Chadwick Greenhalgh, VP of Strategic Services at Euro RSCG Edge, learned years ago the value of bringing a client’s message directly to the prospect. His firm created a mouse pad for its client, Barclays Global Investors, which showed their iShares product list. The customers “couldn’t get enough of these mouse pads,” he recalls. But he then took the strategy a step further: He created an “electronic mouse pad” - putting the iShares product list in a widget. About 18 months ago, Barclays authorized a “test” widget program, which was called the iShares Quick Finder. “Euro RSCG Edge promoted the widget on the iShares.com website, using e-mail marketing and even a few banners. And you know what? People installed it. And used it,” says Greenhalgh. They even clicked on the widget — which opened a browser and took them to the website. “We even found that the widget generated repeat visits,” he notes. Enough people were using the widget that the agency was authorized to build a second one. “Widgets provide an opportunity for marketers to reach their most valuable customers — current customers who use their products on a frequent basis,” notes Greenhalgh. “And unlike more traditional forms of advertising that can come off as … well … advertising, widgets can be seen as providing content that your customers want. It’s the ultimate opt-in program. And who can deny the brand-building power of having your company’s logo as an icon or a dashboard that sits on your customer’s computer desktop every day?”

Go to: MediaPost

Posted January 6th, 2009 under Intellectual Property Marketing

Write a comment