Objective: Acquire Profitable New Business in a Growing Market Segment

The Challenge: KeyBank's Real Estate Capital® division wanted to grow its share of the housing development market. A five-year record high of new construction had left builders skeptical of lenders due to a highly competitive capital lending environment.  As a result the standard "run-an-ad" regimen was not enough to create a meaningful point of differentiation for KeyBank.

The Goal: KeyBank wanted to create unique communications that would grab builders' attention and hold it with vise-grip tenacity.  KeyBank’s team knew that they would need to learn more about their customers' and prospects' needs, interests and behaviors. To accomplish this KeyBank partnered with Epsilon to help them analyze customer data and leverage that knowledge to gain valuable insight at every touch point throughout the customer lifecycle—generating a breakthrough creative strategy and marketing program.

The Solution: After careful analysis of all of KeyBank’s relevant customer data, Epsilon recommended and created a three-part marketing campaign that was integrated with the largest builder tradeshow, the 2005 International Builders' Show, and tied to KeyBank's entry into the Southeast regional market:

Part 1. The Save-The-Date Postcard
Epsilon and KeyBank identified the top 5,000 qualified builders who were attending the show and developed a simple save-the-date direct mail piece inviting them to KeyBank’s reception during the conference.

Part 2. The Silver Toolbox Mailer
Because of the conference’s Orlando location and the fact that KeyBank was new to the Southeast — Epsilon and KeyBank worked together to pinpoint 100 top-priority prospects who build over 100 homes a year in the Southeast, cross-referenced their proximity to KeyBank branches, and targeted them to receive a second, more targeted “silver toolbox” mailer. 

Part 3. The Remote Deal-Closer
The final piece of the puzzle was sending those key prospects a box containing the remote that operated a radio-controlled truck, which was hand-delivered by a KeyBank executive at the customer-appointed time.

Through this three-tier approach, Epsilon successfully created a buzz among key prospects who took the time to receive the mailings and meet with a KeyBank representative. The campaign communicated KeyBank's keen interest in being their long-term financial partner, and expressed their unique value proposition—proving that understanding and relating to the customer is paramount to any and every customer communication.

The Result: Epsilon's work helped build KeyBank’s sales pipeline to the tune of 21 sales appointments, driving an estimated revenue of $1.24 million for this KeyBank program alone — all on an initial investment of under $50,000.

Customer Insight Realized™:  KeyBank enjoys working with Epsilon's awarding-winning creative team, which has won more than ten creative awards since 2004 for their work on KeyBank programs. To find out how Epsilon’s best-of-breed multi-channel marketing solutions can help you optimize your customer relationships and grow your marketing ROI, call 1-800-309-0505 or email.