PUBLIC BROADCASTING CASE STUDY: KQED

SITUATION:

With over 300,000 members, KQED is one of the leading public radio and television stations in the San Francisco Bay Area. Not surprisingly, KQED is constantly searching for ways to strengthen this position by better servicing its growing audience with more powerful programming and two-way member interaction, and by increasing membership revenue. In 2001, this search led KQED to pursue an online direct marketing campaign.

The idea of an online direct marketing campaign appealed to KQED on several levels. In comparison to traditional direct marketing campaigns, an online approach offered dramatic time and material savings over traditional direct marketing campaigns and better overall response rates. Second, an online solution allowed KQED to provide information that was far more targeted, timely and valuable to their target audience. Finally, an online marketing campaign allowed KQED to initiate the kind of ongoing, two-way interaction that increased member involvement, loyalty and revenues.

OBJECTIVES:

To get the most from its efforts, KQED needed its online marketing campaign to accomplish several different tasks. These tasks were divided into two distinct phases. In the first phase, KQED hoped to actively collect email addresses that would enable the launch of a high-quality monthly newsletter, 'Qed Up.' KQED was also hoping to increase its programming reach by leveraging a new media platform in the same thought-provoking manner as their radio and television. Optimally, this would become the most popular broadcast medium in the Bay Area. Finally, KQED wanted to increase the efficiency and decrease the costs generated by its traditional direct mail and telemarketing efforts.

Following the successful launch of an email newsletter, the second phase would be focused on soliciting membership funds from readers, expanding KQED into new revenue-generating activities and, most importantly, expanding usage across the enterprise into different departments while still presenting viewers and listeners with a unified identity.
To do this, the email newsletter needs to provide a strong editorial voice and tone that actively engaged readers and that complimented the radio and TV programming.

SOLUTION:

Backed by a range of secure, Web-hosted applications and extensive real-world experience, LocalVoice's unique, advanced message personalization capabilities, pre-populated commerce forms, open architecture, and superior customer service made it the perfect partner for KQED's permission marketing foray on the Internet.

After careful analysis, LocalVoice put together a package of technology and services that allowed KQED to lower its direct marketing and telemarketing costs and increase effectiveness. Results from the online direct marketing campaign were reported in real time so that critical information could be updated immediately as the campaign unfolded. And as always, LocalVoice's commitment to excellence extended past its technology to include excellent customer service.

In creating KQED's online direct marketing campaign, LocalVoice was involved in far more than just the technological aspects. LocalVoice drew from its experience to assist with establishing the editorial tone, proofing, design, timing of sends, interpreting results and planning subsequent campaigns. In fact, once the initial campaign had been completed, LocalVoice helped KQED expand their e-marketing program by enabling monthly online e-renewals with a pre-populated commerce form and by facilitating the unique tracking of conversion rates. KQED also began to expand their e-marketing into different departments where it allowed them to efficiently detail opportunities, list program schedules, and share success stories and testimonials.

RESULTS:

Quite simply, the results of LocalVoice's involvement with KQED were overwhelming. In direct contrast with the low, and decreasing, effectiveness of traditional direct mail, KQED online efforts achieved an outstanding 60% HTML open rate and 7% click-through rate with just a 1.5% bounce rate. In addition, the email list quadrupled in the span of just 18 months. The high click-throughs and readership had the integrated marketing benefit of increasing web traffic and offline pledging. Subsequent emailings have helped KQED earn thousands in additional revenue each month from the e-renewals of lapsed memberships, driven new dollars through call-in pledging, and generated increased underwriting bookings for corporate support.

Not surprisingly, LocalVoice's efforts received high-praise both internally at KQED and from the readership base regarding the quality of the email newsletter, 'Qed Up.' In fact, the e-marketing program has been so successful that other local organizations have partnered with KQED to reach their members in promoting local events, such as the Osher Marin Jewish Community Center where event registration soared as a result of this partnering.