Oscar-worthy direct mail campaign generates 15X ROI

The cool thing is, we automated everything in Sendoso and integrated it with our CRM to track each step. Then, we pulled that information into Eloque, where we could automate the eGift email instead of manually uploading a list. That's all worked really well.

Critics are raving about Zendesk’s direct mail strategy thanks to automation from Sendoso. Integrating Sendoso into their workflow shifted Zendesk’s 1:1 sends into a robust direct mail program that’s producing big results.

Zendesk is a customer service platform that helps more than 200,000 brands connect with their customers via chat, email, messaging, social channels, communities, review sites, and help centers.

Early on, Zendesk didn’t have any automation or integration capabilities for direct mail. The switch to Sendoso now means Zendesk’s direct mail marketing campaigns flow seamlessly from their CRM to their marketing automation platforms.

Making movie magic with direct mail

The Zendesk marketing team launched several virtual alcohol tastings during the start of the COVID-19 pandemic to engage their audience in lieu of in-person events.

As winter approached, they wanted to offer a more family-friendly experience for prospects.

They browsed the Sendoso Direct catalog and decided on an at-home movie night kit complete with popcorn, snacks, a movie trivia game, and a movie-themed cookbook. The team also included a Zendesk-branded blanket.

“We wanted to add a Zendesk touch to the gift,” said Kimberly Walker, senior regional marketing associate. “We added a branded blanket to make sure our prospects had everything they needed for a movie night.”

The team worked with account executives to identify top contacts already in conversation with sales. The goal was to accelerate open deals by creating a memorable brand experience that made Zendesk stand out from competitors.

The power of integrated marketing tools

To execute the send, the team used Sendoso’s Address Confirmation feature to ensure the gifts were delivered to the right place. They also used the Oracle Eloqua integration to automate the emails.

Walker said Address Confirmation was beneficial.

“We had tried a direct mailer before Sendoso, but people were hesitant to share their mailing address. Sendoso gives them more confidence, helping them understand that their address isn’t being shared across other platforms. That’s helped our opt-in rate for direct mailers since we can’t just send them to people’s offices anymore.”

The team used the Salesforce integration to track responses and trigger deliveries to contacts as they opted in.

Once the contacts received the gift, the marketing team used Eloqua to send an automated Amazon eGift card so contacts could rent a movie. Finally, the sales reps kept the conversation going by using the Sendoso Outreach integration to ask about their movie night experience.

Driving direct mail results in a virtual world

The Zendesk team was thrilled with the results.

They delighted hundreds of prospects with movie kits. The campaign achieved a 15X ROI, as well as a 2,000% quarter-over-quarter increase in new business pipeline generation attributed to direct mail.

Anecdotally, they also saw high engagement and positive feedback from both the customers and their sales reps. “Our sales team was excited about leveraging this gift and sending it to prospects,” said Aaron Nicholas, integrated campaigns manager.

Many prospects proactively reached out to thank the Zendesk reps. Below are some of the thank you messages like the one below:

Just wanted to send a quick thank you for the movie night gift box. Such a fun little gift to receive and my kiddo was VERY impressed with [the] microwave popcorn bowl/seeds. I guess he’s never seen popcorn that is not already in a bag!

The marketing team also celebrated the time saved thanks to Sendoso’s automation and integrations. They will continue to scale their direct mail program in the future.

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