TAXI DELIVERS KNOCKOUT PUNCH - Strategy

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so far and have been viewed 18,000 times. Says Layton, “The
podcasts bring the content alive for people: it virtually takes
them to wineries, introduces them to the personalities behind
the bottles. We recognize it’s a digital age and people are going
to online sources more and more.”
Looking forward, Transcontinental’s Gagné hints at several
major announcements to come regarding new clients and initiatives.
Already, the company is working on projects that interface
with Facebook and BlackBerry applications. “That’s the
future,” he says. Transcontinental’s fl urry of activity is in stride
with the growth of the custom publishing category itself. “Recent
research notes that custom publishing is second only to
word of mouth as the fastest-growing area of marketing, and
that growth is forecast to be steady until 2012,” notes Gagné.
Power to the people
While creating relevant content on multiple platforms is key,
reaching people in targeted sectors is, too. Across its properties,
Transcontinental has amassed a database of 7.5 million Canadians.
“We have very detailed socio-graphic information on these
customers,” says Gagné. “When you’re looking at how to reach a
very specifi c audience, having those names and being able to access
those people in a permission-based way is a major asset. It gives our
clients the opportunity to use their content for aquisition purposes
as well as for their existing customers. Essentially, our clients can
build far beyond their own existing databases with our help.”
To make sure newsletter and print drivers are reaching the right
people, Redwood offers a comprehensive customer relationship
management service that can create or investigate a client’s database
to identify the value of a customer to an enterprise and how
much a company should spend against that customer to extract
the greatest return. “The focus is to build a database our clients
own,” explains Schneider. “Data itself is a commodity, but it’s how
we translate it into something actionable where we feel we really
The current uncertainty about the fi -
nancial health of global markets will
undoubtedly prompt brands to reexamine
their budgets. Trimming marketing
dollars is often an easy route to lighter
spending, but may not be wise for initiatives
that help retain customers – a
key role of custom publishing. “Research
has proven it’s easier to retain an existing
client than acquire new ones,” says
Stéphane Gagné, VP of business development
at Transcontinental Media who
heads up Transcontinental’s custom content
services.
Gagné asserts that moving from mass
marketing to more tailored, one-to-one
communication methods results in a better
return on investment. “We are in an information
age rather than an ad age,” he says.
“There are so many messages out there
that Canadians have become increasingly
selective - there’s still only 24 hours in a
day. In this environment, the 30-second
message is not as effective as it used to be.”
Custom publishing speaks to people’s interests
directly while connecting to a brand’s
message. Magazines such as Shine, which
Transcontinental Custom Communications
custom publishing
left: Shine magazine, produced by Transcontinental Custom Communications,
was the centerpiece of Dove Hair’s integrated campaign in 2008 right: Highly sought-after
home movers receive Canada Post’s Smartmoves magazine
strut our stuff.” For companies such as The Home Depot, Aeroplan,
Sobeys and others, the resulting return on objective – be it
brand equity, a strong brand/consumer relationship that creates
advocacy or sheer sales uplift – is the proof in the pudding.
Conclusion
By leveraging cross-platform initiatives and customer intelligence,
custom publishing gives brands an edge in getting the
most from their customers over the long haul. “It’s about customer
relationship management,” says Redwood’s Barbieri. The
LCBO is now one the largest liquor and wine buyers in the world
and Food & Drink is an important part of its success. “That kind of
targeted marketing is valuable,” says Layton. “It helped market
the LCBO brand and parlayed the effect beyond fi nancial benefi
ts to much more customer satisfaction.” Perhaps that’s the real
future of marketing.
Retaining customers, increasing value
Transcontinental: building relationships
produces for Unilever Dove, continue to
cut through the clutter to reach target audiences.
“Consumers have a love affair
with magazines, and the affair will continue
into the digital age. People are happy to
pick up a magazine in store, put it on the
coffee table and read it at their leisure. In
America, custom magazines have grown in
number by 14.5% last year. If you look at
Europe, four of the fi ve biggest magazines
by circulation are now custom. That’s partly
because the budgets companies invest in
these magazines aren’t limited to advertising.
They also build great loyalty and ROI.”
november 2008
s23