,000 that the winner could put toward the home of his or her dreams. All participants had to do to enter the contest and have a shot at this life-changing offer was to text the keyword “STATEFAIR” to the short code 75309.By following this simple request, entrants in the contest could learn more about the prizes offered and receive instructions on how to redeem codes, which could then be entered on the campaign’s unique website for a chance to win. Naturally, few SMS programs have ever embraced a campaign of this magnitude while trying to build a lasting relationship with contact list members, but that didn’t ensure that this initiative in particular would be an instant success.
Spreading the Word
To back up this unheard of promotion, Sara Lee spared no expense in terms of getting the message to its target audience. Speaking of the target audience, this brand honed in on a very specific demographic – busy moms, aged 25 to 44, with two or more children.Aside from releasing new promotional packaging for the State Fair line of corn dogs and keying in on specific shoppers, the team at Sara Lee also utilized email blasts to leverage the brand’s established email marketing contact list, social media pages, and a new campaign microsite filled with promotional material and the aforementioned ability to redeem entry codes.
Reaping the Rewards
Over the nine month duration of the SMS campaign, Sara Lee recorded an astounding amount of support and interest. In total, thousands of visitors connected with the brand, averaging five site visits per SMS subscriber and four and a half page views per visit. Considering that the campaign site only had five unique pages, these numbers become even more impressive. If that’s not enough to convince you that Sara Lee unlocked the power of connecting with customers via text, the fact that the campaign finished with an opt-in retention rate of 80 percent should be more than enough to change your mind.
Writing Your Own SMS Dream Story
So now that there’s no questions surrounding the outcome of Sara Lee’s SMS endeavor, let’s talk about how your brand can tap into the power of texting as well. First off, you don’t have to give away $500,000 to turn your campaign into a hit. Sure, it could definitely generate some serious buzz, but as long as you offer something of value, like a limited time discount or coupon, you’ll get a positive response from your audience.Speaking of your audience, one of the biggest reasons the State Fair promotion took off is because the team behind this program knew who to focus on when the time came to start spreading the word. Naturally, your products might not share the same demographic consisting of busy moms trying to keep their hungry kids happy and fed, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t spend some time honing in on the proper target audience. If you can line this portion of the SMS process up with a strong set of offers and accessible promotional materials, the sky is the limit for where this kind of campaign can take your brand.
